Hello, Just found this site today. I am a hs football coach from Central Indiana. Deer season is tough because of FB season. I have started getting into varmit hunting. I have hunted varmits off and on for a few years. I am doing more of it this year. The one thing I haven't done is hunt at night. Wanted some insight on set-up, using red lenses, time of night to hunt, and any important questions I have failed to ask. We have snow right now but it will be gone by the end of the week probably. So I need insight on snow-on and snow-off techniques. I read the mouse squealer thread below. Do you still use rabbit distress, etc. at night as well? Any help would be appreciated. I look forward to your responses. Thanks for the help.

Also, I have been out of the fur market since I trapped as a kid. What are midwest coyotes and fox pelts selling for these days? Thanks

Uncle Buck, Nice Red Fox!

The majority of my calling was from dawn to dusk, due to the red tape you have to wade thru here, to call at night...but Uncle Buck does quite a lot of night calling, and I'm sure he can offer you some good information........ I just wanted to jump in and say "Welcome to the forum, Coach... Glad to have you join us."......

Hey coach, welcome to the forum. I myself am new to varmit hunting. I have been several times, just don't know alot of technique. Having others think of questions that I forget about is helpful, and vise versa. Maybe we can both learn a thing or two. I just wanted welcome and happy hunting.

Thanks fellas, I appreciate it. MJoe, how late in the morning will you call and how early in the afternoon? Or is all day good? Does Uncle Buck visit the site every day?

I'm interested in everyone's hunting tactics in the daytime as well. We shot our first coyote last evening. Set up at about 4:30 p.m. (gets dark here at about 5:45-6:00 p.m.) Set up in a snow drift (2ft.) against a small group of trees on a fenceline between two corn fields. Pretty wide open other than a fence line with a few scattered trees and a ditch 150 yds in front of us. We hit the rabbit distress for about 30 seconds, waited 2 minutes, howled, sat for 30 seconds, then hit the rabbit again. Less than a minute later he was running in down the fenceline upwind. Perfect! We kept the rabbit squealing. Don't know if this was right or not. He circled out in front of us and stopped at 130 yds. Only our second series of calling of the season and we had a nice male coyote. Man, I like this sport. I was more nervous than I have been in a while deer or turkey hunting. Looking forward to hearing some tactics from you guys. The more I can learn on here, the less mistakes I have to make on my own. I like to cut the learning curve down as much as possible.

Like I said earlier, I am not a old hand by any stretch of the imagination. But I went two days ago. I had a free day from the firehouse and just wanted to be outdoors. I sat and called five sets and killed two dogs. I did not start until early afternoon (2:00pm) and had success. I was using a squeeker bulb out of a dog toy just to see if it would work. It did one out of the five sets. The other I used a Crit R Call open reed for the others. So as far as time of day, I have had luck all day. I don't hunt after dark here in Oklahoma due to hunting regs. so I can't help you there. Sorry

You have to decide if you want to become a riflemen,shotgunner or both? Best to learn how to do it all. However if your starting off I suggest that you use a shotgun.

Remember that when predators come to a call they will circle down wind and come into direct contract with the speaker or who ever is calling. Knowing this it's best to watch down wind.


When hunting at night you need a light (red lens) to light up their eyes. You also need a light just behind your shotgun bead so you know where to pont your shotgun.


When calling fox, coon, and bobcat you can call constantly with your electronic caller for up to 30 minutes. When hunting coyotes it's different you have to get into their head. So you howl, wait 8 minutes do a rabbit distress, wait 8 minutes do a kiyi wait 8 minutes, do a challenge if its Jan or a Female invitation sound. etc etc etc.

Red fox are known to hang up. So you want to place your electronic call on the ground. Face the speaker down wind. You move down wind of the speaker and use your red lens light as a shield. You keep it on all the time and you keep it in front of you. That's your shield. The fox will get in direct line with the speaker down wind of it. You will be waiting for it to ambush when he makes his or her turn to come to the call. You can use any food sound for night time hunting you want . rabbits, fieldmice, woodpecker, etc.

If you have gray fox in your area you should get one of the Gray Fox Pup tapes or CD to place on your electronic caller. If there is gray fox in the area and they hear the gray fox pup tape they will come right to the speaker. So you don't have to post 100 ayrds down wind when using the GFP.

However grays and reds are mortal enemies so you should start of with a rabbit, bird, fieldmouse call. Snce that will call both reds and grays. The grays are the dominant of the two fox and the reds most times will not come into the GFP. So that is why you use a food sound so either or will come into your calling. If nothing shows with the food sound then you can try the GFP for grays before you depart the area.


Suggest you visit www.huntsmart.com and purchase Dennis Kirk's book: :All You Wanted To Know About Fox Hunting." you need to learn the bsic and this book explains everything you need to call fox and or other predators.

You also will need hand and mouth calls. Suggest the Quakerboy Bulb Squeaker and Crit-R-Call Pee-Wee. There is an open reed call that is easier for new predator callers to use made by Primos. It called Little Dogs. It's an open red call that comes with two horns to attach to changet the sound from high to low.


I passed on a suggestion to you via Personal message too. I hope this at least gets you started.

I can't tell you what you would get in Indiana for fox. Here in Pa you would get $20.00 for a prime red and up to $45.00 for a prime gray fox.


UB

Thank you for the information. When do you use the red light? Keep it on or turn it on periodically? I will buy the book.

You turn your red light on when you depart your vehicle and you do not turn it off until you get back. You also need a yellow lens to hunt during the full moon and over snow when it's dark out.

The red light appears to be like a large black circle to the predator. You never take it off their eyes once you spot their eyes hundres of yards out there. If you would turn and place the light behind you they would see you. If your 100 yards down wind of the caller you can have a fox come right up to you. All the fox would see is your shotgun barrel sticking out the front of the black circle. Most times it to late then.


What brand and kind of electronic caller do you use?

Yes, Uncle Buck usually drops in most every day... I see he responded, but I have not had the chance to read it yet... And yes, I too get alot more of a "charge" out of watching a couple of coyotes raceing each other across the prairie for the rabbit dinner I am offering, or a big blue-backed bobcat slinking thru the brush coming out of that valley below me, than I ever did hunting deer... And when that coyote, hitting full-stride, surprises both you and himself, and about runs you over at hand-shakeing distance before you can even get your shotgun up, you best have a good knife handy to scrape out your britches when you stand up...... Where I am there is mixed country. In some areas there are tangled brushy creek bottoms and valleys, where a shotgun is called for...and in others, the land is flat, and you can see into the next zip code...so if you have them you may wish to use shotguns for the tighter areas, and a rifle for the more open areas................ I might start calling as soon as it was light enough to see...and I may call until it was too dark to see... I found the best times of day to generally be early in the morning, and late in the evening...but...I have called predators in at all hours of the day from first light to last.... Actually, I do believe night calling is probably most productive, but I have not called at night but maybe a few dozen times...... And like most things, different people have different ways of doing it... If I am useing a mouth blown call I will blow the dying bunny blues for maybe 4 or 5 seconds, then set still and watch for a couple of minutes, before doing it again...and a stand will generally last maybe 20 minutes for me...but if I am sure enough expecting a bobcat, or I just feel like it, I may stay up to 30 minutes... If I am useing an electronic caller, when I turn it on, I leave it on until I quit the stand... But I start it at only about half volume. If something is close I don't want to blow it away... After maybe 6 or 7 minutes, if nothing shows, I will increase the volume to full, and if after another 6 to 8 minutes nothing shows, I will turn it back to half volume until I quit the stand.... But I believe movement to be more important than camo, or even the "perfect sound"... I like the best sound I can make, and I like to be camoed...but as far as I'm concerned, movement is the big killer... Predators make their living by their eyes, ears, and nose, and they will pick up on a head turn, a leg scratch, a rifle being raised, etc., right fast if they are looking your way.... And I enter my calling area as quitely as possible. When I get out to make a stand, the truck door gently and quitely closes...and the coughing, sniffing, bolt racking, fence creaking, stick stepping on, whispering, nose blowing, etc., etc., stops..... I like the wind in my face when I set up, but I won't worry too much about it if it is blowing crosswise, but...I don't want it blowing from me to the area I am calling to, if I can avoid it... I like to set in the shade, where I "blend-in" better, and I prefer the sun to be at my back. I can live with it at my side, but never in my face.......... And I also leave an area just as quitely as I came... You never know when a predator may be lurking just out of sight, watching, or just coming in, and I don't want to give him an education, because I may want to come and call this area again some time... When I have something coming in I wait until it goes behind a tree, a rock, a stump, or a low spot in the ground, or is looking the other way, before raiseing my rifle or shotgun.... And here where I am, coyotes are the primary predator, and the one most often called... And if he is close enough to easily see me, such as when calling thicker, shotgun areas, I NEVER make direct eye-to-eye contact. I learned real fast that is a definate no-no. He will pick you out immediately............. And with coyotes you can sometimes "read their body language"... Now, I am not saying they will always do this, but I am saying that in my experience they will usually do this... If the coyote is coming on, I don't call. I set still and let him come. If he stops, standing and looking my direction, I may try a coaxer or "squeak", because you can usually bring him on in... If he stops and starts to circle he is trying to get to where he can taste the wind, so get ready and shoot the first good chance you have... If he stops and turns his butt to you and looks at you over his shoulder, you need to shoot, because he is fixing to leave the country... If he sets way out there and barks or howls. He probably won't come on in...and I will quitely leave, and try that area again a few days later...and maybe even try to set up within shooting range of where he stopped to bark or howl...... Now, like I said, different people have different ways of doing things...but methods such as these have worked for me.

UB, I use a Johnny Stewart Cassette caller. baby cottontail, woodpecker, and coyote locator. However, yesterday it stopped working. The cassette player seems to be malfunctioning. It will only play if I hold slightly on the eject button. Who knows. looks like I am going to have to use mouth calls or break down and buy a new electronic. That FX5 is unreal but man I don't want to drop $700 right now at Christmas. I have 3 kids who have about broke me already. ARe the Extreme Dimension Pro series worth looking in to? I am pretty good with mouth calls in turkey hunting, and have a howler. Should I just buy the mouth calls and a rodent squeaker or get a new electronic if I cant fix my cassette player? I really like electronic calls because of the versatility and simplicity.
I also need some input on must-have products for night calling. Brands of lights, lenses, etc. Can you hunt out of the back of your pick-up like I have seen before or is this not a very good idea?

MJ thanks for the input. U guys keep talking and I will keep learning. I am hooked.

Coach you need to join the forum I told you about so you can get a lot of input and output form the 382 predator callers that visit there.

I have all kind of lights that I use. Lights on broom handles that I just hold under the foreamr of the shotgun. You can put a large C cell flash light with a red lens on a 14 inch brrom handel or dowel rod. You can use the silver looking auto hose clamps to install it on broom handle.

Nitelite corp (huntsmart.com)does sale head lights. Order a catalog when you visits there.
I like to use the Petzl head light with the round mine light on it.


Here is the web site to ask what might be wrong with your JS Caller. http://www.hunterspec.com/ How old is your caller?

Caller is 5 yrs old. Not been used much though. How long will this FX3 or 5 last? Is it worth the investment?

Also, Do you ever hunt from the back of a truck at night? I know some do and others do not. What do you guys suggest? I am extremely excited about night hunting. I have a lot more time then and hunting pressure is non-existant here at night.

UB, I have visited the site. Will be over there soon.

I own that video that shows them riding down the back roads in Texas and shooting out of a chair. Might work in some states but I do not think it would work here in Pa. If you do hunt from a vehicle you will get fined here. Now I do not know What the commission would do if you were sitting in the back of the pick up truck bed. If there was a cap on top that would be hunting from a vehicle. I always figure that a predator call as a tool. You use the tool and they come to you.

I meant setting up, not driving around, and using the bed to sit in. I have read about this, heard about it years ago, and have even seen elevated hunting chairs on line set up for the bed of a truck. It seems that many use the truck for powering their lights. I don't know. I have heard stories where fox will run right under the truck. Obviously, you do not use your truck to set up in. Thanks.

So, how far do you get away from your vehicle when setting up?

If the weather is not bad 100 Yards. If there is cruty snow. I park it and just get where it's legal to hunt Here in pa that is 25 yards from the road.

One can hunt close to their vehicles if you learn how to close your doors. NEVER EVER!!!!!!!slam the doors or use your theft alarm to lock it.


Push the button down and close the door slowly. As you get that little gap in the door. Just give it a slow push to lock the door. If you slam the doors the hunts over.


Just like walking in on crusty snow. Hunts over then too. When you have crusty snow. Just get where it legal and call.


Also no talking when you get outside of the vehicle if your hunting with a partner. You talk hunts over too. LOL LOL

Good info here too, Coach I also have a post over in the other predator section you might wanna check out!!

I believe the guys at my camp are afraid to hunt at night.

Got to be in groups, I figure maybe I have a chance and the Ghost or creep might go after someone else!!