1st turkey season questions.

[Pygmy]

Short barrels are fine for turkey as long as you have an adequate sighting system. My 11-87 has a 21" barrel and I've killed a bunch of turkeys with it. I have used several different sighting systems, from rib-mounted aftermarket fiberoptic sights, to a Bushnell holosight, to my present setup, a Leupold 1x4 Vari-x II. All have worked well. I do use an extended turkey choke, a Kick's Gobblin' Thunder .665".

However, if to plan to wingshoot with the gun, the riot barrel is too short and whippy. You'd be better off with a 26" vent rib barrel equipped with choke tubes and some type of low profile adjustable sights. You won't want a red dot or a scope on it if you plan to use it for wingshooting.

[The_Real_TCIII]

If you hear really bad calling in the woods it's almost ALWAYS a real hen

[nyslowhand]

As funny & stupid as the above comment may sound, it is true!

 

Long barrel length & super full chokes are a trade-off. Give really dense & tighter (small) patterns at closer distances, but give suitable patterns at longer distance.

 

As you've seen from most members, a shot size of #5 or 6 is prefered. I personally use the #5/6 combo as my gun likes it!

 

Think I've purchased most every turkey call ever made over the years. Part of my gobbler hunting ADD..! Never could seem to master the slate/glass calls, just me! Had a ~30yo Quaker Boy box call that seemed to never fail me. Distance, tone, call varieties, etc. Could even hold it backwards and give a 1/2 a$$'ed gobble. Cheap box calls in the big box hunting stores are mass produced from cheap, less desirable woods. Thus, the tone is not great on most. FYI - Not promoting this, but on ebay you can get a great box call that's handmade out of more preferable woods and sometimes even etched with designs for ~$50. For the beginner, definitely a slate or box call to begin with, but you'll eventually want to get proficient with a mouth (diaphragm) call for close-up, hands-free calling.

 

Set-up is paramount! Meaning, for example - if you're s/u in an open area calling & the Tom doesn't see the hen, he'll lose interest. Or, if in thicker cover, they can come in silent & be in your lap when you're not prepared to shoot! Also, there's a fine balance between over calling and not keeping the gobbler interested. All part of the frustrating learning curve of hunting gobblers. Fun, addictive and frustrating, all at the same time!

 

TV shows depicting turkey hunting are ....misleading, at best. Most are in areas where turkey populations are very high. Like others have mentioned, a 30min show has been edited from hours/days of hunting and make it look almost too easy! Best you can hope to gain from watching them are the basics. Wish I could point you in the specific direction, but the very best one I've ever seen was video of just the turkeys milling around & their sounds (calls) with no hunting. May have been on YouTube..?

 

Do NOT use actual turkey calls when scouting in pre-season!!! Lot of the reason why public land gobblers are so hard to hunt. When hunting, as you'll find out, shock calls like crow, woodpecker, bike horns (??), etc sometimes get a response gobble. If they are close, these calls give you a better chance to s/u. If you've located a nearby Tom with a turkey sound, he may already be on his way in and it becomes a WTF scenario. lol

 

BTW - If you don't own one, get a ThermaCell. Nothing more distracting than trying to "talk turkey" when the small black flies are swarming around your face mask! Not to mention, getting eated alive!

 

The first one you get after he's come in to your calling, all fanned out, strutting, feverishly gobbling, whether a 4" or 10" beard......YOU'LL BE HOOKED!!!!

Edited December 21, 2014 by nyslowhand

[zeus1gdsm]

Thanks for the advice all.. I'm going try and find a smith in the local area and see if they can assist with a permenant bead or iron sights and determine the choke thread for this barrell.

As well as keep on the lookout for a 24 or 26in vent for wing shooting..

Edited December 21, 2014 by zeus1gdsm

[growalot]

I took these while sitting in my blind before season opened a few years ago....it is a favorite spring feeding area for some reason...I think little blk beetles......... so I built a raised blind there....they then started roosting right over the blind  so I have to go in way before light...Lol...... hearing them thunder in the morning right above your head is a trip.......Have fun this season...

[zeus1gdsm]

Man if those pics don't get ya fired up I don't know what will!!!!

[Dr. Honk]

I have had most of my successful hunts in fields. Below is a hunt from last spring.

 

 

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Boi_5r7-P2A

[reeltime]

all good advice so far.  I love my bow hunting for deer but I eat breath and sleep turkeys! 

 

I do far more hours scouting than hunting, but I am looking for a specific feature on birds I want to 

hunt. SPURS.   by the time may 1st rolls around I usually have 60-70 longbeards located but only a handful of those are birds I am interested in hunting.

 

one thing that really needs stressed is SAFETY.  for whatever reason people seem to loose their minds when a turkey is gobbling and there are a number of issues each spring.

 

hunt defensively. never assume you are alone after a gobbling bird. always assume that the noise of something approaching is another hunter until you confirm otherwise. even on heavily posted and patrolled ground you can have someone sneak in on you.

 

be aware of your clothing, not just your camo but whats under it.  white, red, blues should not be worn, even under your camo so there is no chance of it being visible. I am extremely careful myself since I have pretty light colored hair and my beard is fairly white, even while walking I try to remember to keep my headnet on because of my white hair.

 

 

I always try to set up with a tree that is as large or larger than the width of my back. i like the woods to be a little more dense with not more than 50 yards of visibility.  I do not and have not used decoys in years, not even a hen decoy. I would never use a gobbler decoy.

 

my go to call is a burrville bomber made by Tim Fralick out of watertown, its a longbox but it is absolutely deadly on gobblers. i carry 3 or 4 box calls, 4 pot calls, mouthcalls, and a wingbone in my vest.  but hands down that bomber gets it done time and again.

 

knowing what to say or more importantly what not to say will pay dividends, the 2 most common mistakes made by hunters is 1. set up location  2. calling too much.  pay attention while scouting, wild hens don't waltze around the woods yapping non stop, they have learned that noisy birds get eaten, same goes with gobblers. I have noted far less gobbling over the last 5 years as the coyote population has increased, I have also noted an increase in predator kill sites involving turkeys the last few years with a large increase last spring.

I have killed more birds with 3 or less series of calls than doing an excessive amount of calling, don't get me wrong there are times and birds that you gotta hammer with the call but generally speaking soft calling will yield better results especially on heavily pressured birds.

 

I rarely ever call to a bird thats still on the limb unless I am right where I know he wants to go, then I will do a wing fly down with a quick soft cluck/yelp series.  a lot of times he will pitch right to me. if he moved and is in a different tree and does not have hens with him but wont respond once on the ground I will let him move off and then go to the tree he was roosted in and set up right there and then hit his with the calls.  I have killed a number of mature gobblers doing this, since its how its supposed to happen in nature, the hens go to the gobbler not the other way around.

 

as far as the gun goes, just about any gun will do as long as you know the effective range.  it takes some range time but you should be able to find a suitable choke/shell combo to have a 30-40 yard gun. I would recommend as others have said, some kind of sighting system, either rifle sights, or scope.  I have a dedicated turkey rig thats topped with a scope, I have done a lot of work to that gun to get it where its at but i am a turkey nut so I can justify it  

 

good luck, and I kinda feel sorry for ya knowing that its quite possible that the first time you call in a gobbler and you see that big black beach ball with a neon lightbulb walking towards you that you will be ate up on turkey hunting.......its a GOOD addiction!!

 

[growalot]

PS.....I always use scent control during turkey....spook the deer coming in and you spook the turkey you didn't see....

[The_Real_TCIII]

If you get a hen to answer, mimic her as best you can. I've had a couple occasions where the hen gets all fired up and charges in followed by a gobbler

[DirtTime]

At 4 am opening day, sneak real quite into your local 24/hour grocery mart! Full urban camo! Wait! When no one is looking, grab that bird and head for the checkout!

 

 

 

On a serious note, start scouting before mid April. Try mid March! Use #4 or #5's. 26" vent rib with full should work.

Blind or good ground cover.

Get a slate call, and a box call. A crow call or owl call can help locate them as well. It can spook them into telling their location on your way in. Or, if you like foreign things in your mouth use diaphragm calls.

[zeus1gdsm]

Alright so I got promos old crow call on the list and I'm torn between a box or slate.. I've found the lynch jet slate call. Yet can't find a large amount of reviews on it....

Anyone have one?

[letinmfly]

Alright so I got promos old crow call on the list and I'm torn between a box or slate.. I've found the lynch jet slate call. Yet can't find a large amount of reviews on it....

Anyone have one?

 

Take a look at these calls.  You won't find a better sounding call and especially for the money.

 

http://www.matthewscustomcalls.com/

[Pygmy]

Alright so I got promos old crow call on the list and I'm torn between a box or slate.. I've found the lynch jet slate call. Yet can't find a large amount of reviews on it....

Anyone have one?

 

Most Lynch Jet Slates have been bought up by collectors.

 

Put it aside for your grandson and  buy yourself  a current pot call from any number of of manufacturers ( Cody perhaps) or use your box call.

 

Pay attention to what Reeltime said. He is the real deal.

 

A few authentic sounding yelps at the right time from the right place will kill more gobblers than a whole bunch of fancy calling.

 

I speak from over 40 years of chasing turkeys with  a reasonable  amount of success.

 

Good luck...Be careful and have fun...

[zeus1gdsm]

I've actually read reel times post several times. As well as the entire thread to let it all sink in and marinate... The advice is much appreciated...

As far as Cody's are concerned I actually read an article on him and slate calls today.. As well as watched several box and slate call videos to get a feel for them... I may just get a basic promos box and slate. And work each to see which one I pick up the quickest.

After just dropping my fun money on new bibs and a muzzleloader I'm thinking I need to find a local smith to give me an estimate on redoing my short barrell.

[MACHINIST]

Dont waste your money,look for a replacement,I see them on craigslist and ebay all the time

Edited December 27, 2014 by MACHINIST

[zeus1gdsm]

Without a doubt there is always some on there.. Typically going for 150-200.. If I can get a bead or rifle sights on the old barrell for less than thats what I'll do... If smithing exceeds the cost of a barrel on eBay .

[jjb4900]

Without a doubt there is always some on there.. Typically going for 150-200.. If I can get a bead or rifle sights on the old barrell for less than thats what I'll do... If smithing exceeds the cost of a barrel on eBay .

I may have an extra barrel for a 500 laying around from a gun I no longer have, if I do, I'll pm you the details and a price if you're interested.

[zeus1gdsm]

Sure let me know

[stoneam2006]

Check local gun shows too....think I picked my barrel up for 60 bucks used

[reeltime]

thanks Pygmy,, your too kind.

 

I will certainly second the recommendation on the thermacell i have had one in my vest since Tim Herald turned me on to them many years ago.an absolute must have for skeeters and black flies.  

 

another piece of equipment I don't leave home without is a turkey seat, it has folding legs 2 short legs and 2 about an inch longer,  what a difference in comfort setting at the base of a tree. its not uncommon for me to be setting at a tree 1-2 hours before daylight. 

 

camo is a personal choice, before i switched to a leafy wear suit I used to use forest floor bibs and either a timber pattern jacket or a realtree pattern with more green as the season went on and more things greened up.

 

set up location is probably one of the biggest keys to being successful, you need to be where the gobbler is comfortable going, the best caller in the world is not calling a bird into an area he doesn't feel comfortable being in.  through scouting you will know where he likes to be, whether you pinpoint him by his gobbles, visual, or sign (feathers, tracks, dust bowls droppings) 

myself I don't like a blind, i like to run and gun and with a blind that's too much gear to tote. once I find a bird that I plan to hunt I have spots ready before season, I will clean out base of trees, clear a path to those trees, look at aerial photo's to find the easiest way in.

in some cases it takes more prep, a couple years ago I had a gobbler that had been giving me fits for 2 years no matter how i tried getting to him i couldn't get to where he went every day, posted on 2 sides a swamp around the other 2 sides.  that spring he had moved to #1 on my hit list as a 5 year old. so I went there just after ice out and spent 2 days clearing logs out of the water so I had a clear path in.  I had to go in there early because of the geese and knew i had to move slow so i didn't bust out the geese and tip him off, I got soaked going in there but I killed him the first week.

 

you will probably want to get a turkey vest, they have pockets for all your gear and keep things close to hand while your set up.  Also if you go with a slate or glass call pick up a few different strikers,  same pot with 3 different strikers can give you 3 different sounding hens.

 

if you want to pick up a some video's I would suggest Denny Gulvas, probably one of the best turkey men to ever walk the woods of Pa.

 

[zeus1gdsm]

Alright rather the. Start a new thread I'm updating this one....

I scored a new 26inch vent rib with a full choke set.. Currently looking for a extra full turkey choke..

I also got a slate call and was shocked how quickly I picked it up... Based on YouTube vids I'm pretty confident in my calling after practicing off and on for several weeks now..

Scored a hammock seat as well now just looking for a light weight self standing wall blind.. ( have my eye on a couple.)

It looks like I'll be hunting solo this season. My partner is kicking into workaholic mode with the snow melting.

I have a couple of spots in mind for sitting. Specifically spots in the woods where the trees are more spaced...providing decent sighlines..... Spots I sit for deer.... No decent clearings I've found thus far....

Also have full set of camo head to toe including face and gloves.

I'm thinking I may grab a single hen decoy for sighting purposes...

Currently scanning Google earth for clearings on state land.

[zeus1gdsm]

This is actually a mossy wetland area to heavy like me and you sink ankle deep.

And the typical woods listed. In the previous post...

Are either of these viable for state land turkey?

[G-Man]

They may roost along the wetland but will fly down into dry timber. some birds my not mind wet feet but most will not,spring seeps on hill sides are a good place as they geeen up quick and hold a lot of bugs as well.

[zeus1gdsm]

Thanks g-man.. I was thinking they wouldn't dig wet feet if they didn't have to... The roosting is helpful....

Would they prefer hardwoods or pines?