# Bumper boys or wingers?



## Jthweatt (Sep 26, 2011)

I'm about to purchase some remote throwers due to not having any help when I need it. What does everyone suggest? Wingers, buumper boys, combination of both? If bumper boys which ones? I have three dogs of my own.

Thanks


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## Duck Blind (Dec 11, 2010)

I asked this question not long ago of a friend of mine. He said the biggest problem with the BB is hiding them well enough that your dog doesn't bring back a bumper from the shooter. He said it was a PIA at times. FWIW.

Wondering if anyone else has had similar issues?


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## GBUSMCR (Oct 5, 2004)

Wingers first as real birds are so important to training. BB for being able to get more sets in, in a short amount of time (before/after work). I have Derby Doubles which have worked great but you might something else with 3 dogs. Gets pricey but two of each for doing doubles is good. 

Never had a problem with dog bringing back a bumper off a BB. Not sure what you'd do to prevent that but it would be a safety issue and something to correct for sure.


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## Renee P. (Dec 5, 2010)

I don't know where you are in your training but there are some drills, like decheating on water, where you need a bunch of throws from the same place. So if you always train alone a launcher that can make 5-10 throws from the same location, without reloading, is convenient. On the other hand, if you can occassionally find someone to throw for you, then you can do these kinds of drills on those days where you have a bumper boy.

I am training my first retriever using Lardy TRT (my pup is in transition), recently bought some wingers. I am thinking of springing for something like a bumper boy now for drills like this but since I'm inexperienced I really don't know how often I will really want one. I can get my family to help but somedays they are not available. 

I'm hoping someone else comment on this.


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## John Lash (Sep 19, 2006)

Bumper boys and wingers...


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## John Lash (Sep 19, 2006)

Duck Blind said:


> I asked this question not long ago of a friend of mine. He said the biggest problem with the BB is hiding them well enough that your dog doesn't bring back a bumper from the shooter. He said it was a PIA at times. FWIW.
> 
> Wondering if anyone else has had similar issues?


I have Derby doubles and would always run the old dog first, young dog second so there were no bumpers for them on the launcher.

It could be a problem, I had a dog try to bring the whole works in. Once they get some experience, they don't bother them. I never tried to hide them.


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## Chuck Wagner (Dec 9, 2009)

IMO, an amateur with a dog or two is going to outgrow a BB quickly as your dog advances and you want to throw birds. With a BB double at $700+ and the add on double units at almost $600 each, to run a triple you've already spent $1900. With 3 full size Gunners Up wingers you'll spend $1125 plus $650 for 3 TT releases and transmitter, you're at $1775. Not a huge difference, but when you consider the advantage of being able to throw bumpers or birds and the fact that the throws are much more "lifelike"...and are more like what you will see in a weekend test. BB's need much more care than wingers also, they'll need to be cleaned with solvent just like a gun every now and then and the gasket o-ring will dry out and break on you at bad times. Winger rubbers will do that too, but it is visually more obvious that it is about to happen. I can see BB being the way to go if you are a pro with a huge crew of dogs you may want to go with a few of the 12 shot BB's so you can just keep dragging dogs of the truck without having to go out and reload.

Another post mentioned the value of a BB when shooting a cheating single setup multiple times and that is correct, but you can also line up your 3 wingers in a row and accomplish the same thing.

Just my 2 cents.


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## labluver (Apr 21, 2010)

I have 3 dogs and use 3 12 shooters and also have 3 wingers. When training by myself BB are great. Mine usually are on the truck. Don't leave home without them. Definately need the wingers for test set ups. I seldom have to reload my BB in a training set up. Probably takes 15 minutes to unload, reload and set them up in the field. 12 shooters also have wheels. Bumpers are good size, very visable in sun or shade and dogs love to pick them up. Buy some Bumper boys you won't regret it.


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## Quatro (Feb 24, 2011)

Wingers. I have a four shooter and well I need 2 more of them. I could do a lot more 3 wingers and electronics.


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## J. Walker (Feb 21, 2009)

wagnerc said:


> IMO, an amateur with a dog or two is going to outgrow a BB quickly as your dog advances and you want to throw birds. With a BB double at $700+ and the add on double units at almost $600 each, to run a triple you've already spent $1900. With 3 full size Gunners Up wingers you'll spend $1125 plus $650 for 3 TT releases and transmitter, you're at $1775. Not a huge difference, but when you consider the advantage of being able to throw bumpers or birds and the fact that the throws are much more "lifelike"...and are more like what you will see in a weekend test. BB's need much more care than wingers also, they'll need to be cleaned with solvent just like a gun every now and then and the gasket o-ring will dry out and break on you at bad times. Winger rubbers will do that too, but it is visually more obvious that it is about to happen. I can see BB being the way to go if you are a pro with a huge crew of dogs you may want to go with a few of the 12 shot BB's so you can just keep dragging dogs of the truck without having to go out and reload.
> 
> Another post mentioned the value of a BB when shooting a cheating single setup multiple times and that is correct, but you can also line up your 3 wingers in a row and accomplish the same thing.
> 
> Just my 2 cents.


I don't agree. Bumper Boys serve a purpose in advanced training, especially field trial training. I you're working on a long retired gun with a younger dog, for instance, and the dog starts to get outside the area of the fall, Bumper Boys give you the flexibility to hit the sound button or shoot another bumper to give the dog the confidence to stay in the area of the fall. If you use a winger and the dog ends up upwind of the bird or bumper, you have one option: handle. If you run a similar setup and the dog struggles again, you have one option: handle. Meanwhile, the dog isn't really learning anything and his confidence may be shaken since he's not having success without you physically intervening. If someone trains by himself, Bumper Boys can be worth their weight in gold for those long, difficult concepts.


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## Steve Hester (Apr 14, 2005)

J. Walker said:


> I don't agree. Bumper Boys serve a purpose in advanced training, especially field trial training. I you're working on a long retired gun with a younger dog, for instance, and the dog starts to get outside the area of the fall, Bumper Boys give you the flexibility to hit the sound button or shoot another bumper to give the dog the confidence to stay in the area of the fall. If you use a winger and the dog ends up upwind of the bird or bumper, you have one option: handle. If you run a similar setup and the dog struggles again, you have one option: handle. Meanwhile, the dog isn't really learning anything and his confidence may be shaken since he's not having success without you physically intervening. If someone trains by himself, Bumper Boys can be worth their weight in gold for those long, difficult concepts.


You can do the same thing with 2 wingers at the same spot.


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## mjh345 (Jun 17, 2006)

Steve Hester said:


> You can do the same thing with 2 wingers at the same spot.


Not with the wingers I'm familiar with; as they don't have the audio features of BB's. Additionally if you have a 4, 8 or 12 shooter BB then you would have to put out 4, 8 or 12 wingers which really isn't very practicable


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## DoubleHaul (Jul 22, 2008)

I don't use my BBs for long marks, since they are harder to see than a bird thrown from a winger. True, if the dog needs help you can't immediately launch another one with a winger (although I will often put two out) but you can use the sound. Also, I use a Malcolm which I can have pop back out, if necessary.

I like having BBs and wingers, but if I had to live with only one, I would go with wingers.


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## J. Walker (Feb 21, 2009)

Steve Hester said:


> You can do the same thing with 2 wingers at the same spot.


You're actually making my point for me. It takes multiple wingers and winger electronics to do the same thing as a single Bumper Boy. I use both. Another thing with the Bumper Boy is that if the dog doesn't see the mark, you can just start over. With a winger, you have to put the dog away, walk possibly hundreds of yards, and reload. For training with bumpers, I've just found that using a Bumper Boy at the long gun helps me train more efficiently since I typically train alone.


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