# List best to worst GHG full body decoys



## weuk (Dec 19, 2010)

Can somebody list the best to worst full body ghg decoys. thanks


----------



## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

Full bodies? or shells or floaters or geese or ducks? Be a little more specific and maybe we can help you out. 
If your looking for Canada Geese full bodies I like FFDs and FFD lessers because the flocking cuts the shine. Floaters I like oversize actives for visibility and resters to relax the birds..


----------



## collar boy (Apr 5, 2008)

weuk said:


> Can somebody list the best to worst full body ghg decoys. thanks





Andy Weber said:


> Full bodies? or shells or floaters or geese or ducks? Be a little more specific and maybe we can help you out.
> If your looking for Canada Geese full bodies I like FFDs and FFD lessers because the flocking cuts the shine. Floaters I like oversize actives for visibility and resters to relax the birds..


Well if i had to guess i would say he wants to know about full body decoys beings he asked about "full body ghg decoys"


----------



## slough (Oct 12, 2003)

Just get whatever ones you can afford. Don't get FFD unless you plan on being pretty gentle with them. I've never used FFD decoys and I've never found myself thinking a hunt would have gone better if I would have had them. I've mostly gone to a motion shell spread and I think the results are just as good as with full bodies. Scouting and hiding yourself are much more important than spending $25 per decoy IMO.


----------



## weuk (Dec 19, 2010)

Well some decoys seem to have a better resale if need be, for instance ghg put their elite full bodies on sale, making peoples used ones not worth much. Bigfoot originals never really seem to go on sale, so their used value stays high. I didn't want to get one that people probably wouldn't see much value in within a few years If i go in a different direction. thanks


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Just get Bigfoots and forget about buying gavery's.


----------



## weuk (Dec 19, 2010)

I take it you don't work for Avery


----------



## teamflightstoppersND (Feb 20, 2009)

I wont touch another GHG unless its fully flocked!


----------



## greatwhitehunter3 (Sep 15, 2006)

teamflightstoppersND said:


> I wont touch another GHG unless its fully flocked!


All I have is GHG FFD lessers and will never buy anything different. Love them little guys! If you're going to be spending money on any decoy why not be "somewhat" gentle with them anyways? If you have the funds, i'd recommend them.


----------



## waterfowl wingnut (Sep 19, 2009)

Are the FFD's really worth it tho? I went hunting with some buddies this November in some pretty cold and foggy conditions and the decoy's frosted over like crazy. I am going to start assembling a full body spread either this summer or early next year and have still wondered if they are worth it. Thoughts?


----------



## teamflightstoppersND (Feb 20, 2009)

If you think the frost was bad on FFD's, it is just as bad on regular paint. The painted decoys will glare much more that FFD's when the frost melts. The foggy conditions without frost are also terrible for painted decoys. FFD's will turn a foggy hunt into a great hunt.

They are worth the money especially now at Cabelas.com. They are super cheap and I wish I had money to buy them.



waterfowl wingnut said:


> Are the FFD's really worth it tho? I went hunting with some buddies this November in some pretty cold and foggy conditions and the decoy's frosted over like crazy. I am going to start assembling a full body spread either this summer or early next year and have still wondered if they are worth it. Thoughts?


----------



## Andy Weber (Nov 18, 2009)

collar boy said:


> weuk said:
> 
> 
> > Can somebody list the best to worst full body ghg decoys. thanks
> ...


I will admit I was wrong on that one haha I didn't read it carefully enough! :rollin:


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Gavery's break too easy and their customer service is horrid. Get a decoy with a company that actaully stands behind its product. You won't ever kill more birds with one certain brand (excluding DSD's), so get something that you know the company will take care of you.


----------



## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

I'm selling all my GHG FFDs and going to Dakotas. Look for them in the classifieds soon.


----------



## jcnelsn1 (Oct 28, 2008)

I'm selling all my ghg ffds and going with real geese silos. mine kill a lot more geese than chris's though so buy mine from the classifieds instead


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

Realgeese are great decoys when a guy learns how to use them properly.


----------



## jcnelsn1 (Oct 28, 2008)

What's the secret to success


----------



## teamflightstoppersND (Feb 20, 2009)

Secret to success????

Hunt birds that have not been pressured by hunters. You will shoot a ton of birds if they have not been hunted much. It may require finding a remote location or hunting areas that no one hunts waterfowl in.

Other than that there are many variables that go into hunts so it is hard to pin down every single situation. Sometimes its just luck.

I heard shinny bands around your neck really bring the birds in


----------



## waterfowl wingnut (Sep 19, 2009)

So why the switch to Dakotas? I know they are a great looking decoy, a little more expensive than the others though.


----------



## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

waterfowl wingnut said:


> So why the switch to Dakotas? I know they are a great looking decoy, a little more expensive than the others though.


Here's why I'm switching:

1) I'm tired of 2-part decoys. Lining up the decoy cone into the stake is annoying. Dakotas have the attached base and you can carry a lot by handling the bases.
2) Bill from Dakota is first class and I like to support him. I was treated poorly by Avery when I was a dealer for them years back. They screwed up my order and my rep in Fargo refused to answer any calls or emails correcting the problem. It was a very expensive mistake on their end that I had to eat.


----------



## greatwhitehunter3 (Sep 15, 2006)

Chris Hustad said:


> waterfowl wingnut said:
> 
> 
> > So why the switch to Dakotas? I know they are a great looking decoy, a little more expensive than the others though.
> ...


That is definitely an advantage to the Dakotas. The only thing I don't like about them is their boxy look. Yes the geese probably can't tell the difference because they still look good but when i'm surrounded them for countless days in the fall I don't want to be annoyed by their look. Just my opinion though!


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

jcnelsn1 said:


> What's the secret to success


Learn how to space them out enough.


----------



## jcnelsn1 (Oct 28, 2008)

Yeah, I have heard that you really need to spread silos out.


----------



## greatwhitehunter3 (Sep 15, 2006)

The big thing with silos is you have to make sure that they are facing in all different directions so they do not disappear when the geese fly over from a certain direction.


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

jcnelsn1 said:


> Yeah, I have heard that you really need to spread silos out.


6 to 9 steps apart.


----------



## weuk (Dec 19, 2010)

hmm would you suggest silos are a must for a spread? and do you mix them right in with the spread, keep them away just from the landing zone, or throw them in groups like full bodies?


----------



## blhunter3 (May 5, 2007)

When I use sillos, I either run them just by themselves or just use them to hide the blinds.
When I use them alone I set them up in a big J shape. But even when I run fullbodies, I make either a blob with random landing holes or a U. I don't make "family groups" of any of that fancy stuff.


----------



## lesserhunter (May 9, 2008)

When is the last time you have seen live geese sit in a U? Making distinct shapes in a spread to me is a dumb idea. I run DSD's and will never run another brand of decoy. and they are set up completely random and spaced out alot, 9 times out of 10 the birds will just try to fill in the open spaces.


----------



## Buck25 (Mar 27, 2008)

When geese get smart enough to realize that there feathered freinds are standing in an odd shape so it must not be safe i quit. Alot of people are so set on setting up decoys how the birds look in the feild and all that crap...Geese don't think about how they were standing in the feild the day before when there checking your spread. They look for blinds or see shiny decoys or used shells laying around...
I'm not saying the pattern of your decoys doesn't matter but what i'm saying is you should set them for 2 main reasons 1. To manipulate where the birds want to land(This does not necessarily mean a hole in a spread like a U or a J but i have nothing against this stuff) 2. Use your set up to hide your blinds. 
I personally have never thought my hunt went bad because the geese working my spread saw that it was in a U shape and it looked funny to them...The problem with the bigginner using the U shape is they have the decoys evenly spaced throughout the entire U. From my experiences your going to want 70 percent of your decoys in the bottom of the U with the blinds and the 30 percent used as wings going down wind to keep the birds true(which often doesnt work very well). But all in all the birds seem to want to land in the bigger groups of decoys.


----------



## sd5.0. (Mar 13, 2008)

Chris Hustad said:


> waterfowl wingnut said:
> 
> 
> > So why the switch to Dakotas? I know they are a great looking decoy, a little more expensive than the others though.
> ...


X2

We just bought 2 1/2 dzn dakota lessers to try them out. They are a true one piece decoy without a detachable head and are very reasonable in price. We use our decoys alot and they take a ton of abuse in the trailer. we are tired of gluing broken heads back on and loosing stakes and the avery's just dont stand up to the 'throw and go' kind of hunting we do. We could have went with Big Foots but like the more realistic features and paint jobs of Dakotas and Avery's. I am guessing that in a few years we will have nothing but dakota's. I will let you guys know how the one piece lessers hold up next fall after being put through the decoy grinder (trailer).


----------



## waterfowl wingnut (Sep 19, 2009)

A buddy and I were talking last night over a couple beers about what kind of decoys we should get this year and whether or not it is worth it to fork over the cash for the Cabela's sale right now. After awhile we were thinking about maybe taking a much simpler route and trying something different. Anyone ever used the *plain black and white homemade silhouettes*? I think they use them on the Goose Society DVD by Molt Gear. It seems like the magical number for a lot of ND hunters is guys running around 5 dozen full body decoys, so running a mass spread of silhouettes would maybe give the geese something different to look at. Thoughts? :bop: (sorry for getting off thread topic)


----------



## greatwhitehunter3 (Sep 15, 2006)

waterfowl wingnut said:


> A buddy and I were talking last night over a couple beers about what kind of decoys we should get this year and whether or not it is worth it to fork over the cash for the Cabela's sale right now.
> Anyone ever used the *plain black and white homemade silhouettes*?


I think you guys had a few too many beers!! Ha just giving ya a hard time! With all of the realistic decoys out there today that everyone is using, i'm not really sure how they would react to something like that? I personally think they wouldn't care for a spread of homemade silos over let's say Dakotas but it all depends on if you're in the right spot. If money isn't a huge issue and you still want silos, I would just buy some realgeese silos.


----------

