lonewolf316

Whats the best time of yr to use rattling antlers? Ive tried it before with out any sucess

wis_bow_huntr

Mid-Late October is a great time to use rattling antlers or bags. I prefer not to use them untill 30-60 minutes before sun down.

Arthur P

It depends on when the rut starts in your neck of the woods. Best to use them during the pre-rut and rut.

sparky357

Depends on the doe to buck ratio in your neck of the woods. In mine with a high doe to buck ratio the bucks are not going to leave a tended doe for two bucks wrestling, besides why fight when there is somany girls. That being said I have called in bucks rattling on the second or third cycle of the rut. Hence the ratio gets better, less girls ready to breed. I will rattle any time during the late cycles. Use a doe in estrous call along with aggressive mature buck call and a some antlers and you have a deadly combo provided everything else is in place. Hope this helps and good luck this year.

Hunter_59

I've had the most luck here in Illinois using them around the first 2 weeks of November during the pre-rut. Some days are better than others. One day a rattled in 3 bucks all within a 2 hour period in the morning. I mainly use them when I see a lone buck that is definately on the prowl for does and is angling away from my stand leaving me with no other opportunity. In this way I can keep tabs on the response of the buck and whether or not it's working. If it's going to work he will start moving in your direction fairly quickly. If he doesn't appear to be interested you just as well give up on him. Always pay attention to wind direction! Once you crack the horns together, you have now given away you position and you can bet if a buck comes in he will be circling downwind.

MichaelHunsucker

I would say mostly durring the pre-rut and rut. But i think something even more important is timing. You need the right stand situation to try rattling. I love rattling in somewhat open areas like small clearings with cedars scattered throughout. The bucks that hear it and are interested will really be looking hard for those deer that were causing the comotion

RDHunter

The best time to rattle would be late Octorber and the first two weeks of November.
Start off light and easy for two to five minutes then stop and wait , the best time of day would be a 1/2 hour after sunrise and then some time around noon and 1 hour befrore sundown.
It would be better if you had someone else rattle for you on the ground that way your buddy can stomp the ground and rake the nearby brush.
You want to try to sound like two bucks sparring and fighting , like I said start off light tickling the bones and then get aggressive as you rattle.
Do this every thirty minutes or when a buck shows up , if you have more does than bucks then you might not get a response but if the ratio is equaly balanced then you'll have a better chance of a buck coming in.