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...on my diaphragm calls.  I know I need to practice more, but I also don't want to practice the wrong technique.  What am I doing wrong?  Help a brother out.

The cluck as a turkey vocalization comes in many forms.  I believe most of us make clucks by either initiating the sound with a "p" at the front or a "c" at the front,...such as in "puck/pock" or "cuck/cock". 

As long as you are not intentionally trying to imitate the putt,...that is a somewhat loud, aggressive popping sound,...you probably don't need to worry about how your clucks sound.  How humans interpret turkey vocalizations and how turkeys interpret those same sounds can be entirely different. (I have seen perfectly calm flocks of turkeys come to full alert when one of the flock-mates inadvertently made a "putt-sounding" noise,...and just as quickly go back to be non-alert mode afterward)

The best advice I would give you is to stay away from making "hard sounding" cluck-like noises repetitively when calling.  Keep your cluck "attempts" soft and combine them with other normal turkey sounds and you should be fine. 

IMO a cluck is a low decibel, soft call used by the hen mostly to let other hens / poults know their location while feeding and moving around at close distance.  The cluck in my opinion should be as soft as a purr.  When you try to cluck with a diaphragm it's about air control and soft volume.  Very little air is used IMO and the lips should remain mostly closed.  A putt to me is a lot higher decibel, very excited, get everyone's attention call.  My 2 cents. 

Quote from: bbcoach on June 24, 2020, 10:29:12 AM
IMO a cluck is a low decibel, soft call used by the hen mostly to let other hens / poults know their location while feeding and moving around at close distance.  The cluck in my opinion should be as soft as a purr.  When you try to cluck with a diaphragm it's about air control and soft volume.  Very little air is used IMO and the lips should remain mostly closed.  A putt to me is a lot higher decibel, very excited, get everyone's attention call.  My 2 cents.

Sounds like I putted all the turkeys away this year when using a mouth call.


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Jason Cruise, has a couple of you tube videos, that state the cluck and purr should NEVER be used together.  He says calling contests have a segment called the cluck and purr and give the misconception it is OK to use them together.  He says if you listen to Live Hens, they Purr as a contentment call (that everything is OK, don't be alarmed) and can be used on Gobblers to get him to finish that last 50 yards.  But the cluck, if used at a higher decibel can sound like a putt.  The soft cluck is a locator sound IMO, to say I'm over here. 

Quote from: GobbleNut on June 24, 2020, 09:29:09 AM
The cluck as a turkey vocalization comes in many forms.  I believe most of us make clucks by either initiating the sound with a "p" at the front or a "c" at the front,...such as in "puck/pock" or "cuck/cock". 

As long as you are not intentionally trying to imitate the putt,...that is a somewhat loud, aggressive popping sound,...you probably don't need to worry about how your clucks sound.  How humans interpret turkey vocalizations and how turkeys interpret those same sounds can be entirely different. (I have seen perfectly calm flocks of turkeys come to full alert when one of the flock-mates inadvertently made a "putt-sounding" noise,...and just as quickly go back to be non-alert mode afterward)

The best advice I would give you is to stay away from making "hard sounding" cluck-like noises repetitively when calling.  Keep your cluck "attempts" soft and combine them with other normal turkey sounds and you should be fine.

The last sentence above is sage advice IMO. I`ve always been amused at the now well known ( and sometimes considered infamous ) Jason Cruise video in which he literally says the cluck and purr are anathema when it comes to calling turkeys. I`ve seen videos of hens in a non-alarmed state clucking and purring. So personally I don`t completely agree with Cruise`s assessment on that . I`ve personally soft clucked and purred and brought birds into gun range. If you`re concerned, keep " context " in mind. You can mix in a soft yelp sequence with a cluck. A hen on alert will not yelp.

Quote from: bbcoach on June 24, 2020, 11:38:18 AM
Jason Cruise, has a couple of you tube videos, that state the cluck and purr should NEVER be used together.  He says calling contests have a segment called the cluck and purr and give the misconception it is OK to use them together.  He says if you listen to Live Hens, they Purr as a contentment call (that everything is OK, don't be alarmed) and can be used on Gobblers to get him to finish that last 50 yards.  But the cluck, if used at a higher decibel can sound like a putt.  The soft cluck is a locator sound IMO, to say I'm over here.

I pretty sure I have seen the video you reference.  I think the point he was trying to make was a good one, but missed the mark a little bit.  There is a whole spectrum of "clucking", "purring", and "clucking and purring" that turkeys have in their vocabulary.  Those vocalizations are not a "one size fits all" deal.  Simply put, using the "aggravated" cluck and purr (the one he is referencing in the video) in a situation where you should be using the "contented" cluck and purr is probably a mistake,...depends on the situation and turkey. 

Bottom line is, like turkeytider states in the previous post, it is often just a matter of "context" and how the turkey is interpreting what you are saying to it.  Same concept holds true with the use of the cluck.  If the turkey you are calling interprets it as a cluck, you are fine,...but if he interprets it as a putt, it is likely not going to benefit you in having him come for a closer look.   ;D     

I didn't explain it very well but Gobblenut did.  And Jason does talk about context in that video.  Thank you for the input and correct explanation. 

Thanks everyone for the replies!  I saw the Jason Cruise video as well.  I think I have been blowing too hard on the clucks, I will tone it down softer and see what happens.

When you listen to the "real deal", putts have that higher pitched "stress" to them that clucks don't. Awhile back I called in a mixed group and a jake had a cluck that sounded very much like a putt. When he did so, the others would look at him to verify all was cool. Kind of neat.