Home Forums Birds & Dogs Turkey Hunting What have you done to your soft sided turkey decoys to jazz them up?

I have re-painted them in the past, and that seemed to make them a little more realistic.

I have some wings and jake fans in the garage and I thought about "enhancing" my decoys by attaching them somehow.

Any tips? Pictures? I really don't want to spend the money on a Dave Smith decoy, nor do I think they are necessary.

I've found by placing them in places that turkeys want to be, vice where I want them to be, has jazzed them up.

Should add, I don't use decoys to draw in birds, I use them to draw in their attention.

I want a bird in range when it can see the decoy.

I have killed birds with them and without them, but I do find that they can be a lot of fun to use. 10-4 on always being where the turkeys want to be (or have been i.e their comfort zone).

I'm with you 100% on that one.

Open field deeks has not helped me as much as using nothing. I'd actually rather sit back in the bushed a bit off the field and have deeks in the wood line.

I have touched up the paint job a bit, as in refreshed the makeup.

I have touched up the paint and glued on cape feathers and wings. Looks good but doesn't hold up too well. I got sick of it and now use DSD. If I were just starting out I would go that route. Archery hunting they work better than anything else I've used. Never had a tom shy from them and between Dad and I we have sure used a lot of different decoys archery hunting. Shotgun hunting the last two I killed didn't even use a decoy.

I have painted wing feathers and red heads on my. I find decoys very effective in getting a tom in range. I am not that great of a caller so once I call the tom into where he can see my decoys, I shut up and let the decoys work. Been 95% succesful.

Killed a pile with and without decoys, but must say that after using Zinks decoys last year, birds respond to them like no other. They'll try to mount the hen and whip the snot out of the jake. Not that I haven't seen similar with cheap foam, but nothing like the attention these decoys get, they just don't want to leave them alone. With a foam decoy, they know something's up quickly most of the time.

Just ask Pullit, I talked him into a Zink and he was amazed as well.

For many years I always thought the DSD guys were talking those decoys up so much just to get over the price they paid, but I've got to say after one season with realistic decoys and many kills, it really does make a big difference.

Try a Zink Sako, only $79. I'm running the Breeder hen and the Jake. Rarely carry the jake unless I'm field hunting. His first time out he got his butt kicked by 3 toms and shot with a broadhead! I glued up the hole with some Fletchtite Platinum and he's back in business. The good thing about them is they can be deflated unlike the DSD. It aint your cheesy blow up though, they are thick like a basket ball and hold form even with no air(the broad head shot decoy was plenty useable as he was).


loder

Been looking at the Zink Avian dekes in catalogs. Did not realize they were blow up. If you didn't say they were heavy duty, I would have not considered them.