Decoy position

[TooManyHobbies]

Does it matter, or should dekes be placed to position a tom for the shot?
For deer hunting, a buck decoy would face the hunter, a doe away from hunter, to position a buck for a quartering away shot. Does the same hold true for turkeys?

Another question: Will a jake/tom decoy with fan work better than without?

Thank you for any opinions.

[xtrema312]

[crotch horn]

For turkeys you can use either a jake or tom as far as that goes. Sometimes they will respond to dekes and other times they won't. A jake is less intimidating to the younger jakes and toms. If using a mix of hens and jake or tom place the male deke where you want to shoot the tom. They tend to want to come in and fight the male deke for breeding rights. If you wait til they fan out and turn away from you that is your best bet for drawing without getting busted. Good luck.

[Friend]

There is no position that is best for every situation.

My experience which has produced the most favorable results has been to face the Tom or Jake towards the blind. No birds, thus far, have approached the decoy directly from the front. The most common response has been that the gobs approach the deke from the side, yet angled towards the dekes front 1/3. Great shot opportunities are routinely encountered.

[Ray Lyon]

x2 to Friends response for me.

[TooManyHobbies]

Thanks. It took me a minute (or two) to think why to set it facing the blind. My first thought was if it's facing the blind, the bird will also be facing the blind. But, after setting it up this morning quartering to my left, two jakes came in from my left. I think with the "tom" facing them, they boogied. Of course, two jakes may have boogied just because they're not dominant to any bird on the property.
I'll keep trying. I have until 5/25 to knock down my last bird.

[Butternutz]

X3 to Friends response. Btw cool avatar you got there!!