Aluminum

[ttcustomcalls]

I recently met a man who runs a machine shop and deals with a lot of aluminum. He offered to make aluminum surfaces for me at a price which is hard to ignore. The problem is I have no idea what type of aluminum is typically used. Does anyone here know what type/hardness of aluminum is typical for a turkey call surface?

Thanks,
TJ

[stone road turkey calls]

TJ, I'm not sure what type of aluminum is used for the call surfaces, but you do have plain, anodized, green, black, blasted, fry pan. can he do all this for you, probably not. i don't think you could get the quality that you get from our current call maker suppliers on a home made surface. also aluminum does not cost that much right now. you don't want to send out a green aluminum call only to have your customer drag a striker across it and remove the paint down to bare aluminum on the first strike. i recamend you stick with what we know works. just my opinion.
good luck

Gary

[magnoliagamecalls]

Have him make you several pieces and give it a try. The main thing I would watch is the thickness. You can bead blast it yourself if he cant do it to help on conditioning. 

[ttcustomcalls]

Sorry about the delay, I've been busy. But I do appreciate the advice. This isn't a home operation. This man runs a professional shop and can anodize the surfaces in which case i don't think paint flaking will be an issue. And as far as variety I usually only buy one type of aluminum at a time so I don't need him to replicate all the surfaces, just one. If I had more extensive needs I would agree completely that it may be more hassle than it's worth but I did recently aquire a sample from him which I will be testing soon hopefully. I'll post again when I figure out how it works.

Thanks,
TJ

[lightsoutcalls]

TJ,
   I have had aluminum cut by several different shops.  Get samples before you commit to purchase in bulk.  I had some cut with a water jet that left a small burr that had to be sanded off before bead blasting and anodizing. I had some cut with a plasma cutter... NEVER AGAIN!  If he can punch them, that would be ideal. The material I have bought to have cut was the softest aluminum available.  It is purchased in sheet form, so be sure to get .080 thickness. The powder blasting makes a big difference.  I have it done by 2 different folks and the texture was noticably different, which made the striker "grab" the surface differently.  The anodizing can be a pain as well.  I had one company in OK anodize some pieces in a gold color.  The color was not consistent from piece to piece and sometimes across a single piece. 
   If you can get a really good deal, try it.  I have learned that I didn't save anything with all of my extra time and effort trying to save a few bucks. 

[ttcustomcalls]

Thanks for the advice. The deal is actually to trade a call for a few hundred surfaces so I'm not out much if it doesn't work out. Just a few bucks for wood and a little of my time. The biggest part of the process that worried me was the finishing which it seems was your biggest problem. Blasting and anodizing, if it isn't just right I probably won't want to use it even if it's free. Any tips from your mishap on how to get the texture right?

Thanks,
TJ

[lightsoutcalls]

I farmed mine out for all of the processes.  I found that I liked the sound I got best from a surface that is blasted, but not with as heavy a texture as most blasted glass.  I hope that makes sense.  The heavier texture grips a striker well, but also seemed to change the pitch (downward) of the call.