DEADLY PLUMBER

Like your first girlfriend. Get stuck in. Even if your not shore quite what it's all about. However be warned pigeons are like girlfriends. You could get lucky or it could end in tears. And as my dad once said have a johnny in your pocket. Just in case you get lucky.

Good topic. I noticed about a month ago 75% of the birds just vanished. I've done 4 recce's in the last 2 weeks and seen very little on my permissions. Nothing on the rape fields. Locally there are a few resident birds about. Driving around Herts I see a few under oak trees. All the acorns and mast has dropped and is now going rotten. I have not seen any flocks on the move. Have they migrated?. Have they moved to other area's ?. A lot of others are saying a lack of birds about in many area's. I guess we will see what happens. I'm hopping for a bit of decent shooting on the rape in Jan-Feb unlike last year with the massive flocks.

Yep don't worry about dirty barrels that's normal with felt wads. Some carts are a bit cleaner than others. My son uses Sipe in his 20g they are mustard for him. I've got some 12g Sipe but haven't used them yet. I'm using up some old Gamebore carts at the moment. Good luck.

Hay Wabbitbosher If it was you id go and see a doctor real quick. My dog even gave it a wide berth. Thanks for that Lads. Looks like their are quite a few Badgers on my permission.

Out shooting in the last few weeks I've noticed near some copses and near some holes. I've seen small dig outs about 6"deep &wide and filled with what looks like dog poo. My dog won't go near it. Fox or badger ?

I use 32g x 6s in my 12g. My son uses 28g x 6s in his 20g. I do have to store our ammo separately and we have separate bags for our kit and ammo so no chance of his ammo getting in with mine. The Essex hunters right. Find what suits you and stick with them. If the birds are coming in close you can change ammo size to a smaller size and load. Fit more open chokes etc. But that's a real faff. Just shoot em.

Go get them. They are feeding more in my area on beech mast. I shot a few on sat afternoon stuffed full of beech mast. Always remember its not all about big bags. Some times it's about getting some sport and testing your field craft. Good luck.

Rod facing back into the bird is best. They do work the other way round. But not as good. They don't come with very good instructions. Also try the rods both ways up. I have not used mine for a while but I think the bent bit of the rod goes into the bird cradle. When set they work well in a light breeze. In strong wind they can fly about to much. I usually place them off to a flank leading birds into my pattern. I use them instead of a rotary sometimes. I also use them above standing crops in the summer. Trial and error. Good luck

Yes as per TbirdX please include us with his teams. Deadly plumber & Deadly plumbers son.

Hi mate don't know if you've got loads to use up. Try a couple of boxes of another brand and compare results. Also pattern test them in your gun. That might tell you a lot.

I went on one last month in Essex with Peter Theobald. I learned quite a bit even though I have some experience. A good day out very good to pick the brain of an expert. He does certainly speak from a great deal of experience. A good day out with like minded people. Recommend it.

To make them green or any of your kit use some NATO green paint. It's a good base green colour and is a good mat finish. Just google NATO green paint and several sellers will come up. You can also get other colours as well.

I assumed the bend in the rod went into the ground spike. But I've found the rod fitted the other way round seems to make the bird work better. Try it. I do find the rod does bend quite a lot so you need to get the ground spike at just the right angle. But once set and in a breeze they work quite well.

I have two of these. Mine only came with the same bits as yours. They do bend quite a lot. They do work quite well in a wind. I did find a lack of instructions with them on how to set them up. Once I got the rods the right way round. Well I think I have. They worked a lot better. The rod with the bend in it goes at the top and gets the decoy frame screwed to it. I also tippexed he wings and neck up a bit. I think the short bit you think your missing is the sleeve bit that goes between the two rods. I hope that helps. I bought mine for tall crops in the summer.

Don't leave it to long before you retun to the rape as its growing real fast now. Look for them feeding on bald or backward patches. Reconnissance is the key. Know you enemy. Good luck.

They do tend to feed later in the day now. Also they are pairing up and are getting at it now. The bright conditions might have put them off. I shot a few on rape yesterday afternoon not great though.

I've seen them. They are very like the FUD's. They are very pricey for me. I've got some FUD's and they do work. You can get them from AA decoys at a cheaper price. The FUD's you can also alter the head angle. Look before you leap.

I was out yesterday afternoon. I shot one right up the Ring. If you know what I mean. lol

They are the Ravens from the Tower of London. I heard on BBC radio London they are missing a few. You might be in the s--t.

Thanks for the tip on the book. I will put it on my shopping list. Also thanks for your advice and tips at the course last week. A good day out and i learnt quite a bit.

Your not soft. I feed them in the garden. I do shoo them off when they Hogg the food to much. But when they are out on the battle field it's war.

Ive used them several times. All good. Might get some more FUDS in about a week from them.

My son shoots a 20g he has been using Sipe 28gram 6s. That are not the cheapest. But for pigeons and rabbits. They do the business no problem.

Yep all a bit to steep. Recession really starting to bite much harder now. Not for me.

I'm on it in April. Thanks for the feed back. I'm really looking forward to it. Lets hope it's stopped snowing by then. I've got the gear and a fair idea. But you can always learn more.