By Dave Hochman

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0:37 Hi, I'm Dave Hochman with Gundogs Online. Today we're going to give you some simple tips on solving the problem of having no movement in your decoy rig. We're going to teach you how to set up a simple, jerk string.

0:51 The decoys that we'll use on these jerk strings are in session two to three feet apart, three to five birds. You don't need more than that, even if you're running a lot of decoys, as many as a hundred, because when you start to pull them, they make their own ripple, which then moves the rest of the rig. So the rope that you use to tie them together should be a rope that has very little stretch in it. And again, you just tie them a couple feet from each other.

1:20 On each end, the closest end to the boat and the furthest away, you'll tie a loop in line, an overhand knot, like this. On the one furthest away from you, you're going to make a rig similar to this. Now, this is a piece of lead H-anchor obviously. But you can use just a tin can with concrete in it. You're going to put a bungee attached to it, approximately five feet long, a thin bungee that's easy to pull. And on the end of that, will be a clip, like this. The clip will then clip off onto this overhand knotted end of your decoy rig and this will be set furthest from the boat away.

2:05 Now on the end of the string closest to the boat, you're going to clip off the line that's going to run to the boat. So I set up a board like this, it keeps it organized, keeps it from getting spilled around, avoid any dangers in the boat when you're walking around, like loose line will do. So you've got about 20-30 feet of line on here and on the end of that, I've put a long line clip. The long line clip then connects again to the opposite end from the bungee to your string of decoys, like that.

2:48 So you're going to sit your anchor so that the decoys end up about in the middle of the rig. You'll just toss it out similar to this [splash] and you're ready to go.

3:07 Now this end of the rope will run into the blind obviously and the technique for jerking the rig is subtle jerks. That's what I like best and you can make your own. You can pull long jerks and then release it and let it come back. But I find that if you just do short jerks like this, similar to this, it puts a lot of motion into the decoy rig as well as giving the decoys themselves a realistic look.

3:37 When you bring the line back to the boat, there's a couple ways to hide it underwater. You can use a pole, a two foot pole, like a conduit three quarter inch pole with an eye hook through it and if you run that line through that and stick that down into the mud, that will hold it under. You can also take an anchor, just a simple anchor or a heavy piece of lead with a clip on it and clip it on and drop it down, below the side of the boat. Or you can simply run the line underneath the boat and then back up the other side into the blind. Either one of those three methods will keep the line under the water while you're working the rig so the birds can't see it. 

4:17 The jerk rig on calm days will be the best trick you have in your duck hunting arsenal. Always use it. It will fool the weariest of birds. If there's any tips you'd like us to do in the future, contact us here on Gundogs Online and we'd be happy to put them together. Thanks again and good hunting.

4:35 [Closing]