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Speaking of Dave Smith Decoys

Durability. I have watched several decoys get blown up by bucks. Those were $150 decoys and I know the footage is awesome but man I know it would make a guy sick, especially on a $500 deke.

Packability. My biggest complaint with any deke on the market is the ability to pack them on a backpack.

mounting. It would be nice to have either no mounts (similar to the boss buck). Anything that has to be driven into the ground is going to be a bit of a pain.

I like the posturing personally. A buck with another buck approaching during the rut looks like that dude. It may scare away a 120" or two but that would be fine by me.

Thanks for coming on and checking out the site. Looking forward to seeing the finished product.

Kratz
 
I love your turkey dekes Dave! My 2 cents Dave, do what you want to do with the muscle definition, posture, etc of this buck deke, as u are the MAN, when it comes to dekes!!! Those that have never used or handled Dave's new dekes with the A.C.E technology, fear not. They are durable, quiet, and the paint stays on. My noisy Boss Buck will be going down the road when these hit the market. My boss buck offered me multiple shot ops on bucks this year, so I can only imagine of how effective a realistic one will be. Dave, I would like to see a bedded doe offered with him for sale, and detachable legs would not be necessary imo, and I would prefer it not to come with legs. I would never use the legs, and if you can offer a doe that comes with no legs cheaper to those that want the bedded option, that would be great! I would also prefer that there are no detachable body parts(ears, head, legs) One solid body deke is what I would prefer.

EDIT, if u feel that having the antlers detach due to risk of them breaking, then do what you got to.
 
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It would be nice if they had some kind of back pack strap system to carry it in easily. That was always my problem with dekes. I am sure a badlands 2200 could carry one in though. I also think it wouldn't be a bad idea to be able to pin a real deer tail onto it somehow.
 
Dave Smith said:
Hey my friends, thought I'd chime in incase anyone is still reading this. A few comments about the deer. First off, I appreciate all the comments and they're what's going to direct the development of our deer, just like hunters have driven our goose and turkey development.
So now is the time to tell me what you want in this decoy as far as a stake or stand system, etc. I am going to tone the muscle definition down a little before it hits the market. That comment has come up a few times and I think I got just a tick carried away with that as I was working on it. The main goal was to make a postering buck. The decoy was tested this Fall on whitetails and blacktails and had a better initial trial than any previous DSD and keep in mind that we came into goose and turkey decoys during the absolute prime times, so that's saying alot.
Cost wise: we will sell it for as little as we can possibly get by with. It's not going to be a 1000.00 decoy like has been mentioned. I would be shooting for more like half of that if all goes well. Our production and development costs are astronomical compared to all our competitors because we produce here in the USA and not in China. We use the best possible materials and take our time on the sculptures and paint work. The prototypes that we made of this decoy were lightweight and user-friendly. The paint is anchored on and the material is quiet and durable.
Again, now is the time to make suggestions as we haven't made the production mold yet.
More than anything: THANKS for all comments, good or bad- they are all welcome and GREATLY appreciated.
DS
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Good deal brother! Nice ya have enuff balls to realise the common folk are gonna make you rich!! Try not to get all big headed! We all work for a living! You have a steller product! Just don't get greedy!!!!!!!
 
Welcome to the site. Very nice I may have to use decoys again! Going back to pinning it down what are you thinking? Probably would of killed the biggest buck I have ever seen from a stand this year if I would of had a decoy like this.
 
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I agree with most everyone else, durability is going to be your biggest factor in making this decoy. Turkeys beating on the ACE technology is one thing, but even a 2.5 year old buck is going to just destroy that thing IMO. I am thinking you will be doing a lot of warranty work no matter what you end up doing to combat durability, so be ready for end of season returns and up the in house staff to deal with that inevitable truth.

Staking it down will be the 2nd issue IMO. I think that if a person is willing to lug a full sized deer decoy out into the field that they can provide their own staking system if you make it possible to stake each of the legs down somehow. Otherwise you'll be having guys beetch about how crappy the stakes are that come with it. If a guy wants to use a 7 inch tent stake or a 12 inch rerod t-handled stake let them deal with that issue and go on their own. It will cut cost off if you don't have to mass produce a bunch of stakes.

A decent decoy bag would be nice but I don't know how or what you'd need to make it so without making the bag super expensive to make. To carry these big noisy decoys I think you almost have to have a single cloth/felt bag for each leg so they're not banging into each other while transporting. Then maybe even another one for the head/neck area. Lots of extra stuff to deal with but it'd be quieter.

How many parts will this thing come in? I've heard stories about how bit of a PITA it is to assemble deer decoys quietly but you have to have them in parts otherwise they get busted up easier.

Whatever you decide this is the first deer decoy I'm even considering to open my wallet for. If that's the case better have some nets handy because I'm pretty sure there's a family of Pleistocene moths living inside it.
 
I gotta ask, how do you anchor paint on? I have a delta deer decoys and it definately has paint issues. Do you have different paint technology that works on your decoys better? Just curious.
 
Staking it down
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What about having some type of metal eye ring or gromets prossibly off the sides of each leg that you could run a stake through. Not sure if they would have to be up higher on the leg for better stability or if you maybe stick them between the hooves. Four anchor points should make it pretty sturdy.
 
Wow, I wish I had met you all earlier- so much great input- I can't thank you all enough for that.
In reading all these posts, I think we're all on the same page as far as development goes. I think you guys will be happy with what takes place over the next few months and I'll try to keep you guys posted with what's happening.
A few comments: I'm going to try to make it so you have the option of setting it out on it's base (or stand), or staking it down without a base. I'll widen the stance a LITTLE, but I felt like part of the problem guys were having with their other decoys spooking deer was related to all these decoys with a wide stance, making the deer appear to be on full alert and about to bolt. Same with the ears forward and the eyes wide, etc.
I also definately am going to make it so you can use the antlers that come with it (not pictured- they're about a 110 inch 8pt), or your own sheds (sheds are on the deer in the pic).
On durability, after reading these comments, I am reminded of an idea somone came up with a while back about making it so it's solid to hunt with, but can break apart under impact without actually breaking anything on the decoy- like a formula one race car. That might be ideal so I'll work on that.
As far as number of parts, I think it's just going to be two. A single seam behind the front shoulder. The two parts can fit into a bag. I know it's not as compact as some, but this way the anatomy will always be right and there won't be a bunch of seams and parts, etc.
Sizewise it's smaller than a Bossbuck, but larger than, like the Primos deer.
So, here's another pic of the decoy and a sneak-peak of the clay sculpture of the strutter. The final strutter mold is being made right now so it won't be long. Again: THANK YOU guys for your kindness and thoughtful advice and please keep it coming. I read everything sooner or later and take all comments into careful consideration.
DS
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In using decoys a lot I have noticed that since switching to decoys with a moving head/neck there is far better response from bucks. A totally motionless decoy will spook a high percentage of MATURE deer. I really feel like the motion is a very important part of decoying. It doesnt have to be mechanical, just wind or able to tie a string to it works great. I have always felt the same about the tail having a little bit of movement. Looks like a great start to me.
 
The wide stance thing makes sense now that you mention it.

I like the base or stand idea better than stakes as long as will stay standing in say a 20mph wind, and doesnt have to be perfectly flat smooth ground.

As far as durability goes if it the A.C.E. like the turkeys I think it will stand up fairly good. I know there is a video out there where you shoot a turkey decoy at ten yards with a shot gun and it does hardly any damage but I cant seem to find it.

The turkey is looking good:way:
 
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Here's an updated pic of some of the actual production decoys- we FINALLY got them dialed-in and did almost all of the things that you guys suggested so thanks again for all your great advice and feedback.

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My neighbor just recieved his UNBELIEVEABLE!!!
Dave your decoys are unreal. I agree with a few of the guys post 1 keep away from roads may have a few bullet holes 2 you just might shoot it yourself while in the stand.
I have a new Carrylite Decoy and I may sell it now.
 
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