Turkey hunting and BS welcome!

This morning my son killed the bird we were after when I broke my ankle. He's killed a good number of birds with me but this was his first successful solo hunt. Going to get it mounted.

 

I carry a pinhoti glass call (which I broke this year) a sugar cane trumpet call and a ghost cut diaphragm call which I use 95%of the time and that's all the calls I carry

 

Nice my oldest has killed a couple on his own but goes out of his way to hunt with me or my brother. He started hunting with us at 5 and killed his first bird at 8. He is not a very good caller but he can walk all day and that's a lot of what it takes to be successful around here.

 

Do you know what mount position you are gonna go with ?

 

Son killed his first two toms with a .410 and lead 6s, both inside 15 yards at age 7. First was from a ground blind, second sitting by himself on a tree 10' from me. Had 7 birds inside 30 yards the first year he hunted toting a gun with me at age 6. Couldn't let him shoot because the .410 lead pattern fell apart at 20 yards. Talk about making a fella develop a tic. Now days everyone thinks killing with a .410 is a big deal, using TSS. LOL! This is the first year he's really hunted alone, usually always with me, mostly because we enjoy being together I guess. Not sure on the mount pose, leaving it up to him when we get it to taxidermist.

As with most turkey hunters I've accumulated calls. Not a collector, I buy them for use. A cousin makes box calls and have a few friends who make pot calls and trumpets. Also know a guy who makes very consistent mouth calls and have only used one model he makes the last 15 years. Usually buy a dozen or two every year or so and supply family and friends. I believe the only production call I carry is a 20+ year old HS Strut triple glass world champion glass pot call. It wasn't worth a lick till I paired it with a black locust striker a friend turned for me. I carry a couple pot calls, several trumpets, a few mouth calls and at least two boxes. There are times I've run everything in the vest and struck a tom on the last call I tried. My theory (opinion or hunch) is sometimes you just simply hit a familiar cadence or sound of a hen they already know and they get fired up from it. They can't reason and smart doesn't apply. They respond to conditions or conditioning. The more you mess with them the more wary they become. Depending on your hunting grounds that might mean 1 or 2 guys calling to them or 50. Hard to compare apples to oranges. I love a kamakazi tom as good as the next guy. The ones that require a lot of effort usually are remembered with more clarity.

 

What I tell all the deer and elk hunters that inform me how dumb turkeys are is that i never said they are smart, I say they have an uncanny desire to stay alive and the eyes and ears to make that happen. I agree whole heartedly that birds get conditioned to certain things in their enviroment. I also believe that as they get older they are far less likely to do anything other than gobble and wait for the hen to show up. So when they do screw up and give us a chance it means so much. One of my favorite hunts of all times was a jake i shot in about 2 feet of snow that circled us for an hour at 70 yards. as weary as that bird was you would have thought he was a old Tom. The bottom line is nothing makes my heart race like a Tom gobbling on the way in i like to think all turkey hunters feel the same way.

 

Congrats
Hope the ankle is healing well

 

Thank you Lynrd.
My wife allowed me to take her for the last hunt of the season which ended yesterday. Called in a group of jakes and she took the biggest of the group after the slick old tom didn't show. Her first in 30+ years and due to circumstances, much appreciated.
She would kill me if she knew I posted her pic.

 

Very nice , man that birds fan is close to being full.

 

Battered wild turkeys nuggets

 

Looks delicious

 

It was delicious! A friend of mine marinated and then smoked a half breast and dropped it off today . That is great too. Lunch for tomorrow.

 

Going to try and fill that second tag tomorrow
Slept in today

 

Good stuff. Wife double batters, butter milk-doctored up four-buttermilk-doctored up four. I man the fish fryer in the driveway and keep it 350-375 degrees. Drop a batch and pull them when golden brown. 18-20lb live weight turkey, breast fillets then cut into medallions and with sides it will feed around 8 people with plenty of leftovers for everyone to take home.

Good luck

 

Must of boiled too long first time doing the spurs

 

I don't boil mine for that exact reason I did the same to my first set of spurs. Now I just peel the leg scales off and clean them up really good with a small knife and call it good. It works best if you do them the same day you shot your bird if you can. I forgot about the 3 I had last year I ended up leaving the scales on and just cleaning the marrow out, I definitely do not like that look as much.

 

I'm also pretty sure with some glue and patience you can prolly glue those back on.

 

Oh yes . Hot glue gun and put them right back together ,done

 

Birds are speechless after fly down here . They have been laying in high grass all day in the field across from my house . So that is trespass land for me . I need to see the part time neighbor that owns that land . Not sure if he still turkey hunts . I could put out decoys close to there and cut them off . I have a Jake a strutter and 3 hens a small flock !