turkey gun for opening day

[charlie cleveland]

i m taking of from work for the opening day i ve been thinking about what am i going to choose what shotgun to carry..ive made my decision i m going to take the ph 12 ga with no 3 frame and 2 3/4 inch chambers...for ammo i ve got no 6 for the right barrel and magnum 4 shot in the left wish i hade some no 2s i may scronge threw the ammo again for 2s mite even go load up some 2 s as i have some left...the ph has 32 inch barrels and it throws a good tight pattern it has killed several squirls for me but no turkey yet..keep my fingers crossed...gona go with my dads old 2 hen decoys and a jake decoy in full strut...for calls i m useing my dads old solid ceder box call many a turkey has been lured into range with this call...also taking my favorite 1964 lynich made box call..and a mouth call to pass time with im not to good with this call i ve never really mastered the mouth call... happy hunting fellows....charlie

[Jeff Christie]

Best of luck

[Kenny Graft]

Ohio only lets us use 4# and smaller....)-: I will say my choice is 1 1/4 oz of copper 5-s Never lost a bird,,.....(-: SXS OHio

[Mills Morrison]

I will probably take a ph 12 or an E hammer gun. 4 and 6 RST

[charlie cleveland]

good choice mills and sxs.i guess i still get mywanting for big shot from them old ammo boxes of yester yearthat said that for turkeys bb and no 2 shot recommended...charlie

[George Lang]

16 gauge 30" VHE for the long walks(1 1/4 oz.# 6 mags.) or a 10 gauge 30" NH or EH(1 3/8 oz #6) for the short flatland hunts. First have to find some turkeys, pickings have been very slim last couple of years.

[Todd Schrock]

I'll go with the 32", 10 GA. DH and feed it RST #5's.

[Dean Romig]

good choice mills and sxs.i guess i still get mywanting for big shot from them old ammo boxes of yester yearthat said that for turkeys bb and no 2 shot recommended...charlie


I can understand that recommendation for body shots but for head and neck shots I prefer the denser patterns provided by #6 shot.






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[Bill Anderson]

[QUOTE=Dean Romig;190692]I can understand that recommendation for body shots but for head and neck shots I prefer the denser patterns provided by #6 shot.


I agree. In most cases, if you kill the head, the body will die also. :)

Bill

[George M. Purtill]

Charlie- Not using the 8 Gauge????

[Mark Garrett]

I can understand that recommendation for body shots but for head and neck shots I prefer the denser patterns provided by #6 shot..

+1 for Turkey Loads only use number 6s............ and arrows .

Good luck Charlie , hope you get em with what ever loads you decide on.

[charlie cleveland]

geoge i m going to be walking some if i hear one gobble so i chose a lighter gun than the 8 ga but it will see action soon...the wife just got in with my groceries looks like im gona eat good if nothing else...beanie winnies- vieanas-some dr peppers and water plus deserts...good luck to you other fellas out there...charlie

[wayne goerres]

Just patterned the old 8ga belgium double yesterday. Probable not a turkey alive that could survive a round at 45yds. 43 grs blue dot and 1 3/4oz no4s.

[charlie cleveland]

thats a good load for the old 8 ga s....charlie

[charlie cleveland]

got up at 5.0 amthis morning was in the woods by 6.15 i listened for a while but no gobbler was heard...so i went on to my big field about 10 acres we had planted for the deer and turkeys...at 9.30 am a lone hen come by my decoys she stayed a few minutes and went on her way...about 10.00 am 3 big turkeys came into the field got out my binoculars and found out they were big big hens...had me a can of vienas and crackers before i was done with them from some where out in front of my decoys was 5 large jakes the longest beard was 3 inches at most...they soon lost interest in my decoys and met up with those big hens i sure got a laugh out of them a fuzzinf up and chaseing those poor old hens....about 10.. am there was a lone jake came by with a 1inch beard at most he too met up with the now small herd there was a total of 11 in the band now...they left the field at 12.20 so i took lunch break..gosh it was getting hot the temp was suppose to reach 85 but it felt like a hundred....finally at 3.00pm the turkeys returned to the field there was now 12 turkeys in the band then i turned and checked my back side there was 3 more turkeys grazing away on that green grass and maybe a few bugs... at 5.00 i was ready to leave i had about laughed my self out at those 4 biggest jakes they were puffed up and walking around those ladies for ever thing they had...i did not get to go at 5.00 those turkeys stayed in the field till 7.00 pm and left i was wore out waiting for them to leave where i could leave...i never saw a good bird to shoot but i sure had my share of turkeys seen and laughs for sure...will be back on the turkeys trail saturday ive got to work thru friday....charlie

[Angel Cruz]

Spring season starts on Saturday. I'm thinking on my Super Fox with 1-1/8 of #6 and #4 shot.

[charlie cleveland]

that super fox ought to have good chokes in her...hope you good luck angel...charlie

[Angel Cruz]

thanks Charlie, I'm even using super x shells. she got three inch chambers but the shells are 2-3/4.

[charlie cleveland]

love those long chambered guns....i ve got a ithaca i got from russ jackson with 2 7/8 chamber in 12 ga i killed a turkey with it last year shooting 3 inch shells out of it...those 2 3/4 will do fine on a turkey...charlie

[charlie cleveland]

i m hunting tommorrow suppose to rain but i got the 4 wheeler loaded and got my rainsuit layed out to wear..suppuose to be cool in the morning gona be tough to get a gobble out of anything in the morning...i was gona carry the eight but since its gona be raining i pulled my dad s old smith and wesson 12 ga out of the corner...ive never killed a turkey with this gun either but my dad has killed several with it...my dads first turkey was killed with a lefever e grade 10 ga ive hunted with it and got turkeys with it but it mostly gets cleaned every once in a while..hope some of you get to get out tommorrow and hunt them old gobblers...charlie

[George M. Purtill]

Good Luck Charlie 8 Bore

[charlie cleveland]

well george hees the way the hunt went today...first of all i heared the old clock go off at 5 this morning i shut the alarm off but did not get up till 5.30 so it was breaking daylight when i got into the woods. i next put the decoys out and got in my blind boy i had no more than got in my seat here came a big hen she was clucking and purring at my decoys but nary a word did they say..she stayed around for thirty minutes and left the field..it was 9.00 before i seen anything else and it was another hen she only clucked a coupla times and she went her merry way...it was 10.45 before the band of 6 big jakes came by they mite of stayed 1 minute around the decoys and off to who nos were....at 12.00 i packed up at wnt home it was a cool one this morning nary a gobble did i hear...charlie

[George M. Purtill]

Sorry Charlie
Next time- at least there are birds around. that's a good sign. There must be some big Toms nearby.
Good luck.
Keep us posted.

[Dean Romig]

Had 14 in my side yard last evening. They flew up into my oaks to roost. We had almost 7" of snow by morning but they flew back down into my side yard this morning. No jakes but 1 big ol' tom with about a 10" beard.

His head and wattles were engorged and white last evening but the snow has obviously dampened his lust and they're all red and blue this morning.




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[Mills Morrison]

I missed opening weekend for the annual meeting, but will be out next weekend for sure.

[tom tutwiler]

I'll be using the Abby Gun. Last year was the first year since she has passed and I made it my mission to take a bird with the gun I had created to commemorate the best dog I'll ever had. Finally late in the season I made it happen with a load of 6's coming out of an RST shell. Pretty special moment and it brought a tear to my eye:



http://i1191.photobucket.com/albums/z470/vaturkey2/IMG_1064_1.jpg

[Angel Cruz]

Nice going Tom. Fox got the turkey.

[charlie cleveland]

big bird and a sure enough fine gun...charlie

[Mike Franzen]

Hope you get one Charlie. I'm missing those biscuits.

[Mills Morrison]

My son and I went out with my PH 12. We saw and heard lots of birds, but no turkeys.

[wayne goerres]

Another couple of years Mills and your son will be ready for the hunt. He's getting big.

[Bill Bates]

I have three weeks to go before I get my chance at old mister Tom. First I have to get my grandson on a bird during the Utah youth hunt which runs three days ahead of the general season. Them if my grandson gets his bird I hope to get his dad on a Tom. He has never shot a turkey.

I won't be pulling the trigger until they take their birds. I plan on hunting with my GH this year.

I went and did a little spoting and patterning some turkeys the last two mornings.

http://m8.i.pbase.com/o9/10/209910/1/162966988.Wedob7od.TomsStrutting04_09_2016.jpg

http://m7.i.pbase.com/o9/10/209910/1/162961347.Q5HnPfpe.StruttingTom04_08_16.jpg

[charlie cleveland]

me and the dogs loaded up in the old geo tracker and went to our turkey hunting ground we seen six turkeys i know two of them were gobblers they was all fuzzed up..shoulda took my binoculars...any i m working this week but next week gona hunt every day if all goes to plan...hope you other fellows good luck...charlie

[George M. Purtill]

Good luck Charlie.

[Jerry Harlow]

I had the 1878 10 2-frame Lifter repaired where the heavy loads cracked both sides of the stock. Still wanted to kill a turkey with it so I tried 35 yards with 1 1/4 oz of 6s. With .035 choke in it I would not trust it on a turkey. For some reason, the pattern is thin enough a turkey would run off. At two targets no shots from either barrel hit the vital areas enough for a clean kill. I can't trust it at over 30 yards so I will hold off until I need turkey number three to prolong my hunting season.

[charlie cleveland]

good luck j.a. i too have a coupla 10 ga that dont pattern well but i have some that will do the trick at beyond 40 steps....and some of them new turkey choke guns is just unbeliveable....charlie

[Jim Wescott]

Nebraska Longbeard killed yesterday at 22 yards with The Twister, formerly Mike Franzen's Space Age Parker.....an 1880 lifter 12 gauge with 32" plain twist barrels featured in his Parker Pages article...thank you again Mike!
This bird and his buddy hollered for two hours after fly down before circling and strutting up behind me. One gobbled wicked close then starting drumming. My heart was pounding making the barrels move with each beat and one of the toms putted softly twice at that. Their fatal move was attempting to slide past on my left to find the "hen". Pausing behind a small oak was all that was needed to aim and fire an ounce and an eighth of nickel 5s. Once the smoke cleared I could see the shot was true. Son Tim and friend Niles did very well with their 870s.
Returning to New England today to prepare for more Parker and turkey adventures. Talk about a stress test - My heart rate just returned to normal

[Mills Morrison]

Well done!:cool:

[charlie cleveland]

mighty nice bird you got with that big ten ga.my heart also skips beats when a big gobbler is close sometimes i think their going to hear my heart beating and fly away...nothing like takeing a turkey down for me..its the same feeling after all these years...charlie

[Dean Romig]

"Tik-Tik Oumm..... Gobagagagaga!!

I can't wait! I was at camp in Vt a few days ago and there were turkeys everywhere - in the fields, in the edges of the woods - everywhere....

In two weeks when the season opens they will be hard to find. We'll really work to call them into killing range.






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[charlie cleveland]

go getem dean....charlie