As an avid hunter, I’d nearly worn out my knuckles beating deer antlers together, trying to emulate the response I’d seen on television. With little success to show for it, I nearly gave up until I bumped into a local hunter who suggested that the time was right for luring a buck with antler sounds. I tried it and bagged the biggest buck of my life (164), one that came on a dead run from a quarter mile away. If rattling isn’t working for you, give these 10 tips from QDMA a try, and check out the video for even more suggestions.
It may not work every time, but when it does… oh, baby!
Several years ago, deer biologist and avid hunter Dr. Mickey Hellickson of Texas set forth on a three-year research project to learn what type of rattling sequence attracts the most bucks. Two-man teams rattled loudly and softly, in both short and long bouts. They broke branches and scraped the ground. They did it at all times of the day and throughout the hunting season, specifically during the months of November and December. They even had some radio collars on bucks so they could locate them, approach, rattle, and monitor the response. I studied their results and compiled it into 10 tips that will vastly improve your response rate when clanging ivory this fall.
1. In the Mornings. The greatest number of bucks (54 percent) in this study responded between 7:30 and 10:30 am, as opposed to midday (16 percent) or afternoon attempts (30 percent)… [continued]
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Photo: QDMA
