Customer Reviews

Droll Yankees YCPD90 Dipper Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I've gone through numerous of bird feeders in my lifetime and i am just tired of the squirrels eating the seeds and chewing on the feeders. I gave up a few years back then realized how much i really miss watching the birds. So I decided there has got to be a "real" squirrel proof feeder. I saw this one and told myself that if i saw one darn squirrel on this or even a blue jay, it was going back to the retailer and i'm getting my money back. I've had it 2 years and NOT ONE DARN SQUIRREL!!!! Not only that, the cardinals were able to feed off on this feeder. It's rather a cool innovation. The perch are design to only support birds of cardinals or smaller. Anything heavier, the perch collapse and they either fall off or fly off, then the perch springs back. I'm actually looking to buy a couple more of the feeders. Worth every darn penny 'cuz I know this is going to be the last one and the high quality of this birdfeeder will be around for years to come.

I own two Yankee Flippers, one Whipper and one Dipper. Droll Yankee does make quality products and stands behind their warranties but the only one that is squirrel proof, excluding red squirrels, is the Flipper.

Dipper. It's only squirrel resistant. It took the squirrels about one week before they were hanging on the feeder. My feeders are on a cable between two trees about 20 feet apart and the bottom of the feeders are about 6 feet from the ground. What they would do is walk out on the cable, slide down to the top of the feeder and hang their self over as far as possible from the top, then let go, and as they slide past the perches and feeding holes they put their paws into the feeder holes and hang there and eat. It's the more mature squirrels that do it best but it even takes them 6 or 7 tries before they finally succeed grabbing the holes as they slide by. The Dipper is not for you if you're feeding the heavier birds. Although it is very well built we had flocks of grackles migrate through for about a 2 or 3 week duration and they literally wore out some of the perches. Because of their weight, they need to flap their wings to stay on causing the perches to constantly go up and down thus wearing out the cable inside the perch. It was replaced under the warranty.

Whipper. It's only squirrel resistant. Like the Dipper mentioned above the squirrels do the same gymnastics but they had this one solved in 1 day versus a week. Why is it easier for them to solve, simply because the perches are curved and so even when the perches are turned fully downward that some of the perch still horizontally juts out from the base and is just enough for their paws to grab. If you're debating just between the Dipper and Whipper I would recommend the Whipper because it holds some of the heavier birds and is easier for cardinals because of the curved perch.

Flipper. It works really great and I had used them for about three years but they have one major flaw. Both my motor/battery sticks failed to hold a charge towards the end of the third year. The major problem is that you cannot go out and replace the batteries yourself and so you have to buy the motor/battery stick that costs $39 plus $10 shipping. In essence, plan on paying $50 for the motor/battery stick every 3 years. You have no other option. Yankee should redesign the motor/battery stick so an individual could purchase "C" size rechargeable batteries locally and manually insert them. I refuse to pay the $50 every 3 years and so I purchased Whipper and Dipper bases as replacements since the bottoms of these feeders are interchangeable.

I solved my problem by "squirrel proofing" the cable by stringing empty 2-liter plastic bottles through the cable and now can hang any bird feeder.

I've waited a year to write this review (purchased this in Feb 2007) because I wanted to be sure that this feeder was truly the answer to our squirrel problems. We've certainly had squirrels make well-choreographed attempts at this feeder but, in this past year, we have not seen a single success. Another big plus for us is how well this feeder has fared in the tough Wyoming winters. It isn't just the snow; we have extremes in day/night temperatures with relentless wind and the feeder has been out nearly all winter. This was truly worth the expense and I'm so glad to be able to recommend it.

August 2008 update: has now withstood raccoons!

December 2009 update: still going strong. We only take it down in extremely high winds; otherwise this has been out in the weather for nearly three years. Outstanding!

July 2010 update: Believe it or not, we still have this feeder and it is still in great shape.

November 2011 update: Yup! Still going strong. The perches started disintegrating this past year and I contacted the manufacturer to see about my options. I fully expected to pay for a new set of perches or perhaps a new feeder, but they sent me a replacement perch assembly at no cost and it is light years beyond the previous perch set in design and sturdiness. I look forward to many more seasons with this feeder. Outstanding product!

It's hard to imagine that ANY feeder is totally squirrel proof. They seem to grow fifty foot long arms anytime they're near a feeder and they seem to be able to figure out just about anything. I recommend this feeder because it's one that large birds can't stay on---anything larger than a cardinal just basically falls off the perch because each perch is spring-loaded. So, if you're bothered by bigger birds taking over your feeders, this is a good choice. In fact, it's worth the price just to see large birds fall off it. That leaves four perches for basically finch-size birds and they can eat to their heart's content. Here in the Southwest we have lots of white-winged doves and all they can do with this feeder is sit longingly on top of it, staring down and wishing they could get the seed. The feeder has a really large tube, so you won't have to fill it as often, so that's nice. Then too is Droll Yankees great workmanship and lifetime guarantee. It's worth the coin!! (Could somebody get Amazon to spell squirrel correctly???)

The Yankee Dipper Feeder has saved us from the Poor House. Grackles and red-winged blackbirds were eating us out of house and home. The sunflower seeds disappeared in hours. This feeder truly does dump off the heavy, piggy birds. Consumption of seeds is reduced, and it's entertaining to watch the big birds slipping and sliding on the perches, not to mention the squirrels! Seed management makes this feeder well worth the investment.

I'm heartbroken with my new Dipper. This was a splurge for us, but worth it to defeat the squirrels. Instead, I've lost the seasonal grosbeak and painted buntings that had just returned, the cardinals still look around in hopes something has dropped on the ground but I'm afraid they will soon be gone, and I have a picture of a squirrel hanging off the bottom as he retrieves the seed. He also reaches across from the staff, but the feeder can be moved to hang from a tree. Now, I can see that the short 90 degree perches are good for finches and nuthatches, but would be awkward for larger birds. The birds I wanted to feed aren't getting fed. I'm soooo sorry I wasted my money.

This feeder is truly red squirrel-proof! Most squirrel-proof feeders can keep the grey squirrels from the bird seed, but the red squirrels are the true enemy. This is the first feeder I have owned that can keep the red squirrels away from the seed. I have had it since mid-June, it's now mid-August. The red squirrels try very hard to hang onto the feeder and/or the perches, but they can't do it. They even tried to chew through the top lid but all they did was scratch the coating. On top of this, the birds love it. Grosbeaks, cardinals, finches (gold and purple), titmice, etc, etc, love to sit and eat from it. I would recommend this feeder to anyone with red squirrel problems. It eventually pays for itself because it saves about 50% or more of the birdseed (that used to be consumed by red squirrels).

UPDATE: As of 12/3/2008 this feeder is still going strong. The red (and gray) squirrels cannot position themselves to get any seed nor can they chew through the feeder. After 30 years of birding, this is the best squirrel-proof feeder I have ever tried. It has already paid for itself in saved bird seed.

UPDATE: It's now January 2011 and this feeder is still doing the job. One of the perches broke off last summer but the birds still cling to the seed hole with no problem. The red squirrels still have a hard time with it. The most they can do is jump on and off it to try to spill a few seeds on the ground.

Feeder works and the birds devour the seed. It does hold a ton of seed which is nice so that it doesn't continually need refilling. Cardinals can even get on to the spring loaded perches. I am very happy with the product. Nice red color too. The grackles flutter and really work to get at the seed but they do find a way. It definitely cuts down on their consumption however.

I will revised my last review to cover the last three years. The Jays are okay eating my food. I stopped worrying about it. No problem with Grackles. They visit. Look. but don't eat. Squirrels and chipmunks don't bother it. A raccoon scratched up some but he is gone to other places and I haven't had to worry about him this summer. The perches broke this summer two in the space of a few days. I emailed Droll Yankee and they responded with hours to the email with information says they put a new perch attachment in the mail. I received it but it on the bottom of my feeder. The design is different and stronger. A bit noisier with metal hitting metal. I put a pad on each of the perches and it is quieter. I really was very happy with customer service three years after I purchased this feeder.



I bought this to keep large birds off, and it doesn't work. I've used it for six months, but the Jays quickly figured out (after a few days) that they can press the dipper perch and grab the then exposed dipper support wire to hold on. Some Jays prefer to stick one claw into the plastic groove where the flipper mechanism joins to the feeder, and another around the narrow bottom lip to hold on.

Droll Yankees needs to rethink this dipper to solve those problems before it'll keep Jays off my feeder. I ended up adding a plastic cylindrical "hood" a couple of inches over the feed ports to keep the big birds off. This kind of hood is available for other feeders, so I got one of those and modified it to fit the narrower tube on this one. Sadly, the dippers make it easier for Jays to hang on under this hood, so I need to have it lower than I do on other feeders with rigid perches.

I've found that hanging my feeders a few feet from anything squirrels can grab onto is all it takes to keep them off. In addition, it takes a feeder with a tube that's too long (two feet does it for me) for a squirrel to hang from the hook and reach the feed openings.

The Droll Yankee YCPD Dipper, does the job in so far as squirrells are concerned.
Grackles and blue jays still manage to clean me out. The perches allow them to hang on... A slight weight adjustment for the perch rod, would work wonders.
When I spoke to Droll Yankee to complain, they said the perches only were designed to discourage grackles. Not exactly a great reply.
I still like the product.
RGwolf