Are long distance shots a good thing, or a bad thing for turkey hunting?

[deerbasshunter3]

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I know on another forum that I am on for deer hunting there are some people who mention taking longer shots at deer with their bow (Long being past 30-40 yards.). While doing some research to try to get better at turkey hunting, I have noticed talk of 60-70+ yard shots. Now, I know enough to know that, in the past, 30 or so was the max on a turkey. Since then, shotguns, chokes, ammo, etc... have evolved and been improved. Do you think it is going to help or hurt turkey hunting in the long run if people keep trying to stretch out their maximum range on a turkey? I, personally, enjoy being close the deer, or in this case turkey, without them knowing I am there. It seems to be what makes it exciting for me. I just feel that if you want to take a long shot on an animal, you may as well be using a rifle (Not legal for turkey where I hunt anyways.).

So, what do you guys and gals think? Keep trying to extend the range, or keep it close?

[silvestris]

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To me, the essence of turkey hunting is calling (not decoying) him close.  I would never take a shot at a turkey intentionally beyond 35 yards believing that I have not earned him at longer distances.  It is a personal sport and one has to set his own standards.  Fewer and fewer turkey hunters have my standards these days and that is their choice.  Good luck with the choices you decide upon.

[Gobble!]

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[Marc]

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I want a load/choke combination capable of killing birds considerably further than I would want or need to...  If I am using a load/choke combination capable of killing birds at 50 yards, it is very likely that I will be able to successfully take a bird at 15 with the same load as long as I know where my gun is shooting.

But, if they could come up with a shell that would kill a bird at 40 yards, and not cause any harm to them at 41 yards, I would be thrilled (even more thrilled if they could come up with and require such a load for waterfowl).

The appeal of turkey hunting is getting them in close, and the anticipation of a bird coming in...  With a shotgun, the actual killing of the bird takes very little skill; it is getting them there to be killed that is the fun and difficult part.

[K9Doc]

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You can partly blame the shell companies
For their advertisements.
However, we as hunters have a responsibility
To teach young hunters more ethical hunting
Practices.
I kill more and more birds with shot in them
Every season. Tells me they are shooting too
Far.  Silvestris and I posted on Bullnettle Forums
On just that very subject today.

[Gobblefite]

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I agree with the other guys. For me, turkey hunting is about outwitting a big Tom. You play games with him. Sometimes you win and sometimes they are just out of your comfortable range. With the new technology of shells claiming 40-50 yards, people want that extra edge. I don't think it's necessary. It takes away the fun of turkey hunting, in my opinion.

[bamagtrdude]

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Welp, I have mixed feelings on the topic -- as there ARE situations (like what happened to me & my brother on a HUGE tom last season) -- where the "extra distance" can really, really help you.  *BUT*, notice I say -- "extra distance"; that's an exception statement, BTW...

As I always say, if he's gonna come 40 yards, he'll usually come on 30 yards for ya, if you're patient & don't screw up the hunt...  So, ya ... like anything else, it's "nice" to have distance on a shot as an OPTION, but 9/10 I'd rather just bust his noggin @ 30 yards & go pick 'em up.

BGD

[shaman]

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Here I go again, sounding like one of those dried up old school turds.  I'm not.  I just sound like one, because I can still remember.

Back when I started turkey hunting in the early 80's, nobody talked about 3.5" shells, hevi-shot, screw-in chokes and all that other stuff.  I can still remember the advice I got:

1) You got a trap gun?  Good, use that.
2) Anything with a full or modified (!) choke will work
3)  Get some #4 high brass.  If that does not print well, try something between #2 and #6

The way I was told to figure out what your maximum shooting distance was as follows:

1) Set up Dixie cups on a stick. 8 should be enough
2) Start at 10 yards. Shoot a round at a dixie cup.
3) Back up 5 yards and shoot the next cup
4) Repeat
5) The last cup that has 2 pellets through represents your maximum shooting distance.

Anything past 20 yards was worthy of  being a turkey gun.   My Dad's Model 12 trap gun did it quite well, so that is what I took on my first turkey trip.  I bought 2 boxes of #4 Remington Nitro Buffered Magnums for $8 bucks apiece. I still have some of them left.

So if you are looking for how turkey hunting was meant to be before the ammo companies, shotgun companies, magazine publishers, cable networks,  and the marketing companies started turning turkey hunting into a cargo cult, there you have it. 

Oh, by the way, I left out the main culprit:  us. We kept going to the store and looking for that special edge. We did not have the time to go out scouting every day.  We could only hunt a few days a year back then.  We wanted that extra few yards, and we were willing to pay for it.

Now, do you really want the truth about how much gun you need?  It's easy. Nobody likes it. I can truthfully say it is my least favorite contribution to the sport-- less appreciated than my cover scent gum for deer hunters.

The Working Comfort Zone

If you bother to wade through it, you will see that I am trying to get folks to actually focus on the shots they have made, or would have taken as a benchmark for making decisions about shotguns, loads, chokes, and whatever for turkey.  I got a lot of flak from folks, telling me I was trying to tell them how far to shoot.  Quite the contrary, I was trying to get to folks to focus on their own history, rather than what a magazine had told them.  I was trying to  say that although we may spend the season getting ready for 60 yard shots, we may only ever take 25 yard shots.  My other point was to actually sit down and do the ciphering, because we  grossly inflate the need for distance.  Our own pride and the marketing folks have taught us that.

Me?  If you had asked me before I did the figuring, I would have estimated my "Working Comfort Zone" was 25 yards.  I hunt in a place that is filled with cedar thickets and the ground is hilly and uneven.  A turkey can easily be 40 yards away and be invisible due to a fold in the terrain or 10 yards away and still be hidden by an oak.  Yep 25 was my number.

14 yards--that was my Working Comfort Zone. I was stunned when I did it for myself.  At 14 yards, I could be using #6 squirrel loads in Grandpa's 16 GA!   Please don't get me wrong.  I'm not saying I meant it that way.  I'm not saying you should limit your shots to 14 yards. What I am saying is that everyone thinks about getting out to some long distance, when most hunters actually shoot their birds at much closer ranges.  Sure I've taken birds out to 40 yards and beyond.  The point of all this is usually I do not get a chance to shoot until they are much closer.

For a beginner, I would be hesitant to do any real work towards a shotgun that shot more than 40 yards, until I had demonstrable proof I needed such a gun. My son is turning 17 during Opening Week.  He has an Rem 870 Trap and shoots 2 3/4" and never felt the need for anything bigger.   His last gobbler was nearly pecking at his boot laces when he shot.

[bamagtrdude]

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Shaman, that is awesome, man.

[GobbleNut]

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This is a "prickly" subject for us turkey hunters.  Human nature and our desire to succeed as hunters really makes it difficult to sort it out.  Perhaps gun manufacturers should make a "governor" on their guns so that the gun won't fire when a turkey is more than forty yards away.  That would solve the debate for all of us. Unfortunately, that is probably never going to happen, so we will continue to circle the subject, taking jabs as we see fit. 

To me, the debate is not about drawing a line in the sand and declaring,..."A turkey hunter shall not shoot at a gobbler beyond this range".  It is about each of us knowing our weapons and our capabilities and making a conscious decision not to overstep the boundaries of either. 

Let's face it, though, there is a "gray area" out there for each and every one of us where we say to ourselves,..."I'd like him to be closer, but he ain't coming any further,...and I'm pretty sure I can kill him where he's at."  ...And we pull the trigger.  That is the reality of it.  Anybody that can truly look themselves in the mirror and say,..."No, I don't do that,"....well, those guys have my utmost respect.

For the vast majority of us that don't have that self-discipline, the best we can do is make every effort to use the most effective tools we can get,...and then learn to say to ourselves,..."He's too far". 

The problem I personally have regarding long-range shooters is when the "shooting" becomes more important than the "hunting".  When someone loses sight of the idea that turkey hunting is supposed to be an "up close and personal" experience, rather than a "how far can I kill him with my gun and load" experience, then that someone needs to take stock of his reasons for turkey hunting and make an attitude adjustment. 

[BABS9]

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I always feel most comfortable shooting inside 40 yards. But I also know if I have to I can safely shoot further and effectively kill a gobbler at 60 yards. With that being said my max is still around 50 yards and thats a last resort if that bird is just hung up and wont come any closer.

[Bowguy]

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My opinion is that it's mostly bad. The only good is that a good patterning gun at 50 yards is getting better the closer we get. The tv and manufacturers have people believing they can do things they can't normally pull off. Too many birds get wounded by long shots though everyone I seem to talk to has a 60 yard gun. Nonsense for the most part. The animals deserve our respect and shots at marginal range should be passed just the same as the 50 yard archery guys need to rethink. They too can make the shot every time they say. Yes some certainly can, but, most can't. Put a simple 3D deer out 46-53 yards say. An easy shot for a 50 yard guy. Stand a crowd behind him for some pressure and put cinder blocks behind the target to destroy the expensive arrow in case of a miss. Bet most guys go home one less arrow. Look only to novelty shoot at 3D. A 15 yard bionic deer has a garbage can full of arrows next to it. Why? Irresponsible shots are just that, stay with realistic range whatever the weapon is. Just my opinion

[deerbasshunter3]

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I agree, Bowguy. Being able to shoot out to further distances is great, but it takes away from the point of the sport, which, in my opinion, is calling the bird, or deer, in closer. Before you know it, somebody is going to be able to use a rifle and start shooting birds at 200 yards.

Yes, if you can continuously hit your target at 50, 60, 70 yards, it will make you a better shot up close, say 20 or 30 yards. But to think you will always be able to deliver a humane shot at those long distances when the pressure is on, well, some people need a reality check.

When I shoot my bow, I practice out to 40 yards. I do not intend to take a shot at a deer past 30. Now, if that giant 10 pt. walks out and stands broadside at 40 yards for five minutes, who is to say that I would not put my 40 yard pin on him and release an arrow? If a person feels comfortable shooting at a longer distance and if (A big IF) the conditions are perfect, than by all means, take the shot. I find it hard to believe that a turkey is going to stand still for longer than a couple of seconds though. I could be wrong, I guess.

I guess what it boils down to is keeping up the sport of the hunt. Turkey hunting, as well as bowhunting for deer, has always been about getting close to the animal. Once you start using weapons that are intended for shorter ranges in order to shoot an animal further out, you are no longer, in my opinion, enjoying the sport for what it is intended. You may as well put down the bow and shotgun and pick up a rifle.

I do not intend to put anybody down for taking longer shots, especially since I have only been turkey hunting twice, but it seems to me that it is too easy to get away from the enjoyment of having a bird sounding off ten or twenty yards away. That is what is exciting about turkey hunting to me.

[shaman]

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Thanks bamagtrdude

GobbleNut:  You're onto something.

It is a rare circumstance when I have a shot at a gobbler hung up at 50 yards, let alone 60 or 70.  That's not to say I don't have hunting venues that would afford that kind of shot.  The thing of it is, for most hunters, for most turkeys that get hunted,  ranges past 40 yards are moot.  Either the terrain does not allow it, or the cover does not allow it, or the gobbler is coming in and will keep coming in.   I see guys every year that are touting their long range guns in March, but in May all their kill photos include details  like ". . .took his head off at 10 yards," "Blew him away at 20 yards,"  etc.   I wonder if they're disappointed they didn't kill them farther out for all the money they blew on ammo and chokes back during sighting in. 

I'm looking back now on 30-some years of turkey hunting in several states.  I'm thinking of all the turkeys I've shot at, or put my gun to.  You can throw out the 65 yard panic shot I took in 2005, or the 80 yard shot I took at the gobbler back in 2011, because I misjudged the distance.  There are probably a couple more there that I'd like to take mulligans on if I thought this out more completely.   I can think of one honest bird taken at exactly 40 yards, and a couple at 30, and all the rest have been climbing up my legs. I don't  mean this as a boast .   I don't think I'm that good of a caller. That's just how it is.

I've watched a few come from over 200 yards out across the field, and I took them at 15 yards, but I've had probably a dozen or more poke their heads out inside 10 yards and it was the first I had seen or heard of them.  If you take the entire body of my turkey hunting career. I could have taken all but one bird with my original rig, my Dad's 12 GA trap gun and high brass #4's.   90 % could have been taken with a modified choke and #6 squirrel loads. 

All in all, I seriously wonder why I keep my Mossy 500, shooting 3 inch #4 lead.  It's force of habit, I know.  I've thought of two alternatives:

1)  An old  bolt action 12 GA modified to accept  screw in chokes.
2)  A SXS 12 GA with one choke extra full and another modified.

 . . . I just haven't found the right deal.

 

[stinkpickle]

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Ain't no reason to take a long shot.  They don't roost that high up, anyhow.