| Tie a standard decoy to a spinning rod with 17 LB test line and real it through your spread when birds are eyeing your blocks |
| A good money saver when buying decoys, is to change water keel into a weighted keel. For this you will need: Hot glue gun, duct tape, and sand or pea rock. First, tape an end shut on the keel, then fill it with sand and/or pea rock. Glue the open end shut. Once the glue has dried, flip decoy so duct tape is facing upward. Remove the tape and glue the second end. Its very simple and saves money. |
| When big lake hunting bring along a big spot light that hooks up on your cigarette lighter this will help you to see your hole spread and if needed make a adjustment. |
| A good way to make a moving decoy is to take a eye screw and screw it in under the beak. Tie a piece of string from the decoy weight, then run it through the eye screw and back to your position of hunting. Then all you must do is pull the string and it moves. |
| To Avoid high costs of buying mushroom weights, go to the local shop that sells scrap steel etc. and ask if they have sheet lead. I bought a 30lb sheet for 12 bucks! use tin snips to cut out weights, they also wrap around the dekes necks great. Saves tons of cash so you can afford Bismuth!! |
| If you've ever have a hard time picking up decoys out of a boat, your not alone! Here's a tip I picked up along the way. Go to the hardware store and pick up a 1 1/2"" x 6"" Dowel rod and a large threaded hook. Just screw the hook into the end and you will never have to worry about those hard to reach decoys. It will cut your pick-up time in half! |
| Put your motion duck (i.e. jerk-line, or motorized) somewhat near you. While your calling the movement can distract the duck's attention away from you. Also, don't be lazy, if the ducks aren't responding to your dekes, rearrange them. |
| When hunting either field or water set your decoys in a shape of a L,v,or w...so the ducks have a good area to land in. like a runway at a airport. |
| When duck hunting try to have decoys of other birds found in the hunting zone.This helps build confidence in your setup. |
| Never put your decoys farther than the range of your gun, and remember to allow space for the ducks to land in your decoy spread. |
| Setting decoys: when doing a j-hook or a T pattern always remember to start your line with a hen decoy. Ducks will respond much faster to you spread then leading with a drake.Don't forget to set your pocket to receive ducks landing into the wind. |
| Amour-all your decoys to give them a real-life shine. |
| The use of a jerk cord or throwing rocks to put ripples on the water draw wary ducks into shooting range. |
| Tie a piece of foam inside your decoy bag. This will keep it afloat in case it slips out of your grasp while empty. When empty, they sink! |
| Duck hunters with bad backs or having to move decoys long distances over land should try using a garbage can on wheels. A commercial can will hold 2-3 dozen standard ducks and 3-4 dozen goose dekes. Refuse haulers sell em cheap when the front handles break. |
| Tired of tangled up decoy bags and trying to untangle them in the dark, you can do the following: Instead of buying expensive decoy weights use regular fishing weights with a heavy rubber band tied to the top of the weight then stretch the rubber band around the keel of the decoy. This keeps the decoys from tangling in the bag when not in use. Keep a few x-tra rubber bands in your decoy bag pocket just in case one may break. Change rubber bands annually and you'll save more money and be tangle free. |
| to add more dekes with less money paint a few 1 or 2 liter plastic pop bottles with rust colored primer and scatter them along with the other dekes before the birds realize what they are its already to late. |
