Locator calls

[Rzrbac]

Short answer, yes they work. Turkeys, crows and owls have been adversaries longer than man has hunted turkeys. Everyone may have their own experiences and consider what they think is right or wrong but your technique only has to be right for you. 

I hunt highly pressured public and specifically use an owl hooter every morning. I'm fond of Mr. Gibson's hooter and a hootin' stick. They work and I'm confident they always will. Calling owls is one of my favorite parts of spring turkey hunting so it's something I'll always do. Even if I have a bird roosted, I'm still gonna use an owl hooter for a few different reasons.

Bottom line, if you can make it work for you use it.

[LaLongbeard]

As anyone can see the experiences are many and varied. Depending on what subspecies your dealing with and how much pressure they have been exposed to. I was on a Navaho reservation a few years ago and the local Indians had box calls rigged up on the outside of there trucks that were operated by pulling on a string. They would stop at a high spot and squawk until one answered or came in. I could not believe such a thing would ever work they assured me it did and after hunting Merriams later I would not be surprised what they would do. They answered calls from crazy distances and crossed 1/4 mile of open land to come get shot , on public land. The only time I've ever agreed with someone saying a turkey is dumb it was almost like hunting a tame bird.
Rios are a little better but not by much anything that continues to roost in the same trees every night of there life ain't hard to find or kill. I watched two guys drive up to a roost site and unfold a pop up blind under a roost tree in Texas. They killed a gobbler at daylight. These things aren't happening on public land in the southeast period.
And so it goes with locators and everything else you have to adjust your tactics for the quarry or you'll be a one trick pony that not only is stuck in 1980-1990 but stuck on a single tactic that only works on dim witted birds.

[GobbleNut]

These things aren't happening on public land in the southeast period.

OHFIRCRYINOUTLOUD!
I have used my locator tactics on public land Eastern turkeys in Oklahoma, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, and Mississipi. They have worked in every one of those states.  Granted, I have not hunted Louisiana, so I can't summarily declare that they will work there.  Someone summarily declaring that they will not work,...and especially someone that by his own admission does not use locators,...is not going to convince me,...specially based on my own experiences in all the rest of that region.  ...But if you want to keep trying, knock yourself out...

For the more reasonable among us that are willing to listen to suggestions on tactics that will most likely help you find gobblers to hunt, I would recommend being a little more open-minded....

[MK M GOBL]

These things aren't happening on public land in the southeast period.

OHFIRCRYINOUTLOUD!
I have used my locator tactics on public land Eastern turkeys in Oklahoma, Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, and Mississipi. They have worked in every one of those states.  Granted, I have not hunted Louisiana, so I can't summarily declare that they will work there.  Someone summarily declaring that they will not work,...and especially someone that by his own admission does not use locators,...is not going to convince me,...specially based on my own experiences in all the rest of that region.  ...But if you want to keep trying, knock yourself out...

For the more reasonable among us that are willing to listen to suggestions on tactics that will most likely help you find gobblers to hunt, I would recommend being a little more open-minded....

AGREED!!

I love when someone says you "can't" or birds "won't" and especially "unkillable"... I just let them be on there way. LOL
I just do my thing and go from there, I've found out they like riding in the truck

MK M GOBL

[LaLongbeard]

As anyone can see the experiences are many and varied. Depending on what subspecies your dealing with and how much pressure they have been exposed to. I was on a Navaho reservation a few years ago and the local Indians had box calls rigged up on the outside of there trucks that were operated by pulling on a string. They would stop at a high spot and squawk until one answered or came in. I could not believe such a thing would ever work they assured me it did and after hunting Merriams later I would not be surprised what they would do. They answered calls from crazy distances and crossed 1/4 mile of open land to come get shot , on public land. The only time I've ever agreed with someone saying a turkey is dumb it was almost like hunting a tame bird.
Rios are a little better but not by much anything that continues to roost in the same trees every night of there life ain't hard to find or kill. I watched two guys drive up to a roost site and unfold a pop up blind under a roost tree in Texas. They killed a gobbler at daylight. These things aren't happening on public land in the southeast period.
And so it goes with locators and everything else you have to adjust your tactics for the quarry or you'll be a one trick pony that not only is stuck in 1980-1990 but stuck on a single tactic that only works on dim witted birds.

Stop crying and read the post I said the boxcall mounted on the truck and the pop up blind being put up under a roosted bird ain't gonna work in the southeast. You get all bunched up ever time someone says anything negative about a locator call do you sell them or something ?lol. I get that you hunt tame turkeys with Red Clouds offspring but I don't lol.

[GobbleNut]

 

Okay, Dude!  I GIVE!!....U.N.C.L.E.!

[LaLongbeard]

AGREED!!

"I love when someone says you "can't" or birds "won't" and especially "unkillable"... I just let them be on there way. LOL
I just do my thing and go from there, I've found out they like riding in the truck "

MK M GOBL



I love when people can't comprehend what they read and then get all wound up about what they think they read and then someone else that also can't comprehend what they read agrees with the first person that cannot comprehend. This is awesome

[Kylongspur88]

Goose call makes a good locater call. I've also had them gobble at a car horn and gun shot. If they don't gobble at one thing I'll just try another. It's not really something I think too much about.

[marshboy]

As anyone can see the experiences are many and varied. Depending on what subspecies your dealing with and how much pressure they have been exposed to. I was on a Navaho reservation a few years ago and the local Indians had box calls rigged up on the outside of there trucks that were operated by pulling on a string. They would stop at a high spot and squawk until one answered or came in. I could not believe such a thing would ever work they assured me it did and after hunting Merriams later I would not be surprised what they would do. They answered calls from crazy distances and crossed 1/4 mile of open land to come get shot , on public land. The only time I've ever agreed with someone saying a turkey is dumb it was almost like hunting a tame bird.
Rios are a little better but not by much anything that continues to roost in the same trees every night of there life ain't hard to find or kill. I watched two guys drive up to a roost site and unfold a pop up blind under a roost tree in Texas. They killed a gobbler at daylight. These things aren't happening on public land in the southeast period.
And so it goes with locators and everything else you have to adjust your tactics for the quarry or you'll be a one trick pony that not only is stuck in 1980-1990 but stuck on a single tactic that only works on dim witted birds.

Stop crying and read the post I said the boxcall mounted on the truck and the pop up blind being put up under a roosted bird ain't gonna work in the southeast. You get all bunched up ever time someone says anything negative about a locator call do you sell them or something ?lol. I get that you hunt tame turkeys with Red Clouds offspring but I don't lol.

I don't care what side of the epic locator debate you're on, the comment about Red Cloud's offspring is damn funny! 
Jim I never knew 

[marshboy]

Guesswho must be busy hunting or he would chime in on that one!

[GobbleNut]

I don't care what side of the epic locator debate you're on, the comment about Red Cloud's offspring is damn funny! 
Jim I never knew 

  Yeah, Greg, sometimes the truth hurts!  Me (paw paw) and old Sitting Bull used to sit in our rockers and make'em gobble all day long back in the old days... ...Of course, they were those tame Louisiana public-land birds...   

Guesswho must be busy hunting or he would chime in on that one!

Yeah, I'm kinda surprised he hasn't jumped in the middle of this circle j*rk myself... He is either hunting or passed out on the couch...

[T-town]

 Hmm. Every where I hunt has numerous real owls and real crows. If turkeys quit gobbling just because an owl hooted or a crow called they'd never gobble at all. Be decently proficient, use judiciously.

[Marc]

This poor fellow went walking by and I had to resist the urge to reach out and grab his arm. Pretty sure there would have been instant bowel evacuation if had.

Year before last, I was hunting a piece of private property inside of two locked gates, and nobody else was hunting, so I was not expecting to see someone...
I am working this bird from across a dirt road, and he was just this close to being in range, and I see a truck driving down the dirt road (he was leasing the land to run cattle and was checking on the cattle).  I was hoping he would simply drive past and not scare the bird off...

As it turns out, he stops the car right next to the tree I was against, stops the car and gets out (drivers side on the opposite road from me), gets out and walks around to the back of his truck...

I assumed he saw me, and was stopping to question me, so I stood up just about right in front of him...  He had a look of sheer terror on his face.  I was extremely fortunate he was not carrying a weapon, cause I am certain he would have used it on me.

He had stopped his car there out of pure chance and had no idea I was there.

I took off my mask, and he immediately recognized me, and we had a good laugh...   After articulating his thoughts with a series of explicatives he told me "I did not know what the hell you were but it did not look natural..." 

[turkaholic]

I have said this many times before,...the proper use of locator calls for locating gobblers on the roost is an art in itself, not unlike learning the proper use of turkey calls.

Should someone use a locator call in all situations?  Absolutely not.  If you hunt somewhere that you are going to reliably hear turkeys gobble on the roost, then there is no reason to use a locator.  On the other hand, there are places around the country where (properly) using a locator call can mean the difference between having a great turkey hunt and finding birds to hunt or having your hunt turn into a dismal failure. 

It's all about knowing the "art" and learning what locator tactics will make an otherwise silent gobbler tell you he is out there versus hunting a silent woods not having a clue as to whether there is a gobbler within five miles. 

Again, my perspective is based on hunting public land areas that are tens of thousands of acres (or larger), many of which have widely scattered turkey flocks where it is pretty much absolutely necessary to find a gobbling turkey before you start hunting.  If you are hunting under those conditions, and not finding birds to hunt, learn the "art" of proper locator call use.  Personally, I have yet to hunt anywhere that the proper locator used at the right time has failed to find a gobbler to hunt. 

What is "proper" locator call use?  Perhaps we can delve into that at another time (again),...but I can tell you what it is not,...and that is wandering around the woods blowing a crow or owl call every thirty seconds trying to sound like every other crow or owl that is out there doing the same thing. Simply and perhaps "harshly" put, that is in most instances a total waste of time.   

. To much coffee here,I believe

[Happy]

I think it is entirely situational. Sometimes it works and life is good but other times it hurts you. I hunt public land a lot and the private I hunt still has a lot of people as well so even if it does work I have to keep in mind that now everyone in earshot has heard the bird as well and more than likely some of those hunters are headed my way. It's a gamble in best case scenario and I choose to be more cautious and low key. I try to avoid people the best I can and I am pretty good at it. I am still not gonna press my luck and draw more attention than necessary. There is no right or wrong in my opinion. Just be willing to accept the consequences for whichever choice you make.