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Which crow decoys


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Just now, shawn9914 said:

Which crow decoys should I buy, should I go for full bodied or shells, plastic or flocked.

How many will I need to draw them in.

What do you use and how many do you put out in the field 

Cheers

Either should work well. Also, when I kill a few, I keep them in my freezer to use as decoys on my next session. Start off with as many as you can afford. Crows are gregarious, and the more they see in a field, the more chance you'll get them to come in. Having said that, I know of some people who start off with one or two and get good results.

Fieldcraft is very important, and keeping still until the very last moment is vital.

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i have 19 full flocked crows which i feel work better on bare ground ie drills,on stubble were the birds are obscured, i find shells ok whish i have about 22 but dont need em all very often.also dependent on how far i have to carry them.just increase patern with shot birds.

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I use mostly full bodied flocked decoys from A1 plus a dozen shells also flocked, I am lucky enough that I can get the truck to where I want to shoot so put 70+ decoys with a rotary with extended arms and speed controller with two Sillosocks. Now that does pull them !

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As has been said - the more the merrier. Crows seem to be attracted to bigger groups if you are trying to decoy onto a field. If you are under a flight line you can get away with less (you just need enough to get them to come and have a look).

If you are limited on the number of decoys, I've gone out with about 8 flocked shells and a couple of full bodies. Nothing better than a dead crow as a decoy though. Always add dead ones to the pattern.

It does depend where you are and what other attractions you are competing against.

I usually shoot near a dairy farm that has a silage clamp and some nice sitty trees with already established flight lines. A couple of full bodies visible in the clamp and/or on the fence and some shells in the field near the sitty trees are usually enough to draw them in close enough to shoot (they either aim for the tree that we are standing under or fly close enough on the flight line to have a look).

Very satisfying decoying crows - they aren't stupid though and have amazing eyesight. Good fieldcraft/concealment is vital. I tend to shoot 32g 5's as they don't seem to like it.

If you ever see a field of crows, you'll notice that they have the most random pattern so don't be too precise with your layout.

 

PS - We've also tried a dead rabbit upside down (showing the white belly). An owl decoy (less effective), and leaving a dead crow upside down with wings splayed out always gets their attention. They go nuts and can't help but come have a look. 

 

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I've got 12 shells, but have even used a couple of home made silosocks style....things, made with a stick out of the hedge, a bit of head shaped cardboard and a black bin bag😵😁All I need to do is hit the beggars when they decoy in. 

Edited by getthegat
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I had a noticeable increase in the pulling power of my decoys when I changed from plastic finish to flocked. I now use a dozen flocked full bodies from A1 and a home-made flapper once I have a fresh kill to put on it. The slow flapper is amazing to use. I've shot no end of rooks and crows that simply didn't see me bring the gun to bear on them because they had turned their heads completely aside to stare at the flapper as they came in.

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I've put some serious hours in over the last few weeks on the crows after being new to it. I had a concern I wasn't using the correct loads. I wasnt killing clean on occasions which I don't like. It happened to be down to me in the end, not the load. I'm using 32g 6 and 7.5. Even been out today, belter of a day for it.

I started a thread a few weeks back asking for advice on crows and got some real good advice, take a look when you get chance. I took the advice onboard and the results spoke for themselves.

Pic below of this morning effort, gorgeous day into he north west!

20190328_114627.jpg

Edited by MarcMaxus
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  • 2 weeks later...

hello, i have been looking for a flocked winged crow decoy to try on a bouncer as some can be quite heavy,  i have a similar pigeon decoy with foam wings which work quite well, i found this one in Decathlon for £9.99, ref 8397512,   fitted a A1  metal thumb screw mount, glued in the foam tail feather, just need to try out, 

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  • 2 months later...

I find it depends time of year. Recent weeks I've been shooting them on silage aftermath, so as many decoys as I can carry & add to pattern.  But during winter I find I do better with baited decoys; a rabbit with guts out, one full body right next to it, another on flapper or floater and that's it, and I don't add more to pattern. Spring time I do same but make a nest of twigs at edge of hedge & use couple of eggs, again just one decoy. 

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