I was reading through responses on a post I commented on recently and it got me thinking about something that comes up here again and again. It seems to be that most on this forum differentiate call collectors from hunters, and the belief seems to be that collectors, 1) are in the business of acquiring calls with the intent of turning a profit, and, 2) do not hunt the calls they purchase.
I'll start by stating very clearly that I collect calls. My reasons are simple and the biggest is that I'm so obsessed with these birds and hunting these birds and the history of hunting these birds that it would be an absolute travesty to limit that passion to a regulated season. Calls give me a way to celebrate that passion every single day of the year. As far as money, lots of calls I collect have risen in value but I have no intent in selling them and that was not in the reasoning when I purchased them. Odds are I'll die with them. My collection is more driven by specific visions like having Ralph Permar build me a set showcasing the evolution of the yelper, or grabbing everything I can from the handful of other callers I've come to love and admire. I collect about three callmakers. I've got piles of other calls but I collect three.
THIS IS THE BIG THING, THOUGH, it's this idea that collectors are somehow less than because they don't hunt their calls. Maybe some don't. I don't know any of those folks, but maybe some don't. As for me, I hunt all my calls. Most those calls will inevitably get a kill or two. I hunt hell out of them. You come hunt with me you can grab any one you want and hunt it. That's what they're there for. Don't know where exactly I'm going with this post other than to say, you can collect calls and still be a hunter. You can collect calls and kill hell out of birds with that collection.
The lines in the sand are thin at best. We're all here and all doing this because we're absolutely obsessed with these birds.
Here's a 1927 nickel steel Model 12 20ga I hunted last year with a 1917 yelper Ralph made me. I didn't kill that day, but man was it fun toting those two through the woods.(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230129/5225dfb4f60e8cce73e96c7c94ea417e.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230129/151db2b76981bea4b12a2a38aa3a87b5.jpg)
Quote from: ChesterCopperpot on January 28, 2023, 09:00:10 PM
I'll start by stating very clearly that I collect calls. My reasons are simple and the biggest is that I'm so obsessed with these birds and hunting these birds and the history of hunting these birds that it would be an absolute travesty to limit that passion to a regulated season. Calls give me a way to celebrate that passion every single day of the year.
This is me to a T !!!!
Although, I still refer to myself as an "accumulator" rather than a "collector"............your description of what drives you is EXACTLY what drives ME.
For a lotta years, I never hunted my high-end calls. #1. The call I had been killing with for decades wasn't broke. And #2. I was losing, breaking or otherwise screwing up a call that may have cost me close to a week's wages. A while back, I re-did my philosophy on that and there's VERY FEW calls in my accumulation that are strictly grounded to the house.
Chester, ;D
Great photo!
Yoder,
Accumulator :TooFunny:
Great photo and equally great post!
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I'm an accumulator/hunter too but a collector/hunter is a distinction with very little difference. The key is the hunter part. A collector is more organized and has a purpose, an accumulator loves different calls, buys some here and there, and after hunting for quite a few years turns around and says, "good God I've got a large amount of calls on my bookshelf." Call it a collection or an accumulation if you will. A collection is just an accumulation that's got it's act together.
For me turkey hunting is ALL about calling, so calls are the heart and soul of the activity. There is something irksome to me, however, about people who collect calls and don't hunt them; very wealthy people hoarding fine calls, more than they could ever hunt, they're plenty of them out there. There are people buying and accumulating LOTS of calls from a single maker. What's annoying about that is it makes It difficult or impossible for a regular guy to get a call from that maker. I'm pretty sure it bothers some of the call makers too. And, it closes lists.
Quote from: Zobo on January 28, 2023, 10:04:53 PM
A collection is just an accumulation that's got it's act together.
I like it !!!!
:icon_thumright:
I collect a specific type of call from a single maker, but I hunt each one. Not sure what that makes me. They all play and sound the same, so the only advantage is having backups to my backups
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I am a gather, David great pic, what brand gun is that?
Great post Dave. I am a collector, but I do hunt most my calls. Great story, great photos....thx for sharing
I don't understand collecting Turkey calls or Bourbon. Turkey calls are made to hunt with and Bourbon is made to Drink.
The best callmakers I know are grateful for those who are supportive of them and willing to buy calls for treasured collections. And the best part of working to build a collection is making as many memories with those calls as possible
The reason i do both is for my enjoyment with preserving history and sharing information with others who have the same passion. Without this passion I'm sure i wouldn't have gotten to meet a lot of people who have the same interest in acquiring the different style of calls and hunting these calls. I'm sure i wouldn't have had the opportunity to meet and become friends with some of the best call builders in the business that I call my friends. If YOU can't understand this passion of acquiring calls I suggest you make at least one trip to Unicoi Call Builders Show and take the time to see and meet some of the best call builders and others who share the same interest. Then i think you will have a better understanding between WHO you call a collector or a HUNTER. I enjoy sharing knowledge and gaining knowledge with others who enjoy both collecting and sharing memories and history of turkey calls and with them using that special call to kill a gobbler. In my opinion you never get too old to learn. I tell people every call starts out with a story from the time the first tree and board is cut and a call is finished and delivered from a call builder. So hunter / collector i really don't care what you call me. All i know is I BUY my calls for my enjoyment. Always remember if you don't have a call from a builder you don't have the opportunity to play that call regardless of the design. I enjoy playing my calls and improving on my rhythm. It's the excitement of enjoying your passion with hunting turkeys.
Nice old model 12, Permar and pic.
I don't see a problem with either situation, buying what you need to hunt with or buying to have a nice collection of something a person gets enjoyment from for playing or just to look at.
I guess I fall into the category of hunter that chased sound and has accumulated some calls over time.
Some went down the road, some I have total confidence in to hunt with and they stayed.
I definitely have bought calls I didn't need but really liked their sound.
Quote from: Vintage on January 28, 2023, 10:42:23 PM
I don't understand collecting Turkey calls or Bourbon. Turkey calls are made to hunt with and Bourbon is made to Drink.
I need to get a sign for the door out to the garage:
"Turkey calls get played and bourbon gets drank". :happy0064:
Quote from: Vintage on January 28, 2023, 10:42:23 PM
I don't understand collecting Turkey calls or Bourbon. Turkey calls are made to hunt with and Bourbon is made to Drink.
You don't have to understand someone's desire to collect calls, but the entire point of this post is that many, maybe even most collections ARE GETTING HUNTED. Danny Ellis probably has the most valuable and important calls of any collection in the world and he's still sending those calls to the woods.
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Quote from: 3bailey3 on January 28, 2023, 10:34:08 PM
I am a gather, David great pic, what brand gun is that?
It's a 1927 nickel steel Winchester Model 12 in 20ga and it hucks FoxTrot with the very best of them. (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230129/4441e651650e1a0aa7992ea39ab358fa.jpg)
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Quote from: Yoder409 on January 29, 2023, 05:44:13 AM
I need to get a sign for the door out to the garage:
"Turkey calls get played and bourbon gets drank". :happy0064:
That would be the perfect sign for you for sure!!! ;D
This is a great thread and very interesting. Seems that no matter what "type" you are, everyone enjoys collecting
memories!!!
Quote from: EZ on January 29, 2023, 08:20:55 AM
This is a great thread and very interesting. Seems that no matter what "type" you are, everyone enjoys collecting memories!!!
If you added up the number of calls you got at your house, Tony, I'd say it constitutes a collection.
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EZ is a hoarder. I'm trying to take a few off his hands just to be helpful.
Quote from: ChesterCopperpot on January 29, 2023, 08:11:26 AM
Quote from: 3bailey3 on January 28, 2023, 10:34:08 PM
I am a gather, David great pic, what brand gun is that?
It's a 1927 nickel steel Winchester Model 12 in 20ga and it hucks FoxTrot with the very best of them. (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230129/4441e651650e1a0aa7992ea39ab358fa.jpg)
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Great pattern there...
Quote from: tal on January 29, 2023, 08:28:50 AM
EZ is a hoarder. I'm trying to take a few off his hands just to be helpful.
He sent me a pic of a box set of scratch boxes he acquired recently that I'd gladly take.
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Quote from: EZ on January 29, 2023, 08:20:55 AM
Quote from: Yoder409 on January 29, 2023, 05:44:13 AM
I need to get a sign for the door out to the garage:
"Turkey calls get played and bourbon gets drank". :happy0064:
That would be the perfect sign for you for sure!!! ;D
It could happen........... :toothy9:
Quote from: EZSeems that no matter what "type" you are, everyone enjoys collecting memories!!!
VERY well stated !!! :icon_thumright:
Quote from: tal on January 29, 2023, 08:28:50 AM
EZ is a hoarder. I'm trying to take a few off his hands just to be helpful.
Only a TRUE FRIEND would make such a yeoman effort to help a brother out !!! :you_rock:
That's me, always helping others... :TooFunny: Make your 2024 reservation yet Yoder?
Quote from: tal on January 29, 2023, 12:26:34 PM
That's me, always helping others... :TooFunny:
You're a PAL !!! :icon_thumright:
You should change your username. :TooFunny:
EZ gets a pass. Anybody who crafts a yelper to his level can hoard all the calls and whiskey he wants, lol! And seriously, if you've talked to him or met him you know he's the least pretentious guy around.
Quote from: Zobo on January 29, 2023, 01:02:20 PM
EZ gets a pass. Anybody who crafts a yelper to his level can hoard all the calls and whiskey he wants, lol! And seriously, if you've talked to him or met him you know he's the least pretentious guy around.
I can vouch for this statement. :icon_thumright:
I have somewhat of a collection from callmakers who are friends of mine and I don't feel in the least bit guilty buying as many as I can/want. These guys are my friends and it makes me happy to support them.
As far as hunting them, I hunt as many as I can. If I kill one or two with a call, I put it back in the rotation. I buy them to hunt them.
If I send these guys a picture or call them with a success story, they're happy about my good fortune and that THEIR call was a big part of the success.
Everybody does all of this for their own reasons. We should all be grateful there IS this community. It makes it possible for all of us to feed our passion, whatever it is...
Quote from: Vintage on January 28, 2023, 10:42:23 PM
I don't understand collecting Turkey calls or Bourbon. Turkey calls are made to hunt with and Bourbon is made to Drink.
Yes, this reminds me of when wine guru Robert Parker was invited to a wine collectors cellar years ago. What he found were hundreds of cases of the world greatest wines from the highest most acclaimed vineyards and Chateaus. World class vintages were represented maybe thousands of bottles worth millions perhaps. The problem was Parker soon realized that a large portion of the collection, most in-fact, were expired, well past prime drinking stage. A sad complete waste of so much human effort, all to appease the appetite of one wasteful man because he needed more. And even though he drank a few bottles each month here and there, the lions share of the collection was a complete waste. But obviously calls are very different than wine... it's just interesting to think about, that desire to collect to a point of hoarding.
Sometimes i think others are jealous of the ones who own several calls. I didn't ask anyone to put extra money in my bank account to buy my calls. So again enjoy your calls whether you have 3 or 500 hundred. If you don't have a call you can't play and hunt the call nor can you support the call builders you have become friends with and share great fellowship ... IMO ....
Quote from: Greg Massey on January 29, 2023, 02:39:51 PM
Sometimes i think others are jealous of the ones who own several calls. I didn't ask anyone to put extra money in my bank account to buy my calls. So again enjoy your calls whether you have 3 or 500 hundred. If you don't have a call you can't play and hunt the call nor can you support the call builders you have become friends with and share great fellowship ... IMO ....
:icon_thumright:
If you turkey hunt seriously, you wind up with calls. If you go way out of your way to buy calls from custom call makers and wind up with a whole bunch, you may be an accidental collector. I think few of us start out to be serious collectors, we get into turkey hunting and one thing leads to another. Me? I'm no collector, I just have a habit of accumulating calls while looking for that perfect one. ;D
Quote from: Greg Massey on January 29, 2023, 02:39:51 PM
Sometimes i think others are jealous of the ones who own several calls. I didn't ask anyone to put extra money in my bank account to buy my calls. So again enjoy your calls whether you have 3 or 500 hundred. If you don't have a call you can't play and hunt the call nor can you support the call builders you have become friends with and share great fellowship ... IMO ....
.
You beat me to it Greg. Well said buddy!
I try to hunt all my calls, I have gotten enough that it is hard to hunt them all in the 30 days my state allows in the Spring and the few weeks in the Fall though. I had never heard of a custom call before I got to this site but I have fallen in love with them. Most of you know I lost hunting for 17 years because of a car accident, maybe that is why I fell so hard or part of it anyhow.
I do know that all the different woods remind me of my father who always collected antique furniture, he was electrocuted to death on a construction job when I was 16 and we never got to really share the common things we enjoyed. I don't thin I was old enough or mature enough at that time to anyway if I am honest. I think that is a main reason. I can't afford the furniture like he had but I can many of these calls and I love all the different woods and their grains or patterns that remind me of some of the furniture he had. I also enjoy the way they sound and the wonderful people I have met since I got here and turkey call shows I have gone to.
Nobody in my family hunts at all so when I die they will likely all be sold off. I think I will ask to be buried with my Fiddle Paddle I got from Marlin "Don" Watkins at the 2019 NE Call Makers Summit @ Turkey Trot Acres, it's Alaska Yellow Cedar over Service Berry and is my favorite call to date and my first high end call.
Quote from: Tail Feathers on January 29, 2023, 04:45:27 PM
.........you may be an accidental collector.
I like this !!!!
I may have to re-think my self-proclaimed "accumulator" title in favor of becoming an "accidental collector".
:you_rock:
I really don't care what other people do with their money. Personally, I am a hunter and not a collector. I do have more calls than I use just cause I am impulsive at times, but I bought every call I have with the intention to hunt it. Once in a great while, I even manage to kill a turkey, and after 20 years or so, i have a few calls that have killed two or three turkeys. I typically carry those calls now. In all my time of turkey hunting, I have never lost a round with a gobbler and thought " that some#%*# would be dead if I had brought such and such call."
Quote from: Happy on January 29, 2023, 07:28:33 PM
I really don't care what other people do with their money. Personally, I am a hunter and not a collector. I do have more calls than I use just cause I am impulsive at times, but I bought every call I have with the intention to hunt it. Once in a great while, I even manage to kill a turkey, and after 20 years or so, i have a few calls that have killed two or three turkeys. I typically carry those calls now. In all my time of turkey hunting, I have never lost a round with a gobbler and thought " that some#%*# would be dead if I had brought such and such call."
This response is perfect.
Just as it isn't wise for a collector to assume the fewer calls owned by a hunter aren't that collectible and/or valuable, its also not wise for a hunter to assume that just because a man has more and more collectible calls that he also doesn't have more breast meat in the freezer.
Hi, I'm Zobo and I identify as an accumulator-hunter with a desire to collect, but lacking the organizational skills, patience and discipline to narrow down. :funnyturkey:
I collect calls from friends that make calls. If I know you and you make calls, I'll have one.
I have LOT'S of friends that make turkey calls. :TooFunny: :TooFunny: :TooFunny:
Turkey hunting is like a lot of things in life. There is an evolution of the hunter. The brand new hunter just wants to kill a turkey. He/she does not care who calls it. They want to hear it, see it and experience it.
Next, they want to call and kill their own turkey. They may not be particular about the call, they just want to know that they were able to master a call or calls to the point that they could fool a big Tom.
Eventually, the hunter develops a favorite call or calls. Some like trumpets, some like boxes, others like pots, and others like them all. They want to hunt the way they like to hunt with the calls they like to use. Part of the celebration of the sport is buying new calls and getting to use them in the field. Eventually, you have your "collection/accumulation". It's not different with guns. How many people on this forum just have one shotgun? Not me!
For me, it's checkered box calls. I love the artistry behind them. I wish I had the time, patience and talent to make them. I have more than I need but I continue to buy them and use them. I have never sold one and everyone brings me joy.
My name is Notsoyoungturk. I am a box call addict and I have no intention of treating this addiction.
Quote from: Notsoyoungturk on January 29, 2023, 09:59:13 PM
I am a box call addict and I have no intention of treating this addiction.
Here, here !!! :happy0167:
And, so a support group was born !!!
Box Calls Anonymous
:help:
I dont drink, I dont smoke, I love my wife and family and try to be a good human. I am infected with the love of everything turkey hunting. My calls being a great passion. Killing the first bird with one of your own calls is a high that I recommend. Seeing pics of birds taken with them is as good. Using one to call a bird for a loved one ore friend is priceless. I am a call junkie and all that entails. I will never need another turkey call ever, will I buy more?, HECK YEAH. I am only human and enjoy it so I will keep doing it. God Bless all you other call makers for caring enough to hone your craft. God Bless Y'all. Z
Quote from: zelmo1 on January 31, 2023, 08:55:53 AMI will never need another turkey call ever.........
The word "need" has no place in these discussions. :toothy12:
Quote from: zelmo1 on January 31, 2023, 08:55:53 AM
I dont drink, I dont smoke, I love my wife and family and try to be a good human. I am infected with the love of everything turkey hunting. My calls being a great passion. Killing the first bird with one of your own calls is a high that I recommend. Seeing pics of birds taken with them is as good. Using one to call a bird for a loved one ore friend is priceless. I am a call junkie and all that entails. I will never need another turkey call ever, will I buy more?, HECK YEAH. I am only human and enjoy it so I will keep doing it. God Bless all you other call makers for caring enough to hone your craft. God Bless Y'all. Z
Right on, I've got a lot of custom calls from a variety of makers, I make my own, and I have given calls away to friends and family as gifts and have had them all kill turkeys with them, as well as myself. But I guarantee I'll buy a handful more every year from other makers because I love them and everything to do with them. To tell you the truth, without the calls, I wouldn't turkey hunt. I absolutely will not deer hunt them. I wouldn't consider myself a call collector, every call I have has and will be hunted.
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Quote from: Greg Massey on January 28, 2023, 10:59:32 PM
The reason i do both is for my enjoyment with preserving history and sharing information with others who have the same passion. Without this passion I'm sure i wouldn't have gotten to meet a lot of people who have the same interest in acquiring the different style of calls and hunting these calls. I'm sure i wouldn't have had the opportunity to meet and become friends with some of the best call builders in the business that I call my friends. If YOU can't understand this passion of acquiring calls I suggest you make at least one trip to Unicoi Call Builders Show and take the time to see and meet some of the best call builders and others who share the same interest. Then i think you will have a better understanding between WHO you call a collector or a HUNTER. I enjoy sharing knowledge and gaining knowledge with others who enjoy both collecting and sharing memories and history of turkey calls and with them using that special call to kill a gobbler. In my opinion you never get too old to learn. I tell people every call starts out with a story from the time the first tree and board is cut and a call is finished and delivered from a call builder. So hunter / collector i really don't care what you call me. All i know is I BUY my calls for my enjoyment. Always remember if you don't have a call from a builder you don't have the opportunity to play that call regardless of the design. I enjoy playing my calls and improving on my rhythm. It's the excitement of enjoying your passion with hunting turkeys.
Good quote here Greg. On the money with this. I agree.
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I collect change in a jar at home and only use the bills. It's your life, do what you want. I have no trouble you doing both. Why people seem to think it's their way or the highway, I'll never understand.
I'm not really a collector but have acquired over the years a lot of calls mainly because I admired the sound and the callmaker's craftmanship. I've hunted virtually all of them, including some that I paid a lot for, simply because I wanted to do so. They're all in a closet or my vest, but big deal if they were in a platinum plated case with lights shining on them. That's not how I roll, but if another dude is into that, so what?
I could care less if a person has a million calls and never hunts them or has one and has worn it out.
I think in this area as in a lot of life, you do you and I'll do me should be the approach. Why should it concern me what someone else does?
To be honest, even if the call is never used, I would strongly suggest looking for a better investment strategy than collecting turkey calls.
Quote from: PalmettoRon on February 10, 2023, 08:55:04 AM
I'm not really a collector but have acquired over the years a lot of calls mainly because I admired the sound and the callmaker's craftmanship. I've hunted virtually all of them, including some that I paid a lot for, simply because I wanted to do so. They're all in a closet or my vest, but big deal if they were in a platinum plated case with lights shining on them. That's not how I roll, but if another dude is into that, so what?
I could care less if a person has a million calls and never hunts them or has one and has worn it out.
I think in this area as in a lot of life, you do you and I'll do me should be the approach. Why should it concern me what someone else does?
To be honest, even if the call is never used, I would strongly suggest looking for a better investment strategy than collecting turkey calls.
After reading through the responses to this topic, this pretty much sums up my position on the whole debate, if you want to call it that.
To everybody (regarding your turkey calls): Do Your Thang! If it ain't the same as mine, so be it!
The one thing I do know,... there is no gobbler out there that is basing whether or not he is gonna come to you on the number of turkey calls you got at home... ;D :icon_thumright: :angel9:
I have a ton of calls. But I don't hunt any of them. It's not because i'm collecting them. It's because I haven't found a box yet better than Scott Witter's and I haven't found a pot yet that I like more than my Al Holbert aluminum
I got this deal figured out a long time ago. I can collect very easily. Did it with handguns. Pulled them out, felt them wiped them down and put them away. One day I said maybe someone else can enjoy some of these. Figured out I`m not a collector I`m a user. Had a good friend that passed away and all his prized firearms willed to his elder son. Who does not have the least bit of interest in them. I thought about this some and I remember the times my friend would show me and let me handle, shoot and enjoy them. The look on his face was second to none. He really enjoyed that. God bless him and he did. Everyone is different. Like Gobblernut said. Do your thing! Good day.
Quote from: turkeyfool on February 10, 2023, 10:27:07 AM
I have a ton of calls. But I don't hunt any of them. It's not because i'm collecting them. It's because I haven't found a box yet better than Scott Witter's and I haven't found a pot yet that I like more than my Al Holbert aluminum
I understand this, no doubt Scott Witter's box is among the best!!!
I have several calls and have the intention of getting more. Since I hunt a lot I get to rotate them out and use most of them every year. I love wood and the way a nice piece of wood looks when turned. Thus, I don't own box calls or other types that don't require turning, except diaphragm calls because I simply like using them. I have yet to sell a call, good or bad. Just can't turn one loose. I collect calls and try to hunt with as many of them as possible each year. I like looking at and appreciating other hunters calls. Call making is fascinating to me, but I don't make calls. It's each person's own business so far as how they view turkey calls, it damned sure ain't my business.
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I'm a turkey hunter that also has a pretty cool vintage turkey call collection.
Label as you wish ????
Quote from: Howieg on February 11, 2023, 04:35:06 PM
I'm a turkey hunter that also has a pretty cool vintage turkey call collection.
Label as you wish ????
Labeled as "cool" !!
The vintage calls........even the ones that AREN'T the high-dollar collectibles like a Turpin or a Gibson are just, plain COOL.
Lynch
Ashby
Herter's
Smith
Lee
Gray
The list is longer. But the calls that paint the historic picture of our beloved sport........ PRICELESS.
Quote from: Yoder409 on February 11, 2023, 06:57:00 PM
Quote from: Howieg on February 11, 2023, 04:35:06 PM
I'm a turkey hunter that also has a pretty cool vintage turkey call collection.
Label as you wish ????
Labeled as "cool" !!
The vintage calls........even the ones that AREN'T the high-dollar collectibles like a Turpin or a Gibson are just, plain COOL.
Lynch
Ashby
Herter's
Smith
Lee
Gray
The list is longer. But the calls that paint the historic picture of our beloved sport........ PRICELESS.
I have several of those listed myself ,
A few of them never taken out original packaging.
Quote from: Howieg on February 11, 2023, 09:18:40 PM
Quote from: Yoder409 on February 11, 2023, 06:57:00 PM
Quote from: Howieg on February 11, 2023, 04:35:06 PM
I'm a turkey hunter that also has a pretty cool vintage turkey call collection.
Label as you wish ????
Labeled as "cool" !!
The vintage calls........even the ones that AREN'T the high-dollar collectibles like a Turpin or a Gibson are just, plain COOL.
Lynch
Ashby
Herter's
Smith
Lee
Gray
The list is longer. But the calls that paint the historic picture of our beloved sport........ PRICELESS.
I have several of those listed myself ,
A few of them never taken out original packaging.
:icon_thumright: :icon_thumright: :icon_thumright:
Same.
Be cool if the Collectors forum, here, got some more traction.............. I would LOVE to see vintage calls that others have collected...........as well as ANY calls in guys' collections.
Quote from: Yoder409 on February 12, 2023, 07:15:14 AM
Be cool if the Collectors forum, here, got some more traction.............. I would LOVE to see vintage calls that others have collected...........as well as ANY calls in guys' collections.
I think all the threads showcasing a certain callmaker (the Buice thread, the recent Stowe thread) should all be in the "collector's corner" section. The ode to the Turkey Trotter scratchbox post I made the other day in the scratchbox section should've gone there too, probably. Only problem is that unless you're using Tapatalk posts in those specialized sections don't get seen near as much as the ones in the general forum.
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I would like to see a couple of additional sections @ChesterCopperpot . Maybe a Books/Literature section. I have a good collection of those but I am always looking for more. Maybe the call makers mentioned could be in a "Sticky" in the collection section. And we could add more pictures to them. Just a thought.
Have a good one and May God bless y'all, Bo
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Here's my deal. Got some with sentimental value, some with historical value. Lots I've bought and didn't like. Nothing of what I would call big $$$ value. But I'm a big history kind of a guy.
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Quote from: Cowboy on February 13, 2023, 09:18:10 AM
Here's my deal. Got some with sentimental value, some with historical value. Lots I've bought and didn't like. Nothing of what I would call big $$$ value. But I'm a big history kind of a guy.
The historical ones need preserved. Yep.
I just came back from the post office. I preserved a couple more today. :TooFunny:
I just got 2 pot calls in the mail and walked out to the garage to get my vest ready. Saw a pile of strikers and pot calls that aren't gonna be in my vest and realized I'm now a collector as well, lol.
Quote from: YelpOnTheWay on March 15, 2023, 06:58:46 PM
I just got 2 pot calls in the mail and walked out to the garage to get my vest ready. Saw a pile of strikers and pot calls that aren't gonna be in my vest and realized I'm now a collector as well, lol.
See how that happens ?? :z-dizzy:
Nice :blob10:
This all really means something to me. I never really realized how much it would mean to me either.
I think there are 3 types. Collectors, hunters, & mainly for profit buyers/sellers working a decent hustle to make a dollar (most of the time). There are some shady fellers out there but the ratio is fairly low considering.
First I'll get the for profit guys out the way. They obviously know what's hot & a lot of them really do put a large amount of time & work acquiring and selling. Same as a job. Even though I couldn't sell things for some of the prices they do. The stuff sells. Some people have the money to buy at overly inflated prices, vs spend the time & wait in line or go through some of the hoops that most do to get a call from certain makers. I can't be mad at 'em. Is what it is. God bless America.
Now for the hunter or collectors. It's obvious the collectors are hunters, & have been acquiring stuff they like over large periods of time. The calls mean something to them with, often, sentimental value more than financial. They also have put a lot of work into acquiring. We all know how hard some stuff is to get, how rare & limited, or how long some of the waitlists are. I'd assume, with collectors, part of the fun of hunting is to have such a large collection & deciding what to hunt with that day. Even just handling or playing some collector type calls can tickle the turkey hunter like fire does to a caveman.
Then there's the minimalist hunter who runs the same call they've had for 20 years & slays the birds with it. Stone cold killers with any call from walmart. Some calls are very unique & hard to come by, while some are way easier to find for way cheaper. There's some cheaper calls that sound amazing & do the exact same thing. Killing birds. Often sounding even better. Not to mention, it's a lot easier to accept accidentally damaging that cheaper call the birds love, vs something like a Zach Farmer that rarely makes it in the woods.
I'm at a point in my life now I'm in an unexpected evolution. I like to blame this place on it. Thanks OG! I've been turkey hunting for over 30+ years & ran the commercially bought big box store stuff up until recently. I have a $9 call the turkeys go head over heels for every time, & hundred dollar calls they could care less for. I decided I love turkey hunting enough & have been slowly starting to upgrade everything I have. Piece by piece.
So, I started researching & making the phone calls to a few well known call makers at first. Boy can you meet some salt of the earth people that way! Always some surprisingly friendly conversations with makers that make you feel like family & offer amazing advice. Some make me proud to use stuff they made. The passion they have for turkey hunting feels like it comes through in the calls. True grim reaper & pied pipers that have caused the demise of any turkey in ear shot.
Then I met some amazing "collectors" through the classifieds on here. Same thing. Salt of the earth types that have amazing collections that most of us can only dream about. Most of them sell stuff for what it's really worth, or cheaper, & not out to just turn a huge profit.
There's one member on here I met that reached out to me in PM at first. Not gunna name him, but I'm sure he knows who I'm talking about. Sold me a few small things for a really great price. Then the more we talked, the more he offered me some amazing pieces that for me, that I consider are collector worthy. For me, the chance of the lifetime type stuff. I honestly don't think it was about an extra dollar. It was & is about sharing a passion for turkey hunting & some of the calls & makers. I feel like a true type of friendship was made. Now, every time I grab or use those calls, that seller will be a part of those things & memories are now forever connected with something as simple as a piece of wood. Who would have thunk it?
I've realized a lot of the collectors are equally as passionate about turkey hunting, as hunters who hunt all 49 states. The front porch rocking chair conversations can be amazing, educational & entertaining. Collecting/selling can also make for some great friendships.
So now I'm hooked on all the different types of calls. The history of them. The call makers themselves & their history. Hearing about how they like to hunt or advice on what works for them. The history of how they started building & often who they learned from. Again making it something more than just a piece of wood.
I'm to a point now that calls in my hands; all have something sentimental, in one way or another. Not just a genetic call used just as a tool. Even with the most special ones, I still have dreams of killing a turkey with it at some point. Adds even more soul to the calls.
When I see some calls for sale, from certain makers, I want more of them. Not cause I need it, but because I've evolved into having a different kind of bond for them. I'm knee deep down the rabbit hole & at the rate it's going, also starting to build a collection. Which eventually will make me a collector.
Hopefully one day, I'm sure I'll meet others that I see the same shared passion & are at the same stage I am now. Or was before. Then, I can also find enjoyment in offering them some collection worthy calls to spark them with, just the same as I've been blessed with. To me that moral profit would be more worthy than a financial profit.
At that point I'll consider myself a true collector.
For the couple of "collectors" that have sold me some memorable stuff for very reasonable & fair prices....Thank you & bless you! I hope to & will one day do the same for another. You've made a true friend with me.
Now let me get back to learning more ways to hide money & further my white lie list for the honey. The same old, oh I've had that one for a little while & I ordered that a long time ago are getting repetitive. Plus I need to go check some tracking info in case I need to keep stalking the postal workers. At least I know them all by name now.
In the future, this writing above will be a CLASSIC!!! AWESOME READ!!! Thanks for sharing this with us.
Have a good one and May God bless y'all, Bo
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Quote from: wyetterp on March 16, 2023, 01:54:50 AM
This all really means something to me. I never really realized how much it would mean to me either.
I think there are 3 types. Collectors, hunters, & mainly for profit buyers/sellers working a decent hustle to make a dollar (most of the time). There are some shady fellers out there but the ratio is fairly low considering.
First I'll get the for profit guys out the way. They obviously know what's hot & a lot of them really do put a large amount of time & work acquiring and selling. Same as a job. Even though I couldn't sell things for some of the prices they do. The stuff sells. Some people have the money to buy at overly inflated prices, vs spend the time & wait in line or go through some of the hoops that most do to get a call from certain makers. I can't be mad at 'em. Is what it is. God bless America.
Now for the hunter or collectors. It's obvious the collectors are hunters, & have been acquiring stuff they like over large periods of time. The calls mean something to them with, often, sentimental value more than financial. They also have put a lot of work into acquiring. We all know how hard some stuff is to get, how rare & limited, or how long some of the waitlists are. I'd assume, with collectors, part of the fun of hunting is to have such a large collection & deciding what to hunt with that day. Even just handling or playing some collector type calls can tickle the turkey hunter like fire does to a caveman.
Then there's the minimalist hunter who runs the same call they've had for 20 years & slays the birds with it. Stone cold killers with any call from walmart. Some calls are very unique & hard to come by, while some are way easier to find for way cheaper. There's some cheaper calls that sound amazing & do the exact same thing. Killing birds. Often sounding even better. Not to mention, it's a lot easier to accept accidentally damaging that cheaper call the birds love, vs something like a Zach Farmer that rarely makes it in the woods.
I'm at a point in my life now I'm in an unexpected evolution. I like to blame this place on it. Thanks OG! I've been turkey hunting for over 30+ years & ran the commercially bought big box store stuff up until recently. I have a $9 call the turkeys go head over heels for every time, & hundred dollar calls they could care less for. I decided I love turkey hunting enough & have been slowly starting to upgrade everything I have. Piece by piece.
So, I started researching & making the phone calls to a few well known call makers at first. Boy can you meet some salt of the earth people that way! Always some surprisingly friendly conversations with makers that make you feel like family & offer amazing advice. Some make me proud to use stuff they made. The passion they have for turkey hunting feels like it comes through in the calls. True grim reaper & pied pipers that have caused the demise of any turkey in ear shot.
Then I met some amazing "collectors" through the classifieds on here. Same thing. Salt of the earth types that have amazing collections that most of us can only dream about. Most of them sell stuff for what it's really worth, or cheaper, & not out to just turn a huge profit.
There's one member on here I met that reached out to me in PM at first. Not gunna name him, but I'm sure he knows who I'm talking about. Sold me a few small things for a really great price. Then the more we talked, the more he offered me some amazing pieces that for me, that I consider are collector worthy. For me, the chance of the lifetime type stuff. I honestly don't think it was about an extra dollar. It was & is about sharing a passion for turkey hunting & some of the calls & makers. I feel like a true type of friendship was made. Now, every time I grab or use those calls, that seller will be a part of those things & memories are now forever connected with something as simple as a piece of wood. Who would have thunk it?
I've realized a lot of the collectors are equally as passionate about turkey hunting, as hunters who hunt all 49 states. The front porch rocking chair conversations can be amazing, educational & entertaining. Collecting/selling can also make for some great friendships.
So now I'm hooked on all the different types of calls. The history of them. The call makers themselves & their history. Hearing about how they like to hunt or advice on what works for them. The history of how they started building & often who they learned from. Again making it something more than just a piece of wood.
I'm to a point now that calls in my hands; all have something sentimental, in one way or another. Not just a genetic call used just as a tool. Even with the most special ones, I still have dreams of killing a turkey with it at some point. Adds even more soul to the calls.
When I see some calls for sale, from certain makers, I want more of them. Not cause I need it, but because I've evolved into having a different kind of bond for them. I'm knee deep down the rabbit hole & at the rate it's going, also starting to build a collection. Which eventually will make me a collector.
Hopefully one day, I'm sure I'll meet others that I see the same shared passion & are at the same stage I am now. Or was before. Then, I can also find enjoyment in offering them some collection worthy calls to spark them with, just the same as I've been blessed with. To me that moral profit would be more worthy than a financial profit.
At that point I'll consider myself a true collector.
For the couple of "collectors" that have sold me some memorable stuff for very reasonable & fair prices....Thank you & bless you! I hope to & will one day do the same for another. You've made a true friend with me.
Now let me get back to learning more ways to hide money & further my white lie list for the honey. The same old, oh I've had that one for a little while & I ordered that a long time ago are getting repetitive. Plus I need to go check some tracking info in case I need to keep stalking the postal workers. At least I know them all by name now.
If THAT don't sum it up for 99.9% of the guys who ever owned a turkey call.............. I don't know what does.
GREAT dissertation !!!!!!!
Amen, thx for sharing......
GREAT POST WYETTERP..... the only thing i will add is i have brought my wife along with me in sharing and buying my calls, she has enjoyed traveling and meeting these call makers as much as i have through the years. She understands my PASSION of buying and using calls. The only thing i usually have to do for my wife is buy her a good dinner .. LOL...
I buy too many calls but I'm definitely a hunter and not a collector. I could care less about how a call looks or its history. It just needs to sound good and be effective in the field.
Quote from: BDeal on March 16, 2023, 10:04:35 AM
I buy too many calls but I'm definitely a hunter and not a collector. I could care less about how a call looks or its history. It just needs to sound good and be effective in the field.
I'm exactly the same way. I also make my own calls and that's how mine are, they aren't flashy, they aren't super pretty, and I guarantee you'll find a blemish in the finish on one or two but they sound good and they kill turkeys and that's what's most important to me. I also typically only sell a dozen or two a year. I don't push them and I don't do social media. Most of all I sell are friends and people who they tell about them and I'm fine with that. They were never made to be a collector piece, I'd rather see them dinged up, with knicks in the pots and laying beside a gobbler.
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I understand everyone has his or her way of using or buying calls or making them. Back in my early years we made most all of our calls out of some kind of material. We used turtle shells old chalkboard slate, we made gourd calls, we made tube calls out of small snuff cans and we carved cedar limbs and made strikers with corncob strikers. While enjoying doing all of this, i still have some of my homemade calls. Now to this day and time, i wouldn't trade the people i have met and the call builders i became friends with without acquiring my collection of calls. All of this is priceless in my opinion especially the friends i have made from buying calls and the friends i have made on this forum. So YES it's my PASSION and i have a variety of calls next to my recline and i can play these calls anytime i want, CAN you say you can play various calls from different call builders NO..BUT I CAN... Pot calls, Boxes, Hen Boxes, fiddle boxes, longboxes and trumpets... SO do i want to go back to the days of making calls, NO I DON"T... Every call builder puts his own TURKEY SOUNDS into the call he builds and it's truly amazing finding these hens in a particular type of call..
Quote from: Greg Massey on March 16, 2023, 10:37:27 AM
I understand everyone has his or her way of using or buying calls or making them. Back in my early years we made most all of our calls out of some kind of material. We used turtle shells old chalkboard slate, we made gourd calls, we made tube calls out of small snuff cans and we carved cedar limbs and made strikers with corncob strikers. While enjoying doing all of this, i still have some of my homemade calls. Now to this day and time, i wouldn't trade the people i have met and the call builders i became friends with without acquiring my collection of calls. All of this is priceless in my opinion especially the friends i have made from buying calls and the friends i have made on this forum. So YES it's my PASSION and i have a variety of calls next to my recline and i can play these calls anytime i want, CAN you say you can play various calls from different call builders NO..BUT I CAN... Pot calls, Boxes, Hen Boxes, fiddle boxes, longboxes and trumpets... SO do i want to go back to the days of making calls, NO I DON"T... Every call builder puts his own TURKEY SOUNDS into the call he builds and it's truly amazing finding these hens in a particular type of call..
I agree with you and I have several boxes and pots, in different surfaces, from a lot of these big name custom call guys and I enjoy talking to all of them and running their calls. To me, my passion is putting the hen that's in my head into a call and experimenting with different surfaces, sound boards, pots, etc until I find the combo that clicks and there is nothing in turkey calling that brings me more joy than seeing people kill a turkey with a call I made with my hands, and fell to the hen that has been in my head since I first heard her in the wild when I was a kid.
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Quote from: Greg Massey on March 16, 2023, 09:26:35 AM
GREAT POST WYETTERP..... the only thing i will add is i have brought my wife along with me in sharing and buying my calls, she has enjoyed traveling and meeting these call makers as much as i have through the years. She understands my PASSION of buying and using calls. The only thing i usually have to do for my wife is buy her a good dinner .. LOL...
Thanks. It's my truth. Sorry for the long read but the op's post struck
a nerve like a call does to a goobler.
My wife does back me, luckily, just as I back her. More fun & games.
A full freezer is her favorite, also. We don't take vacations much but
we're already planning on the next Unicoi. I have a feeling just she'll
be picking out a few things herself.
She gets it too though. She got a little teary eyed when a member on
here surprised me and mailed me a cool little cane yelper, unexpected.
She loves that little thing what all it symbolizes. Funny what a piece of
river cane can do.
Alright family, hope everyone has a good season!
I've killed gobblers over the years with a variety of calls, this year is my first year of learning a trumpet. Hopefully i can kill a gobbler while using one or at least call one up with a trumpet. I have thoroughly enjoyed learning / still learning to play these awesome instruments ... So now yes i have added trumpets, cane yelpers and wingbones to my collection. I have a COLLECTION and I"'m very proud to own my calls.. I live to see the beautiful sunrises and hear that first gobble as the turkey woods come alive... That's my Passion...
I have been blessed to have been making, and selling calls for over 25 years. I just want to say its an honor when someone buys something you have made with your hands. Hunter or collector, it makes no difference. I'm not able to make many calls now, and I sure miss meeting people at the shows, and making friends. Been able to make friend with many great call makers over the years, and sure miss the ones that have left us.
Quote from: Greg Massey on March 16, 2023, 11:07:37 AM
.............this year is my first year of learning a trumpet. Hopefully i can kill a gobbler while using one or at least call one up with a trumpet.
Me too. I have 2 coming. Don't have either, yet.
Must be the year for all the old guys to start trumpet lessons. :toothy9:
I am here to tell you THIS............. I am NOT.......no matter HOW much I enjoy trumpets.......letting them do to me them what box calls did to me. :z-dizzy:
I can't afford it !!! :TooFunny:
Quote from: Yoder409 on March 16, 2023, 11:19:53 AM
Quote from: Greg Massey on March 16, 2023, 11:07:37 AM
.............this year is my first year of learning a trumpet. Hopefully i can kill a gobbler while using one or at least call one up with a trumpet.
Me too. I have 2 coming. Don't have either, yet.
Must be the year for all the old guys to start trumpet lessons. :toothy9:
I am here to tell you THIS............. I am NOT.......no matter HOW much I enjoy trumpets.......letting them do to me them what box calls did to me. :z-dizzy:
I can't afford it !!! :TooFunny:
Come on Don, you cant be a collector with out a Rev. Farmer trumpet!!
Quote from: JeffC on March 16, 2023, 12:41:31 PM
Quote from: Yoder409 on March 16, 2023, 11:19:53 AM
Quote from: Greg Massey on March 16, 2023, 11:07:37 AM
.............this year is my first year of learning a trumpet. Hopefully i can kill a gobbler while using one or at least call one up with a trumpet.
Me too. I have 2 coming. Don't have either, yet.
Must be the year for all the old guys to start trumpet lessons. :toothy9:
I am here to tell you THIS............. I am NOT.......no matter HOW much I enjoy trumpets.......letting them do to me them what box calls did to me. :z-dizzy:
I can't afford it !!! :TooFunny:
Come on Don, you cant be a collector with out a Rev. Farmer trumpet!!
Agreed !!! :icon_thumright:
But I need a new pickup, too. Can't have both........ :z-dizzy:
Any hunters who have more than one Buice call can sell it to me so you don't become a dreaded collector. Lol
My collection is nearly 100% trade calls. Kenny Crummett had me trading with all his callmaker friends. He would send me a note with several makers each month that were willing to trade calls. Some are not so good others are fantastic. It didn't matter to me.
Often hunters that stop at my table will say, "those calls are too nice to take to the woods". My reply, I know where you can get another one inexpensively and ya won't have to wait a year or 3. Slow production creates long lists. As a maker I want as many that want one or a case of them to have it.