2024 Turkey Thread

[Micneador]

While we're all talking, I am needing to find an Indian creek .562 in benelli Mobil threads. Sold off my Indian creek .525 28 gauge choke to fund the .562.

If anyone finds one used or on a website let me know!

 

[shmelton]

To the fellas who can’t get a mouth call to fit tight in the roof of their mouth. Don’t be scared to break out the scissors and trim it and/or bend the metal frame. I run a Woodhaven Red Wasp most of the time, and their latex can be pretty stiff. I usually throw the call in my mouth while I’m listening for that 1st gobble. The juicer it is the better a mouth call runs imo. I’ll throw a call in and keep it in my lip like chew the whole hunt. I’m one of the few, but I don’t swap between mouth calls. If I want to change it up I swap around with pot calls, and the one box I carry.


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[shmelton]

Yes sir. The factory choke was around .389-.390 on a set of calipers. The Carlson is .385 but not ported. Going see if the open ports of .385 Indian creek black diamond strike will make a difference in the patchiness. I have some browning 9 apex 9.5 and rogue 9.5 but going to grab some rogue 10 if can catch in stock.

I’m using Boss Tom’s in my son’s 410.


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[Micneador]

While we're all talking, I am needing to find an Indian creek .562 in benelli Mobil threads. Sold off my Indian creek .525 28 gauge choke to fund the .562.

If anyone finds one used or on a website let me know!

Happened to find one. See how well this sucker patterns!

 

[PEEJAY]

It's marketing 101. Nothing more. It's impossible to say what choke and constriction is best for your gun unless it's tested. Generally the top performing chokes are consistently Indian Creek, Sumtoy, and Pure Gold.
I have an old gen 1 Rhino choke that I consider the finest choke ever made. Every load I've ever put through it has shot superbly and uniformly.

I disagree with this. Not trying to start a war and i dont know what makes certain chokes perform better but my gun shoots an open-in-the-middle donut lookin pattern with a stock .660 extended choke that came with one of my turkey guns and shoots the perfect pattern at 30yds with the carlsons XR choke. I used a flush mount carlsons turkey choke in my wifes 870 20ga because the same restriction in one of the fancy extended chokes we tried was too tight for how we like to hunt at 30yds. I think the way they taper the choke to the final restriction and porting makes them all act very different.

 

[Bigterp]

I disagree with this. Not trying to start a war and i dont know what makes certain chokes perform better but my gun shoots an open-in-the-middle donut lookin pattern with a stock .660 extended choke that came with one of my turkey guns and shoots the perfect pattern at 30yds with the carlsons XR choke. I used a flush mount carlsons turkey choke in my wifes 870 20ga because the same restriction in one of the fancy extended chokes we tried was too tight for how we like to hunt at 30yds. I think the way they taper the choke to the final restriction and porting makes them all act very different.

Wait isn’t that agreeing with him?! Lol

 

[Crcusmonky]

Wait isn’t that agreeing with him?! Lol

That is exactly how it came across to me as well.


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[PEEJAY]

Wait isn’t that agreeing with him?! Lol

Lol. I didnt read it right this morning I guess. Sorry mike. Was still drinking coffee. I thought he was saying they all shoot the same and it's just marketing. Carry on

 

[PEEJAY]

Bought a small chunk of land in December and hung a few cams up. Finally found out if there's any turkeys around. At least 3 of the neighboring properties deer hunt but we'll see if they mess with turkeys.

 

[shmelton]

Bought a small chunk of land in December and hung a few cams up. Finally found out if there's any turkeys around. At least 3 of the neighboring properties deer hunt but we'll see if they mess with turkeys.

Only one way to find out…just keep your face mask on.


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[10essee]

Only one way to find out…just keep your face mask on.


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I see what you did there. lol

 

[shmelton]

I see what you did there. lol

I started turkey hunting when property lines weren’t even taken into consideration. You just went to the bird. I’ve met several hunters over the yrs while setting up on a bird on their property or vice versa. A few of them I still hunt with occasionally. It was an unwritten rule between turkey hunters in the south. If you can get to him and kill him, do it. Then the B-Mobile got introduced, pop up blinds became a thing, and now we have lazy hunters who sit on a food plot waiting on the Tom to show up, instead of using woodsmanship to kill him. To each his own, but IMHO a turkey should never be hunted from a pop up blind with a shotgun unless you have a kid in tow.


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[PEEJAY]

I started turkey hunting when property lines weren’t even taken into consideration. You just went to the bird. I’ve met several hunters over the yrs while setting up on a bird on their property or vice versa. A few of them I still hunt with occasionally. It was an unwritten rule between turkey hunters in the south. If you can get to him and kill him, do it. Then the B-Mobile got introduced, pop up blinds became a thing, and now we have lazy hunters who sit on a food plot waiting on the Tom to show up, instead of using woodsmanship to kill him. To each his own, but IMHO a turkey should never be hunted from a pop up blind with a shotgun unless you have a kid in tow.


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I hunt run n gun but not across prop lines. That **** doesn't fly here. Md is a small state and where i live its not big chunks of farm land. If your across a line your basically in their back yard. Public hunting even in the biggest hunting land area (55k ac) is pretty ridiculous now. Lots of hunters and not a lot of etiquette or patience. I got into a spot when I moved back here 4 yrs ago, first truck there...just a side road not a parking lot. As I'm walking out I walked through 2 different guys setups n I was only 200yds in lol. The road where I parked must have had 20 cars for an area of 80 acres. Not even from a bird gobbling it was quiet.

 

[bigmike23]

I started turkey hunting when property lines weren’t even taken into consideration. You just went to the bird. I’ve met several hunters over the yrs while setting up on a bird on their property or vice versa. A few of them I still hunt with occasionally. It was an unwritten rule between turkey hunters in the south. If you can get to him and kill him, do it. Then the B-Mobile got introduced, pop up blinds became a thing, and now we have lazy hunters who sit on a food plot waiting on the Tom to show up, instead of using woodsmanship to kill him. To each his own, but IMHO a turkey should never be hunted from a pop up blind with a shotgun unless you have a kid in tow.


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100% agree at the end there. Seniors and kids have at it. But I just don't see the point or challenge when you take away the birds #1 defence by sitting and hiding in a blind.

Turkeys are only challenging because of self imposed rules on ourselves in the form of hunting laws. Without those, they are a laughably easy critter to kill. Hiding in a blind cheapens the chase to ME.

 

[HuskerInIowa]

I started turkey hunting when property lines weren’t even taken into consideration. You just went to the bird. I’ve met several hunters over the yrs while setting up on a bird on their property or vice versa. A few of them I still hunt with occasionally. It was an unwritten rule between turkey hunters in the south. If you can get to him and kill him, do it. Then the B-Mobile got introduced, pop up blinds became a thing, and now we have lazy hunters who sit on a food plot waiting on the Tom to show up, instead of using woodsmanship to kill him. To each his own, but IMHO a turkey should never be hunted from a pop up blind with a shotgun unless you have a kid in tow.


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Kind of a wild take in my opinion to criticize folks using a blind or food plot legally but crossing property lines cause “if you can get to him and kill him do it” woodsmanship. You do you but I bet those same woodsmanship unwritten rules don’t apply to your target buck.

 

[woodsdog2]

I started turkey hunting when property lines weren’t even taken into consideration. You just went to the bird. I’ve met several hunters over the yrs while setting up on a bird on their property or vice versa. A few of them I still hunt with occasionally. It was an unwritten rule between turkey hunters in the south. If you can get to him and kill him, do it. Then the B-Mobile got introduced, pop up blinds became a thing, and now we have lazy hunters who sit on a food plot waiting on the Tom to show up, instead of using woodsmanship to kill him. To each his own, but IMHO a turkey should never be hunted from a pop up blind with a shotgun unless you have a kid in tow.


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I don’t agree that hunting out of a blind is lazy. Try hauling in your blind, decoys, chair (now Pacseat), bow, vest or other rig for your calls etc., and set up before pre dawn and do that for just a few early mornings in a row and tell me how easy it is. I love running and gunning but in the small private tracts we hunt, if we did that the turkeys would be all busted out and off their lecks or strut zones in a week at the most. Targeted locations close to lecks or strut zones and watching nature unfold like a deer hunt has been some of the best bowhunting I’ve ever done. Calling one in to your decoys or setup and harvesting one with a bow is pure icing on the cake. I’ve learned more and witnessed more about Turkey behavior watching them from a blind and they not knowing anything is “up” then many of my most memorable run and gun hunts.

 

[shmelton]

I don’t agree that hunting out of a blind is lazy. Try hauling in your blind, decoys, chair (now Pacseat), bow, vest or other rig for your calls etc., and set up before pre dawn and do that for just a few early mornings in a row and tell me how easy it is. I love running and gunning but in the small private tracts we hunt, if we did that the turkeys would be all busted out and off their lecks or strut zones in a week at the most. Targeted locations close to lecks or strut zones and watching nature unfold like a deer hunt has been some of the best bowhunting I’ve ever done. Calling one in to your decoys or setup and harvesting one with a bow is pure icing on the cake. I’ve learned more and witnessed more about Turkey behavior watching them from a blind and they not knowing anything is “up” then many of my most memorable run and gun hunts.

I completely understand why one would bowhunt out of a pop up blind. When I say “lazy hunters” I’m talking about the guys who stroll to the same pop up blind every day they hunt, and probably don’t even pull the B-Mobile decoy from the food plot. I’ve toted blind chairs, and a pop up into food plots many times with my lad in tow. Sometimes it was so early in the morning I’m toting him too. I just know for a fact that the way turkey hunting was taught for so many yrs in the south has completely changed since the mid 2000’s. I think it’s sad that a lot of turkey hunters I know, have never belly crawled a hung up strutter through a knee high field, swam a creek, or sprinted 200 yds down a logging rd to cut one off. When I tell these people these stories, they just look at me speechless. Knowing the terrain, and how to work it to your benefit is imho the biggest key to killing turkeys consistently. I just don’t think that can be done by most folks who hunt around me these days.


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[shmelton]

Kind of a wild take in my opinion to criticize folks using a blind or food plot legally but crossing property lines cause “if you can get to him and kill him do it” woodsmanship. You do you but I bet those same woodsmanship unwritten rules don’t apply to your target buck.

You are absolutely right. I have never crossed a line to kill a deer. I never would, I have no desire. But 20 yrs ago, there were probably 1/4 of the turkey hunters in GA as there are now. No one cared if you crossed property lines, back then. We all knew who hunted the land around each other. We’d share info, talk about tactics, and tell kill stories at the tail gate many times a yr. If I knew my neighbor was hunting I’d stay away. He’d do the same. Sometimes we didn’t know, and we ran into each other so we just hunted together.

For example was a 500 acre cattle farm behind my property. Sometimes there would be a bird gobbling on the backside of the pasture, and I’d go to that bird. On many occasions I jumped the fence, and walked right by the farmer, he’d wave, I’d wave back, and he’d keep on doing what he was doing. He never cared.

Another example, I was walking down a logging rd, and the land owner pulled up, and asked me if I’d had any luck, I told him where I’d been hunting, and lost a bird. He then asked me if I could take his kid who always wanted to go, but he didn’t want to deal with the skeeters. I got his number called him that night, and took his kid the next morning.

Back then we weren’t committing a crime by trespassing. We were enjoying the sport in its true form. The landowners honestly didn’t care. We weren’t destroying their land with atv’s, cutting fences, or leaving garbage behind. We were just killing the heck out of turkeys.

This wasn’t just around my place this was all over the state. I had a neighboring hunter who was a GW, and he roamed as much or more then I did. I talked to him about it one day, and he said, “son right now us turkey hunters don’t have boundaries, but that tides a changing. It’s not going to last much longer. Enjoy it while you can.” Boy he was right. I’ve had neighboring land owners get pissed because I’ve pulled a gobbler off of them, and into my set up on my property.


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[HuskerInIowa]

You are absolutely right. I have never crossed a line to kill a deer. I never would, I have no desire. But 20 yrs ago, there were probably 1/4 of the turkey hunters in GA as there are now. No one cared if you crossed property lines, back then. We all knew who hunted the land around each other. We’d share info, talk about tactics, and tell kill stories at the tail gate many times a yr. If I knew my neighbor was hunting I’d stay away. He’d do the same. Sometimes we didn’t know, and we ran into each other so we just hunted together.

For example was a 500 acre cattle farm behind my property. Sometimes there would be a bird gobbling on the backside of the pasture, and I’d go to that bird. On many occasions I jumped the fence, and walked right by the farmer, he’d wave, I’d wave back, and he’d keep on doing what he was doing. He never cared.

Another example, I was walking down a logging rd, and the land owner pulled up, and asked me if I’d had any luck, I told him where I’d been hunting, and lost a bird. He then asked me if I could take his kid who always wanted to go, but he didn’t want to deal with the skeeters. I got his number called him that night, and took his kid the next morning.

Back then we weren’t committing a crime by trespassing. We were enjoying the sport in its true form. The landowners honestly didn’t care. We weren’t destroying their land with atv’s, cutting fences, or leaving garbage behind. We were just killing the heck out of turkeys.

This wasn’t just around my place this was all over the state. I had a neighboring hunter who was a GW, and he roamed as much or more then I did. I talked to him about it one day, and he said, “son right now us turkey hunters don’t have boundaries, but that tides a changing. It’s not going to last much longer. Enjoy it while you can.” Boy he was right. I’ve had neighboring land owners get pissed because I’ve pulled a gobbler off of them, and into my set up on my property.


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Appears I misconstrued what you meant in the first post when you said crossing property lines, thanks for clarifying. Since I opened my mouth when I didn’t need to before I will again to apologize, it was uncalled for on my part.

What I meant to say in the first place was that’s another way to look at it, good luck this season. Darn autocorrect.

 

[woodsdog2]

You are absolutely right. I have never crossed a line to kill a deer. I never would, I have no desire. But 20 yrs ago, there were probably 1/4 of the turkey hunters in GA as there are now. No one cared if you crossed property lines, back then. We all knew who hunted the land around each other. We’d share info, talk about tactics, and tell kill stories at the tail gate many times a yr. If I knew my neighbor was hunting I’d stay away. He’d do the same. Sometimes we didn’t know, and we ran into each other so we just hunted together.

For example was a 500 acre cattle farm behind my property. Sometimes there would be a bird gobbling on the backside of the pasture, and I’d go to that bird. On many occasions I jumped the fence, and walked right by the farmer, he’d wave, I’d wave back, and he’d keep on doing what he was doing. He never cared.

Another example, I was walking down a logging rd, and the land owner pulled up, and asked me if I’d had any luck, I told him where I’d been hunting, and lost a bird. He then asked me if I could take his kid who always wanted to go, but he didn’t want to deal with the skeeters. I got his number called him that night, and took his kid the next morning.

Back then we weren’t committing a crime by trespassing. We were enjoying the sport in its true form. The landowners honestly didn’t care. We weren’t destroying their land with atv’s, cutting fences, or leaving garbage behind. We were just killing the heck out of turkeys.

This wasn’t just around my place this was all over the state. I had a neighboring hunter who was a GW, and he roamed as much or more then I did. I talked to him about it one day, and he said, “son right now us turkey hunters don’t have boundaries, but that tides a changing. It’s not going to last much longer. Enjoy it while you can.” Boy he was right. I’ve had neighboring land owners get pissed because I’ve pulled a gobbler off of them, and into my set up on my property.


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I know what you mean I grew up and hunted in the day when you could go on your neighbors farm and hunt and they yours. Especially deer season. I was blessed that most farmers or landowners I grew up around had a minor interest in deer hunting and absolutely none in turkey hunting. The birds just werent around in numbers in those formative hunting years for many. My Dad and I were the exception not the rule and we benefited from it to some extent too. We learned the hard way and drove miles to find and hear birds.