Water dekes in the field

[fishuhalik]

Any of you try it? I have plenty of floaters (both duck & geese) but field dekes are so dang spendy!! I was thinking of making a small hole in the bottom for a stake & plugging it when I'm using em in the water. Wouldn't be too tough. Thoughts?

[Sifty]

There is a company that makes stakes to convert the water decoys to field decoys.

Check online at mackspdotcom

[Huntin&Fishin]

There is a company that makes stakes to convert the water decoys to field decoys.

Check online at mackspdotcom

There is a company that makes them, but I make my own. Very easy to make and don't have to spend that kind of money for metal rods. When elections are going on, find the signs they forget to pic back up. The metal rod in those are perfect for bending, but yet strong enough to use as a stake

[CANOPY SAM]

I've used both floating duck and goose decoys in the field for many years. As long as there's enough crop debris, or furrows you can use to prop them up you don't even need to stake them up. Just mix them in among your regular field decoys and make sure they are standing upright.

In my experience, by the time the in-coming birds could possibly realize something isn't perfect, it's too late. I think they are just more comfortable seeing bigger numbers of birds (blocks) in the field, both feeding, milling around, and resting.

Only real problem with using floaters is the difficulty that comes with bringing very many of them. They take up a lot of space, at least for me. I only use field shells and silhouettes otherwise. Can't afford the big beautiful full body decs.

[Feathers Rainin]

You can use 2x4's to make little stands. Worked for us until we got a field set up.

[Shane Z]

I wouldn't even go through the effort. To be completely honest, you don't even need duck decoys in the field to kill ducks. I'd spend more time, money, and effort into making your goose spread.

If you wanna buy duck decoys though, buy a couple remote lucky ducks. youll be good to go.

[CANOPY SAM]

True that, Shane! A good duck call in the middle of a spread of goose decoys will get any nearby airborne ducks to swing around a few times for a close look-see.

You're absolutely right. I've dumped a ton of big mallards and pintails that are just anxious to set in with a group of geese in a field for safety. I just like a dozen or so duck decoys mixed in there in case they keep swinging out wide and I want em' coming in tight. I typically set out a dozen or so magnum water keel mallards... They're nearly as big as the goose shells, and I think they can see em' pretty easy from a distance.

[fishuhalik]

Thanks guys! As a born & raised northern MN hunter, always hunting rice & beaver ponds, field hunting is new to me. Lots of good ideas & insight! ive read that ducks will come into a goose spread, & on Sunday we had a ton of mallards come into us. One landed so close its wings hit my shoulder. Never had that happen while sitting in cattails!

[fishuhalik]

Hey feathers, when you switched to actual field dekes, did you honestly notice a difference in #s of committed birds?

[Feathers Rainin]

I guess we really didn't use the floaters with stands enough to tell you one way or the other. The nice thing about field decs is they have some movement in the wind. Like Shane said the spinners are more important than duck decoys. If you have a couple spinners, 2-3 dozen geese and maybe some mallard decs you will do fine as long as you are only hunting with 2-3 and are on the x. The more guys you have the more decs you need to hide unless you can dig in. You can usually get two of the small spinners for $100 if you watch the C store sales. The birds out in the oil field area hardly get any pressure cause it is impossible to find lodging so I don't think you'll have a problem.

Although I own some I personally think full bodies are overkill and take up way too much space. Shell decoys are the way to go IMO. Scheels has a doz GHG flocked head prograde geese shells for sale right now for about $130 free shipping.

[Finlander]

I took a few of my maracka decoys and cut the bottoms off them, drilled a hole thru the top where they balanced out, got some steel stakes to hold them up. They move real good in the wind, and look good!

[Proskier2038]

Good idea! I have a dozen that I was trying to

Figure out what to do with

- nothing like watching your buddy pepper your spread on opening morning