GETTING LUCKY ON TURKEYS WITH BLACK POWDER
How I Play The Game of Turkey Hunting with Black Powder
- Rules #1-3
 EDITOR'S
NOTE: When hunting with my black-powder shotgun, I always
wait until the bird comes in 10 to 12 yards closer to
me than I do if I hunt with a conventional shotgun.
My killing ground becomes 10 to 20 yards. I've chosen
to play the game of hunting turkeys with black powder
this way because I've bagged enough gobblers that I
don't need to shoot every tom I spot. I consider playing
the game fairly more important than bagging a bird.
The rules I set up for hunting a tom with black powder
help to stack the odds even more heavily in the turkey's
favor.
 If
you want to have fun hunting black-powder turkeys, set
the rules by which you'll play. Each hunter can establish
his own set of rules based on his hunting skills and
experience. Here are my seven rules.
Rule #1: I Don't Have To Kill A Turkey Today:
This rule frees me from the pressure of having to make
a shot. Too often a hunter adopts the philosophy, "If
the turkey gets in close, I must take the shot."
When you play by that rule, you'll often rush the shot
and miss the bird. But if you plan ahead and decide
you can hunt today and not take a tom, you'll relieve
the pressure on yourself to take the shot and still
enjoy a day afield.
 Rule
#2: I Won't Take A Shot If The Bird Remains Outside
My 18-Yard Killing Circle:
When I sit down to call a turkey, I look at the surrounding
trees and bushes 18 yards from my stand. I mentally
draw a line from one tree to the next to make a half-circle
18 yards from my stand. If the turkey crosses the line,
I'll take the shot. If he doesn't cross the line, the
tom wins the day. I've had longbeards come within 19
yards that I could have killed. However, because they
didn't cross the line, they won the game that day.
Rule #3: I'll Only Take A Clean Shot:
A gobbler may stand within my killing zone but have
his neck and head behind a small bush. More than likely,
I can shoot through the bush and take the turkey. But
if I don't have a clean shot to the head and neck area,
I let the bird walk. I turkey hunt because I want to
make the tom come to a spot where I can bag him. I may
or may not pull the trigger.  The
decision rests on the rules I have for myself and the
bird. I've taken plenty of turkeys in my lifetime. I
never take an iffy shot because I know of no more sickening
feeling than to miss or cripple a bird.
To learn more about turkey hunting, call Night Hawk
Publications, (205) 967-3830 or write 4112 Camp Horner
Road, Birmingham, AL 35243 to order John E. Phillips'
three turkey-hunting books, "Turkey Hunting Tactics,"
"The Master's Secrets to Turkey Hunting" and
"Outdoor Life's Complete Book of Turkey Hunting."
You can visit www.nighthawkpublications.com/hunting/hunting.htm
to read book excerpts.
TOMORROW: HOW I PLAY THE GAME
- RULES #4-7
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