Just-Hunt a Blog

Last year, as a result of many hunter and archer questions and a complete lack of anyone willing to step up, Good friend and master archery technician, Jerry Reeves, and me set out to be the first to document the ability to shoot StarrFlight’s controversial Fletching Only Better, also known as F.O.B.’s or FOB’s. We found success quickly. Using my Bowtech Invasion CPX and a Ripcord Code Rest arrow rest, safe travel for my FOB was easy!

This year, we set out to do it again! Many asked and again we appear to be the first, or only, ones to answer the question definitively. “Can you shoot FOB’s through a 2012 Bowtech Insanity CPX? Not only did we accomplish this task, but like last year, we have the first video to prove it!

And, to throw an exclamation point on this success, it’s important to point out that success was achieved using my personal setup, a short draw length, maxed out draw weight and a shorter brace height than the Bowtech Invasion CPX that we used to test the setup last year. My personal bow is comprised of a 27-inch draw length, 70-pound draw weight and 6-inch brace height, shooting 308 feet per second! The shorter brace height, short draw length, max poundage and the increase of 13 feet per second arrow speed over last year’s test mean that we’ve really pushed the envelope on the performance of my Ripcord Code Red Arrow Rest.

I have to attribute our success to the incredibly fast performance of the Ripcord Code Red arrow rest. The rest fell, leaving plenty of time for the FOB to pass through the shelf. Even better was the complete lack of bounce back from the Ripcord. I slowed the video time down exponentially. Unfortunately, even slowing the clip down from less than one second to over 6 minutes, did not demonstrate FOB flight well enough to use; however, I could clearly see that there was absolutely no bounce back. I was definitely impressed with the rest. I’ve used Ripcord arrow rests for years now and love them, but I have to admit I was shocked when I saw just how well it performed. I have also enjoyed shooting StarrFlight’s FOB’s for years so the opportunity to continue shooting them from a setup I was skeptical about was a relief. For now, the Ripcord and the FOB’s will remain an integral part of my bowhunting adventures!

Hunt hard, hunt often!

 

 

By Matt Morrett as told to John E. Phillips, www.nighthawkpublications.com

Every cowboy believes he can ride every bull he gets-on, and each turkey veteran believes that he can take every turkey he hunts. But, PhD gobblers are as crafty and as smart as the bull that’s never been ridden. Matt Morrett is a multi-winner World Champion turkey caller and a professional hunter for Hunter’s Specialties. One of the PhD gobblers he’s learned his craft from was a turkey named Bubba.

“I first came to work with Hunter’s Specialties about 1987,” Matt Morrett remembers. “Hunter’s Specialties had a farm in Kirksville, Missouri, and Bubba the turkey already had established his reputation there, before I arrived at the farm. The hunters saw Bubba almost every evening with two-other gobblers. He was 6 or 7 inches taller than the other birds. I spent my whole season trying to take Bubba. Since this ole PhD gobbler had been spooked, shot-at and overcalled, he’d learned just about everything he could know about dodging turkey hunters. He was one of those kinds of turkeys that would get your goat. He always would be one of the first turkeys to gobble, and he’d gobble at every call you made. However, that’s all he would do. He wouldn’t come to any call you made. Because I’d focused all my hunting time on Bubba and hunted him every day I could hunt at the farm, I’d spent my entire season without tagging a gobbler. Bubba was one of the best teachers I’d ever had.” 

I’ve been fortunate enough to hunt with some of the greatest turkey hunters in the nation, and for more than 45 years, these masters of turkey hunting have continued to teach me better ways to take gobblers. But, while learning from the masters, I’ve also wanted to know who has taught these veterans to successfully take turkeys every spring. All these outstanding turkey hunters have agreed that they’ve learned the most from the PhD gobblers they’ve hunted. So, I’ve collected the stories of some of the greatest turkey hunters of our day and those PhD gobblers like Bubba that have taught them their craft.

To learn more about PhD gobblers and how to hunt them from the masters of the sport, click here for “PhD Gobblers,” a new eBook from Amazon’s Kindle by John E. Phillips. Or, you can go to http://www.amazon.com/kindle-ebooks and type-in the name of the book to find it. 

One of the 10-most-frequently-asked questions of Matt Morrett is, “How much do you have to call a turkey?”

Morrett answers, “I always explain to hunters at a seminar that this is a loaded question. It’s much like asking how often you have to call and talk to your wife or your girlfriend in a day’s time. Each turkey is an individual, and every day he’s on a different emotional level. But here are some general rules that will help you. In my opinion, a turkey is either really interested in breeding or has to be made excited and fired-up. If a turkey’s gobbling back to you every time you call to him, then quit calling. He knows where you are, he’s excited about finding you, and more than likely he’s on his way to you. However, if you call, and the turkey only gobbles back every now and then, he’s not excited. You’ve got to make him excited by calling more and calling more aggressively.“

One of the most-important things to remember about how-many times to call to a turkey is when the turkey’s gobbling and coming to you, call less, and call softly. The more you call to this kind of turkey, the more likely that the bird will stop 60- to 70-yards away from you and not come in, because you’ve told that gobbler you’re an excited hen and ready to breed. When he reaches a place in the woods or a field where he thinks this excited hen can see him, he’ll stop and expect her to come running to him. Here’s a simple answer to this problem: if a turkey’s gobbling and answering aggressively, call less. If a turkey’s not gobbling aggressively, call more.”

Watch the video above or go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GA3Pwbh_6V4 to see the author interviewing Matt Morrett on how to try and solve the problem of the gobbler that won’t come in that’s in John E. Phillips’ latest Amazon/Kindle book, “Turkey Hunting Tactics.”  If you have trouble opening these links, please contact us.   

Night Hawk Publications Inc.

% John E. Phillips

4112 Camp Horner Road

Vestavia AL  35243

Phone:  205-967-3830  FAX:  205-967-7185

nighthawkpub@mindspring.com

john7185@bellsouth.net

john7185@gmail.com

www.nighthawkpublications.com

Alpha Omega Video – Bringin’ the Outdoors In!

Alpha Omega Video is offering a videography workshop on June 3 – 5, to anyone interested in capturing outdoor memories, especially that hunt of a lifetime! All training and filming is scheduled to take place at the Stretch-A-String Bowhunting Ranch, near Jacksonville; in my opinion, the 3,000-acre jewel of east Texas.

Workshop objectives include:

• Understanding basic manual control
• Learn shot scenarios and framing
• Introduction to vital equipment
• Tips all videographers should know before going afield

Professional hunter and videographer, Jason Mears, teaches filming strategies, what works and what doesn’t, based on the real life experiences from the perspectives of both videographer and hunter.

Learn what equipment is need, what equipment you want and when it’s important to use them. Students leave with a basic working knowledge necessary to successfully capture our outdoor heritage’s most memorable moments and tips to make your footage really stand out to your audience. More importantly, the knowledge and skills learned in this workshop ensure the improved footage you capture is ALSO easy to edit!

Mears’ professional videography credits include:

• TNT Outdoor Explosion TV
• The Experience TV
• Trophy Hunter TV
• Down the Road TV
• Quest for the One TV
• Hunting with the Judge TV
• Buck Ventures TV
• American Huntress TV

Mears has filmed professionally across the United States, Canada, Mexico, South America and Africa.

The fee for this course is $495 and requires a preregistration deposit of $200. Space is limited; register as early as possible. Food and lodging is provided at no additional charge.

Send deposits to:

Kelly Garmon
PO Box 43
Coupland, TX 78615

Complete details, including directions and course curriculum, are available by calling Kelly Garmon at 512-636-1798 or e-mailing Kellyg@Hawglite.com.