The great spinner debate continues......

[RockBottom]

I think D.U. created topwaters to scare the ducks back north, that passed over the corn they put out!

[70 sprig]

Ducka , I can assure you that I don't own one , and furthermore , if you EVER run across a spread anywhere in the world that has one in it then you can bet your sweet booty that I ain't there . You can't make me believe that a duck hunter needs these damn things to kill a duck , I know better . I may be in the minority here , but believe it or not , I've actually killed a duck without one . Course I don't have pictures to prove it so maybe it was all a dream . All I know is I went duckin one opening day and these damn things seemed to be a must for every " sport " that I ran across .

I ain't drinkin that koolaide

I can feel your pain, but what do you have against them?

Is it the battery?

Is it because they move?

Is it because the "sports" use them?


Seriously, I don't use one because it just seems to be too much of a hassle to deal with charging the batteries and messing with the wings and stuff. Just curious to know why people are so against them?

Three 11 , I'll do my best to explain .....

I grew up in the 70's about 50 miles southeast of stuttgart. In 1977 I went on my first duck hunt , I was 7 years old carrying a singleshot 4-10 . Went with my grandad and two of his buddies . I'll never forget setting in the blind , seeing the sky fill with ducks coming off the white river refuge in the early light . Smelling the peach brandy as they passed it back and forth , seeing ole " Spade " set there and tremble with anticipation with his eyes glued to the sky , the sounds that rolled outta the three old yentzens sounded like the old men had rehearsed them for years , and they had . Each one new which note the other would hit before they hit it , never have I heard anything that sounded remotely as good as they did together come from a stage . Then the silence , the only thing I heard right before three old humpbacks were run to the plug was the soft whistleing of wings and three clicks . No one called the shot , no one needed to , these men knew eachother better than they knew their wives . Then ole " spade " is released to do his job as the ole gents snickered like little girls and cussed the ones that got away under their breath . Eighty something ducks were killed that morning , and every single one was plucked whole for the pot . ( No , I don't condone outlawing , just telling the truth )

If I weren't around to see how it use to be done , and understand the bond that these old men had created by many years of chasing ducks , and the determination in there tired eyes day in and day out then maybe I would have different beliefs . But I was there , and I did see what it did for those three men . They kept it simple , yet each one of'em thought like a duck , and they killed ducks .

By the time I was ten or so my grandad had gotten in to bad of shape to go much , so it was up to me to take what I had learned over those few winters and run with it , and I did , and I killed ducks , and I will continue to kill ducks , and I will do so spinner free .

I'm just sorry that some folks never had a chance to set in a blind like that , you may have different views .

[three11]

Ducka , I can assure you that I don't own one , and furthermore , if you EVER run across a spread anywhere in the world that has one in it then you can bet your sweet booty that I ain't there . You can't make me believe that a duck hunter needs these damn things to kill a duck , I know better . I may be in the minority here , but believe it or not , I've actually killed a duck without one . Course I don't have pictures to prove it so maybe it was all a dream . All I know is I went duckin one opening day and these damn things seemed to be a must for every " sport " that I ran across .

I ain't drinkin that koolaide

I can feel your pain, but what do you have against them?

Is it the battery?

Is it because they move?

Is it because the "sports" use them?


Seriously, I don't use one because it just seems to be too much of a hassle to deal with charging the batteries and messing with the wings and stuff. Just curious to know why people are so against them?

Three 11 , I'll do my best to explain .....

I grew up in the 70's about 50 miles southeast of stuttgart. In 1977 I went on my first duck hunt , I was 7 years old carrying a singleshot 4-10 . Went with my grandad and two of his buddies . I'll never forget setting in the blind , seeing the sky fill with ducks coming off the white river refuge in the early light . Smelling the peach brandy as they passed it back and forth , seeing ole " Spade " set there and tremble with anticipation with his eyes glued to the sky , the sounds that rolled outta the three old yentzens sounded like the old men had rehearsed them for years , and they had . Each one new which note the other would hit before they hit it , never have I heard anything that sounded remotely as good as they did together come from a stage . Then the silence , the only thing I heard right before three old humpbacks were run to the plug was the soft whistleing of wings and three clicks . No one called the shot , no one needed to , these men knew eachother better than they knew their wives . Then ole " spade " is released to do his job as the ole gents snickered like little girls and cussed the ones that got away under their breath . Eighty something ducks were killed that morning , and every single one was plucked whole for the pot . ( No , I don't condone outlawing , just telling the truth )

If I weren't around to see how it use to be done , and understand the bond that these old men had created by many years of chasing ducks , and the determination in there tired eyes day in and day out then maybe I would have different beliefs . But I was there , and I did see what it did for those three men . They kept it simple , yet each one of'em thought like a duck , and they killed ducks .

By the time I was ten or so my grandad had gotten in to bad of shape to go much , so it was up to me to take what I had learned over those few winters and run with it , and I did , and I killed ducks , and I will continue to kill ducks , and I will do so spinner free .

I'm just sorry that some folks never had a chance to set in a blind like that , you may have different views .

I learned to hunt back in the 70's too. Walked many a day in the cypress trees of Bobo/Annis Brake in a pair of leaky hand me down waders. Camped out on the Mississippi River for days at a time chasing ducks. Still hunt with my dad's old 1960 something A5 that he handed down to me. Never shot a duck with anything but that gun for the last 15 years or so.
So I've got plenty of stories myself...

My whole point is(again).....

As long as there are enough ducks for everybody, and your not doing anything illegal, I am not going to lose much sleep over whether or not somebody wants to use a spinner.


The 'my Papaw didn't use em' excuse doesn't do it for me.

To me, it is just a decoy that flaps its wings. I think it got too much hype when they first came out, and everyone thought that it was going to make hunting too easy. But you have never hunted with one, so you wouldn't be able to comment on whether or not they are really all that effective. I have hunted over one a handful of times, and I think that sometimes they work and other times they don't.

Seriously, you said that you have never hunted with one, so why are you so against them?

[blkdout]

I think the spinner was invented for and easier way to create more movement in the decoys not because that person was less of hunter than anyone else. Just as the jerk spreader it was a more modern way for movement. I am not for nor against them and fill sometimes they do more harm than good. From the little experience I have as a duck hunter you want your spread to be as life like as possible and just as the decoy itself has evolved to our more modern world so have the ways to create movement in you spread. I am sure the decoys you use today are a far cry from those that your granddad used. I think we all wish it would go back to that but its just not. So we have to take what has been handed down to us and make the best of it.

"The Wildlife and its habitat cannot speak so we must and we will" Theodor Roosevelt, 1905

[mudsucker]

Spinners------I'd say who ever invented THEM knew how to duck hunt too! So what was your point again, 70 sprig?

Then WHY DID HE NEED IT ? I'd say he wasn't gettin the results he was lookin for ( for whatever reason , lack of calling skills , lack of knowledge , lack of thinkin like a duck , lack of ability to think like a duck , lack of willingness to work for a duck ? ) Whatever the reason , rather than figure out whatever it was he was doing wrong , he invented him a magic bullet , and now anyone with 75 bucks can go to the wal marks and become an instant killer , don't forget to pick up some stickers while you're there .

UHHHH......To make money! He was thining like a duck that he saw them coming in for a landing or swimming around in the water I would think. I got out of high school when you was totting a .410 and having your Grandpa wipe your nose for you. I do not think "Mr. Mojo" was the first out with one. I want to say it was the Mathews bunch.

[missed mallards]

Spinners------I'd say who ever invented THEM knew how to duck hunt too! So what was your point again, 70 sprig?

Then WHY DID HE NEED IT ? I'd say he wasn't gettin the results he was lookin for ( for whatever reason , lack of calling skills , lack of knowledge , lack of thinkin like a duck , lack of ability to think like a duck , lack of willingness to work for a duck ? ) Whatever the reason , rather than figure out whatever it was he was doing wrong , he invented him a magic bullet , and now anyone with 75 bucks can go to the wal marks and become an instant killer , don't forget to pick up some stickers while you're there .

UHHHH......To make money! He was thining like a duck that he saw them coming in for a landing or swimming around in the water I would think. I got out of high school when you was totting a .410 and having your Grandpa wipe your nose for you. I do not think "Mr. Mojo" was the first out with one. I want to say it was the Mathews bunch.

Dang, your old J/K with ya.

[mudsucker]

You got THAT right!

[gator]

more and more, i understand the arguments for both their use and none use......honestly i do.

while it's easy to say it's got to do w/ the heritage and preserving it (and, i agree), that may not be what wins over the crowd. in fact, after many years of voicing an overbearing opinion on the subject, i say certainty it does NOT.

while arguments can be made for highpowered equipment in a modern age (3.5 inch shells, mud motors, neoprene waders, fleece, etc etc), just as assured an argument can be made for the 'un-need' for any and all of the above listed..........yet, we all (myself included) use some of the "modern" machinery...........and yes, again, it makes arguments difficult.

in fact, there's a thousand arguments to be made on the subject.

but, the one undeniable thing we should all ALL be worried about is the effect the use of such devices have on the overall population....................and, to see that picture (and, in hopes of not offending anyone) you really REALLY need to look past your own duckhole.

what's going on north of us???? what's happening in prairie canada and the PPR???? is the use of these things THERE having an overall ill-effect on the birds and for that matter - the rest of us further down????

are the juvies being wacked at unprecedented rates???? are more decoy shy, mature, older birds left to make flights, one day succumbing to hunters or disease yielding fewer ducks OVERALL down here?????

answer? no one knows.........a good friend told me there's never been a definative study performed to figure it out.

until there is, we don't know............................so, why NOT ask the government WHY they aren't at least looking into it instead of allowing the use at raw abandon?

i think (check that) i KNOW after a few conversations that you're at least going to see a group of very concerned hunters attempt to find that out.

if (when) it happens, the information will be there for everyone........at which time, we can put it to rest..........

information is key, and to this point, all we have are heart felt feelings for or against their use........and, unfortunatly, right now NO ONE is WRONG.

that last part hurt to say, gator

[blkdout]

+1

[JDgator]

I think you guys are absolutely wrong about the purpose of spinners...

The purpose of the spinning winged decoy is to make someone alot of money.

Thats all they are made for.

Period.

Same with mud motors, calls, camo, etc. Its all because they want to make money.

Same with all these stupid hunting-show-informmercials that sell products and packaged hunts that they know poor uninformed newbys will fall for.

[champcaller]

i just wish ms, tn and la would of nutted up and gone along with it......... i also wish that ar would of gone at least one more year before crawfishing out of it.


i aint gonna use..... give me a jerk string everyday of the week.

[70 sprig]

Muddy , congrats on living to be older than dirt , I'd like to think that when I'm your age that I can still look back at the end of the day , while the ducks are on the grill and say that I'm proud that I outsmarted them one more time , I didn't need to depend on some gadget to do it for me . That's what I'm gettin at .

Now go forth and kill ducks anyway you see fit , and make sure you post some pics .

as I stated earlier , it's not so much what they are doing to the duck population that gets to me , it's the company that they keep .

[GordonGekko]

gator, Double R 2, the waterfowler....AMEN to everything ya'll have said (70 Sprig too)!

If many of ya'll believe this is a "topwater issue" I assure you it is not, in my not so humble opinion, simple use of a piece of equipment does not necessarily reflect the skills of the user...I know a ton of folks who would are as far from topwaters as possible that have used them, and may continue to use them....

The issue here, as reflected in gator's, the waterfowler, and Double R 2's post, is conservation and the legacy we leave as hunters. If I remember correctly there is evidence that spinning wing decoys are disproportionately lethal to juvenille ducks. That in and of itself should be alarming to those concerned with the future waterfowl populations. The issue quite simply is whether or not the use of spinning wing decoys has a negative effect on the future of waterfowling. I am under the same impression as gator, that there has been no comprehensive study on the long term effects of the use of spinning wing decoys, and the few studies I can recall indicated there is reason for concern.

And as for the mud-motor argument, that is apples and oranges. If there was the slightest amount of evidence that mudmotors increased the mortality of young ducks or had a negative impact on long term migratory patterns then you might have a valid analogy, otherwise no.

[DUCK-HUNT]

Muddy , congrats on living to be older than dirt , I'd like to think that when I'm your age that I can still look back at the end of the day , while the ducks are on the grill and say that I'm proud that I outsmarted them one more time , I didn't need to depend on some gadget to do it for me . That's what I'm gettin at .

Now go forth and kill ducks anyway you see fit , and make sure you post some pics .

as I stated earlier , it's not so much what they are doing to the duck population that gets to me , it's the company that they keep .

I bet you hunt with a single shot blackpowder shotgun... or better yet throw rocks at em.. and you don't use waders, decoys, or a call just a leaf off the gum tree you are standing next to get em in...

come on give us a break, everyone on this site takes advantage of new gadgets to help them be more successful in there adventures afield, you and myself included... and its not these gadgets that are going to be detrimental to the future of waterfowl hunting, it's the youth of today that will be here after we are gone to carry on the tradition...

Some people are not as fortunate to be brought up duck hunting and therefore have to figure things out for themselves like myself.... does that make you a better hunter because you where brought up in a traditional duck hunting fashion? I think not...

we should not be critical on how someone hunts... if they want to use spinners so be it... what if that spinner caused that only green top to come in that day and it happened to be a kids first and he becomes hooked on the sport therefore carrying it on..... so what if it wasn't done the traditional way.... you going to knock the kid for shooting it over a spinner... I WOULD HOPE NOT

If it was a fact that the use of a gadget as you refer to them was destructive to waterfowl populations someone would ban them I promise you... Until then it will continue to dump money into the great sport we love which will go to fight off those like PETA trying to stop us....

until then happy hunting

"My name is DUCK-HUNT" I neither approve or disapprove of the use of gadgets to kill ducks and I do approve this message..

[the doctor]

Man you ain't duck hunted until you have had 3 Vortex's, 5 mallard machines, 105 wing thangs and about 15 mojo's hangin from trees and poles.

I had to get and exercise bike in the blind and hook up a 160 amp delco alternator just to keep the battery's charged enough to run this stuff for one morning.

Me and Outlaw Josey wales lost about 20lbs a piece peddling that damn bike.

shoulda got Monroe to help...last I saw that fella he coulda used a peddle or two

the doc