Switching to Alpha?

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boyeraz
Rank: Just A Pup
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Feb 07, 2015 11:17 am

Switching to Alpha?

Post by boyeraz » Sun Feb 08, 2015 12:25 am

I have been running Tri Tronics for over 20years now. I don't field trial just hunt wild quail. Never lost a dog until last weekend. So now I am looking in the Alpha system. Anyone made the switch? Would you do it over? Or buy another product?

Thanks

setterpoint
Rank: 2X Champion
Posts: 410
Joined: Tue Sep 23, 2014 7:10 pm
Location: jellico tn

Re: Switching to Alpha?

Post by setterpoint » Sun Feb 08, 2015 12:56 pm

I love mine. im a grouse hunter and make a trip to Michigan every year. i used to have beeper collars. i have found the birds hold better without all that noise now i use the locate button on the beeper as my call back for the dog you can mark the truck as a waypoint and not have to worry about getting lost.when the dog points it will page you and lead you right to the dog

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mtlhdr
Rank: Master Hunter
Posts: 268
Joined: Sat Sep 15, 2012 8:32 am
Location: NorCal

Re: Switching to Alpha?

Post by mtlhdr » Sun Feb 08, 2015 4:41 pm

If you already have a functional ecollar, why not get an astro and save yourself some $$$. I, for one, value having separate ecollar and GPS units (and have no negative issues). And I LOVE my Astro, would not hunt without it.

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Mr. Crappie
Rank: Senior Hunter
Posts: 165
Joined: Fri Jan 09, 2009 5:06 pm
Location: Missouri

Re: Switching to Alpha?

Post by Mr. Crappie » Mon Feb 09, 2015 8:20 pm

I recently purchased an Astro two dog unit. I've had tri tronics for years. This was worth every penny I spent. Certainly takes the guess work out of it for sure and for me makes hunting a less frustrating. A good unit In my book!

RickB
Rank: Junior Hunter
Posts: 71
Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2013 2:48 pm

Re: Switching to Alpha?

Post by RickB » Tue Feb 10, 2015 10:15 am

I find *training* with the alpha a serious hassle. If the dog is already trained, and you need collar stim only rarely, then its fine. but, when you are training, when you are trying to get a good timing between the offending behavior and the stimulation, it is a hassle.

My buddy has an alpha, and the dog had caught too many pen birds on the ground. We needed some electricity to break the chase. The dog would tear off after a launched bird and I would tell him to zap the dog. The juice wasn't enough so I told him to ease it up a wee bit. That took 5 easy clicks on the screen to increase it. By that time the dog had already caught the now tired quail on the ground.

The dog really never got broke until we started using my collar that has a button and a dial.

It seemed that every time I told him to shock his dog, the answer was always, "hold on...". When the timing mattered, the Alpha was 30 seconds late.

My buddy bought a separate e-collar and has taken the prongs off his alpha.

If you send your dogs out to be trained, get an alpha if you want. If you train yourself, go with the astro and a separate e-stim device.

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luvthemud
Rank: Champion
Posts: 328
Joined: Sun Oct 14, 2012 2:54 pm
Location: The Holyland, WI

Re: Switching to Alpha?

Post by luvthemud » Tue Feb 10, 2015 3:23 pm

I chose to go with the astro over the alpha. Already had a standalone e-collar. During hunting season I put the gps transponder on the same collar as my Tri-Tronics reciever so I only need one collar. My dog ends up wearing his e-collar quite a bit as we are out and about a lot, but I don't have a need for the GPS most of the year.

Either way, the GPS route is the way to go. I do miss the majesticness of listening to a bell dinging as the dog works his way through a frosty field in the early morning, but the silence is majestic in and of itself after you get used to it.

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Fun dog
Rank: Master Hunter
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Joined: Wed Aug 22, 2012 12:56 am
Location: Alaska

Re: Switching to Alpha?

Post by Fun dog » Tue Feb 10, 2015 8:31 pm

I love the Alpha when we're out hunting or hiking with the dogs. I always know where the dogs are and I seldom correct during those times. I like having all on one collar. However, for training I will stick with my TT pro 100 and hope it has a long life. Easy to find the right level and quick to change if need be. Without ever looking I have 3 levels of continuous, 1 of momentary and a buzzer all at my fingertips.

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