Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting Anyone bowhunting for Turkeys this spring?

This year, I'm gonna try to whack a Tom with my bow.
The area I hunt has been productive for the past four years, with shotgun, seems a little too easy.

Any of you use ground blinds? Pros/cons for turkey?

I've only killed 3 with a gun but am thinking of trying with the recurve this year. I have a NY tag also so I may take one with gun and then try the bow for the second.

I'm going to try again at my neighbors, haven't had much luck the last two seasons, but I don't dedicate a lot of time to it as it's dog training time again.

Ground blinds are a MUST for bow hunting turkeys. In a blind you stand a good chance of being busted if you move the slightest bit.

Also, cut on contact broad heads do not work well on turkeys. I have seen them bounce off twice before from setups that would usually provide a complete pass through on a deer.

I will let you know if I have good success with a certain head.

Bounce off.......hmmmmm

Gobbler guilatine is a cut on contact.......havent seen one of them bounce off.

This will be my second year chasing them with a bow. I got a jake last year, so I am hoping to step it up to an older tom this year! I used a Rage 2-blade mechanical last year and it performed very well. I also have several buddies who have had great luck with this head for turkeys.

Are those big rubber heads cut-on-contact?;)

Yes, I am gonna try it this year.. I shootin Montec G5's.. I dont want to loose my good ones!!

I am gonna try without a blind and hopefully set up to where I call the Tom in and he walks past me.. or just set up on a field edge travel route as usually the Tom is the last one and the hens wont bust me when I draw...

In CT, Fall turkey season and early deer archery coincide and my friend has taken turkeys with a bow using the same Spitfire broadheads used for deer. Bloodtrailing them gets ugly when they fly, so it's a good idea to whack them hard.

Humor me, What cut on contact head and what set up provided a "bounce off" on a turkey?I ain't saying it couldn't happen, but I've shot a few animals with cut on contact heads on heavy arrows from my recurves, and bouncin' off ain't exactly the experience I ever had.

Bounce off? What is the draw weight of that arrow flinger?

I am after them this year with stick and string and intend to use the GG... because lopping off a turkey's head is KEWL.

I'm gonna try the GG's, in 125 gr. and 4" diameter, this season.
Result is either a clean miss or a dead turkey.

We used a Double Bull blind and set up on a known travel corridor.
We shot two big Rio Toms about 10 min apart and then broke for breakfast.
Used Hoyt bows and Muzzy broadheads.... both birds went about ten feet, like drunken sailors and pitched over dead. Ranges were 15 yards and 20 yards.
Going to try the same plan again, in a couple of weeks.

I went out yesterday but it was just too dang windy (imagine that here in Nebraska )

Plan on going out the next couple weekends when time permits.this is my 15th season chasing them with a bow,I prefer it over shotgun hunting.It is much easier to get a double (or triple where legal) when you dont scare off every bird within a 5 mile range with your shotgun.

I have used a ground blind before,but prefer to still hunt.I usually set up around a fallen tree or bush or whatever is around to help break up your outline.Turkeys move alot and you need to keep up with them,plus its more fun chasing them around the woods

Tim

Glad to hear the Muzzys worked well for you.
I got my Gobbler Guillotine heads and long feather fletched arrows from Cabela's yesterday, all set to sight them in today.

Unfortunately, the long feather fletchings on the arrows are too long to work with the Whisker Biscuit rests I use, on both my bows.

I'm not going to take off the WB rests, try something else, and waste a lot of time and effort doing so, just to be able to use the TG system.

So- If there is any turkey whackin' to be done next week, it will be with Muzzy MX3's and my trusty Mathews Drenalin bow, at ranges I would not even dare try with the Gobbler Guillotine system.

Folks, the arrows bounced off

Hoyt Vetrix, Easton Epic 500s, with 85grn Sonic broadheads, pulling 55lbs. Hit them in the wing.

This setup passes through deer almost without fail.

Yes GGs are cut on contact...smarty

I have seen birds take 2 3 1/2inch mags to the body and still clear a tree line when they fly away. They are tough birds.

I have shot eight of them the past seven years, all merriams in south dakota.
All were shot out of double bull blinds.
For broad heads, I have used several, including bear razor heads and muzzys. All worked fine.
Oddly enough, many were not pass throughs, unlike virtually every deer I have shot over the years.
Will be in a blind in south dakota again next weekend.

I am heading out in the morning to KS. I was only going to bring the shotgun but just ran into a fellow archer and he convinced me to bring the bow. Just rechecked the broadheads in the driveway under the flood lights. Good to go. I will post a report if successful.

Ok,opening day birds on the ground.
I took mine @ 0635 and my pard shot his @ 0745.
Both with Hoyt bow's @ 20 yards.
Mine with Slick trick Mag's and his with Muzzy

Nice birds BT 53...

I've not shot anything with a bow yet, but from what I've been reading, Turkeys have more 'give' to them than deer do, making penetration more difficult than one would think...or so they say...

I'd gonna try to take some time off from trout fishing this spring and give the birds a whirl with my 57# hybrid Longbow. I'll be using at least 150gr. Razorcaps with 100gr. inserts on the front of 5575 GT's. If I can get the 200gr. Razorcaps flying good without making my arrows too weak I'll use them as I'm only accurate out to 15-20 yards with that bow...I'll trade a little trajectory for more momentum. Whatever I get to shoot the best will be my setup for deer this fall as well. Up till now the 250 gr. field tips and standard inserts have been bareshafting good, so I'm in the process of swapping the standard insert for the heavies, then I can start fiddling with the BH's.