2nd shot

While calling this spring for a new hunter after his first turkey, the tom came in really close (10 yards) and the young fella took the shot as soon as the bird turned tail raised, rather than wait for the bird to move out toward the decoys. Under the circumstances I was not surprised by the miss, but what did catch me off guard was when he took a 2nd shot at the fleeing tom. Long-story short, despite the cloud of feathers we never found the bird even though we searched for over an hour. I did my best to cheer the young fella up, but his disappointment was impossible to mask.

When I think how of many times during my turkey seasons I've heard the distant boom-boom of 2 rapid shots, I'm left wondering what the point of such 2nd shots is? How many result in wounded birds or meat that is badly shot up. My experience with turkeys is that if the 1st shot is a miss, a 2nd shot is a Hail Mary not worth taking. What's your experience with 2nd shots? Are there some happy stories?

Killed my turkey this year with the second shot. But he did not run at first. Semi auto too So it depends
I was too excited and missed the first time. He was heavily distracted attacking a jake decoy


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2 seasons back I missed my first shot ...turkey was just too close I guess or me too excited maybe a combo of the two but the bird only ran about 5 yds.....stopped to look around giving me more than enough time for a good 2nd shot, so second shots are effective................. especially if the first one just wounds him...

I've often wondered if you would not be better off using a double gun, choked tight and more open. Tight choke for long shots and more open when they get up close.

Since I use a xbow for Turkey if I get another shot then I make it count. Lol

Killed a few birds on the second shot but you got to do it right. Got to shoot them like jack rabbits aim for the head while applying proper lead. Most likely your young hunter in his turkey fever shot for the body easy mistake in the heat of the moment but learn from it keep your cool aim for the head making sure you use appropriate lead.

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Originally Posted by jim

I've often wondered if you would not be better off using a double gun, choked tight and more open. Tight choke for long shots and more open when they get up close.

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That's why next season I intend to take out my 16 ga. SxS, choked mod & full.

The first bird I shot was a large jake, shot it at 20ish yards on a dead run head up into the decoys. It was not a second shot but it was a running shot, nothing wrong with it.

I had a situation one year where I was tagged out, I was taking my wife out, it was 6:30pm and we had to make a push to try to get up close to a big Tom, we had a very limited season so no going back the next day. We ended up jumping him out of the long grass, if it was myself hunting and not my wife that bird would have been shot at about 15 yards on the wing with the 16ga double. If you have no problem hitting a rabbit on the run or a grouse on the wing at a given range with #4-6 shot then why would it be a problem to shoot a turkey in the head/neck at that same range.

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Originally Posted by Fox

If you have no problem hitting a rabbit on the run or a grouse on the wing at a given range with #4-6 shot then why would it be a problem to shoot a turkey in the head/neck at that same range.

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Sometimes there would be no difference, but being confined to a blind's window opening or being tucked at the base of a tree on the ground is not conducive to the kind of swing, lead and follow-through that aides in properly connecting with fast moving targets. Add an extra-full turkey choke and bonded shot like Winchester Longbeard and the result might be a clean miss or a heck of a mess.

To be honest, the time I missed a turkey I was too dumb-bound to even think of a 2nd shot :o

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Originally Posted by ninepointer

Sometimes there would be no difference, but being confined to a blind's window opening or being tucked at the base of a tree on the ground is not conducive to the kind of swing, lead and follow-through that aides in properly connecting with fast moving targets. Add an extra-full turkey choke and bonded shot like Winchester Longbeard and the result might be a clean miss or a heck of a mess.

To be honest, the time I missed a turkey I was too dumb-bound to even think of a 2nd shot :o

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Was in a blind with a Remington 870 extra full choke 3 1/2" #6 shot Federal flite control wad with the running jake, I am just saying that it is not all that crazy.

My dad had a particularly bad outing, the bird came in at a weird angle, he got overly excited and push came to shove he got the turkey on shot 3, he said he may have put a pellet in it on shot 1 but missed completely on shot 2 at 10 yards and got it on shot 3 at 15 yards.

By the sounds of it your concern is more about a new hunter that is not experienced with the gun and or the action of cycling and shooting accurately rather than the second shot, he should not have taken a second shot rather than a second shot is always a bad thing.

Thanks to all for sharing your experiences.

I had a similar experience a few years back.

I was taking an apprentice out for his first hunt. I knew he could bust skeet, but this was is first real hunt. This was the landowner's grandkid. The kid's dad was a write-off (by Grandpa's description) so Grandpa wanted someone to show him the ropes (Grandpa does not hunt turkeys, only deer). The landowner had been VERY good to me over the years so I jumped at the opportunity and hoped to make it work for the young man.

We got in very early with heavy cloud cover. It was black dark. The birds usually roosted in the area so I only hit the "honey hole" under cover of complete darkness. We set up in a stick blind on the ground (just like a big nest of sticks around the base of a tree).

At first light, the gobbler starts spitting in a tree only 50 yards off. I knew it would be a great morning!! I could see him gobbling from the roost, although this was to my left and somewhat behind, so the kid to my right couldn't see as he was sitting to my right. The gobbler flies down and lands 5 yards in behind us. Gobbling and strutting, he makes his way toward our decoy. I see him walking beside me to the left, but Junior can't see him yet. He's only 3 or 4 yards away when he gets far enough that Junior can see him. He starts shaking like a leaf.

The gobbler continues to strut and gobble. He gets out to about 10 yards and the tail is blocking us from his view. I motion for Junior to get the gun up. I hear the click of the safety. So does the gobbler and the tail comes down and the head goes up.

BOOM

The gobbler does that 3 foot vertical leap thing that they often do when you shoot one right beside them. My first thought is "well, Junior got a good show and I get to keep my tag!" When the gobbler hits the ground, he starts running. To my surprise, Junior is almost instantly to his feet. I hear him rack another round into my old 870.

BOOM

Clean head shot. It is all over for old Tom and he's doing the nerve dance.

I've never seen a look of pride like the one I saw on Grandpa's face seeing the boy with his first bird. I showed him how to dress the bird and we prepared the fan for a display.

Sorry for being verbose. This was my best experience as a hunter, and it happened on the second shot. A turkey on the run sticks its head way out and it doesn't bob when they are at full tilt. It is no different from shooting a goose on the wing. Go for the head, lead appropriately, and they will fold.

Great story Ben, its like I was there with you guys. Glad it had a happy outcome. After his initial miss, my young hunter tried for the running head shot too, but I think he grazed the bird's chest.

BTW, I've built my fair share of brush pile "nests" for deer and turkey. Effective, free and they don't get stolen or blown away by the wind.

Two examples of where I benefited from a 2nd shot and a 3rd shot and both turkeys were flying. I will start by saying I don't condone shooting a flying bird and in both examples I was probably in the wrong but its how I reacted in the moment.

1st one, very odd morning to start, I was walking into the farm in the dark and I hadn't scouted. I am crossing a pasture and I hear a gobble. I set up, and waited. Gobbling continues, my guess is the bird is 250 yards from me. I am graced now with 3 coyotes stalking the gobbling bird in the tree and they started stalking my decoys. I was torn as all three coyotes got within 20 yards of me before catching my wind and bolting. I was going to shoot them but I hadn't filled a tag yet so turkey was a priority. The turkey took FOREVER to fly down because he had seen the coyotes. Anyways, a hen flew down and made its way to my decoys, shortly after that the tom came out of the tree and briskly made its way over. He stands 20 yards from me. I shoot and I clean miss. I am DUMFOUNDED by this, but he starts to run and I shoot and miss again and he flies and for whatever reason I fired a third shot where I jellyheaded the joker out of mid air at 30 yards. To this day I replay this in my mind and cant figure out how I missed the first two shots.
2nd example - 3 seasons ago it was a tough go, I couldn't get onto birds and they were sparse. It was the last week of May and I set up in the dark, I couldn't get a turkey to sound off the evening before so I was going in blind. When the sun started to come up I could hear a turkey gobbling almost out of earshot. My assumption was there was nothing around me so I sat against the tree, did a few tree cuts and proceeded to play candy crush on phone oblivious to the fact I had a jake working by me at 5 yards. Once I noticed him I froze and waited for an opportunity to raise the gun . . . never really happened as he wouldn't go into full strut and turn his back to me. I slowly raised the gun, he gets nervous and I rush the shot. Clean miss but the joker flies strait at me and does a 90 degree turn at the bushline and I fire a second shot and jellyhead this guy at maybe 3 yards as it flew past me. I literally almost decapitated this bird in flight.

Both examples of a need for an additional shot and both bad examples of taking an additional shot that worked out for me.

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Originally Posted by toddy

Both examples of a need for an additional shot and both bad examples of taking an additional shot that worked out for me.

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Proof though that everyone misses every so often.

Good stores, real life accounts.

I have seen it many times after firing a shot birds will jump but stay around for a second shot.