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Getting
Ready for Duck Season
"Fortune Favors the Well-Prepared" |
OK, boys and girls.... fall
is upon us. At this very moment, waterfowl on the Canadian prairies
have started their southern migration. They’re coming your way.
They’ve followed these flight paths for uncountable years. The older
birds have seen every decoy spread, heard every call and been shot
at from every blind between Saskatoon and South Mississippi. They’re
not stupid. They know what you’re trying to do. You can bet that the
ducks will be ready for you. The question is, “what are you doing to
get ready for them?” In the interest of full disclosure,
preparedness will not put ducks in your decoys. The only thing that
will put ducks in your decoys is ducks deciding that they want to be
in your decoys. However, taking some time to prepare your gear and
yourself for waterfowl season will make sure that you get to the
blind with no surprises…and when those fickle fowl of winter do
decide to drop their landing gear and sail into your blocks, you’ll
be ready. It’s like my dad always said, “fortune favors the
well-prepared”. So, here are some very basic things to check well in
advance of the big day.
Guns
I don’t know of a single activity that is more detrimental to the
health of a shotgun than waterfowling. Duck guns are drug through
the mud, laid upon by all manner of wet dogs, dropped in the water,
used as boat paddles, and jostled around in the beds of trucks. I
have personally poured hot coffee into my action to unfreeze it on
two occasions. Here at Remington, we build our shotguns to stand up
to decades of such abuse and still keep on working. However, the
function and performance of any shotgun will suffer from complete
neglect and abuse. As such, we must check and clean our shotguns
periodically. No amount of preparation will help you kill ducks if
you can’t shoot them.
First, check the overall condition of your shotgun. Ideally, it
should be clean and free of rust. Depending on how many years you’ve
duck hunted with the gun, some corrosion, dings, and scratches may
be expected. However, you don’t want the receiver full of dog hair,
duck feathers, tree bark, and bits of last year’s sausage biscuits.
Take the time to give your gun a good detailed cleaning. If you need
help on that process, refer to your owner’s manual or the Remington
website for guidance. This will allow you to inspect each component
of the gun during cleaning and make sure that there are no broken
parts. If you find a broken or worn out part, you can call the good
folks in Remington’s Parts Department at 800-243-9700. If you find a
problem that can not be fixed by simple parts replacement, consult a
qualified gunsmith to repair your shotgun.
It is imperative that you clean and inspect your shotgun as early as
possible. The time period between early September and late January
is what we here at Remington fondly refer to as “the season”. During
“the season”, parts orders start raining from the heavens and every
gunsmith in America is hunkered down under an ever-growing pile of
shotguns and rifles. As the work load increases, turnaround times
start getting longer and longer. An early inspection ensures that,
if you do find a problem, your chances of getting a timely repair
are greatly increased. You want to be sure that you have plenty of
time before opening day just in case.
*On a side note…be nice to your gunsmith. He’s not going to make you
wait any longer for your gun than is absolutely necessary. Be
patient. And give him a complete, detailed description of the issue
you’re having. Simply saying “my gun’s broke” doesn’t help anybody.
However, describing the malfunction and all the associated variables
in detail (like the load you’re using and when you decided to hit
your gun with a hammer) can actually cut down on his diagnostic time
and help you get your gun back quicker.*
Ammo
 Have you bought your ammo? Go ahead and get your shells now. If you
wait until the last minute, you may not be able to find the shells
you need. Buying now gives you access to the greatest availability
of shells and can give you time to order the shells you want if you
can’t find them locally. Now is also a great time to buy since so
many retailers are running special sales and discounts for hunting
season. Don’t forget the factory rebates, either. Right now,
Remington is offering up to $150 back on purchases of
Wingmaster
HD…which, by the way, is an awesome product! It’ll kill ducks and
geese deader than a box of hammers! I love this stuff. I do wish
they had used the product name I suggested, though...”Uncle Jason’s
Duck-B-Gone” has such a nice ring to it. Anyway, I digress.
If you have shells left over from last year, they need to be
inspected before they find their way into your shell bag.
Remington
Nitro Steel shells feature zinc plated steel pellets for corrosion
protection and a “Wet-Proof” coating on both the primer and crimp to
prevent water damage. It has been my experience that these shells
hold up pretty well and will work just fine even if they spent last
season in the bottom of your duck boat. You simply need to make sure
that there is no corrosion on the brass case head. A rusty case head
can cause the empty hull to hang up in your chamber. Some surface
corrosion can be removed with steel wool or a brass brush. Remington
Sportsman Hi-Speed steel shells have a waterproof coating to protect
the primer. However, the crimp is unsealed and the steel pellets are
not zinc plated. These shells should be subjected to a little more
scrutiny if they got wet last year. If you ever have a question
about the condition of a shot shell (or any ammunition for that
matter), do not use it. Shooting a wet shell can cause the wad or
shot cup to become lodged in the barrel creating a bore obstruction.
Remember…”when in doubt, throw it out”.
Decoys
 The next target of our inspection should be the decoys. Make sure
the paint is in good condition. Make sure your anchors and lines are
both present and in good shape. Make sure your lines are the
appropriate length for the area you’ll be hunting. Remember that
while a little extra length is ok, short lines result in lost
decoys. While you’re doing this, be certain to carefully wrap the
line back on your decoys and secure it. Few things will drive a duck
hunter into an apoplectic fit faster than trying to untangle decoy
lines in the dark. Confirm that your decoys are seaworthy. If you
find a few stray pellet holes, they can be patched with silicone
caulk. If you have one that got dead-centered a time or three…you
may just have to discard it. (Don’t ask me how I know.) You may also
want to check into upgrading your decoys. Flocking kits, for
instance, have become very popular. Flocking helps to soften the
hard plastic lines of your decoys and reduce the dreaded glare so
often encountered on blue-bird days. I have flocked whole decoys and
I have flocked just the heads. In my experience, flocking the heads
is just as effective as doing the whole body and it’s a whole heck
of a lot quicker. If you’ve spent the time flocking decoys, or if
you have really expensive commercial dekes, one accessory at which
you might want to look would be a segmented
decoy bag. The separate
compartments keep your decoys from banging against one another and
other hard surfaces and can actually keep your dekes looking better
longer. As a matter of fact, we have some great segmented bags on
the Remington Country Store
that should fit the bill quite nicely.
If you live or hunt in an area where battery operated motion decoys
are legal, make sure you check your batteries, terminal connections,
etc.
Calls
If you did not clean your duck call at the end of last year’s
season, it’s time to do that. Disassemble the call and wash it with
some warm, soapy water and a brush. If your call is clogged with
bits of Pop-Tart, it won’t blow very well. Now is the time to start
practicing your call. Put your duck call in your truck. Practice
your calling on the way to and from work, to and from the store, or
any time your wife or girlfriend is not in the vehicle. Practicing
with the window rolled down will not only help to preserve your
hearing and sanity, it will also alert the hippie/yuppie/hot blonde
in the import next to you that you are, in fact, a manly man and
worthy of his/her awe and reverence. If your call just doesn’t sound
quite right, many call manufacturers offer a “tune-up” service or
extra corks and reeds for a minimal fee. Bear in mind that a
properly tuned duck call will not overcome a lack of ability. There
are dozens of excellent instructional CD’s available out there. If
you’re a novice duck caller, use these discs and learn from the
pros.
Waders
Suit up!!! You need to check your waders for holes, dry-rotted
boots, cracks, odd smells, etc. I have not found an effective way to
check the integrity of my waders without actually putting them on
and getting in the water. I’ve done this in my bathtub and a local
pond. Any body of water will work. If you find a hole, there are
wader patch kits on the market. If the boots are dry rotted or
cracked, you’ll probably just have to buy a new set. If your waders
are putting out more funk than George Clinton and the P-Funk
Allstars, you may need to use some disinfecting spray or deodorizer
and give them plenty of time to air out before opening day.
Personal fitness
While waterfowl hunting is not typically as strenuous as, say, elk
or mountain goat hunting, it can pose some challenges…especially if
your off season was spent finding out how long you could sit on the
couch before your butt fell asleep. Get outside and do some walking.
Do a few pushups and sit-ups in the morning. Double think that
double cheeseburger and go with something a little lighter. Now,
anyone will tell you that I’m no paragon of physical fitness. But,
I’ve found that hunting is much more enjoyable if I’m not sucking
wind when I get to the blind. As always, it’s a good idea to consult
your family physician before you begin any exercise program. They
may even be able to recommend some specific exercises or stretches
to help you out.
Shooting
I always give a buddy of mine great shooting advice when we’re in
the blind…”Don’t miss!” Sage advice, no doubt… but it’s easier said
than done. One thing that has helped me tremendously over the past
five or six years is to spend a few afternoons at the local sporting
clays range. A properly set sporting clays course should give you
more than a few target presentations that represent shots you’re
likely to take in the duck blind. Call for your targets while
holding the gun comfortably (and safely) as you would in the blind.
Then, as the targets come into view, mount and swing the gun, pull
the trigger and follow through. This repetition should help you
build some consistency in the way you mount the shotgun and,
hopefully, help you kill more birds. As the weather cools, practice
your sporting clays in your hunting coat in order to become
comfortable mounting the shotgun without letting it hang up on your
coat sleeve. Aside from becoming much more comfortable and
consistent with your shotgun, these afternoon practice sessions will
also verify that your gun is in good working order.
So, there are the basics. You may think of a hundred more things to
check before season gets into full swing. Take a weekend to go
through your gear, get organized, and make sure you have your “A”
game ready for those wily waterfowl. If you invest some time, it
should certainly help you be more successful in the field. Fortune
favors the well-prepared. I think I can see Lady Luck cracking a
smile right now.
Stay tuned for more....
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