I'm generally a more guy, but I have some big ones just in case. Except for special circumstances I'm also a longline guy, and not just for ease of handling, but for the same reason as "more". When you see a group of birds on the water at a distance, especially a big flock the first thing you notice as you approach is a dark line on the water with white flashes. The "more" decoys you have spaced reasonably close together the closer your rig resembles a raft of birds. Obviously the illusion is enhanced in calm water (if you have a decent lee), if not maybe that's a spot where I'm tossing in some bigger decoys. The importance of a flag can't be overstated either when trying to draw birds to a location other than the X.
While I'm on the subject one thing I don't remember being discussed is how to set longlines to look like a raft of birds and control them over your rig. Most guys set longlines for ease of handling, rather than for handling birds. This usually means parallel lines spaced far enough apart to drive a boat through. If you're ever in a try something new mood, here's a couple of thoughts.
As mentioned above, my objective is to make the rig look like a group of birds. Wow, big secret. If you watch birds from a distance, the groups on the water which draw the most flying birds in are the ones that appear tightest together and most divers approach from the side, swing in from the rear and fly to the head of the raft to light. If longline rigged birds are set in parallel lines in any direction, and birds swing around that rig, from some perspective the illusion of a raft is lost.
The solution is simple. Longlines can be rigged in a "V" with the open end downwind. From a layout we tie the upwind end right to the boat, from a rock position it comes to the rock (assuming you are facing downwind). For a crosswind we use a large anchor with a lobster pot buoy as a gang anchor, as many as 6 longlines with 25 birds each can be attached then spread out downwind with an individual tail anchor. It's amazing how the birds will turn upwind and come right up the open part of the V. If you take a ride around the rig in a boat you'll see why, from all directions the rig appears dense enhancing the illusion of "more". The key is that the point faces directly upwind so the birds come up the open end to the head of the rig.
I'm sure lots of other guys have done this, sorry for being a blowhard. I just haven't seen it discussed, or don't remember it because I'm getting old.
