I think the closest I have ever shot a turkey, with a shotgun, is 12 yards.
I killed a gobbler in Mo one year at about 10yds. I was setting just back from the edge of a hill. the bird had been gobbling about 200yds out the ridge. He shut up and walked just down over the edge of the hill I was setting on. I could hear him, so I scratched the leaves and here he came right at me. I shot him the same time he saw me. At the check station they said looks like a .270 to me.
Lesson learned though, set where you can see down over the edge....
8 steps
Around 5 yards. No flop.
5 steps. I actually let him get from 3 steps to 5 before shooting. He had landed 3 steps from me, saw me took off and I rolled him at 5. 3 1/2" #5 Remington lead load in a Mossberg 835 back in the 90's.
4 steps.
Killed one year before last at 10 steps. The wad stuck in a mequite branch right next to where his head was.
7 feet by tape measure. He flew down and went into strut. When he turned his back to me I moved my gun. When he came out of strut I gave it to him right in the middle of the back. I was scared to try a head shot that close! Lead 5's outta a 20.
Daman
about 15 feet
3 yards
7 yards on the mountain here in VA. Hens came in first and stood at about 15 yards. Couldn't move the gun at all so I had to wait for him to step in front of it. Rolled him up and scared the crap out of those hens!
12 steps with a 10 ga. Nitro. :z-guntootsmiley:
(http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh252/talkstoturkeys/Spring%20Gobbler%202010/2nd%20Gobbler/CopyofIMG_1926_9_1.jpg)
12 yds. My 1st bird. 1st time hunting private land. Went scouting with my brother in law the day before and didn't stay long 'cause we were kicking hens up everywhere. We set up the next morning and 2 hens with a tom came in to check out the new girls. Still My best tom so far, 11" beard, 1 1/8" Spurs. Didn't have a scale.
3 yards. I had to let him get away from the blind so I could shoot him. He was so close that I could not see him. 1 alarm putt and bang.. He was fixin' to leave Dodge, so it was now or never..Mike :you_rock:
8-10 yards. last year. i took my girlfriend with me it was her first hunt! she is spoiled now
Quote from: LX_Trkyhntr on March 18, 2011, 12:34:52 PM
8 steps
Same here. Caught him in the neck just under the noggin. Only thing keeping the head attached was a 1/2" wide piece of skin on the back of his neck. It was ugly.
He flew down 20 yards to my right just past a buddy. My buddy let him pass through the weeds thinking we could double because there were 2 or 3 behind him. I thought it was a jake because we had agreed to not let a tom walk by no matter what. I saw the beard when he stepped out from behind a tree at 8 yards and didn't even have to move the gun, just squeeze the trigger. He went down so fast in the early morning light and the weeds that I wasn't even sure if I hit him. We never called to them once. My buddy cleaned up with on of the other birds the next morning on the last day of the season.
5 to 6 steps with a 10ga nitro strait #7. Had to carry him by his feet!
About 5 steps. All that was holding his head on was a thin piece of skin. My dad and I setup in between the main flock with 2 toms and another tom who had roosted by himself. The main flock didn't want anything to do with us when suddenly we heard a gobble real close from the direction the lone tom went. A spit and drum later and he came in doing the mad walk to our decoy.
14yds with a bow out of a treestand
18yds with a gun
About 2 1/2 yards on a bird in Kansas. 12 gauge 3 1/2 #6. Just about turned his head inside out. The two guys I was hunting with are both taxidermist, they both said there was nothing they could do with that turkey head.
8 Steps....with a 3.5" Nitro load....it wasn't pretty :fud: :gobble:
Quote from: TalksToTurkeys on March 18, 2011, 01:14:37 PM
12 steps with a 10 ga. Nitro. :z-guntootsmiley:
(http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh252/talkstoturkeys/Spring%20Gobbler%202010/2nd%20Gobbler/CopyofIMG_1926_9_1.jpg)
:you_rock: :icon_thumright:
about 7 1/2 - 8 feet.
Closest bird I shot was 10 yards. However, Had a bird strut past me at 3 yards. When he spit and drummed, I nearly jumped on a limb above me.
I shot one so close one time he was behind me. :goofball:
11 steps (yards)
6 steps, watched him gobble & strut on limb at 50 yds, when he flew down, he landed went down, come up and i shot, 3 more people were coming to him, had watched him fly down for 2 days and roost for 2 days, had 2nd bird on ground behind me at 10 yds also before this one flew down, just couldn't move,
Bout 8 big boy steps. Blew the back of his head and neck off. I dang near missed him.
Around 8'. The head was like mashed/flattened.
Around twelve yards, there wasn't any flopping. I had been cold calling for about an hour because I wasn't hearing anything anywhere, and two toms came in silent. They popped over the hill I was set up on to my left and started getting too far behind me but I was able to turn and make the shot.
10 yards.
3 yards.
About 85 yards.
Nah, probably about 8-10 feet. I missed one closer than that
Around 5 yards or so.
Somewhere between 5 and 10 yds. Never knew what hit him. 3.5" Winchester XR #6
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v682/pbro21/IMG0507.jpg)
About 5 steps. :fud: :newmascot:
Quote8 Steps....with a 3.5" Nitro load....it wasn't pretty
I bet it wasn't.
Here is the closest with me. My buddy actually shot him. Bird flew off the roost and landed about 8 to 10 yards away. He was using a Federal Flight control shell. The wadding actually went through his head. Not pretty either.
(http://usera.imagecave.com/Todd1700/Head%20blasted.jpg)
My closest was at about five of my steps which might have been 3-4 yards. Shot him in self-decence
I bought some Nitros last year to get a little more range out of my setup. Ironically, the first bird I killed with them was at 7 steps and made one heck of a mess. He had a bad case of the hamburger head.
5 yards with my bow and that was after he walked by the blind strutting and brushing the blind with his wings
My closest was 8 yards.
This was about four paces. He came in in full strut with hens just off to my right along the ridge line. It was the first opportunity through the downed tree. Exciting but way too close.
(http://www.hunt101.com/data/500/medium/In_My_Lap.JPG)
Two seasons ago I shot one at 6 yards and only a small piece of skin kept the head on. 2 1/4oz of #6's did the job. :newmascot:
About 5 yards, there is a certain thrill when they are that close for me.
5 yards
right at 3 feet.. took his head smooth off...
7 steps.
There was no danger of him jumping up and running off after that either. :goofball:
16 feet, with no flop age.
under 10 yards
5 ft. he lost his head! :'(
4 steps...took the back of head off....
(http://i812.photobucket.com/albums/zz45/ghillie33/181.jpg)
10 yards.
5 yards. Last year was my second year hunting turkeys. I was hunting on our family farm in Ohio and it was about 10:30 AM. I hadnt heard a single gobble all day. Frustrated, I headed for a winter wheat field at the back of our property. I'll be darned if the whole field wasnt full of turkeys. I belly-crawled to the edge of the field, just inside the woodsline. It only took two or three mouth yelps and four jakes came right in. I couldnt believe how close they came to me. I really think that if I hadnt shot the leading one, the group of them would've run right into me. I was extremely happy taking a jake (since it was my first turkey), and will never forget the experience!
8 yards in a heavy fog, Black Hills, SD last spring.
:smiley-patriotic-flagwaver-an
Closest was 10 steps my first bird , I heard him coming but couldn't see him. Had my gun aimed on sound of spittin n drummin then then he steps out from a tree so close. I was shakin so bad I knew I had to aim at the base of the neck due to Xtra full choke & I rolled him down the hill and thought he was getting away!!!!!
3 1/2 at 10 steps he had a big hole on him!!! :z-guntootsmiley:
I'd say 6 or 7 yards and he had the best hooks out of all of the birds I've shot so far.
18 yards.....
12 yds.