Brant sleds?

J

James Tully

Member
Short version- do sleds or vboard silhouettes work? And how many do I need for a bay Brant hunt? Any pictures, tips, suggestions would be appreciated.

The full story~
I hunt eastern GSB and have never hunted/shot Brant. A good friend of mine who lives on the bay to the west ribbed me about not seeing many and invited me to his end to have a go at the seemingly endless Brant he has out his way. He's not a duck hunter, but I think he secretly wants to see it in action before falling down the rabbit hole. His son is interested and will be coming along for the ride. Which is great, but it puts the pressure on me to atleast get some birds to decoy. I've got plenty of puddle and diver decoys and 2 dozen floater geese so I'm confident I can put a good hunt together but I selfishly want to bag a Brant and scratch it of the list. In talking and reading it seems Brant may decoy to geese dekes but I'm willing to put in a little work in to tip the scale in my favor. Plus I'm thinking with 2 sets of sleds or a few v boards I could set an entire Brant spread. Normally I would use the hunt as justification to buy Brant decoys but truth is before Christmas there's no room in the budget. Plus I think it'd be an enjoyable way to spend a sleepless night or two. So any one have any experience with silos or Brant have anything to offer?
 
when we hunt Norwalk ( for only a 3 day hunt ) we have always supplemented or brant rig with two or three sets of sleds and they seem to work rather well. Todd O has a great set of sleds so hopefully he will see this and post some picks of his sleds.
 
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They work very well. I have a section of one found on the beach the last time I hunted Chincoteague. Proper construction is the key. No matter V boards, or single decoys, if there are lots of young birds they will toll. At other times Brant will ignore your set and give you fits. When they "Ball Up" over the decoys, not shooting more than allowed can be a issue. Good luck and enjoy yourself. A Grand Bird, the Brant.
 
I've never seen them used locally but I've always liked the concept. I saw a set years ago at an antique and home decor show I worked and while I didn't think the asking price (hundreds) was anywhere close to what they were worth, I was haunted by their simplicity and the wonder if they'd work locally. Guess it's high time I find out.

Anyone have thoughts on silo size for Brant?
 
If you scout the birds and time your tides you will learn where and when they like to feed..(shallow flats where they can reach the bay bottom) Your goose rig will definitely draw birds if you place them where brant want to be..having said that a nice rig of brant sleds would totally finish off your set and honestly speaking I dont think it will draw birds any better but it sure will enhance your whole brant hunting experience!
 
I've never seen them used locally but I've always liked the concept. I saw a set years ago at an antique and home decor show I worked and while I didn't think the asking price (hundreds) was anywhere close to what they were worth, I was haunted by their simplicity and the wonder if they'd work locally. Guess it's high time I find out.

Anyone have thoughts on silo size for Brant?
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Make them life sized, 18-20" chest to tail is more than sufficient. They are reletively large birds to begin with and all of the black and white coloration makes them easy to see from a distance. Making them over sized is just going to take up space in the boat
 
If you want sleds then go for it. Keep in mine Rob nailed it
Be where the birds want to be, and watch the tide they come back in the bay on the falling tide. I have had them come into duck rigs many times with no brant decoys in the spread.Your geese decoys will work just as well as the sleds. That being said I do use brant decoys I put out anywhere from a few to over a dozen.
 
Another benefit of putting out a nice brant rig is not only does it give brant a spot to land but once the hunting pressure kicks in youll find it draws ducks better than just a duck rig alone..Guess they feel safe in all those floating sets of eyes...
 
Another benefit of putting out a nice brant rig is not only does it give brant a spot to land but once the hunting pressure kicks in youll find it draws ducks better than just a duck rig alone..Guess they feel safe in all those floating sets of eyes...
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Makes sense. It's funny, I keep reading this "show 'em something different" mantra and like it, right up until it's time to pack the truck. Then my confidence dips and the same ol' spread goes in the bed and off to the hunt. I think this may be the excuse to finally give it a shot. If nothing else I could say I tried.

I will hopefully get a chance to scrape together a set of sleds over the holiday. Expect some silly questions and frustrated rants about how I should have paid more attention in woodshop.
 
Brant sleds work great. Made with 1/4" luan they are very light and store well strapped to the bow. Throw in some buoy birds and you are all set!
 
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