Jake decoy posture.

[dresnor]

I am looking to pick up a new Jake decoy. I have some old foam ones that do not look good and won't last much longer.

How do you pick body posture with a Jake decoy? I have been looking at 1/2 strut and 1/4 strut Jakes. Is there a time to use one over the other? Are there times when you DO NOT use one over the other?

The area I hunt has a lot of Jakes and a few toms. I don't want to intimidate the Jakes, but I want to get that instinctual response and aggression.

I am taking my wife out to get her first turkey and one of my best friends oldest son who is 8 and I want them to be able to take a shot with a birds focus away from them and hopefully on the decoys.

Since I am on a budget, I can't buy multiple setups. Maybe down the road.

Thanks in advance,

Jeremy

[Bowguy]

Idk bout everyone else but I think you're thinking too hard about this. If the turkeys commit to an area the dekes may get their attn. I don't think either would be more effective. I don't rely solely on decoys though and you shouldn't either.
I became deaf in one ear and it's hard to triangulate direction. I use em just to pull birds hopefully where I'm looking.
Being in the right place already is key. It's way more important than 1/4 or 1/2 strut imo

[dejake]

If your area has more jakes than mature toms, I wouldn't use a jake at all.

[WAGinVA]

Just get a DSD jake (not the new breeding jake) and be done with it.

[MK M GOBL]

Have great luck with my 3/4 Strut DSD Jake and use him in many ways!

I never put out more than one Jake Decoy, he can be set as a sub to a strutter decoy, He is never set on a hen (Breeding) I always leave some space (elbow room) so a tom can come at him from any where. He is always the closest decoy to where I am unless I have strutter out.  I match with an upright hen in early season (she can be short staked as a breeder) . I set him at 15 yards and to my strong side (can easily double distance to judge bird coming in at 30 yards). Late season I match with Feeding Hen. This is more my Run & Gun Sets than anything. Rarely used in the timber unless "open", I decoy in fields/open spaces.

Just remember "Just another tool in the shed"

MK M GOBL

[dresnor]

Thanks for the replies guys. I do tend to over think things, this is just another example.

As for the DSD Jake. I have too many other things to buy before the season and I simply will not spend $160 on a decoy. Maybe down the road.

Jeremy

[mightyjoeyoung]

I have the Carry Lite Junior jake decoy. It's going on 6 years old at least and has had the ever loving bijesus beat out of him more times than I can count and still looks decent.  Fairly light weight for run and gunning , collapsible (to a degree) and pretty good detail with true coloring.  Imo the expensive decoys are good for decoying hunters more than turkeys though the detail is very good for the money on "ole jr".  The best part?  Under 50 bucks, in fact I think I paid $30.  It's a sub-dominant pose so it works well in multiple setups, either breeding, inteuder, with a strutter.  It's been discontinued,  but the Primos Gobstopper Jake is current and it just WORKS as I've seen 1st hand many times and it's 1/3-1/4 the price of the expensive dekes...

[Banana]

I have the Avian X Jake.  Its about 5 years old and has been repaired with marine epoxy a few times from getting attacked.  Dont think they are much, probably can pick on up on sale.

[Cut N Run]

I bought a Delta jake decoy (sold by H.S. Strut) in 1998 and there's no telling how many gobblers have tried to kick his rubber @$$.  I think it cost me about $18 new. There's also no telling how many gobblers have died coming to challenge that decoy. Aside from touching up the paint on the head & wing bars every other year and remarking the body with a sharpie, it looks the same as when I bought it.  It has one pellet of copper plated #6 partially buried but still visible in the neck.  That pellet was a flier from a limb I hit when shooting my second gobbler of 2002.  I killed the bird before he got to the decoy, but the limb was below my line of sight and ceased to be in the way. 

I only know of two gobblers that ever shied away from that decoy, because they came in together on the last day of the season and were acting nervous.  They half-circled, giving it the eye and just kept going, like they already knew where they wanted to go. A third gobbler came in behind them and he died before he could pick a fight with that jake. The vast majority of gobblers have come in spoiling for a fight and ended up riding in my truck.

Jim

[Damson]

I have a 1/4 strut Avian X jake.  The few times I've put it out, it seems like the toms have been scared of it and leave. 

I've heard jakes will gang up on a tom and beat him up.  Never seen it in real life though. 

[mightyjoeyoung]

I have.  If your particular woods has a lot of jakes, putting out a jake dekes might just shut a Tom down so fast it's not funny.  Single and paired up jakes wont generally scare a big gobbler, but bands of jakes will gang up and whoop on a Tom.   I have one spot in particular that NEVER sees a male turkey decoy.  Too many jakes.  Sure they disperse every year, but they always seem to outnumber the gobblers 2 or 3 to 1. 

[bbcoach]

Here's a pretty good read on decoy posture  http://bestturkeydecoy.com/body-language/

I'm a hen decoy guy.  When I do use decoys, it is normally 1 or 2 hen decoys.  To me, what are gobblers looking for, so why not use what they are looking for.  Mostly feeding hens.  I want the gobblers to find what they want and come in without feeling pressured.

[BTH]

Rarely used in the timber unless "open", I decoy in fields/open spaces.

Just remember "Just another tool in the shed"

MK M GOBL

[PharmHunter]

If your area has more jakes than mature toms, I wouldn't use a jake at all.

^This

[stinkpickle]

If your area has more jakes than mature toms, I wouldn't use a jake at all.

True that.  Toms will even skirt hen decoys and actual hens when gangs of jakes are running the show.