Turkey decoys

[Lefty]

My daughter is now wanting to shoot her first turkey with me and I am looking at upgrading or changing my setup.  I do hunt out of a DB blind and haven't had anyone teach me about turkey hunting.  Heck, there weren't any around where I grew up.  My buddy asked me if I wanted to go a few years back, shot a bird within the first hour or so of daylight and started chasing them the next year on my own.  I have done the trial and error thing and mainly killed birds just by spending a lot of time in the blind, which I don't mind of course, but would like to become a better turkey hunter.  I have been somewhat successful in the past (killed a couple with a bow and a few with a gun), but have had numerous times that just couldn't bring birds in that I could see.  I know that happens and for many different reasons, but I am also always looking to improve my setup and in the past, just haven't spent much money on decoys.  I usually go with a single hen or hen and jake setup and they are a $20-$30 decoy that looked the best to me in the store where I purchased them.  
  So do $100 and UP turkey decoys really get better results?  
  If you don't use the higher priced decoys, which ones do you use, what style (pose) and how many do you put out?

[Orion]

Lefty:  Can't say from experience that the higher priced decoys work better because I don't own any of them.  It seems what's new works for a while, using a real turkey fan, for example, but birds catch on pretty fast.

Decoys are sort of a mixed blessing for bowhunters, I think.  A decoy can help bring the bird in close and in position for a good bow shot.  On the other hand, in heavily hunted areas, I believe a lot of Toms become decoy shy and will go the other way when they see one.  The later in the season it gets, the less likely I am to use a decoy.  

When I do use a decoy, it's usually a jake positioned broadside from the blind at about 10-12 yards.  A Tom will usually come in facing it giving a broadside shot.

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

I have had lots of cheap decoys and they worked ok, But i have to admit the Zink Avian decoys are incredibly lifelike. I purchased the look out hen this year and plan on buying another next year as they are just too expensive to buy more than one per season. I think these decoys will be the last i buy. There are well enough made to last a life time.  and oh btw, the first time out i called  for a buddy and we had a 36 minute hunt!

[swp]

I bought a DSD jake and hen last year and have shot four birds over them and missed 2 others. Before that I had one turkey kill with a bow & decoys. This has been in NE,MO & KS so I guess those turkeys like the DSD's better. I can say that the tom's in my neck of the woods don't care much for the jake decoy, I have only had one who wanted to fight him the rest I have got with just the hen decoy out.

[LCH]

This year I used a mounted jake with no beard. I hunted four times and tagged out. 1st one on opening day was a 2 year old bird 10" beard 1 1/16" spurs 18 lbs. He came running 250 yards across a cut field I shot him at 3 yards. The second flew off the roost landed in a plowed tobacco field and came strutting 280 yards. I shot him at 8 yards right before he jumped on the decoy. Check it out on youtube Turkey Hunt Lee Hinton. He was 20 1/2lbs. 11" beard 1 1/16" spurs. I have never had this type success the decoy was the difference. LCH

[Gehrke145]

Spend the money, you wont regret it.  DSDs, Avian, and the BTDs are the 3 go to's in my pack.

[Mike Gerardi]

My good friend Dave has had great luck with a (BTD) Best Turkey Decoy jake and a Avian feeder and breeder hen. Awesome set up. The jakes have come into the BTD and beat it up twice. Everytime the birds come into that set the jake decoy gets beat up.
          www.bestcovery.com/best-turkey-decoy

[old_goat2]

I bought the Avian X's on sale at cabelas I think for less than sixty bucks a piece right before Christmas and let me tell you, I thought my upright hen was going to get sexually assaulted the other day and I had to fire a warning shot at that monster Merriam Tom  to scare him off of her. Lol It must of been a warning shot cause I neglected to aim;)

[jonsimoneau]

Joey told me to get a DSD.  I listen to Joey when he talks turkeys.

[old_goat2]

Where can you buy the "BTD" besides their website?

[Mike Gerardi]

I only know of ordering from the website.

[Dirtybird]

I believe that is the only way at this moment. To answer the original question I believe with decoys you get what you pay for.  Yeah the cheap ones work from time to time but the ultra realistic dekes really pull them in time after time.  Just my 2 cents.

[Lefty]

Got home from work tonight and my wonderful daughter and beautiful wife had two boxes sitting in the living room, marked happy early father's day.  Inside the boxes was a DSD hen and jake decoy.  I can't wait till this weekend!  I hope these will help bring in a gobbler for my daughter to shoot!  The detail to this decoys is awesome.  Thanks for the advise guys!

[AkDan]

This year in the midwest it did what I expect, they came on a string.   Most strutting including the jakes.  Compared to my old deltas I'm throughly impressed.   I really liked my deltas till the last couple of years.  My old man uses  Jenny vanes and does very well with them.  I'm not much of a fan of them other than they are the right size and sit a bit higher up, more visible).   The last two years I had more crow's interested in my old deltas.

What sealed me on the avian is the last two birds.  The jake and a silent over hunted tom.   Now if I could only get the dang thing in front of a PA longbeard.  Second year calling for a buddy, I didnt bother buying a tag, still no birds.  though this year we only hunted one day in pa this spring!  

I went with the avian due to the amount of traveling I do, there's obviously no turkeys in Alaska lol.  If I didnt have to travel, I'd grab a DSD!  Its hard to travel with a full size deke.

The dsd vs 'the best' turkey decoys paint job doesnt compare.   Dave and the Avian X boys hit a home run IMHO!  

It will be interesting to see how the old decoy manufactors try to step up to the competiion.

There's another life sizer I found a few years ago, less known than the dsd's that looks even better!  foam body deal, again didnt work out to travel so I havent looked into them farther...I'll have to try and find the name of them again.   Swapped computers so it might be a bit before I dig those notes up.

[AkDan]

LCH...1 1/6 spurs is a two year old?  

We've had some runts in MN with limbhangers that didnt break 20lbs.  We figured they were mini's.  Age no size, not sure why this is.   And only on a couple farms...but they are always there and we manage to pull one out almost every year we've hunted them there.   Has to be a genetic trait.