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Has anyone tried this?
I really want to try this but I'm unsure of which brand decoy to buy.
Any advice here????
Yes I have and it can be fun when the action is on. You have to carry it in so with that in mind shop accordingly. I have had bucks come into them and bucks pay no attention and walk right by. You want to be in an area where they can see it.
Deer don't all respond to them in the same way. The seeking stage of the rut is a good time to use them when bucks are cruising alone. You will have positive as well as negative results but there are times when they are hot.Once on a very windy day I was in a pine in a cut hay field. I had a buck decoy out in front of me. Out of boredom I took out the rattling horns and aggressively smashed them together a few times. Shortly after a real shooter buck came in on a fast trot right to the base of the tree I was in. I suspect that he got my scent and he froze right under the pine looked out at the decoy and then took off running like I was shooting a slug gun at him. One he was edgy because it was mid afternoon and high winds, two he caught my scent and three there just was no movement to the decoy. But if it was a calmer day and he came in from a downwind approach things could of gone different.I have seen pitures of bucks mounting 3-D targets. I prefer the doe decoy which to it I mounted a real whitetail tail. Decoying will work but like anything you have to put your time in with them and I use them in an area with a very bad buck to doe ratio. Montanna decoy has a new doe decoy out that is a doe urinating that I was thinking of trying on the edge of a corn field. They are nice because they are light weight.I have a couple cow elk from them. If you use one make sure you have it set up facing away from your stand because a buck will come in downwind of it and circle it. Is like rattling only had it work a couple times but when it does it is pretty cool. You just have to set up so it can be seen.
I tried a bedded doe once and every doe that came out of the woods kept blowing at it and scaring everything away, that was my last atempt.
I tried a bedded doe once and every doe that came out of the woods kept blowing at it and scaring everything away, that was my last attempt.
The only time I had success with a decoy (I used a four-point) was near the rut peak, when the bucks were scraping and on their feet in the daytime. When I tried it earlier in the season, like NYbob, the does would blow at it and bucks weren't interested. But they are a pain to haul around.
Sorry to be away and not answer..... but my wife and I were on a special birthday trip to Walt Disney World and a cruise to celebrate her birthday (the 11th). But I'm back now and ready to start hunting.
I've seen so many videos of decoying bucks that I thought it would be fun to try it. I know nobody has tried it on the farm that I hunt and I think I've got an ideal spot to try it. It's at an end of a corn field that has about fifty yards of golden rod in it.
The wind is usually perfect for the tree I've picked out. The deer enter it from a real good bedding area and last season there was a great scrape about fifteen yards from this tree. I know they usually hit scrapes during darkness but I'm also sure the does would be active in the late afternoon and would bring the bucks with them during day light. I was hoping the decoy would help position them for a good shot.
I've looked at a couple of decoys and most are intended for the Midwest. I think I would need a smaller bodied buck like the Carry lite or Primos Scarface. But I also appreciate the advice of all of you experienced hunters.
What to do..... what to do!?!?
I have personally killed 4 bucks and 2 does over a decoy, including a high 150's slammer 11-pointer. All in NY. I Always use a buck decoy. All deer have different personalities but if you know that you are in an area where you've been seeing a big buck and have seen ANY dominance behavior out of him, give it a try. I get over it and give a very loud wease, followed by a rattling sequence after about 5 minutes. I've had bucks come in timid and jumpy, others come in stiff-legged and side-stepping with their hackles up, just like they've watched the hunting videos filmed in Iowa to learn what to do. I've had lots of deer come in, and they focus HARD on the decoy. I could almost do jumping jacks in my tree. Does tend to get tweaky around them and never stick around, but the bucks zone right in. Carrying the decoy in is a painful chore. I use a hard plastic hollow style decoy, and as stated, a small racked buck. I have rattled in 3/4 of the bucks I've killed, so I am not afraid to rattle between The last week of October to the end of November. I wish decoys were easier to calmly in and out. I have moved mine to heavy cover, laid them down and covered them up with a camo blanket if I will be back soon. One night I shot a doe over it, got down, picked up the decoy and trotted 100 yards, set up again, weased, rattled and killed the big 11pointer. All within about 40 minutes. I had previously called him in twice but he would not come in because he didn't see deer. So...I gave him deer, and he ended up catching my arrow.
Thanks for replying Ed.
I've looked at a couple of decoys and really didn't like the looks of them. Dicks sells on e called Old Jack and it looks really bad.
What brand do you use?
It's the Carry Lite EZ Buck decoy. Pain in the butt in the woods. I've considered drilling finger holes in its back for easier carrying. Loud as hell when a branch rubs the hollow hard plastic. Don't be too concerned with getting an overly realistic looking decoy. The deer aren't as picky as you. Remember that they can't conceive the idea that what they are looking at is a decoy and not a real deer. ....Yet. Miss your shot at him once though ..... Lesson learned.
Last season I never found a decoy that looked good or at a price I thought I would want to pay. I have been putting more research into them and just recently I pulled the trigger on buying the one I said didn't look realistic, Old Jack from Dick's.
I received an email from Dick's and saw that Old Jack was on sale for $79.97 and said for that kind of money, I'd give it a try.
I brought it home, set it up in the back yard and I think it looks better than I thought last year. It came with a carry bag that will make it easier to carry and set up in the back of the corn field I have picked out.
The corn didn't grow in the back 100 yards of the field because of wet conditions this summer and I picked out a great tree that will allow me to hunt anytime we have a southerly wind which is almost every day.
There are numerous trails that enter the corn field and the back end serves as a travel corridor between two known bedding area's on the farm. I am hoping to surprise on of the eight pointers I have on trail camera after last years season ended or the ten pointer who's sheds I found in March.
Thanks again Ed Conolly for your encouragement and positive words.
I don't know for sure but every season during the rut my 3D targets get beat up pretty good!
I've had the same experience as Ed. But probably more often than not I got no reaction. Its like decoying anything else, sometimes it works and other times it doesn't. One thing I would do though Pogo, is use only a single antler. I've had much better results with a single antler on the decoy. Probably in a deers world that is a little lower on the dominance ladder
Good point longbeard..... one antler would probably suggest that they wouldn't want a fight and would run away from a more dominate buck. I'll try that. And it doesn't have to work every time..... just once! ;)
I have had great luck decoying here in NY. I have killed 3 bucks over a decoy. I killed a 6pt. last year who had a broken front leg and do not think he would of made the winter. He actually came walking up a creek for about 100 yards to get to the decoy. When he tried to mount him I shot him. I disagree about too many things going wrong. In the right set up they are very effective. I always use the one antler trick and also a white feather taped to a piece of dental floss to each ear. Gives some movement even in a slight breeze. I use the Tinks decoy now and it blows up and can be set up in less than 5 minutes. I have killed 2 bucks over this one. It does not hurt to try and I find here in NY the 1st. two weeks of november are best but I have used mine early season as well and have had bucks come in to check out who was intruding on their turf. Shawn
