Lofting poles

[PPP]

Hi guys

Any recommendations? Thanks

 

[marsh man]

I don't think there are many who use lofting poles on the forum , although the other week ( P C ) Pigeon Controler wrote a thread on his success using poles .

I dare say if you are prepared to go through the trouble of added them to all the gear which seem the norm nowadays , then by using them in the right place and the right conditions  there is a good chance you will increase your bags .

I don't use them so I cant comment on how effective they are , there is a set of poles in the shed on the estate but they are used only for poking out Squirrel dreys.

[PPP]

1 hour ago, marsh man said:

I don't think there are many who use lofting poles on the forum , although the other week ( P C ) Pigeon Controler wrote a thread on his success using poles .

I dare say if you are prepared to go through the trouble of added them to all the gear which seem the norm nowadays , then by using them in the right place and the right conditions  there is a good chance you will increase your bags .

I don't use them so I cant comment on how effective they are , there is a set of poles in the shed on the estate but they are used only for poking out Squirrel dreys.

I see, I used a couple of (low level) full bodied decoys sat in the trees yesterday as well as decoys over backward OSR and it seemed to make a difference to the pigeon confidence, a few came into the trees, I’m convinced this will be part of my plan in the future.

[kenholland]

as I have said before on a resent thread , a lot of people don't bother it's just more kit to carry , but they do work in the right place .

[ips]

Interesting thread, a friend swears by them and he has been shooting pigeon for 40 odd years.

[Wilksy II]

I'm sure they help, if birds are down feeding there are always some in trees or power lines nearby, only trouble is the trees are rapidly greening up and they will useless very soon, as for recommending some I think there expensive for what they are, old gazebo poles or washing line poles would do, and  as said above they are an bit extra kit but in the right place more affective than a magnet and its heavy battery, A1 have a set as do shoot warehouse, but I think A1 have made them shorter but added more so they fit in a smaller bag

Edited April 21, 2018 by Wilksy II

[PPP]

14 hours ago, Wilksy II said:

I'm sure they help, if birds are down feeding there are always some in trees or power lines nearby, only trouble is the trees are rapidly greening up and they will useless very soon, as for recommending some I think there expensive for what they are, old gazebo poles or washing line poles would do, and  as said above they are an bit extra kit but in the right place more affective than a magnet and its heavy battery, A1 have a set as do shoot warehouse, but I think A1 have made them shorter but added more so they fit in a smaller bag

Excellent, thank you, I’m sure they do help but seem a bit of a rip off...

[lakeside1000]

I have an old 8 mtr carbon carp pole matched up to the top section of an extending landing net handle, I use the standard branch hook weighted mounts and have adapted the plastic handle from a paint roller, which screws into the landing net handle end fitting , it acts like a narrow funnel which I slide over the weighted section to lift up and bring down the decoys which works well in calm weather but can be a bit frustrating trying to remove lofters in anything above a stiff breeze, 

I dont use them that often but when there are only a few birds about I think it helps pull them in to range, 

The pole and end fitting weighs less then a kilo, so not too bad to carry, my decoys are 3 flocked full bodied birds which look very realistic once up in the branches , I usually try to find a dead branch or open branch to put them on so they are in full view from all angles.

[old'un]

Lofters work better than still decoys on the ground and will pull birds that the would of otherwise flown over.

Don’t use them anymore because as others have said, its just more gear to hump up the field, but they do work very well and combined with an air rifle and hide can account for some impressive numbers.

 

The point raised by Wilksy II and trees starting to green-up, it always amazes me when the trees are in full leaf and a pigeon or two land in the canopy, five minutes latter a pigeon looking like he’s heading for the next county puts the brakes on and lands in the same tree, how do they spot their mates in that canopy?

[lakeside1000]

On 22/04/2018 at 17:53, old'un said:

It always amazes me when the trees are in full leaf and a pigeon or two land in the canopy, five minutes latter a pigeon looking like he’s heading for the next county puts the brakes on and lands in the same tree, how do they spot their mates in that canopy?

 

Even worse is they see each other without any problem but try spotting one from the ground that's landed, all you get is a stiff neck and frustration.

[Longstrider]

I went through an age trying to use various lofting poles of one sort or another, from 'real' ones to fishing poles and all sorts of others.

I've now settled for a far cheaper method that works just as well and is dead easy to carry on those days when you might want to loft some decoys but might not .

 

It's called 12lb breaking strain green or brown fishing line !

I carry a bulk spool of the stuff (about a mile of it!) and a small fishing weight of about 1 1/2oz that's tied to a short length of bright pink ribbon.

Tie the end of the line to the end of the ribbon and spool out as much line as you think you'll need onto the ground (off the spool). Wizz the weight round a couple of times and let it fly up and through the tree, over a branch and back down again. (The bright ribbon makes it easy to find again once the weight has come back to earth.)

I cut the line from the ribbon and tie it to the decoy, then pull the decoy up into the tree by pulling the spool-end of the line (this saves wastage). Once the decoy is where I want it I cut the line and anchor the end with a small stick (like a tent-peg) Repeat as much as you like.

It really doesn't seem to bother the birds at all that the decoys are actually below the branches and not on them. The decoys usually waft about a bit in the breeze adding movement to the scenario, and at the end of the day it's a doddle to release the line from the peg and drop the decoys down again.

Wrap all the used line around a decoy or something and discard it at home by cutting through all the turns and binning or burning it. (Cutting through the turns like this makes lots of little short bits that wildlife cannot get tangled up in if it ends up loose at the tip)

This method also allows you put decoys a hell of lot higher up a tree than any lofting pole set I've ever seen.

A 1/4lb spool of 'el cheapo and I'd never trust it for pike fishing' 12 lb line can be had for a couple of quid so it's no hardship to use fresh line each time.

Edited April 24, 2018 by Longstrider

[PPP]

3 hours ago, Longstrider said:

I went through an age trying to use various lofting poles of one sort or another, from 'real' ones to fishing poles and all sorts of others.

I've now settled for a far cheaper method that works just as well and is dead easy to carry on those days when you might want to loft some decoys but might not .

 

It's called 12lb breaking strain green or brown fishing line !

I carry a bulk spool of the stuff (about a mile of it!) and a small fishing weight of about 1 1/2oz that's tied to a short length of bright pink ribbon.

Tie the end of the line to the end of the ribbon and spool out as much line as you think you'll need onto the ground (off the spool). Wizz the weight round a couple of times and let it fly up and through the tree, over a branch and back down again. (The bright ribbon makes it easy to find again once the weight has come back to earth.)

I cut the line from the ribbon and tie it to the decoy, then pull the decoy up into the tree by pulling the spool-end of the line (this saves wastage). Once the decoy is where I want it I cut the line and anchor the end with a small stick (like a tent-peg) Repeat as much as you like.

It really doesn't seem to bother the birds at all that the decoys are actually below the branches and not on them. The decoys usually waft about a bit in the breeze adding movement to the scenario, and at the end of the day it's a doddle to release the line from the peg and drop the decoys down again.

Wrap all the used line around a decoy or something and discard it at home by cutting through all the turns and binning or burning it. (Cutting through the turns like this makes lots of little short bits that wildlife cannot get tangled up in if it ends up loose at the tip)

This method also allows you put decoys a hell of lot higher up a tree than any lofting pole set I've ever seen.

A 1/4lb spool of 'el cheapo and I'd never trust it for pike fishing' 12 lb line can be had for a couple of quid so it's no hardship to use fresh line each time.

This is brilliant! Thank you!  There is leads fishing line kicking around here!

[Westley]

A similar method involves the use of a fishing weight and a catapult, it can be a bit more accurate. I have also used fishing line and a dummy launcher with good effect. I made my own lofting poles from aluminium tube with short sections of steel tube as ferrules for the joints, they just get harder to carry and erect each year  !   

Edited April 24, 2018 by Westley

[Terry2016]

On 24 April 2018 at 13:16, Longstrider said:

I went through an age trying to use various lofting poles of one sort or another, from 'real' ones to fishing poles and all sorts of others.

I've now settled for a far cheaper method that works just as well and is dead easy to carry on those days when you might want to loft some decoys but might not .

 

It's called 12lb breaking strain green or brown fishing line !

I carry a bulk spool of the stuff (about a mile of it!) and a small fishing weight of about 1 1/2oz that's tied to a short length of bright pink ribbon.

Tie the end of the line to the end of the ribbon and spool out as much line as you think you'll need onto the ground (off the spool). Wizz the weight round a couple of times and let it fly up and through the tree, over a branch and back down again. (The bright ribbon makes it easy to find again once the weight has come back to earth.)

I cut the line from the ribbon and tie it to the decoy, then pull the decoy up into the tree by pulling the spool-end of the line (this saves wastage). Once the decoy is where I want it I cut the line and anchor the end with a small stick (like a tent-peg) Repeat as much as you like.

It really doesn't seem to bother the birds at all that the decoys are actually below the branches and not on them. The decoys usually waft about a bit in the breeze adding movement to the scenario, and at the end of the day it's a doddle to release the line from the peg and drop the decoys down again.

Wrap all the used line around a decoy or something and discard it at home by cutting through all the turns and binning or burning it. (Cutting through the turns like this makes lots of little short bits that wildlife cannot get tangled up in if it ends up loose at the tip)

This method also allows you put decoys a hell of lot higher up a tree than any lofting pole set I've ever seen.

A 1/4lb spool of 'el cheapo and I'd never trust it for pike fishing' 12 lb line can be had for a couple of quid so it's no hardship to use fresh line each time.

Now that is a great idea ! thank you