Been watching some hunting shows where they are wearing the HECS clothing. Anyone have any experience with this?

You know what they say- if it seems to good to be true...

My grandfather spent a crap ton of money on a whole set up of HECS after watching some on TV. I can tell you first hand- we saw absolutely no difference. Tried on deer, hogs, and turkey. And I put it on, so it wasn't just his hobbling around.

Glad to hear your take cupofjoe. As a turkey hunter, their turkey footage doesn't look that convincing. But I will admit that some of their bobcat encounters on tape intrigued me. Might've saved me $180 on some camo long johns

Forest Galante (non-hunter, host of Extinct or Alive) swears by it for animals like birds. I don't think I have heard him make a comment about it for anything else. I'm pretty sure he is sponsored by them...

I hunt with a guy that has it and don't think it makes a difference. He tries to act like it does but I'm assuming that's just his pride after spending $200+ on clothing that's snake oil.

They have been running that show for a while. After a couple years of watching their show on and off, I'm about convinced there might be something to it.

I will say that when it first hit the market I was convinced the scent blocker suits and scent away spray, etc...was a scam. I finally gave in a few years after it came out and tested it over the course of a few years at ground level against whitetail, heat, and west Texas wind with a traditional bow. As we all know now it does work, but isn't fool proof. I suspect this might yield same results.

Kind of like the ozone systems. That is legit science and does work somewhat if it's used correctly.

That said, hecs is too expensive.

Anecdotal at best but I have seen a phone video of my buddy taking a turkey with his bow crazy close wearing that stuff. Another time a different buddy was dove hunting across the way from us on a day of mostly high flyers and he definitely got the bulk of the action. He was wearing just the shirt but swore that was the difference. Never tried the stuff myself.

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different buddy was dove hunting across the way from us on a day of mostly high flyers and he definitely got the bulk of the action.

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If he was sitting on the tailgate of his truck with no mojo, that's prob the reason.

Every seasoned dove hunter knows that the truck hunt guy > sit by brush line in full camo with mojos guy.

PFG said:

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different buddy was dove hunting across the way from us on a day of mostly high flyers and he definitely got the bulk of the action.

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If he was sitting on the tailgate of his truck with no mojo, that's prob the reason.

Every seasoned dove hunter knows that the truck hunt guy > sit by brush line in full camo with mojos guy.

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pretty sure you can get a ticket for that.........not sure if that is 100% true and too lazy to look up.

To my knowledge, unless you're shooting across a road/public driveway or the vehicle is moving, it's perfectly legal. You're not allowed to hunt migratory birds from a moving vehicle but I am pretty sure a parked one is perfectly fine.

I may be wrong but I have seen way too many game wardens in Uvalde checking groups and several of them we're sitting on the tailgate. No one was cited, to my knowledge.

ursusguy
8:04p, 8/24/10

AG

Bushman, you are correct.

Here is the regulation as it is written
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/annual/hunt/migratory/
Vehicles: It is unlawful to hunt from or by means of motor-driven vehicles and land conveyances or aircraft of any kind, except paraplegics and single or double amputees of legs may hunt from stationary motor-driven vehicles or land conveyances. It is unlawful to use motor-driven land, water, or air conveyances or sailboats to concentrate, drive, rally, or stir up any migratory game bird.

Ray Sasser had a pretty good interpretation (he talks to the game wardens quite a bit---also the reason I thought about this today) Has a pretty good list of the most common dove hunting violations.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/outdoors/stories/082210dnspooutfeature.46643e0.html
"Shooting from the tailgate of a parked pickup truck or from the seat or bed of an ATV. This is a federal rule adapted by TP&W. As stated in the regulations booklet: "It is unlawful to hunt from or by means of motor-driven vehicles and land conveyances or aircraft of any kind." While the law is obviously concerned with the use of moving vehicles to get within shooting range of migratory birds, it is worded in such a fashion that you cannot legally shoot while sitting on or in a parked vehicle."

Normally they don't make much of it, unless you are already messing up in some other manner.

Another thing to keep in mind, migratory birds DO NOT have the same legal shooting hours as other game.
"Legal Shooting Hours: From one-half hour before sunrise to sunset. During the Special White-winged Dove Season: noon to sunset."

Everything else (game species)
"Legal Shooting Hours for all Game Animals and Nonmigratory Game Birds: from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset."

So make sure you know your legal sunrise and sunset.

Wow! It's in the annual and it's pretty clear about "stationary". I have never seen or heard of this being enforced...

If you're sitting on the tailgate with two feet on the ground and shooting dove, does that qualify as "hunting from"?

If so, I'm going to have to change my dove hunting style and be "that" guy that sits 500 yards away and shoots the least amount of birds.

It's def in the regs, worded in a way that its a no no.

But I've been checked on my tailgate by GWs, at least 2x that I can recall, and only asked for the regular - license, # of birds, check shotgun for plug.

Not to say you can't be ticketed. Just to say I haven't.

A buddy of mine bought a hecs set and said he thinks theres something to it, but not like advertised. I tried it on to test on my dog and he definitely had a strange reaction to it. I'm still skeptical, but I think they're onto something, even though it could be trivial in the whole scheme of things.

I was gifted one of the base layer HECS suits and use it pretty religiously while bowhunting. I can't say with any certainty whether it works or not, but I will say I've had a couple of crazy close encounters while hunting on the ground. I don't know that there's any emprical evidence that it works on big game, but the data on birds and fish are pretty convincing, to the point where the military has started buying some HECS dive suits, as have marine biologists studying sharks.

Who know if the stuff works, but I think the scent control clothing is a good analogy. If it gives you more confidence, or if it improves your opportunties even just a few percentage points, then maybe it's worth it?

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but I will say I've had a couple of crazy close encounters while hunting on the ground.

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Please go on. It's really slow around here. A hunting story would be a welcomed change.

Went "bow hiking" about 4 miles this past weekend on Texas Public for turkey. Bumped 2 single hens. Saw no one. Didn't lick the gas pump handle on the way there, as is my normal technique. Instead, I sprayed it down with bleach, pumped my gas, and plowed ahead. The end.

Last Sep I had an immature Muley buck approaching on a dead sprint (had no idea I was there). He got to within about 8 yds of me and caught my movement. He came to a screeching halt and just stared at me. I started making chatter sounds at him, and he walked straight to me trying to figure out what I was. He was below me and there was a pretty stiff wind blowing straight up the mountain, so I assume he didn't smell me. But he got close enough to make me uncomfortable. I reached out and tapped his front shoulder with the tail end of my arrow. That was enough to spook him.

Had a mature whitetail doe that bedded down within 10 yds of me while I was hunting in a makeshift ground blind. She was there the better part of an hour before she finally just got up and moseyed off.

No idea if HECS had anything to do with either, but it and good wind are the two common denominators. It's enough to make me keep putting it on. This is no big feat, but I've never been busted in a tree stand while I was wearing it. But I'm also pretty damn anal about being dead still.

Who knows?