Ideal Decoy Pattern shape?

[Salopian]

Just more of a general interest topic really based on my Saturday experience.

After a few days reconnaisance , had a day on Saturday with a friend .

One location hide set up in middle front of a Copse .

Second hide in hedgerow on far side of field .

Using dead pigeons as decoys , no matter what pattern shape , birds didn't want to know , would overfly but showed no interest in dropping in , would split and go each side of copse but not turn into pattern or show any real interest , Tried curved pattern on right , L shaped , Horse shoe , V shape with central runway in and out , nothing interested them .

Far side of field( we took it in turns changing hides) worked brilliantly , no floaters , flappers or magnet , just group feeding pattern to left of hide , constant interest.

Using binoculars and viewing hides , very good , infact difficult to pick out hide location and could not see anything to deter birds from landing .

It really is a mystery why they didn't want to know Copse decoy pattern . Tried Magnet with and without, nothing decoyed birds.

Any ideas or similar experience?

Help and advice appreciated.

[motty]

This is certainly not uncommon. Birds will often prefer a certain part of a field.

I do not believe pattern shape is a particularly important factor in pigeons committing.

[Ultrastu]

I belive the same .you constantly hear people talk about not being afraid to change your pattern around

I think that rubbish .as long as you have decoys on the ground the shape is irrelevant .they either want your part of the field that day or they dont .

I shot a load the other week and left the birds where they fell some belly up . Others scattered out to one side .the birds still came in .

You have to be where the birds want to feed .that simple fact trumps every thing else .

To the point that you dont even need decoys out at all if they want your spot enough .

[ditchman]

i have used ...near enough all the basic "posted" set out decoy patterns there are..................

 

i take a very loose view............i thro the shells out ...scatter them in a very random fashion...set them up where they fall.....but there is one thing i do stick to ...is dont (for me that is) set the magnet up too close to the pattern.......wind is a factor ..direction......but not overly important............when i shot on saturday the birds were coming in to the back of the pattern as well as virtually dropping in on top of the pattern.....................

 

i found on that day...that the tail of the pattern was our killing zone....but it did change over the day.........................

 

 

its not an exact science...but my 2 points are

 

• keep the pattern random
• keep a small distance twixt magnet and pattern..

[TIGHTCHOKE]

As Motty says "Birds will often prefer a certain part of a field"

[Salopian]

All good information .

Interestingly for days before they fed and settled by the Copse . Saturday , far side of field and first I clapped them off , then used a banger rope . But as said set up in hedge over that way , despite banger rope and a fair bit of traffic / disturbance they still kept coming and dropping in . On two occasions we drove the vehicle over there for a chinwag and cuppa , and still they dropped back in after being disturbed.

So reconaissance, clap them off and set up and then wait in future.

[oldypigeonpopper]

hello, when i started it was the bible of pigeon books from archie coats that i read and patterns in a U or V were the norm, now days i am just a part timer not after big bags but just a few hours so i just tend to place out a few deeks not in any order and hope for the best, not everyones way but hey i just love being out doors,now being an oldy living in town i have to do a jack hargreaves, !!!!!!!!!

[JDog]

Not that I am a fan of his but you might do well to watch the episode of The Shooting Show with Geoff Garrod in which he started with a single decoy. He had watched the field, knew where to set up and with the only decoy he had he began to shoot a few before building the pattern and shooting a few more.

[oldypigeonpopper]

Not that I am a fan of his but you might do well to watch the episode of The Shooting Show with Geoff Garrod in which he started with a single decoy. He had watched the field, knew where to set up and with the only decoy he had he began to shoot a few before building the pattern and shooting a few more.

hello, thanks JD will take a look myself, it does go to show that in most cases it is right place right time,

[ditchman]

Not that I am a fan of his but you might do well to watch the episode of The Shooting Show with Geoff Garrod in which he started with a single decoy. He had watched the field, knew where to set up and with the only decoy he had he began to shoot a few before building the pattern and shooting a few more.

 

 

just out of interest ...how do you set up your deeks

 

random

 

reconised pattern

 

or how the birds place themselves when feeding in the area when you have been watching...

[JDog]

I am not the best person to ask as I don't really know what I am doing.

 

In the last few months I have not used a single decoy to start with other than two birds on the rotary, the hide being set up close to where the birds want to land. Usually though on stubbles or drilling I do use a horse shoe pattern of sorts. In a wind especially I believe that pigeons can be better guided to the sweet spot with a u shape rather than a 'blob'.

[marsh man]

If there is a idea pattern then I don't think I have ever found it , for a number of pre magnet years I would take 12 out of the freezer the night before I went , on the day it would be a matter of tipping them out about 25yds from the hide and chuck them in different directions then either put the dead un on a cradle or a kebab stick under the chin and way you go , as you shot a few you added to the set up and stopped adding pigeons when you thought the pattern was big enough .

 

Now , virtually all the fields I shoot I have shot the same fields many times before over the years and you get to know what part of the field will shoot the best , alright , I still get it wrong now and again but nowhere near as many times as hen I first started .

 

Nowadays with 99.9 pigeon shooters using magnet(s), I think the days pigeons coming into the decoys in textbook fashion are in the past ( well for me they are ) , I use one and if a pigeon is drawn into range by the magnet then it has done its job and the rest is up to me , I am there for the sport and I am not at all bothered about the right pattern as long as they come into range then I have done something right .

[TIGHTCHOKE]

Salop Ian, was there any wind that day?

[vampire]

I used to be able to sit in my living room and watch the pigeon on the field out back,would watch for hours how they formed a pattern themselves then how it adjusted over time,the next day and then another as wind changed.

The head of the flock was always moving forward as the dropped over each other (flappers),then you would often see a gap (kill zone),this where new birds would land mainly from behind (past the hide),but could be from side and even the front turning into wind at last minute like an emergency stop,then you had the tail of this long pattern where slow birds would feed whilst new would fly over the top of these.

Some days would be huge flocks and another day nothing,some at top of field other days would be nearly in my garden.Seemed they would work a field where numbers would build then they were just gone.

 

This is the basis of all my patterns,large clump of decoys say to the left of hide only just in range,could use flappers here,then a long gap in front of hide as kill zone,then the tail to right in range for those birds just gliding in to the gap,bouncers on edge here.

Magnet is used to pull off flight line and is still a mystery as to best place to put it or leave it in the boot.

But if its not the right day or wrong end of field,thats why you need to watch every day doing the recce.

So anyway thats my pattern,large amount of decoys bunched at head then a long gap with a few at the tail.