I am heading to Cabelas tomorrow Aug 23to get 2 dozen decoys of the Greenhead Gear Hot Buy Mallards. I have never duck hunted before and I wanted to try it out but as you can seeI don't want to spend a lot. So my question is do I need anchors and yes what ones do I get? I was looking into to getting theAce Decoy Anchors that have the j weight. Are these good ones to get? Also I was thinking of getting a adjustable length decoy retriever pole, is it worth spending the $20. to have one?

You picked the wrong sport to not spend $$$.
Those anchors are nice, but not necessary.

An anchor of some time is needed though, and it really depends on what kind of hunting you are going to be doing. If you are oging to have a boat to hunt from, then you don't really need the decoy retreiver. If you are hunting small pockets, and wading, then it will be useful as a wading stick, duck retreiver and decoy getter.

And Bass is right.... you picked the wrong sport to be frugal with!

Oh and one other thing.. for the money at Cabelas... I'd DEFINATELY buy Herters Mag Mallards over ANYTHING made by Avery. The Avery's are very nice, and I hunt over lots of them, but they aren't near as tough as Herters, nor do they look as attractive to ducks. They are also easier to maintain. I'd rather have 6 mag Herters than 24 Hot Buys any day.

i bought 8 oz strap weights and cut them in half. so i had twice as many 4 oz weights when i was done. most of my hunting is done in marshes. the dekes never drift away, there is enough vegatation on the bottom to hold them in place. 3 feet of available decoy cord per deke is plenty. i use tanglefree and crimps. any more than 3 feet takes too long to unwrap from the keel (but all mine are texas rigged).

I have 2 Doz "Hot Buy" mallards in my spread, and I'm very pleased with them. As for weights, I just bought the cheapest strap weights I could find, and a 500' spool of GHG chord. I like using strap weights because you can easily pinch them around your keel so you don't chip your paint, and if you ever get into the wind or a light current you can bend them into a U shape to help them hold the bottom. I don't know how much money you are willing to spend, but you may want to go this rout to get started.
http://cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templa...amp;hasJS=true

It has everything you need for rigging, and a bag to haul your gear to and from. The quivering duck buts don’t' do a lot when it is dead calm, but if there is a slight breeze the ripples add a little extra to your spread.

You dont need to spend much on string and weights. My suggestion with the decoys would be, buy 1 dozen hot buys, and 2 or 3 duck butts. Or 1 dozen hot buys, and half dozen of another species.

Most every hunter in the united states uses 1 or 2 dozen mallards exclusivly. If you make your spread stand out, and more appealing to the ducks, you will have better success.

Example, if you are hunting a small river, you dont need 2 dozen decoys. Heck, you dont even need one dozen.The key is to match your spread to what you would see in the areas you are hunting. If you have a lot of wood ducks, you better have some wood duck decoys. Another tip,since you are a beginner dont call too much. Most times over calling will just hurt you.

i use 20lb fishing line and 1in galvanized elbows.

I went yesterday and got the 12' retriever, 2 dozen hot buy decoys, and Elite air lucky decoy for the waterfowl part. They were out of the Ace anchors and for a big sale weekend they didn't have much of somethings unless it was blinds or decoys