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Turkey Tips.


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Just wondering what everyone is shooting at turkeys. I have been using my slick tricks for the past few years, but am thinking about switching to a turkey broadhead.

My main concern is that i need to get a few new arrows because mine will be too short and wont work with large diameter heads.

Are they worth it is what i am trying to figure out.

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Most shoot a large diameter mechanical head. I have been shooting Rocket Mini-Blasters recently with good luck. They have a 1 3/4, 3 blade cutting diameter.

There are a couple made for head shots that are popular these days, but you're right, you may need to shoot longer arrows and you will most certainly have to adjust your sights. A definite plus with mechanicals is you can shoot the arrows you already have and you probably don't need to move your sights.

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So for the guys shooting mechanical/fixed, are you shooting for vitals or neck?

The margin of error on vitals is fairly small, but if you are shooting large cutting diameter and aiming for neck - you have a dead bird or an alive, no wounded birds.

That's why i am considering changing.

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The vitals on a turkey are about softball size. Neck? Pencil thin and rarely stops moving.

If you don't mind buying new arrows and changing your sights, go ahead and get some guillotine or bullhead broadheads and go for that head/neck shot. For me, I've been shooting all winter and my sights are spot-on. Don't want to change anything now.

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I'm still looking for my first bow bird and am trying to decide between my NAP Spitfire Gobbler Getters or my Slick Tricks. Right now I'm leaning towards the mechanicals but who knows what I'll end up going with. I would like to try the bullheads but don't want to drop any more money than I have to this spring.

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I shot two turkeys last year, one in the spring and one in the fall, both with slick tricks. Thought I'd try the Bullheads this morning and on the first shot, two of the blades broke off. I was shooting into a pillow like recommended. Thought I'm not out much now so I tried the other head and that one lasted about 10 shots before one blade was bent and another broke.. Not overly impressed with them so far.. May get some replacement blades and give them another try or I may just go back to the Slick Tricks.

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I shoot the Magnus bullheads. I've had great luck with them. They shoot exactly with my sights and I don't have to make any adjustments to my bow. I do use full length arrows for the bullheads. I have two of the Victory arrows with the large faux feathers sold in the combo with the bullheads. I also have some Gold Tip 75/95's that I self-fletched with 4 5" vanes and those work really well.

Last year I practiced all winter and spring shooting at pillows and I've never had a head be damaged. Even after hunting with the heads, I haven't damaged a head. Fortunately, Magnus has a 100% guarentee that I used on a different broadhead of theirs, so if you broke one, send it in. They will replace it.

I think Don's comparison of target size is a little over-simplified, especially from someone with so much experience. A turkey's vitals are softball sized at best and difficult to locate with their changing body shape. A turkeys head and neck is roughly an inch or more (not a pencil) in diameter and is at least 4" long, up to 10" long if the turkey puts its head up.

Headshot broadheads reflect this challenge by having a cutting diameter of 2-4" depending on brand.

I've lost a bird that I hit "perfectly" with a Rage 2blade andI've chased numerous birds that have been body shot with traditional broadheads. I've witnessed 4 kills, 1 hit and one miss with the bullheads. The 4 kills were head and neck hits, the hit literally hit the bird in the body and the bird lived and the miss was exactly that. In those 6 shots, the broadhead survived all 6 times and the birds that were hit properly died and the shots that didn't hit the right spot lived, no in-between and no chasing wounded birds.

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As an aside to all of that, I will say that I felt the same way as Don, until I actually hunted with the bullheads. I like the yes or no simplicity of the kill and the ease of targeting. If you look up where to shoot a turkey you will see the spot changes depending on which way the bird faces and the spot moves as the bird walks, struts or stands tall. The head and neck is a pretty easy target to follow considering every shotgun hunter aims at it.

The headshot heads are not plug and play so I realize there is a small barrier to using them, but I could offer my arrow and broadhead combo to most people and they could hit a banana on a string at 20yds. Considering every turkey I've seen killed was under 10yds, that will do, and the one turkey I missed was a shot at 20yds after I spooked the flock.

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I know it is very rare for people to do full body mounts. But if you are thinking about it, you may not want to use a Magnus bullheads. Unless you have a very good taxidermist! laugh

full-27051-44519-images.jpg

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I've never turkey hunted in my life. Fixing on going in a couple weeks. Any advice on decoy and call?

Don't spend a millon bucks on them until you know if your going to like it or not. I love buying brand new stuff on the c/list site from guys that wanted to try something new and the next thing you know I have a bunch of brand new ice fishing stuff because they hated! smile

1-2 cheap foam decoys and a mouth call or box call with some camo and your good to go. Watch a few Turkey hunting videos to get a little feel of what the guys are doing when the bird starts to come in. I'm in the field tomorrow! Good luck! wink

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