Anti-Stick from the Kitchen - As with most other crow hunters, I have had problems with the reed sticking to the mouthpiece as I blow my crow calls. Then, one day while helping my wife fry salmon, I dabbed a thin layer of Olive oil on the reed of one of my calls. Blew it for a few minutes, with no sticking of the reed. I applied a thin coat of oil to my other two mouth blown calls, blew them with no sticking of the reed encountered. That was 6-7 months ago. I have not re-applied the oil again, and have practiced with the calls about once a week since then. I still have no problem with them. Olive oil is very healthy to fry foods in also!
submitted by Ken (Outfox The Crow) Crotts |
 Sticky Crow Call Reeds - All crow hunters that use a hand call have experienced the problem of sticky reeds while calling, especially in below zero temperatures. A simple trick to nearly eliminate this problem is to remove the reed in your call, coat it with RainX (a commercial product used on car windshields) and replace it. This will keep moisture from forming, which causes the reed to stick to the side of the mouth piece.
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Poor Man's Crow Call - A cheap and easy way to make a crow call is to take two popsickle sticks, wrap a rubber band around one of them, bend both sticks slightly so that the two ends meet and tape the ends with electrical tape.
submitted by Brian Kanne |
 Lanyard Ease - It's always recommended to have more than one crow call with you while hunting. This allows for the hunter to produce different sounds and to have backup calls in case of failure. With some crow hunters carrying as many as six calls around their neck, it doesn't take much before all those lanyards become a tangled mess. An easier way is to purchase one of the multi-call lanyards sold for waterfowling. Some of these lanyards will hold up to four calls and they look great hanging on the wall at days end. |
"Gut Pile" Decoying - This unusual method was suggested by a fellow member. Take a can of spray foam insulation (the expanding kind used to insulate doors, windows, etc.) and spray a pie plate size of it into a field where you are going to hunt. Before it hardens, spray it with red spray paint. Add a few decoys and wait for the crows.
submitted by the NJ Crow Killer |
| Preventing Damaged Decoys - You will often find that decoys with stake type bottoms are nearly impossible to get into frozen or rocky ground without damaging the decoy. A cheap trick to prevent this is to take some discarded aluminum arrow shafts and cut them down to 6 inch pieces. These pieces can then be hammered into the ground and act as a base for the decoy stake. They also prevent decoys from being blown over in high winds. |
 Stopping Cripples - On any large crow shoot, you are bound to bring down a few cripples. These birds will almost always hop out of range and cause incoming crows to decoy to them. To prevent jumping out of the blind and running them down, keep a few magnum waterfowl loads in your pocket with a heavy shot size (BB's or #2's). While these loads will not cover all long range cripples, they will finish off most birds that are out of range of your normal loads. |
Instant Decoy - An easy way to make use of your dead crows is to take a 10 - 12 inch piece of wire (a coat hanger works well), crimp the last two inches back on the main part and then form a "U" out of the two inch part, with the opening toward the crimp end. Now stick the un-bent end in the ground and the dead crow's neck in the "U". Incoming birds won't know the difference.
submitted by Chris Sanden |
 Artificial Dirt Decoying - In the northern states where snow can really pile up, crows are attracted to areas where the snow has been scraped away to reveal a possible food source such as a cut corn field. A simple way to simulate this without actually digging is to spread about 1/4 bale of straw randomly in the snow. From the air, these mini-piles appear to be bare earth and a possible meal. Add a few decoys for effect.
submitted by Adam Watkowski |
Fawn Feeder - One way to use the crows natural attraction to carrion is to place a Feather Flex fawn decoy in a field on it's side. Then stake a crow decoy to the fawn, so that it looks like the crow is sitting on top. This setup is compact and attracts any crow that spots an easy meal. By adding a fishing line to the backside of the fawn, you can create movement.
submitted by Derek Leonard Maine |
 Pick Your Trees - When crow hunting in the woods, try to pick a location where the heights of the trees are short. Crows tend to "hug" the tops of the trees as they approach and a really tall stand of trees will make your shots more difficult.
submitted by Greg Lower |
PVC Perch - A 6 to 8 foot piece of PVC can be used as a ready-made sentry perch by spray painting it camo, attaching a crow decoy on the top and carrying it on crow hunts. By bending down and cutting the top of a sapling off, the PVC can be stuck on the top and the sapling then released to create a natural looking sentry post.
submitted by Curt Hoggatt |
Cold Weather Calls - A common problem that hand callers have is that reeds often freeze during cold weather calling. An easy way to prevent this is to occasionally stick your call in a small box (such as a pencil case) along with an air activated hand warmer. The warmth will not only thaw the call, but will evaporate any saliva buildup.
submitted by Darrell Gibson |
Sky Bustin' - It has been noted by many hunters that approaching crows will fly just above tree top level. In old growth forests, this will often put them just out of range of the waiting shotgunner. By climbing into an existing deer stand before calling, you can sometimes gain just enough height to knock them right out of the sky.
submitted by the NJ Crow Slayer |
 Teddy Temptation - Take a stuffed animal (preferably brown) and throw it in a field with two crow decoys next to it. Then take some red spray paint and spray the side of the animal and on the ground. Make a few feeding calls and watch them dive in. This works especially well in the snow.
submitted by Greg P. |
 Decoy Dog - Take your dog with you on a crow hunt and let him run around the decoys. Crows seem to become irate when they see a dog, maybe because they think it is a coyote or fox. Whatever the reason, it drives the crows crazy, especially if the dog chases any cripples. Your dog will have a great time too!
submitted by Chris Deer |
Fishing for Decoys - A great way to hang decoys is to use a telescoping fishing pole, the kind that resembles a cane pole works best. You can get them in 16 to 20 foot lengths and then use a glue gun to attach a hook to the end of the pole. By attaching a hook on the back of your decoy, you can place them as high as 20 feet in a tree. The pole then collapses for easy carrying.
submitted by Gary Childs |
 X-Ray Reeds - You can get exposed X-ray film from your doctor or local hospital and it makes wonderful reed material. Just cut to size with sharp scissors and try it out. Most X-ray film runs .010 to .015 thickness and is very durable. It works, and it's free for the asking!
submitted by Drew Moore |
Conduit Pole Hanger - You can make a handy hanger by using 1/2" Electrical conduit [EMT] 10 FT. length. Take a 3/4" piece of EMT about 16" long and slip it over the 1/2" 8" and duct tape it. Then put another 10 ft piece of 1/2" inside the 3/4". Tape a hook at the end, paint it and you have a two piece 20ft. pole to hang your decoys on or a pole to stake your owl or hawk. Best part is that the EMT is really cheap. One thing to remember is that when you slide the 1/2" into the 3/4" it's a little sloppy. But a layer or two of duct tape on the 1/2' snugs it up fine.
submitted by Roger Drenga |
Skimmer Hanger - You can use a pool skimmer handle as a decoy pole. The poles are lightweight and adjust up to 16’ - 18’. Simply paint them camo first and you are ready to start hanging your decoys.
submitted by David Irish |
 Branch Drilling - It can often be difficult to mount decoys in low hanging branches of different sizes. By keeping a portable drill in your accessories bag, you can drill consistent sized holes in any branch that looks promising. By carrying dowels or nails that fit, decoys can then be easily placed.
submitted by Tom Jones |
Low Cost Hawk Call - Save yourself the money on a Hawk call, just blow sideways into the mouth piece of your favorite crow call. I have been doing this for years with the Mallardtone and it works very well.
submitted by Drew Moore |
Hanging Decoys in Trees - The fiberglass poles surveyors use extend 25 or 30 feet and collapse in seconds to 5 feet. They resemble giant extension fiberglass fishing poles about 5/8" at the tip and 2" at the butt. They weigh less than two pounds. At the top I attach a hook in the shape of a "U". Through the hole in the back of the decoy I put a wire hook made out of coat hanger wire that has bends that resemble two opposed question marks (one facing right and the other left). The back of the decoy rides in the bottom bend. When placing in the tree the "U" on the pole hooks on one of the question mark bends allowing the other to be placed over a limb. It works great and allows hanging the decoy 30 to 35 feet in the tree. Although new ones are somewhat pricy, used ones can sometimes be had for the asking.
submitted by Vic Fauss |
| Low Cost Motion Decoy - Here is a neat trick to put some life in your decoy spread if you are well camouflaged. After you kill a crow, get some fishing line and tie the crow to your foot and get in a bush, do the distress call and shake your foot that has the crow tied to it. The crows will fly within 10 feet above you. It gives you a wonderful “in your face” shot. |
"EZ" Growl - For those callers that have trouble with the standard growl crow call, simply say "mmmmm" while blowing your crow call to produce a growling call that drives crows nuts. It works great when used in a fight setup.
Submitted by Ron Taylor |
| Really Cheap Fill-In Decoys - We were sent the following suggestion for bulking up your decoy spread inexpensively. Purchase a number of black plastic clothes hangers and a box of 30-gallon black plastic trash bags. Take the hanger and put it into the black bag, punching the hook through the bottom of the bag (as if you were hanging the bag up). Then, wrap the bag around the hanger many times and tie it off. They can then be mixed into your regular decoys by hanging them in a tree or sticking them in the ground at an angle that mimics a crow sitting. We are told that the crows don’t notice the difference. |
 Crow Cradles - Directions for making homemade crow cradles. You start with a piece of 10 or 12 gauge wire 3 1/2 feet long. Straighten the wire, then make a right angle bend 5 inches from one end. This is the head spike. Then make a loop, keep the head spike up and bend the wire round. The loop should be from spike to back 5 1/2 in. and 4 1/2 in across. Hold the wire under the base of the spike, then bend it over so the head spike points up and the rest of the wire points down. Bend the long wire, under the body loop about an inch down and 4 in. long then bend a right angle down, and there’s your cradle. When you put a crow on it, tuck its wings under it slightly so they don’t hang down the sides. You could also make these for doves just make the sizes smaller.
Thanks to CORVID for this submission |
 "Robo-Crow" - All you need is a battery powered RC monster truck. I took the body of the truck off and replaced it with a piece of plexiglass. I cut the plexiglass a little wider than the truck. I drilled four holes in the plexiglass to match the four screws that held the original body on, then painted the plexiglass white and screwed a "Carrylite" crow decoy to the plexiglass. The side panels are just white cardboard taped to the plexiglass with the wide, clear shipping tape. The little mouse is made out of the black shipping foam. I drilled a small hole through the beak and tied the mouse to the beak of the crow with a string.
We discovered that he worked best on hard, crusty snow. We usually set him out in the open field about 100 ft. out from the hedge row we were in and turn on the crow call. When a crow would fly over and drop down for a closer look, I would run "Robo-Crow " in a zig - zag pattern, running him a couple of feet then stopping. It was just enough to get the attention of the crow so we could get a shot.
submitted by Thomas Youngs
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 "Robo-Corn" - All you need is a few empty water bottles and some paint. Spray the bottles with "safety" yellow paint. When that dries, get some lighter colored yellow paint ( I used testor model paint ) and a small model brush. Just dab the light yellow for the kernels by using the side of the brush. That's all there is to it. You might want to put some shot or gravel inside to keep them from blowing around. If you want to get fancy, you can cut off the top of the bottle and glue to the bottom of the bottle. This seems to work just a bit better and looks more like real corn.
submitted by Thomas Youngs |
 "The Diabolical Decoy" - I bolted the head of a "Buster" flapping decoy to the talons of an owl decoy and swing it high in a tree. I play a crow and owl fight call and mouth call a crow in distress. I place other decoys as high as I can and have them all facing the owl. It TRULY pisses off the incoming crows. They really don't see me move to shoulder my gun or put the calls down. What fun this is! I forgot to mention that I leave the wing closest to the owl folded in and open the other one up. If gives great motion to the spread and in the wind it flaps sporadically because the motor won't overcome a big gust. It really looks like a crow with his head in a vise.
submitted by Jonathan Boos |
Tips & Tricks