# Dakota Snows vs. GHG Snows



## Bunnyblaster (Jan 12, 2010)

I am looking to put together a full body snow goose spread next year. I have narrowed it down to the Dakotas or GHG snows. What are the pros and cons of each? I am mainly concerned with durablity and motion. I plan on doing some more research when I get home, but I am limited on what I can do over here in Iraq.

As a side note, how many do you think I will be able to fit in a 7x16 trailer? Thanks for all the input and good luck this season.


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## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

Well I personal opinion is GHG. I have used Dakotas, foots, and GHGs. The GHG was just by far the best. Between DD and GHG there is NO comparison on motion. Their wind walker system restricts their movement greatly. GHG has the motion cones that allow for amazingly realistic wabbles and bobbs. Now on to durability. The DD are a one piece design. No detachable head. Which means they will not fall off. But when they do break off, it is EXTREMLY hard to re-attach them. On the GHG the head is removable. I have 25 dz and I think I have 6 broken heads. They are very easy to fix and once you fix them they are not going to break again. If your planning on piling them in your trailer, throwing them out onto sleds or smaller trailers and treating them how most all snow goose decoys get treated, it doesn't matter what brand you get they are going to break.


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## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

With Dakotas, you don't have to line up the stake in the cone hundreds of times. The Dakotas are one-piece.

That alone is worth it for Dakotas IMO. Setup time is very important.


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## FREIBS (Mar 18, 2008)

Dakotas are nice for the one piece/ quick set option but they are also alot heavier and bulkier. Meaning they dont stack as well with the base hanging out the bottom. With the GHG you can stack all the bases neatly and pile the decoys up. Once you get in a rythem setting them on the stake they go out pretty fast. I would go GHG. Have fun puttin the spread together with either one. They are both good dekes.


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## snowsforlife (Mar 27, 2005)

We used to put 40-50 doz GHG's in the front half of a 7/16


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## Brotsky (Mar 4, 2009)

Andy Weber said:


> Well I personal opinion is GHG. I have used Dakotas, foots, and GHGs. The GHG was just by far the best. Between DD and GHG there is NO comparison on motion. Their wind walker system restricts their movement greatly. GHG has the motion cones that allow for amazingly realistic wabbles and bobbs. Now on to durability. The DD are a one piece design. No detachable head. Which means they will not fall off. But when they do break off, it is EXTREMLY hard to re-attach them. On the GHG the head is removable. I have 25 dz and I think I have 6 broken heads. They are very easy to fix and once you fix them they are not going to break again. If your planning on piling them in your trailer, throwing them out onto sleds or smaller trailers and treating them how most all snow goose decoys get treated, it doesn't matter what brand you get they are going to break.


Andy, you've never used a Dakota snow if you think you can break the head off of one. You could use it as a hammer and not break the head off. They are far and away superior to GHG in durability and set-up. GHG has them in motion but you can modify the DD's to match the GHG in that category making it a moot point. If you're hard core kick them out and throw them in the trailer guy then DD's are the way to go. If you like looking for cones in the dark and cursing at heads that either won't go on or won't stay on or get broken then go with GHG. They both work but for the money I'd go with the DD's. The customer service you get with Dakota is second to none as well.

You should get 75 doz DD's in that trailer with the stands off and maybe 60 doz with them on.


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

Brotsky said:


> Andy Weber said:
> 
> 
> > Well I personal opinion is GHG. I have used Dakotas, foots, and GHGs. The GHG was just by far the best. Between DD and GHG there is NO comparison on motion. Their wind walker system restricts their movement greatly. GHG has the motion cones that allow for amazingly realistic wabbles and bobbs. Now on to durability. The DD are a one piece design. No detachable head. Which means they will not fall off. But when they do break off, it is EXTREMLY hard to re-attach them. On the GHG the head is removable. I have 25 dz and I think I have 6 broken heads. They are very easy to fix and once you fix them they are not going to break again. If your planning on piling them in your trailer, throwing them out onto sleds or smaller trailers and treating them how most all snow goose decoys get treated, it doesn't matter what brand you get they are going to break.
> ...


Ive used dakota snows for the last 2 years and we broke over a dozen heads off of them in that time so idk what kind of hammer you are using... liked the decoys just saying there not like bigfoots and they do break


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## the professor (Oct 13, 2006)

All in know is that if you buy ghg snow fullbodies, might as well buy a box of drywall screws and a tube of gorrilla glue right away and get it over with. I swear they lose heads when you sneeze wrong.


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## Brotsky (Mar 4, 2009)

joebobhunter4 said:


> Ive used dakota snows for the last 2 years and we broke over a dozen heads off of them in that time so idk what kind of hammer you are using... liked the decoys just saying there not like bigfoots and they do break


I've set up taken down over a thousand of them many times in the past two years since they've come out and have NEVER broken the head off of a single decoy. You must be setting them up with a chainsaw if you're breaking the heads off. At the end of the season we literally throw them 20+ feet from the trailer onto the concrete floor of our storage unit and still have NEVER broken a head. The design is ONE piece, the only way you can break the head off is to shatter the plastic. It's not happening. There's too much of this crap that happens on forums now. Guys spouting off about stuff they have no experience with because they dropped coin on something else and feel stupid about making a bad choice. Then they feel the only way to justify their bad decision is to slam another product. Gets pretty old after awhile. If you have broken the head off of a dozen then let's see some pics.


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## mntwinsfan (Oct 8, 2010)

Sillosocks


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## shooteminthelips (Jun 13, 2007)

Brotsky I did the fullbody thing and broke about 12 to 15 heads during the season too. They break off from it just being cold and in seed sacks. Don't blow a nut on your fifth post on this forum. Trust me you will have more time to get ****** off at big things. So what I am saying is relax a little bit get some thicker skin. Or this place isnt exactly the place you want to spend a lot of time at. :beer:


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## Original Goosebuster (Jan 12, 2006)

Shootem,
When Are you heading to sodak? I might try and hook up with you mid-march if your gonna be down there


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## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

shooteminthelips said:


> Brotsky I did the fullbody thing and broke about 12 to 15 heads during the season too. They break off from it just being cold and in seed sacks. Don't blow a nut on your fifth post on this forum. Trust me you will have more time to get ticked off at big things. So what I am saying is relax a little bit get some thicker skin. Or this place isnt exactly the place you want to spend a lot of time at. :beer:


I dont know you and I like you!!! AMEN


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## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

Brotsky said:


> joebobhunter4 said:
> 
> 
> > There's too much of this crap that happens on forums now. Guys spouting off about stuff they have no experience with because they dropped coin on something else and feel stupid about making a bad choice. Then they feel the only way to justify their bad decision is to slam another product. Gets pretty old after awhile. If you have broken the head off of a dozen then let's see some pics.


I might be mistaken, but on your FOURTH post on this forum you came on here and straight up called 2 of us liars, bashed another product, and did exactly what you said "gets old after awhile" :withstupid: :eyeroll: :rollin: :shake:


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## lesserhunter (May 9, 2008)

i will agree with brotsky on that your views are obviously going to be biased though because it says right in your signature that your a staffer for gavery, so obviously your not going to say dakota makes a better decoy even if they do, unless you have ran both types of decoys for an entire season its kinda hard to say which is the better decoy. having no experience with either decoy i would personally choose dakotas because A they are one piece and you dont have to put the motion stand in them every time you set up. and B because motion is extremely overrated and the motion the gaverys do have is very unrealistic, i have never seen a goose repeadetly and quickly spin side to side while eating


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## Goosehauler23 (Apr 7, 2008)

I've hunted with kyle and we have broken heads off of dd's. They are tough but not indestructable. If a guy was to leave the decoys with bases on while traveling, you could pull them all out at once because you would have a tangled mess. They took a lot longer to set up than avery's. The hole in the bottom of them is smaller than the cone on an averyj


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## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

lesserhunter said:


> i will agree with brotsky on that your views are obviously going to be biased though because it says right in your signature that your a staffer for gavery, so obviously your not going to say dakota makes a better decoy even if they do, unless you have ran both types of decoys for an entire season its kinda hard to say which is the better decoy. having no experience with either decoy i would personally choose dakotas because A they are one piece and you dont have to put the motion stand in them every time you set up. and B because motion is extremely overrated and the motion the gaverys do have is very unrealistic, i have never seen a goose repeadetly and quickly spin side to side while eating


Well I am going to leave this last comment. The reason I decided to be with Avery, and NOT dakota is because I believe in their product more than I do DD. I am in no way dissing DD and I acknowledge their strong points, I also see both companies weaknesses. Why do you think I used averys once and then signed on with them? In my earlier post it said I used ghg AND dd. Last year we had a mix of both. We were testing them. I personally do not care if you believe me not about the broken heads on the DD. It happened to me and if you don't believe me, that's your choice. I also know some people prefer the bases attached. If you are like that then definitely, buy DD. But if you are like me and like light decoys and bases you can put in buckets or stack, then GHG is your best option.


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## Buck25 (Mar 27, 2008)

Goosehauler23 said:


> I've hunted with kyle and we have broken heads off of dd's. They are tough but not indestructable. If a guy was to leave the decoys with bases on while traveling, you could pull them all out at once because you would have a tangled mess. They took a lot longer to set up than avery's. The hole in the bottom of them is smaller than the cone on an averyj


I have a few hardcore decoys that get the bases tangeled because the ring was not completely closed. But as far as i know all the dakota ring bases ring wraps completely around. I have a trailer of honkers that bounce around all day and the never get tangled because their is nothing for them to get tangled on. Unless i'm missing something THERE IS NO WAY DAKOTAS TOOK LONGER TO SET UP THE AVERYS. Whats ironic about your comments about the dakota tangeling is they don't but the avery's bases are a real pain in the a$$ to untangle. I could care less what decoys anyone buys! I just disagree.
On the durability side of things i think the dakotas are overated as far as the honkers go...Not saying its bad just tends to be overated. Dont compare it to bigfoot.


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## flight cancled (Aug 28, 2007)

This guy was simply asking a question and you guys always turn it into personal matters! :eyeroll: I have used both never had the problem with DD's heads breaking off but when I used them it wasnt as cold either. I used averys for 2 years, yes did break some heads but I bought them used and some were already partially broke. I have a 7x16 plus 18inch v-nose and i could get 50 dz GHG in the front and put the wheeler and extra gear in the back half with a net separating them. When setting up for snows its always a rush so i dont wanna say I abused my decoys but they definetally got used. We always tossed them around and such and it took a pretty hard hit straight on the beak to break the head off a GHG unless it was cold say 10 F if you take decent care of your stuff and dont pitch them around you will be fine. They both look good in field, but more people go with averys so i dont know if that has something to say about DD's or if thats just personal prefference. Feel free to pm me with any other questions.


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## Snowgooseman__SD (Jan 22, 2010)

HAhAHAHHAHAHA this makes me lmao. First off Dakota decoy has got it down with the ONE piece Design. look at any on the Videos (snowstorm,f5) there are countless heads broken on the GHG's. Now GHG has got the blue goose design down while Dakota has got the snow IMO!. Now durabilty we all know GHG suck for durable products. yes all you prostaffers can bash me you get paid to do it lol :rollin: . Now what avery has going for them is they just made a ONE piece lesser to me that gives me a hint that hmmm maybe next year they will change there snow goose. just a thought??? :roll: . if i was switching dec's to go to a fullbody spread i would lean towards the Dakota snows while i think the dakota blues "shine". idk it would be tuff. its kinda like chevy vs ford. they have there pros and there cons. most of it is based on personal preference. Just my .02


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## Snowgooseman__SD (Jan 22, 2010)

Hey someone post a picture of a dakota's head broken i have never seen one and i'm interested..


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## Bunnyblaster (Jan 12, 2010)

Thanks for the input guys. It looks like there are pros and cons of each to consider, and I might go with a combo spread of both brands. I still have awhile to think about it, so more advice is always welcomed. Thanks again.


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## Brotsky (Mar 4, 2009)

LMAO! I think some of you Avery boys might have spilled your kool-aid last night. Me and a couple other guys are still waiting on those broken Dakota pics. It is what it is, they are far more durable than GHG. I laugh at you boys commenting on my post count. I don't need to post a couple hundred times to know BS when I smell it. Keep bragging up your GHG's. Maybe you can make the big boy pro-staff someday. :rollin:


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## SDwaterfowler (Mar 2, 2006)

I have never used DD's, but I would probably go with them if I was making a new spread. Main downside I see to DD is the weight. A seed bag full of averys is heavy enough the way it is. I think the DD is a much more realistic pose but their motion system is not the greatest.

The nice thing about averys is they are light and I like the 2 piece system as it takes up less space. But averys are built cheap, and don't believe any pro-staffer that tries to say otherwise. Their head system is crap. I gorilla glued all my heads and they still break off all the time. My next project is to drywall screw all of them and see if that helps.

As for trailer space, I have a 7x16. I keep my 30 dz. averys in seed bags and it only takes up the front 1/3 of the trailer. Plenty of room for my wheeler, sled, blinds and other stuff. Without storing them in bags, I would be willing to bet you could fit 60-70 dz. in a 7x16 with room left for blinds and other gear.


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## Snowgooseman__SD (Jan 22, 2010)

Hey goosehauler and Andy i'm still waiting for a picture of a dakota decoy head broke that you guys say you did.


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

Brotsky said:


> joebobhunter4 said:
> 
> 
> > Ive used dakota snows for the last 2 years and we broke over a dozen heads off of them in that time so idk what kind of hammer you are using... liked the decoys just saying there not like bigfoots and they do break
> ...


haha thats about the biggest lie i've ever seen on this site... 20 feet in the air onto concrete their bodies would crack and heads would break all the time... obviously your not the brightest bulb on the christmas tree because you think im trying to bash dakota decoys yet I stated in the same comment that I liked the decoys... and I will go out of my way and go take some pictures just to burst your bubbles dude.


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

Brotsky said:


> joebobhunter4 said:
> 
> 
> > Ive used dakota snows for the last 2 years and we broke over a dozen heads off of them in that time so idk what kind of hammer you are using... liked the decoys just saying there not like bigfoots and they do break
> ...


haha thats about the biggest lie i've ever seen on this site... 20 feet in the air onto concrete their bodies would crack and heads would break all the time... obviously your not the brightest bulb on the christmas tree because you think im trying to bash dakota decoys yet I stated in the same comment that I liked the decoys... and I will go out of my way and go take some pictures just to burst your bubbles dude.


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## Snowgooseman__SD (Jan 22, 2010)

Joebobhunter4....... you have obviously never used a dakota.............................


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

Snowgooseman__SD said:


> Joebobhunter4....... you have obviously never used a dakota.............................


I've ran over 600 the last 2 years and the 2 years before that I ran over 600 averys... pretty sure I've hunted over Dakotas plenty of times


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

Andy Weber said:


> Brotsky said:
> 
> 
> > joebobhunter4 said:
> ...


You should edit that one andy the brotsky guy said that not me


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

Heres your pics, this is just a few of them that I grabbed off the top of the pile of Dakotas... your theory on plastic having to shatter really looks like your right on that...

This is from "tossing" them into my trailor and landing them on the "plywood" which is a lot softer than concrete i can tell you that much... so I would love to watch you throw a thousand of them 20 feet in the air onto concrete and not break one, must have a magic toss or something brotsky and snowgooseman



















sorry for stealing your thread bunnyblaster but here is my personal opinion on averys and dakotas...
If you are looking to set up a spread faster but not as good of looking decoys go with avery. The large cone makes it easier to put on a stake in the dark and the stakes dont get tangled up like the Dakotas do, you will break a lot more heads but their easier to fix.

If you have time and want a more quality decoys go with dakotas. Setting them up takes longer because of the small hole and the stakes get tangled a lot but they look better in my opinion, when the heads break off which they will I dont care who you talk to they are nearly impossible to put back on. Either way you go on your decision wont be a wrong one because i've shot the same amount of geese over both spreads.


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## Snowgooseman__SD (Jan 22, 2010)

wow must have been some force put to those. can i ask how they broke???? are you willing to sell them to me???? lol :beer:


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

joebobhunter4 said:


> This is from "tossing" them into my trailor and landing them on the "plywood" which is a lot softer than concrete.


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## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

Sorry about that misquote Kyle! My bad.


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## Snowgooseman__SD (Jan 22, 2010)

I'm simpily saying i have tried to break a lesser and a snow. i grabbed an active lesser and a feeder snow. i hit them pretty hard and they with stand the brute force i was giving them with a hammer. now it was inside my house not out in the cold. the only thing i have broke has been the pvc tube inside the decoy that the stand goes in to. got a bunch on hand so unscrewed it put another one in its good to go.


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## TrevorB (Dec 21, 2008)

Snowgooseman__SD said:


> I'm simpily saying i have tried to break a lesser and a snow. i grabbed an active lesser and a feeder snow. i hit them pretty hard and they with stand the brute force i was giving them with a hammer. now it was inside my house not out in the cold. the only thing i have broke has been the pvc tube inside the decoy that the stand goes in to. got a bunch on hand so unscrewed it put another one in its good to go.


You beat your decoys with a hammer?

:rollin:


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## dakotashooter2 (Oct 31, 2003)

I'm still debating which to buy. I have not used either ...BUT... a common coment on many of the forums references gluing or screwing the heads on GHGs whether they are snows or canadas. I guess my thought is if you are gonna screw them on anyway why not just buy one piece to start with ?


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## Original Goosebuster (Jan 12, 2006)

doesnt really matter which one you buy ultimately, depends on which flavor kool-aid you like. All I know is one no-wind days they are both money!


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## teamshakeandbake (Oct 14, 2008)

buy deadlies or sillosocks and you wont have to worry about which 20 dollar decoy you broke


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## Snowgooseman__SD (Jan 22, 2010)

TrevorB said:


> Snowgooseman__SD said:
> 
> 
> > I'm simpily saying i have tried to break a lesser and a snow. i grabbed an active lesser and a feeder snow. i hit them pretty hard and they with stand the brute force i was giving them with a hammer. now it was inside my house not out in the cold. the only thing i have broke has been the pvc tube inside the decoy that the stand goes in to. got a bunch on hand so unscrewed it put another one in its good to go.
> ...


sure tried. didnt do much but scuff them up.


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## joebobhunter4 (Jul 19, 2005)

ha brotsky you really quieted up fast


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## bigbear13 (Sep 16, 2009)

This thread is hilarious! Thanks for the laugh fellas! :beer:


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## bluebird (Feb 28, 2008)

For all those wanting to buy FB's for next year you will have 2 new choices that will hit the market for next season so just wait and see.


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## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

bluebird said:


> For all those wanting to buy FB's for next year you will have 2 new choices that will hit the market for next season so just wait and see.


Possibly. They both had major set backs. One for sure.


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## bigbear13 (Sep 16, 2009)

Well, who are these mystery companies you're talking about? If they're trying to hit the market in time for this fall they've got about six weeks to do it. Please post links or pics if you've got em. THANKS!


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## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

bigbear13 said:


> Well, who are these mystery companies you're talking about? If they're trying to hit the market in time for this fall they've got about six weeks to do it. Please post links or pics if you've got em. THANKS!


Not really mystery companies. And agree on the six weeks deal. Thats why i dont think they will be out in time.


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