Rotary magnet recommendations please...

[Westley78]

Guys,

I am new to pigeon shooting and am in the process of building up my kit and next on the list is a rotary magnet.

So I thought I ask the voices of experience on here for kit recommendations as there seems to be quite a few options on A1 decoys and Nighthawk seem to be a similar quality but slightly cheaper.... now I’m confused.com 

Also could you advise on battery spec/size and any particular accessories that are a must to get or a must to avoid please.

Thank you in advance

Westley

[clangerman]

do yourself a favour don’t buy one chucked mine on the scrap pile it’s all extra weight to carry and extra work yet to see a place i can’t get them to commit using dead birds or at least close enough to shoot 

[Centrepin]

Aa decoys do a brilliant one at £45. Heavy but just as good as those that cost over £100.

[old'un]

39 minutes ago, clangerman said:

do yourself a favour don’t buy one chucked mine on the scrap pile it’s all extra weight to carry and extra work yet to see a place i can’t get them to commit using dead birds or at least close enough to shoot 

I would say that 80% of the time they work well, I have pulled some long birds off their flight line on ground I did not have permission on.

Why did you not offer your magnet to someone?

[clangerman]

19 minutes ago, old'un said:

I would say that 80% of the time they work well, I have pulled some long birds off their flight line on ground I did not have permission on.

Why did you not offer your magnet to someone?

rather annoyed at the time hence the scrap pile shooing so many birds was obscene never done it since or want to again think going for quality over quantity was a age thing 

[WalkedUp]

The ultra light ones aren’t always man enough for dead birds. Had motors give out. The adjustable speed buttons seem to always break too. Try to get one with spikes on the cradles for the wings rather than clips. Get a couple of decent batteries. 

[Westley78]

Thanks guys, some good feedback here....

Has anyone used the nighthawk magnet?

[Westley78]

3 hours ago, Centrepin said:

Aa decoys do a brilliant one at £45. Heavy but just as good as those that cost over £100.

Thanks I’ll take a look at that 👍🏻

[hawkfanz]

a1 decoys lightweight one runs all day on small battery.and good backup service too.

[Centrepin]

9 hours ago, Westley78 said:

Thanks I’ll take a look at that 👍🏻

My son recently bought two, one for each of us and he upgraded the batts,  threw in 1 flocked crow, 1plastic crow, 1 jackdaw, 1 pigeon flapper and knocked a couple of quid off 2 fleeces that were already discounted as he chose to collect.£110 all in. Bargain. We taped the arms with camo tape as they looked a bit shiny, but the rest was already painted matt green. They've run over 7 hours without going flat. More than enough for a days decoys.

We don't bother with extra switches and timers etc as it's more to go wrong.

Not the best picture, but if you zoom in, its already zoomed and cropped a bit, you can see it.

 

Edited May 11, 2020 by Centrepin
Addition of picture

[Old Boggy]

I had one from UKShootwarehouse, their lightweight model, for about 15 years now and have had no problem whatsoever and it probably gets used about 50 times a year. Not the cheapest I know, but lightweight and does the job perfectly. It also has the facility to adjust the angle of the arms which I find beneficial. Each to their own I suppose.

OB

[Westley78]

11 hours ago, hawkfanz said:

a1 decoys lightweight one runs all day on small battery.and good backup service too.

👍

2 hours ago, Centrepin said:

My son recently bought two, one for each of us and he upgraded the batts,  threw in 1 flocked crow, 1plastic crow, 1 jackdaw, 1 pigeon flapper and knocked a couple of quid off 2 fleeces that were already discounted as he chose to collect.£110 all in. Bargain. We taped the arms with camo tape as they looked a bit shiny, but the rest was already painted matt green. They've run over 7 hours without going flat. More than enough for a days decoys.

We don't bother with extra switches and timers etc as it's more to go wrong.

Not the best picture, but if you zoom in, its already zoomed and cropped a bit, you can see it.

 

That's excellent thank you so much 👍

I was also thinking of adding a couple of crows and a magpie to the kit as i hear they do help?

Also, out of interest what batteries did you go for as i'd rather carry one decent than two smaller batteries..??

1 hour ago, Old Boggy said:

I had one from UKShootwarehouse, their lightweight model, for about 15 years now and have had no problem whatsoever and it probably gets used about 50 times a year. Not the cheapest I know, but lightweight and does the job perfectly. It also has the facility to adjust the angle of the arms which I find beneficial. Each to their own I suppose.

OB

Good advice OB thank you i will take a look 👍

[Old Boggy]

10 minutes ago, Westley78 said:

 

 

Good advice OB thank you i will take a look 👍

If you do go the UK Shootwarehouse route, don't forget the PW discount.

OB

[Centrepin]

5 hours ago, Westley78 said:

 

 

I was also thinking of adding a couple of crows and a magpie to the kit as i hear they do help?

Also, out of interest what batteries did you go for 

Opted for 17 amp hour batts.

I sometimes put a couple of full bodied crows out to one side of my pattern, sometimes works sometimes doesn't.  I use dead crows on the magnet or flapping/dead pigeons depending on what I'm after. Again it varies on method on day, don't be afraid to alter things if it doesn't work first time. Being in the right place and sitting still is more important.

[Westley78]

3 hours ago, Centrepin said:

Opted for 17 amp hour batts.

I sometimes put a couple of full bodied crows out to one side of my pattern, sometimes works sometimes doesn't.  I use dead crows on the magnet or flapping/dead pigeons depending on what I'm after. Again it varies on method on day, don't be afraid to alter things if it doesn't work first time. Being in the right place and sitting still is more important.

Thanks for the advice 👍🏻

[Catamong]

Westley,

Some good advice given above, I would recommend a magnet from Shootwarehouse, with a 17ah battery.

Don't bother with a 3 arm version, as the extra weight of a 3rd bird on the arms will dramatically reduce the battery life in the field.

Batteries and chargers tend to be cheaper when bought from Battery Specialists online via Google, so purchase them separately. Make sure you get the correct charger to suit the battery, otherwise you'll cook it.!

A hide seat is a must, I use the Bergara seat as sold via Teal on the forum, (with added padding as recommended by everybody that's bought one), don't go for a small fishing stool or something similar, they are too low to shoot from, you need to be reasonably upright to be able to take shots at incoming birds, not slumped down on a lounger.!

I would also purchase a Clicker, (counter), as you need to keep a tally of birds downed, also a dozen or so spikes for dead birds are a must, all obtainable online.

Flappers are also useful, my favourite is the FF5, (which I believe has now been replaced by the FF6?), together with a smaller 7ah battery and random timer, (don't get a push button remote as you'll be forever fiddling with it as birds are coming in..!)

As for decoys, I don't bother with Crow or Magpie decoys, I use mainly very old HH or Flexicoy decoys, but if I am shooting over Winter Rape, I generally don't bother, as I find a magnet will draw the birds in well, and every bird that's shot is added to the pattern, either on a spike or a floater, (which is also worth investing in).

Now that the drilling has finished, the only crop to shoot over currently will be peas, (in my part of Herts), they will be on the peas generally up until late June when they will switch to Barley that has begun to ripen and get laid, the problem with shooting over laid barley is that you will lose so many birds in the standing crop, which is never a good thing.

As ever, doing a good recce the day before is vital, you need to find out exactly where the birds are feeding on the field, and if possible work out where to locate your hide, having regard to the wind direction on the day, position of footpaths, boundaries, adjoining horse paddocks etc, it ain't easy but it will come with experience.

All the best.

Cat.

 

[Westley78]

9 hours ago, Catamong said:

Westley,

Some good advice given above, I would recommend a magnet from Shootwarehouse, with a 17ah battery.

Don't bother with a 3 arm version, as the extra weight of a 3rd bird on the arms will dramatically reduce the battery life in the field.

Batteries and chargers tend to be cheaper when bought from Battery Specialists online via Google, so purchase them separately. Make sure you get the correct charger to suit the battery, otherwise you'll cook it.!

A hide seat is a must, I use the Bergara seat as sold via Teal on the forum, (with added padding as recommended by everybody that's bought one), don't go for a small fishing stool or something similar, they are too low to shoot from, you need to be reasonably upright to be able to take shots at incoming birds, not slumped down on a lounger.!

I would also purchase a Clicker, (counter), as you need to keep a tally of birds downed, also a dozen or so spikes for dead birds are a must, all obtainable online.

Flappers are also useful, my favourite is the FF5, (which I believe has now been replaced by the FF6?), together with a smaller 7ah battery and random timer, (don't get a push button remote as you'll be forever fiddling with it as birds are coming in..!)

As for decoys, I don't bother with Crow or Magpie decoys, I use mainly very old HH or Flexicoy decoys, but if I am shooting over Winter Rape, I generally don't bother, as I find a magnet will draw the birds in well, and every bird that's shot is added to the pattern, either on a spike or a floater, (which is also worth investing in).

Now that the drilling has finished, the only crop to shoot over currently will be peas, (in my part of Herts), they will be on the peas generally up until late June when they will switch to Barley that has begun to ripen and get laid, the problem with shooting over laid barley is that you will lose so many birds in the standing crop, which is never a good thing.

As ever, doing a good recce the day before is vital, you need to find out exactly where the birds are feeding on the field, and if possible work out where to locate your hide, having regard to the wind direction on the day, position of footpaths, boundaries, adjoining horse paddocks etc, it ain't easy but it will come with experience.

All the best.

Cat.

 

Thank you for the excellent advice Cat, I will definitely look into the flapper and seat 👍🏻

I am in Hertford and I’m seeing larger flocks of crows than pigeons around here right now, which area are of Hertfordshire are you and what are the pigeon numbers like where you are?

[oowee]

How people get on with the A1 decoy rotary I don't know. The two that I have bought now have both been let down by poor design and components. Plastic thumb screws that are not upto the job and when tightened just break up. Round decoy bars with with flat thumb screw grip on the bird cradles are just not strong enough. They cannot be tightened sufficiently to hold the bird allowing it to slide around the bar and 'fly' at an angle.  

 

[hawkfanz]

i use the all metal wing spreaders on my a1 lightweight magnet,much better but i find the low weight of motor and longevity of battery life great on 7 amp hour.

[51/50]

When i first ventured into the world of rotary magnets i was amazed at the amount of options available,having no experience with them it was difficult to choose,i eventually opted for an A1 Decoys Telescopic model with optional remote speed control,i find it to be a good sturdy solid bit of kit & to date i can say it has been very reliable,a 12Ah battery lasts me for 7-8 hours easily,my only gripe would be what @oowee has already mentioned,the round decoy bars with the flat thumb screw grip,a bit fiddly!,i haven't had any thumb screws give up on me yet but it's something i'm aware off when tightening them,i may get bespoke arms made in the future if/when they start causing grief,i also camo taped the arms to reduce glare,i still wasn't happy with that so ended up spraying matt kaki camo paint on top of the camo tape,sorted!,i also modified & spiral wrapped the wiring to make it less fuss when setting up...

Adhesive velcro on the remote sensor secures it to the velcro on the army osprey pouch which holds the battery....

The connections all tuck into the osprey pouch to conceal them & keep them dry...

[Westley78]

Thanks guys, this is really useful feedback....👍🏻
 

I am tending to lean towards the nighthawk or AA options as the both have good feedback and seem to be good value...

[oowee]

@51/50 Thats what I call a sorted set up. This stuff is mostly pretty basic but often comes from the store barely fit for purpose. I often wonder if those designing half the kit have ever been out shooting. 

[Centrepin]

7 hours ago, oowee said:

@51/50 Thats what I call a sorted set up. This stuff is mostly pretty basic but often comes from the store barely fit for purpose. I often wonder if those designing half the kit have ever been out shooting. 

I know what you mean, having had to return several products recently to Nitehawk due to quality issues and just downright poorly made. Theres rarely a product from anywhere that doesn't need some form of modding or adapting. 

I wonder how many people have Ebay searched for Osprey pouches🙂 I have and put out feelers for some through the ex and friend route.

[motty]

On 11/05/2020 at 09:43, Westley78 said:

👍

That's excellent thank you so much 👍

I was also thinking of adding a couple of crows and a magpie to the kit as i hear they do help?

Also, out of interest what batteries did you go for as i'd rather carry one decent than two smaller batteries..??

Good advice OB thank you i will take a look 👍

If you're looking to decoy pigeons, then crow and magpie decoys will not help. 

[motty]

1 hour ago, Centrepin said:

I know what you mean, having had to return several products recently to Nitehawk due to quality issues and just downright poorly made. Theres rarely a product from anywhere that doesn't need some form of modding or adapting. 

I wonder how many people have Ebay searched for Osprey pouches🙂 I have and put out feelers for some through the ex and friend route.

A camo pouch for a battery? A little unnecessary! 

My 15+ year old uksw magnet has required no "modding" whatsoever. It has served me brilliantly.