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dirtybucker
02-14-2008, 02:21 PM
what is your ideal set up for shootin turkey? 12gauge, 20 gauge whats your favorite gun?

bighornbob
02-14-2008, 02:51 PM
17HMR would be perfect.

BHB

Brambles
02-14-2008, 04:00 PM
12 guage would be the most effective

riflebuilder
02-14-2008, 05:18 PM
I shoot a 16ga SXS or my Browning A5. Duplex loads #6's & #2's. this load puts them down fast. nothing better than seeing that Tom flapping around after a full load to the head. Wild turkey taste the best when golden brown.

Muleycatcher
02-14-2008, 08:03 PM
12 guage 3" mag shells with #4 shot and a full choke..work like a charm

Dirty
02-14-2008, 08:23 PM
With a 17hmr you could zap them from 200 yards without wind. Seems too easy almost

boxhitch
02-14-2008, 09:51 PM
With a 17hmr you could zap them from 200 yards without wind. Seems too easy almostEver watched a Turkey's head ? Have you ever seen it stationary, for more than a nano-second ?
good luck with the rim-fire.

JoshLedoux
02-14-2008, 10:14 PM
piece of pipe shogtun shell marble and hammer

sfire436
02-14-2008, 10:38 PM
Ideal set up for turkey? Gravy, cranberry sauce, a little stuffin' and some chilled white wine. And then a big ole fat nap!

Derek_Erickson
02-14-2008, 10:40 PM
I thought I seen somewhere, they couldnt be taken with rimfire or centerfire, correct me if I'm wrong? 8)



With a 17hmr you could zap them from 200 yards without wind. Seems too easy almost

Brambles
02-14-2008, 10:49 PM
I thought I seen somewhere, they couldnt be taken with rimfire or centerfire, correct me if I'm wrong? 8)

Can't use a centerfire rifle but you can use a rimfire.

I wouldn't recommend shooting a turkey in the body with a rimfire because you'll likely run out of ammo before it stops him, the only way to be sure with a rimfire is to head shoot them and since their heads are always moving it is best to keep the distances around 30 - 40 yards maximum. Basically the same range as a shotgun, so why bother, just use a shotgun. They are very smart birds and won't give you much time, it takes less time to line up on one with a shotgun then trying to lay a bead on him with a rimfire.

I have shot 2 turkeys with a .22 an one with a shotgun, I am going to try to use my bow this year since I hear the hardest thing to is draw on a turkey with a bow (unless your in a ground blind, which I don't have). If I wasn't using my bow then I'd be using my shotgun, no question about it.

boxhitch
02-15-2008, 12:09 AM
So how about from a treestand, with partner calling on the ground below ?

Brambles
02-15-2008, 12:38 AM
So how about from a treestand, with partner calling on the ground below ?


Turkeys can see in approx 270 degree circle and I'm not sure how that equates to vision above them, but I think it should work. If you have a partner, but i'd put him back 50 yards like elk hunting, maybe more depending on the terrain. I don't know about calling from a tree, not natural for turkeys to make those noises while roosting.

I usually hunt solo, and if I do hunt with a partner I''m usually the caller.:rolleyes:

Brambles
02-15-2008, 12:42 AM
Here's some eye candy

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v437/Brambles77/IMG_1033.jpg

Brambles
02-15-2008, 12:43 AM
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v437/Brambles77/IMG_1036.jpg

dirtybucker
02-16-2008, 12:51 PM
nice turkey brambles where did ya get him? ive got a nice little sweet spot in grand forks this year cant wait for the new season!

who_krs
02-16-2008, 03:37 PM
the regs. says rimfire, shotgun, bows

who_krs
02-16-2008, 03:41 PM
dirtybucker when are you going to Grand Forks
thats where I'll be headed as well
have relatives there so I'll have somewhere to stay when I'm there

GoatGuy
02-16-2008, 03:44 PM
Can't use a centerfire rifle but you can use a rimfire.


Not yet anyways

mark
02-16-2008, 05:16 PM
More turkey porn! cant wait till april!

http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/../photos/data/500/medium/IMG_1538.JPG (http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/../photos/showphoto.php?photo=2511&size=big&cat=500&ppuser=501)

Brambles
02-16-2008, 06:02 PM
nice turkey brambles where did ya get him? ive got a nice little sweet spot in grand forks this year cant wait for the new season!


In the head/neck area:smile:

huntwriter
02-19-2008, 07:56 PM
Having hunted turkeys all over North America for the past 15 years and based on that experience my favorite gun/load combinations would be as follows.

12 gauge pump shotgun (brand doesn’t matter much) chambered for 3 ½ “ shells. Not that you always need 3 ½ “ shells but its nice to know you can if needed.

Loads (brand doesn’t matter much) would be # 4, #5 or #6. Whatever size performs out to 35 to 40 yards best with a full or extra full (turkey) choke. In working up load and choke combinations I look for a load that puts at the very least consistently 3 pellets in a birds kill zone (brain and neck spinal column).

Having said all that, far more important than what gauge and load you use is how well you’re set up and how well (convincing) you can call. Best results for a quick clean kill are always at close range. All experienced turkey hunters, me included, try to get a tom to within 25 to 30 yards.

On a side note, I am planning to hold a turkey hunting clinic sometime in March and soon will post more information about it here on HBC. If you’re interested stay tuned for more to come or PM me.

boxhitch
02-19-2008, 08:09 PM
12 gauge pump shotgun (brand doesn’t matter much) chambered for 3 ½ “ shells. Not that you always need 3 ½ “ shells but its nice to know you can if needed.

Loads (brand doesn’t matter much) would be # 4, #5 or #6. Whatever size performs out to 35 to 40 yards best with a full or extra full (turkey) choke. In working up load and choke combinations I look for a load that puts at the very least consistently 3 pellets in a birds kill zone (brain and neck spinal column).

I feel insignificant. Mine is only 2 3/4 ". I thought anything bigger was only for pass-shooters.

Bowzone_Mikey
02-19-2008, 08:17 PM
what is your ideal set up for shootin turkey? 12gauge, 20 gauge whats your favorite gun?


Hoyt SuperTec ...with a load of Easton Axis with Gobbler Guillotines and Blazers
set up from behind a ground blind

Big7
02-19-2008, 08:27 PM
When I was younger, we used to use a weathered 3lb axe and an old block of pine or spruce about 20" in dia.......that seemed to work great!

huntwriter
02-19-2008, 08:47 PM
I feel insignificant. Mine is only 2 3/4 ". I thought anything bigger was only for pass-shooters.

You do not need to feel “insignificant” a 3 ¾ “ works just fine too. For years my turkey gun was a 3” pump and I still use in over 90% of my hunts 3” shells. But there are times, especially in the American Mid West where turkeys are under a lot of hunting pressure, were I use 3 ½ “ shells just to get that little bit more oomph and distance. Other occasions were I use 3 ½ shells are when we’re out filming hunts and time is of essence to the producers. In such situations you often have not the time you would like to call a tom close to you.

Brambles
02-19-2008, 10:06 PM
. In such situations you often have not the time you would like to call a tom close to you.


What Max range do you feel comfortable with while using the 3 1/2's?

who_krs
02-19-2008, 10:17 PM
are you allowed to shoot them from the roost?
is it illegal or unethical?

huntwriter
02-20-2008, 03:38 PM
What Max range do you feel comfortable with while using the 3 1/2's?

I am confident to shoot out to 40 yards using a turkey scope or front and rear beads. However, my preferred distance is at around 20 to 25 yards.

huntwriter
02-20-2008, 04:01 PM
are you allowed to shoot them from the roost?
is it illegal or unethical?

It is not illegal to shoot a turkey from the roost. However some hunters find it unethical or highly unsportsmanlike.

For me it just plain makes no sense to shoot a turkey out of the roosting tree and spoil the hunting area. The roosting tree is the turkeys sanctuary, a save place, where the flock will return too every evening. If the flock gets disturbed at the roosting tree they will go elsewhere. Meaning all your scouting would have to start over. Besides it is very unlikely that a hunter can sneak up to a roosting tree without being seen by the birds. Turkeys have very keen eyesight, equal to that of an eagle.

Scouting for turkeys starts by finding a roosting tree and then from there we find the food sources and the likely routes the flock will take. A hunter should never set up closer to a roosting tree than 100 to 150 yards and never within eyesight of the birds in the tree.

dave_fras
02-20-2008, 05:03 PM
im with bowzone mikey!!

dirtybucker
02-23-2008, 11:28 AM
I feel insignificant. Mine is only 2 3/4 ". I thought anything bigger was only for pass-shooters.

you feel insinificant ... im using a single shot 20 gauge:oops: but it works just fine i might ad...its never let me down

Chuck
02-23-2008, 11:06 PM
He says: The right choke (?) and 1 1/4 ozs of lead shot, the 20 guage is plenty for turkey out to 35 yards. The 3 inch 20 guage IS a most effective turkey gun.

huntwriter
02-24-2008, 02:25 PM
I am going to try to use my bow this year since I hear the hardest thing to is draw on a turkey with a bow (unless your in a ground blind, which I don't have). If I wasn't using my bow then I'd be using my shotgun, no question about it.

Shooting a tom with a bow is one of the toughest challenges, especially if you do not have a blind. But it can be done and has been done many times before.


The best way I have found to get a turkey with the bow is to lower the draw weight to 45lbs. This will let you pull the string long before the bird comes into vision and hold the bow drawn for quite a while without fatigue.

Set up behind a tree so that the approaching bird cannot see you. In addition choose a set up where the turkey has to walk within shooting range to see where the call came from. Such set ups can be just below a crest or around a structural corner.

Another trick I sometimes employ, provided I am the only hunter in the area, is to change positions ones I hear the bird coming closer. Turkeys have a very keen directional hearing and can tell exactly where the call comes from and how far away it is. Once I hear the tom coming closer I change the position to a predetermined position that will get me closer to the bird and then quit calling.

Draw your bow and be still, a tom that comes to a call will be wide-eyed and scan the area every inch ahead of him for movement of that lovesick hen he heard.

Brambles
02-24-2008, 03:28 PM
Shooting a tom with a bow is one of the toughest challenges, especially if you do not have a blind. But it can be done and has been done many times before.


The best way I have found to get a turkey with the bow is to lower the draw weight to 45lbs. This will let you pull the string long before the bird comes into vision and hold the bow drawn for quite a while without fatigue.

Set up behind a tree so that the approaching bird cannot see you. In addition choose a set up where the turkey has to walk within shooting range to see where the call came from. Such set ups can be just below a crest or around a structural corner.

Another trick I sometimes employ, provided I am the only hunter in the area, is to change positions ones I hear the bird coming closer. Turkeys have a very keen directional hearing and can tell exactly where the call comes from and how far away it is. Once I hear the tom coming closer I change the position to a predetermined position that will get me closer to the bird and then quit calling.

Draw your bow and be still, a tom that comes to a call will be wide-eyed and scan the area every inch ahead of him for movement of that lovesick hen he heard.



Good advice Huntwriter, I'll put it to good use this spring. I'm hoping to catch it on video too, this could be tricky since I usually go Solo, but it was so much fun last year that If I blow a few setups it will still be time well spent, and the hunting will just last longer.:grin:

If the tom breaks into the open before you can draw, when is the best time to draw on a turkey, I'm assuming when he's looking away but since he's got a good idea where "she" is he won't be so inclined to look away?

boxhitch
02-24-2008, 05:10 PM
Draw your bow and be still, a tom that comes to a call will be wide-eyed and scan the area every inch ahead of him for movement of that lovesick hen he heard.Perfect application for use of a decoy hen ?

huntwriter
02-24-2008, 07:49 PM
If the tom breaks into the open before you can draw, when is the best time to draw on a turkey, I'm assuming when he's looking away but since he's got a good idea where "she" is he won't be so inclined to look away?

Thank you Brambles. As boxhitch suggested you could use a decoy. However I do not recommend decoys if there are other hunters in the area, it’s just not safe. Set the decoy hen up that she faces you as the tom will circle around to face the hen.

When the turkey comes in the open and within shooting range he will be desperately looking for the hen he heard and begins to strut. A strutting tom always will walk in small circles to make sure that any hens in the vicinity can see his fan.

If he doesn’t strut purr at him. This is a sound that can be easily imitated with the mouth. It’s difficult to describe the sound here in words. Listen to it on the web and then try to make that sound with your mouth. A purr will get any tom strutting.

Wait until he turns his rear end toward you. This will give you a perfect bullseye to aim at. It’s called a Texas Heart Shot and works very well for bowhunting turkeys. In addition, should the bird surprise you before you can pull the string on the bow, this will also be the perfect position for you to pull the string back as the fan will block the toms vision to the rear of him.

Brambles
02-24-2008, 08:27 PM
thanks for the solid info. great stuff

zaconb
02-26-2008, 10:16 AM
10ga 3.5 inch 2 1/4 #5's

mark4
05-02-2008, 12:18 PM
My vote goes to the 17 HMR.

hannibal
05-03-2008, 08:08 PM
Was out patterning the shotguns today. Funny thing, my ol' Winchester Mod 50 shoots tighter than my Mossberg 500, and they both have full chokes. Interesting to see where the groups hit the paper too.