Turkey is one of the most sought-after game meats available. Whether frying, smoking or baking, the possibilities are endless for the turkey hunter with a taste for good eating. But what about all those parts that aren’t edible? Enterprising hunters have long used more than just the meat of their harvested turkeys. When turkey season ends, it’s a great time to sit down and try out a few of these projects.

Turkey wing feathers make excellent arrow fletches. Many avid bow shooters fletch their own arrows for greater consistency and money savings. Fletching arrows with feathers from your own harvested turkey makes them more personal. If you later use those arrows for bowhunting, the sense of pride is even greater.

You will need a fletching jig, clamp and chopper, as well as arrow shafts and glue for this project. Be sure to decide whether you want straight fletches, or left or right helical (twisted) fletches, before choosing a jig and clamp. Your first fletches may not be pretty, so start with store-bought feathers and save your turkey feathers until you get the hang of it.

You can use turkey spurs to make necklaces, as well as other jewelry and crafts. Cut through the leg bone above and below the spur, leaving about an inch of bone attached. Next, clean the spur and bone cavity. Some people boil spurs to help with the cleaning, and use bleach or peroxide to whiten the bone. You will need a saw to cut through the bone, a knife or steel wool and a rifle-bore brush to clean the spur and bone, and a file or Dremel tool to shape the bone as desired. Turkey bones are hollow and easy to string onto a necklace.

A turkey’s wing bones can be made into a turkey call. To do this, you will need the radius, ulna and humerus from the turkey’s wing, and the same materials used to make a turkey spur necklace. Cut these bones from the wing and clean them. As with spurs, the bones may be boiled to assist in cleaning and bleached for whitening. Next, cut the knobs from the ends of the bones. The straight pieces of bone are then fitted together to make the call, using the radius for the mouthpiece, ulna for midsection and humerus as an end piece. Use sandpaper to help fit the bones together and then glue them in place.

With practice and a little time, a memorable hunt can live forever. Simple, personal projects can become valuable pieces of craftsmanship, treasured memories and priceless heirlooms.

Hayley Lynch is an award-winning writer for Kentucky Afield magazine, the official publication of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. She is an avid hunter and shotgun shooter.