hey whats up guys. i have a couple questions. i know its close to season but ive finally decided to pull the trigger on a custom call....or two....or three. lol. this will be my first custom. after browsing the forum i think ive settled on a halloran crystal mistress and a houndstooth cherry ceramic as my first two.
i also like the sneed calls, halloran slate, strut zone slate, strut zone stoned aluminum, lonzo slate, and a few others.....i can see this becoming an addiction!!
anyway, would you guys recommend the CM and houndstooth as my first two customs or would you recommend something else that ive mentioned....or something that i havnt mentioned?
the only pots i have now are slate and theyr a primos jackpot and a K&H something or other. i was thinking a crystal and a ceramic for some diversity but id like to get some opinions from the veterans first. thanks!
Those are outstanding choices. Houndstooth is my favorite ceramic. You'll love them both. Go for it
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The mistress is the only call that always stays in my vest. You can get one in 2 or 3 days from macks.
Order carefully.. you are about to step into the world of custom calls. Just go ahead and buy all the ones that you listed. :TooFunny:
Crystal Mystress is a great first pot. Good luck with it! Never had that houndstooth so I can't speak about it.
The crystal Mistress is a great first choice.
Paul from Strut Zone makes some top notch calls. His glass and slates are 2nd to none, and for the price it's a no brainer.
I can't speak to the calls you are talking of... but 20+ years ago I bought my "first" custom call, a CODY World Class Slate call.
I still carry that call with me on every hunt and it has been the end of more turkeys than any/all other calls I have owned!!
I'm sure the calls you are speaking of are great calls as well.
MK M GOBL
Thanks guys appreciate the feedback!! keep em coming!!
mk, id love to try the cody world class slate but its bit out of my price range right now. maybe ill put that on my list for next year
Quote from: 10splayer23 on April 05, 2018, 10:50:14 PM
Order carefully.. you are about to step into the world of custom calls. Just go ahead and buy all the ones that you listed. :TooFunny:
Crystal Mystress is a great first pot. Good luck with it! Never had that houndstooth so I can't speak about it.
i wish i could afford all the calls i listed right now! lol. ill have them all by this time next year though. i already have plans in my head for a display case that i want to make for them.
ok so i have another question for you guys. ive made up my mind on the crystal mistress and the houndstooth cherry.
do you guys recommend just using the strikers that come with them or are there different strikers i should get also? if so what kind and from who?
again thanks a bunch!!
Derrick stuckey macassar ebony and diamondwood would set you up pretty good
i apologize for all the questions but i have one more, would you recommend ordering online from a store (such as macks or midwest) or ordering online from their actual website or actually calling in and ordering??
or doesnt it make any difference?
thank you!!
To get one quick this time of year your gonna have to order from macks or midwest.
Those are 2 great pots and Derrick Stuckey makes awesome strikers. I will throw this out there for you. You want a sure enough killer pot that is way underpriced, contact Dustin jones of Blackstone Calls. You can get 2 for what one cost from other guys and will put them up against most any. Just throwing you that bone. The calls you mentioned are great sounding calls. Good luck.
Quote from: Caspar on April 06, 2018, 08:38:29 AM
i apologize for all the questions but i have one more, would you recommend ordering online from a store (such as macks or midwest) or ordering online from their actual website or actually calling in and ordering??
or doesnt it make any difference?
thank you!!
In my mind part of what makes it "Custom" is ordering it from the maker.. My idea of Custom is you contact the maker you tell them what you like and the ideas you have. The maker purchases a piece of wood he thinks you will like turns the call by hand and let's you choose from a zillion different surfaces and soundboards... That's ultimate custom. Hand turned original designs I would consider custom too.. Some may argue CNC calls are not custom.. Everyone has their own opinion about what custom is..
I think Lyle still includes a dymondwood with the ceramic and David usually does with his pots too. I know when you buy from David he usually includes two strikers. Not sure what you will get if you buy from Macks. It's probably the same price, but this time of year ordering direct from the maker will take longer BUT maybe worth the wait for you to call them and talk to them. They are both very nice guys. As far as other strikers my favorites are hickory, purple heart, and yellow heart.
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sx4, i completely understand what your saying and once i learn more about custom calls ill definitely talk to someone about what i want. right now im new and not quite sure what im looking for and what sounds good together. the only thing i know for sure is that i want something that plays better than the cheap primos and hs strut calls i have now. i am also hoping that these custom calls, even though more mass produced than hand turned calls will have just that little bit of different sound that the birds around here are not used to hearing.
so say if i were to order the CM call from macks, would there be a difference in sound or quality than if i called mr halloran up and asked him to make me a CM call?? i understand if i call him i can have it made the exact way i want but i have no idea how i would want it made. i know i listened to an audiofile of the cm and liked it and it sounds better than what i have now, and thats about where my knowledge stops.
wow i made myself sound really stupid but custom calls are new to me. ive never had anyone to teach me anything about turkey hunting. everything ive learned has been on my own. mostly from reading and watching videos and trial and error. i mostly hunt by myself but if i hunt with someone its always with friends that know even less than i do about turkey hunting. as far as buying calls, i would go to walmart or gander mountain, buy whatever looked good. take it home and try it and if i didnt like the way it sounded i would throw it in the garbage and go buy something else.
right now for calls i have a primos heartbreaker and primos cutter box call. i only use the cutter cuz i dont like the heartbreaker. i also have a primos jackpot and a K&H slate (idk what it is) and i dont care for the jackpot so i never use it. . i also have about 50 mouth calls but only like and use about 3-4 different ones.ive been using these two calls, plus the 3-4 mouth calls for about the last 5-6 years.
Your over thinking it now lol. You picked out two good ones. Sound will be the same from macks as it would be from David unless you ordered a custom combo. Since your new to custom calls and not really sure what you do and don't like just get the ones you picked and expand your collection later. Trust me you'll buy many more.
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yea i have a tendency to do that.lol.
thats exactly what i wanted to know, thank you!!
yea ill be buying more for sure! probably at least two more in the next few weeks
i can already feel the addiction taking hold!! ????
One thing to remember... You don't have to spend an arm and a leg to get a great sounding custom call. I know of several great options from 50$-65$. If you call a call maker and tell them all the stuff you laid out in the last few posts they may be able to point you in a direction or spark an idea of something you never realized but really wanted. Instead buying calls to just sell and trade to find better you can be assured you get a great arsenal!
Quote from: Sx4 on April 06, 2018, 04:38:01 PM
One thing to remember... You don't have to spend an arm and a leg to get a great sounding custom call. I know of several great options from 50$-65$. If you call a call maker and tell them all the stuff you laid out in the last few posts they may be able to point you in a direction or spark an idea of something you never realized but really wanted. Instead buying calls to just sell and trade to find better you can be assured you get a great arsenal!
Very true. Many of my pots are below even what you put up there. But I'm just starting to sell mine. I know many others on here that run $40-60 range that are all killers. Also good to get from some of these guys before they get big and prices go up. If I'm not mistaken Cody World Class in the early 90's cost $40ish now it's $175. I talked to a guy last week that bought a Brad Roberts several years ago for 35 or 40 bucks lol. Supply and demand. But definatly don't write of the smaller guys. Actually many on my own wish list right now are smaller builders on this forum I'll be acquiring. For a lot of smaller builders it's mainly a hobby of passion and not as much of a source of income. Not knocking the big guys at all, as I own several of them too, just agree not to disregard smaller builders.
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Just got my first costume pot call in the mail today and have another coming. First one is already posted.
saw the post and commented. beautiful call!
i have my list narrowed down to 4 but i can only afford 2 right now. possibly 3 if i go with two of the cheaper calls im interested in. i was pretty dead set on the CM and the houndstooth but i listened to a few sound files today i may change my mind
Quote from: Caspar on April 06, 2018, 09:12:35 PM
saw the post and commented. beautiful call!
i have my list narrowed down to 4 but i can only afford 2 right now. possibly 3 if i go with two of the cheaper calls im interested in. i was pretty dead set on the CM and the houndstooth but i listened to a few sound files today i may change my mind
I'm a newb myself so I don't have a lot of advise to give, I would suggest listening to more than just one sound file of each, listen to multiples of each.
i have been. been listening to a bunch of different files of both different calls and the same calls.
i can say i think i like the halloran MM2 just a touch better than the CM but its more than i wanted to spend on one call right now. dont get me wrong the CM sounds great, to my ears the mm2 just has that little something i like. im also really impressed with the strut zone anadized aluminum over glass in padauk, stoned aluminum in padauk and his green slate. i will be making a few phone calls tomorrow
Quote from: Caspar on April 06, 2018, 09:37:17 PM
i have been. been listening to a bunch of different files of both different calls and the same calls.
i can say i think i like the halloran MM2 just a touch better than the CM but its more than i wanted to spend on one call right now. dont get me wrong the CM sounds great, to my ears the mm2 just has that little something i like. im also really impressed with the strut zone anadized aluminum over glass in padauk, stoned aluminum in padauk and his green slate. i will be making a few phone calls tomorrow
Davis only lives about 2 hours from me I found out and I am hoping to get to his shop but it won't be until after turkey season. (If he has a shop) I like his Zebrawood Laminate Slate, I have never really run aluminum, not that there is anything wrong with it, I am sure I will, I like to play with toys :D
I think you made 2 excellent choices! I would add the Shaeffer Atomic 13 as well. It is an aluminum call. Jimmy's company name is Oak Ridge Custom calls and his customer service is excellent.
so i changed my mind a little bit. i really loved the sounds of the strut zone anodized aluminum and stoned aluminum calls. so much that i cant decide between the two so im buying both.
so my question now is, i can afford one more call. id like something that doesnt sound like either of those. what woould you guys recommend
halloran CM, houndstooth ceramic, lonzo green slate, halloran green slate, strut zone green slate or obsession red zebra?
John Sinclair!!!!! any of his copper or titanium pots are great for beginners and sound like pure turkey! Impeccable craftsmanship and some of he most beautiful calls around.
Quote from: Caspar on April 07, 2018, 01:32:56 PM
so i changed my mind a little bit. i really loved the sounds of the strut zone anodized aluminum and stoned aluminum calls. so much that i cant decide between the two so im buying both.
so my question now is, i can afford one more call. id like something that doesnt sound like either of those. what woould you guys recommend
halloran CM, houndstooth ceramic, lonzo green slate, halloran green slate, strut zone green slate or obsession red zebra?
My advise would be try to get different surfaces before you buy duplicates so that way you know what you like. I think everyone needs a slate. My favorites are slate and glass surfaces. The green slate is nice, but it plays higher than grey slate. I like them both and encourage you to get both, but if you can only get 2-3 calls right now id make sure a grey slate is in that mix somewhere.
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thanks guys siuc, i hear the sinclairs are good. ill definitely try one at some point
thanks southern, i agree about having a slate. i have a grey slate that ive been using for years and like it. its not custom but sounds darn good for a cheap mass produced call. ive called and taken numerous birds with it. thats why i didnt add a grey slate to the list. i will get another grey slate soon (probably a lonnie sneed) but as you said id like to have a couple different call surfaces first