Earlier this year, someone posted on common mistakes made by people new to turkey hunting...
Today I hunted with someone that is a good hunter, but new to turkey hunting, and saw two big mistakes, and was reminded of one I have made myself in the past...
Don't poke your head over a rock or obstruction for a peek, unless your gun is mounted and you plan to shoot. Bounced a nice bird today (in good range) trying to take a peek.
Don't try to mount a low gun when you can see birds coming (unless they are in good range). Had a good shot turn into a marginal shot (which my partner passed on) due to trying to position his gun to incoming birds (in an open meadow).
If birds are in good range, and your gun is not mounted, mount and shoot. I have personally been afraid to move on close birds, and seen at least two other hunters never moved on birds that were close that eventually wandered off or spooked.
As I have aged, I find it tiring and uncomfortable to sit with a gun on my knee or mounted. I have also found that if you make a smooth and deliberate motion to mount the gun, that unless the bird is already nervous, that they often freeze for an instant when you mount your gun. Honestly, I cannot remember the last time that a bird walked into a ready gun for me... If I can get the gun up when the bird goes behind a rock or tree I do, but if not, I am still going to take the shot.
My buddy, (although new to hunting) made a great move to mount his gun and shoot this afternoon... We were expecting a bird from one direction, and a pair of different birds came in from the opposite direction. He managed to turn his body before the birds emerged, but had to mount a low gun, and made a nice (quick) shot to a bird with an outstretched neck.
The first tom I ever had coming for me had comes from quite a large distance behind me, he had been gobbling hard the entire way but then he shut up. That is when I did what I full well knew I should not have done, I turned and looked over my left shoulder to see where he was and I saw him and he saw me and I don't think we were more than 25 yards from each other. He bolted for cover, I thought about trying to shoot him on the run, but did not feel it was a high percentage shot so I did not. I was pretty mad at myself because I had recently read or heard in a turkey hunting video that you should never turn to look behind you so I knew better. Live and learn I guess.
Marc, your accounts on "snap shooting" birds is exactly the reason I shoot with a bead rather than any kind of scope or "fastfire" type sight. I have tried them all at one time or another and with anything other than "open sights", I cannot acquire a quick and accurate sight picture on a bird that might be starting to scram.
As a long-time wing shooter myself, any gobbler that gets within 30 yards is in big trouble whether I have the gun up and ready or not,...with the bead. With other sighting types, gobblers have much less concern with ME as the shooter. Perhaps it is just because of my lack of experience with scopes, red dots, and such, but I am much more limited in my abilities with close-range, moving gobblers with those sighting types than I am with an open-bead sight.
One of the biggest mistakes I would make when I was a greenhorn was leaving a set up to soon after not getting response from a Tom that was gobbling before setup. I would leave thinking Tom had moved on only to here him gobbling in the exact spot I left. I might have to take my shoes off to count the number of times this has happened when I was a younger, less seasoned, and far more energetic.
Quote from: GobbleNut on April 21, 2019, 09:02:16 AM
Marc, your accounts on "snap shooting" birds is exactly the reason I shoot with a bead rather than any kind of scope or "fastfire" type sight. I have tried them all at one time or another and with anything other than "open sights", I cannot acquire a quick and accurate sight picture on a bird that might be starting to scram.
As a long-time wing shooter myself, any gobbler that gets within 30 yards is in big trouble whether I have the gun up and ready or not,...with the bead. With other sighting types, gobblers have much less concern with ME as the shooter. Perhaps it is just because of my lack of experience with scopes, red dots, and such, but I am much more limited in my abilities with close-range, moving gobblers with those sighting types than I am with an open-bead sight.
I am in complete agreement... I could never get the gun up so quickly and easily through any of the special sights; I suppose practice would help with that though. But honestly, I do not see any advantage, and plenty of disadvantages for my shooting styles.
Further more... I tried a turkey scope once, and had a jake in the sights... It occurred to me that when he was about 60 out, looking through the scope, it felt like he was right on top of me... I had difficulty maintaining a steady view as well... With a bead, if I cannot get a hard focus on the target (i.e. where the head meets the neck) the bird likely needs to get a bit closer.
I still panic just a bit every time I squeeze the trigger on a turkey, and am always relieved to see the flop (although I fully expect it)... That anticipation adds to the fun and excitement for me...
My best hunting buddy insist on using a scope and it has cost him several birds. Last year I sat right beside him on a gobbler and the bird was moving in so fast he kept losing him in the scope. Finally at 10 yards the bird spooked and ran, but old dummy here with his trusty old bead sited browning rolled that sucker up in a pile before he made it to 30 yards. I know I'll catch heck for it too, but a bird inside 25-30 yards that thinks flying is a good escape plan is wrong too. Now it has to be clear and more crossing than straight away (straight away gobblers are not a good shot) but pull through that head like your shooting a small quail and that ole gobbler will crash like a 747 and roll up in a pile dead. The qualifier is he needs to be a bird I've called in and missed and I'm taking a followup shot or has spooked and flushed. I have killed several running and flying and all of them rolled up in a pile dead, while some I shot standing still I had to run down. I have never lost a bird I shot running or flying.
I made a mistake recently, I took my bird dog with me.I had a gobbler coming in, and my dog started barking, and jumping around.I just couldn't leave him in the car.He gets so upset, and I know my chances are not good, when he is with me, but it just breaks his heart. He's my best friend, and such a good dog, but he doesn't understand turkey hunting.He thinks we are looking for pheasant.
I shot a Jake with a mostly full fan.
An early hatch will have a jake with a full fan. Turkeys shed their tail feather from the outside-in except a jake in his first year. Due to such an increase of body size, a jake's last molt is shed from the inside out, giving the 'uneven' look to their fan. Now give that bird a full throaty gobble and people will turn red when they try to explain it... LOL.
I have been busted walking and calling due to striking a close bird and trying to setup decoys quickly. Has happened twice that I know of and usually while I am trying to get situated on a tree side. Either back up and setup or don't worry about decoys as they certainly aren't always needed.
Quote from: varmint101 on April 27, 2019, 11:51:09 AM
I have been busted walking and calling due to striking a close bird and trying to setup decoys quickly. Has happened twice that I know of and usually while I am trying to get situated on a tree side. Either back up and setup or don't worry about decoys as they certainly aren't always needed.
When walking and calling I always stop and call at a tree that I can immediately set up at.
My mistakes have occurred when I acted without first thinking. God gave us a brain and it a sin not to use it before acting in any way.
My biggest mistakes, and I'm working on rectifying them, is moving on a bird already committed to the call.
I just can't help myself. Couple years ago I made the same mistake on 2 different setups with the same embarrassing results!
I do this more with deep woods turkeys than field birds. I have a much higher success rate when I call them in in a field, probably because I can't move on them at all! :TooFunny:
Quote from: Marc on April 24, 2019, 04:09:47 PM
I tried a turkey scope once, and had a jake in the sights... It occurred to me that when he was about 60 out, looking through the scope, it felt like he was right on top of me... I had difficulty maintaining a steady view as well... With a bead, if I cannot get a hard focus on the target (i.e. where the head meets the neck) the bird likely needs to get a bit closer.
Your story reminds me of a similar incident for me about twenty years ago when "turkey scopes" were first starting to be the rage. Naturally, I had to try one. The very first set-up I had on a gobbler with it, the bird came in in such a way that he popped out five yards in front of me. I put the scope on him just as he started head-bobbing looking at me.
His head filled the scope and was going in and out of the scope field as he turned to depart. I made a guess as to when the head would bob back into the scope and pulled the trigger,...at the wrong time. The gobbler got away,...but the scope didn't. I jerked that son-of-a-b**** off of the gun and have never thought about using that type of sight since. If I had been using open sights, that bird would have died three-times-over before he could get out of sight again.
Unfortunately, years later, I had the very same experience with a red dot,...and then a fast-fire type sight. ...Slow learner I guess.
...Until I get where I can't see the end of the gun, it will be bead sights for me! ::) ;D
Distant gobble ---from behind me, and I should have turned to the other side of the tree, so I could see him approach. Ended up spooking him - trying to peek over my shoulder. Tough lesson to learn !!
Quote from: High plains drifter on April 26, 2019, 09:41:42 PM
I made a mistake recently, I took my bird dog with me.I had a gobbler coming in, and my dog started barking, and jumping around.I just couldn't leave him in the car.He gets so upset, and I know my chances are not good, when he is with me, but it just breaks his heart. He's my best friend, and such a good dog, but he doesn't understand turkey hunting.He thinks we are looking for pheasant.
this sounds like my son... he had been doing so good all morning until we (along with my buddy) struck some late morning birds...all of a sudden he starts moving, talking, raising his hands kicking his feet.....I had him in a figure four leg lock..whispering in his ear to please be quiet, as there were birds 25 yards in front of the blind...I hear him say..."Why are you doing this to me?" My buddy says...get your gun...there's two of them...I said If I let him go now he is going to look like a jack in the box...hurry up and kill a turkey! :OGani: Even after all that my boy says..."Daddy I had a great time!" :TooFunny: :TooFunny:
Made a mistake yesterday, set up in the brush and the gobbler nearly stepped on me the I missed him. So thick I couldn't get a shot until he was breathing on me