Best decoy for beginning turkey hunter

[Bob33]

For one with limited turkey hunting experience, is having a decoy generally a good or a bad thing?  What should one look for in a decoy?  Are there any decoys that work well in a variety of situations?

[BurleyDog]

The best advice I can give you is not what specific decoy to buy but where to place it.

The best thing a decoy can do for you is direct the attention of the gobbler to the decoy & away from you.
Make sure you don't place the decoy out then sit directly behind it (from the direction you THINK) the turkeys
will come. Instead place it off to the side and ambush the ol gobbler as he comes in.

I have killed a pile of wary turkeys on a hideous inflatable hen decoy i bought years ago from Walmart.
With decoys its more placement than brand/realism/etc.

my 2 cents. good luck

[tlbradford]

It is a good thing for a beginner.  You can often bring birds in without calling with an effective decoy.  I like lightweight collapsible shells.  I also like the swinging heads that move with a little wind.  Almost all of the shells can use a good paint job though.  I would get a three pack with a hen, jake, and a strutting tom.  Stick with a lone hen decoy for most situations until you get the hang of things.  Use a real tail fan on the strutting tom.  I like the Primos B-mobile for that.  If you need a tail fan give m a holler.

[yelp]

It all depends on where you use one.  If you hunt fields or old roads in an area that is open vs. closed.    It can help having a decoy.  Turkeys can see them really well.    If I am in the thick stuff..many time I do not deploy one.   

[PA BEN]

Best light wt. decoy I ever used. I said no-way the first time I saw it, but it worked real good last year. Killed 4 toms over this decoy, all came in right to it once they saw it.
http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?r=view&i=420445&aID=503AK4C&cID=FROOGLE_420445

[Wacenturion]

Personally if I were one that was fairly new to turkey hunting, with little or no experience, I would opt not to use a decoy.  Reason being. there is a learning curve that is better imitated without a decoy for a couple reasons.  In fact, I have alot of turkey hunting experience and generally choose not to use one 90% of the time.

#1.  Safety....unless you have been in the turkey woods and know how to anticipate the things that can happen with turkeys as well as hunters pursuing turkeys (and you are one by the way to many that hear you), you may be at risk.

#2.   Unless you can read what situations and on what given terrain a decoy will have a chance of working, you may scare or hang up more birds than you actually decoy.  Sometimes anyone can get lucky and they will run right in, but that's not the norm by any means.  Of course a lot has to do with where you're hunting, the pressure and competition from other hunters to mention a few.

Learn to hunt without one and you'll wind up knowing instinctively when to use one, if that makes sense.  Gobblers know to the exact couple square feet where that hen sound is coming from.  You want them to hunt that sound and get within close guaranteed kill range, which in my opinion is 30 yards or less, irregardless of what you shoot.  If they hear the hen call and then see a decoy when they are 70 yards plus, they may do any number of things, one of which is good....like in coming in.  All the other options are not good...hanging up or running off and degrees in between.  It's an odds game, and your best odds are being concealed and making that gobbler find that sound....not see it.  Good luck this spring.     

[Bigger Fish]

I just bought the Cherokee Sports Ultimate 4 Pack Inflatable, and plan on putting them to use for the opener.

Why did I choose these?  Three reasons:

1. Because they're easy to transport. 
2. They use actual turkey photos to print them.
3. Most importantly, they were cheap.  I'm already running that dangerous line of trouble/no trouble, based on how much I've spent to gear up on what is currently an unknown result.  I couldn't justify spending $80 on a tom with a crappy paint job...

Potential drawbacks:
1.  I get what I pay for, and they end up being expensive birthday party balloons.  (For my wife's birthday, of course.)
2.  I shoot them full of holes, beyond repair.  (Although I will bring a patch kit with me.)

I'll post results, or lack thereof, after the opener.

[baldopepper]

I agree with wacenturian-I don't use a decoy all that often and when I do (and it seems to work well) i use   an old blow up  or a  foam type hen only.  It is amazing how well a Tom can pinpoint where that call came from  and most times I feel like a decoy would have made no difference.  Just my opinion.  I know we all like to buy toys, but the best equipment in the world can't make up for good knowledge of the birds you're hunting.  With the cost of gas, I'm not sure I want to invest any more money in various calls and decoys that seem to sit in camp or in my vest and never get used. (And I do have a ton of both that do just that)

[blacktail luv]

I have had a lot better luck without the use of a decoy.   

[Machias]

Bob33, I'd be more than happy to take you out turkey hunting. 

[kevinlisa06]

Havent really had much success with a decoy. But I normally always have one with me.

[KimberRich]

I have had a lot better luck without the use of a decoy.   

x2

I've used them a few times and it has only worked once for me and I don't think the decoy was the deciding factor in me killing the bird. 

I always hunt the early part of the season and for the most part the birds are still in larger groups so ambushing them in their travel path and being aggressive has worked much better for me.   

[tlbradford]

I have to respectfully disagree with the folks that say employing a decoy is often a poor decision, especially for a beginning turkey hunter.  I find that the most common problem with beginning turkey hunters is over-calling.  If you have got a bird in range, that sees the decoy, than it is very likely they will approach without anymore calling.  Those birds that hang up are just as likely to hang up when they don't see another turkey that was supposedly making sounds in that area.  Another problem with beginner's is that they can't sit still.  Employing a decoy will usually help glue a guy to a spot, make a smarter decision in their set-up, and it also deflects attention from small movements that a hunter may make.

I'm not saying there isn't a time and place for all kinds of tactics, but I feel strongly that a decoy will help, not hurt, a beginner.

The only thing I don't like about an inflatable decoy is the time to deploy.  Otherwise they are great.   

[Bob33]

I really appreciate all the helpful advice.  I sense there are pros and cons of using a decoy.  Proper use can help; improper use can hurt.   

I gather that using a hen decoy works under more conditions than using a tom?

[Bigger Fish]

The only thing I don't like about an inflatable decoy is the time to deploy.  Otherwise they are great.   

I'm full of hot air - not too worried about deploying!

Also, my biggest concern, due to my lack of experience, is when to raise my gun.  I'm guessing I'll be late in doing so, and having the Toms back turned will be helpful, IMHO.

This of course, assumes one gets that close...