Yesterday, as I often do during spring gobbler season, I went to the woods to educate some turkeys I know by putting on a little turkey calling seminar. I use a turkey call of my own design and creation, the Northern Scratchbox, and it fooled them again at first light. Every time a gobbler would sound off hens responded with tree calls. So I copied them. A gobbler would yodel and several hens, including me, would reply all at the same time.

At about 5:50 two gobblers flew down and landed 30 yards from me. I first focused on the one on the left. He was in full strut so I gave a soft yelp on a diaphragm call, hoping he'd raise his head so I could hit it with a swarm of Number 5s. But he stayed in strut and walked behind some old fallen limbs. So I turned to the other that was behind a tree. When he walked out at 30 yards I pulled the trigger. Their free turkey hunting seminar was over.

I'll be giving the survivors another seminar soon, but until then all the attendees were dismissed except for the winner. I awarded him a leg tag and a free ride in my truck.

The picture at the left is by the field were I walked in. The picture at the right is in front of a huge red oak that the landowner says is the second oldest red oak in the state. It's so big I bet it would take 8 or 10 people to wrap their arms around it.

Stats: 2 years old. 16.25 pounds (a lightweight for that age). 8-inch beard. 1-inch spurs. Time: 5:55 AM. You can do it earlier than that, but not by much. My Northern Scratchbox is the deadliest call I've ever used. Check it out at www.EverydayHunter.com. Gobblers buy it. (Maybe you should, too.)

Steve.

Congrats.

Nice bird. That scratch box looks like a winner.

Nice

what I buy is that turkey hunting is easy if you're sitting where they land off the roost.

Maybe that would be true if gobblers flew down randomly. There are at 4 mature gobblers and at least 11 hens here. With the hens talking up a racket, I suppose it could be just an accident that they flew down to me, but I don't think so.

Twice I've had hens fly down and land right in front of a gobbler coming to my call, and they've walked by them to come to me. That doesn't happen every time. It didn't happen this morning. But I've had better luck with this call than any I've ever used in more than 40 years of turkey hunting.

Steve.

Looks pretty slick. Just ordered 2 off the website

Got your order. I'll try to get them out today.

Thanks.
Steve.

Call received. That thing is slick. Was yelping, clucking and cutting immediately after reading instructions. Already looking forward to using it next spring

Thanks. Glad it sounds good for you, and that you got it so fast.

I took one out this year on our opening day, fresh out of the package, not specially prepped in any way, and called in two gobblers at flydown. They work.

Steve.

Big bird down in PA. Another gobbler bought my Northern Scratchbox. 7:50 am. Posting from the kill spot. Story and photo to come this afternoon.

Steve.

I got my first gobbler this year at 5:55 AM on opening day. I guessed right regarding where they’d be, and when they started gobbling a hen answered. So, I did what the hen did, and two flew down to about 22 yards. They made it easy. In fact, it was a little anti-climactic. Fortunately we can get two tags.

I didn't guess right today. In fact, I’ve missed only one day since May 2, and haven’t guessed right any day. Yesterday one gobbled across the field and one off the bottom of the field, but I couldn’t approach one and it was hard to approach the other. So I figured today they’d be back where I wanted them and I’d score.

At 5:45 one gobbled, but just like yesterday he was across the field. Then a hen flew down about 60 yards from me and crossed the field toward him. Another gobbled down off the bottom of the field. I decided my best option was to sit and wait.

At 7:15, an hour and a half after first gobble, I heard one gobble in the field behind me and to my right. I looked over my shoulder and there were two, one all fanned out. I watched him enter the woods and the other headed for the near corner. I scooted around to the other side of the tree. They gobbled and I responded. They’d call back to me but didn’t seem like they wanted to come. So, after about 15 minutes I gave them some aggressive fighting purrs on my Northern Scratchbox. That has worked before on stubborn gobblers, and it got these old boys excited. After 5 or more minutes of silence, they gobbled down below me, much closer. So I hit it and really got them stirred up. Then they went silent. They were coming.

I saw one through the leafed-out underbrush and adjusted my gun. The other followed—they were heading for the corner of the field. A multi-trunk beech and a big patch of multi-flora rose blocked my view, but I hoped they’d enter the field and come along the field edge, past the multi-flora rose, to an opening. If they did, it would be a chip shot.

The didn't. They turned back into the woods. One entered an opening I figured to be about 35 yards away. That's the maximum range I assign myself to give me a margin for error. I couldn’t get on him quickly enough, and he went behind a tree. The second bird entered the same opening. I shot and he went down.

Later I paced off the distance. Good thing I had that margin for error because I badly misjudged the range, by 20%. It was actually 42 yards, not 35. Fortunately my gun is easily capable of that.

He weighed 20 pounds, had a 9-inch beard and sharp, pink spurs over an inch long. A 3-year old.

TRnCO said:

Well, I wasn't sitting where they land off the roost today.

Steve.

Don't be posting about scratch boxes lol.. I personally love an Albert Paul..

Post up a soundfile or two of yours if you can and good job on the Tom.

I have an original Kenny Morgan scratch box (friction wood) that I bought 15 years ago. Nothing new here. RIP Mr. Morgan.



Wooden calls are great until you try and play one in a drizzle or a morning with heavy dew. Congrats on the birds.

Yes, I should do that. I've been wanting to do some demo videos. Gotta get that done, but with the season winding down I'm busy with other things right now.

The downside to posting sound files is that every computer they're played on will sound different, depending on the speakers in the computer. And it may not sound the same depending on the acoustics of the room I'm in. Nevertheless, I need to do it.

I'm tagged out for this year, but I've thought maybe I ought to plan to do a nice demo video next time I kill a gobbler, right from that spot. Maybe I can do two -- one that goes through all the sounds my call makes, and one that reiterates that particular hunt. In fact, maybe I should describe the calling on every bird I kill.

This call would lend itself well to a sound or video file of it's capabilities. It makestree yelps, clear yelps, raspy yelps, deep clucks, high-pitched clucks, soft purrs, loud purrs, fighting purrs, cutting, and high pitched kee-kees. I haven't yet figured out how to gobble on it. Maybe someday.

Here's a picture of the first bird I shot using my scratchbox call, back in 2011:


Steve.

good job. I need to get after an Eastern some time. Our Rio Grandes are so stupid I got bored with hunting them, and then got bored with guiding for them.

About like your episode, generally can tag one at first light, and if not, come back around 10 and it won't take 30 minutes if that usually.

what part of NW/Pa you from

Northern Warren County, just south of Jamestown, NY.

Steve.