Make me a recommendation

[WNCTracker]

I've not experimented much in my life with different calls. I've had the same 3 slates with acrylic strikers for 30 years. I have some diaphragms that I like but I'd like to expand my toolbox to other calls. I don't have a trumpet, box, tube, or any other friction calls. What should I get and why. (Mi don't care how it looks and (Pretend) Cost isn't a factor


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[Greg Massey]

Get with Mike, on this forum and get you a Spring Creek long box that he makes. He makes a great long box for the money and you want be disappointed with his long box.. He has one now that sounds great and it's Red Cedar over 1/4 sawn white oak...he also make a great short box and Mike will play the call for you before you buy the call for you to get the sound your looking for...  I ordered my second long box from him today Sassafras lid over red Ceder..it has a sharp loud young hen sound. The other one i have of his is Eastern Red ceder lid over Chestnut... If you ever buy another call get you a long box for sure...

[coyote1]

X2 on the long box from Mike. I have a cedar lid/sassafras and black cherry lid/tiger maple. The long box is a versatile call. He also makes a nice short box.

Al and Josh at SS calls is another great option. They make really nice box calls and scratch boxes. I only have 1 box from them, a leopard wood/mineral stained poplar and 2 on order. It sounds great and looks awesome.

Their scratch boxes are easy to play and sound great as well. These are different than most calls people use and very realistic. Scratchers can be played soft and make some of the best clucks & purrs you will ever hear imo.  All these calls are very reasonably priced.

[SteelerFan]

A logical step, in my opinion, would be a quality box. There are many great call makers to choose from and you'll see the names mentioned many times. A good box just about plays itself. Very short learning curve. Purple Heart over cedar or walnut over poplar are 2 classic combos that will give you 2 different sounds. But the combinations are almost endless.

You can get a great box for $45 - $100 without having to wait 2 years for it. SS Custom Calls, Halloran, Spring Creek are a couple that come to mind.

Hard to go wrong with a scratch box as mentioned, also.

Tube calls are fun to run, and offer a different sound. A little more of a learning curve, but not bad.

Trumpets are great. But most definitely the most difficult to master in my opinion. Very much worth it, but they do take a lot of practice. A lot. To me, that challenge is the fun part. I equate that to buying a guitar for the 1st time because you want to impress the ladies, and you just want to learn to play. The guys / gals that play guitar well, sound really good and make it look easy. The first time you strum one? Not so much...

To me, that's the great thing about learning different types of calls. I can hunt and kill birds just fine with a $6 mouth call or two. It's just a lot of fun learning to master all the different types. Have fun!

**edit: Forgot to mention - there's a whole world waiting for you just in pot call / striker combinations as well. A good pot call matched with a good striker is fun to play. A good glass or crystal pot will add another hen or two to your arsenal if you only run slate calls now.

Again, there are many, many quality call makers. You'll find yourself searching for the elusive "holy grail" - especially with pot calls. The one that seems magical by others standards. I'm not sure it exists, but we won't admit that to ourselves... Lol

[slicksbeagles1]

If you are close to Unico State Park in Helen Georgia come up there next year you can try different calls and decide what you like. Since you have had luck with the calls you have wait and try them all. January 12-14, 2018. There have been some good recommendations but thought I would mention it.

[MDSTRUTNRUT]

BE CAREFUL TRYING NEW CALLS IS VERY ADDICTIVE!   

[Spitten and drummen]

Oh my. You start only buying one custom call and you can very easily become an addict. Tread carefully or be prepared to spend some dough. All joking aside , I just love great sounding turkey calls. I also love collecting them. Our season runs a month and a half and I could easily hunt a couple of different box calls and pot calls each day of our season and never use the same one twice .

[SteelerFan]

LOL - the addiction is real!

To answer the OP specifically - some of the calls that I have and sound good to me, and would buy again or recommend:

SS Custom Calls
Cedar / Purpleheart short box
Butternut / Kwila short box

Any scratch box combo (I have 2 - like both)

Austin Hornberger
Poplar / Walnut short box - field grade

Spring Creek
Cedar / Purpleheart short box

Jeff White
Butternut / Bloodwood long box

Pot Calls
Hanks Zebrawood bronzed glass / aluminum
Roberts Zebrawood bronzed glass / aluminum
Roberts Poplar bronzed glass / aluminum
Yingling slate, glass, crystal, titanium
Sneed Hot Hen / Outlaw Hen
Longnecker Padauk slate
Schaffer slate
Blackstone Crystal over cherry
Sinclair Titanium

Trumpets
Mero (2)
KP
A.G.E.
Crawdad

Tube
McClain

Strikers
Lyman Tulipwood / B&W Ebony (pretty sure ALL are great)
Torman Dymondwood, Black Locust, Ipe
McClain Black Locust
Roberts Macassar Ebony, Dymondwood,



There are and have been others, and this is a short list compared to most - but this represents my current "go to" flock that I wouldn't hesitate going to the woods with.

[Rzrbac]

Man I'm right there with you!  Used mouth calls my whole life and started using a pot about ten years ago on occasion.  This forum has got me wanting to try every kind of call. Longboxes really intrigue me as they just seem to have an old fashioned look. The more I read about trumpets they seem to be the most primitive form of turkey calls. 

I recently picked up a tube call from Mr. Lewis and have had a lot of fun practicing with it. I found it to be a pretty easy call to run (I'm proficient but by no means have it mastered). 

What I have noticed when trying new types of calls and I have limited experience, is the tube and I think maybe a trumpet will be the easiest for me to pick up.  I say I this because of my experience on mouth calls.  It just seems easier to transfer emotion into a call using air instead of my hands.

Having said this, I'm determined to try them all. I've never taken a scratchbox to the woods but many years ago I made a few of them and surprisingly they sounded good.  I gave them all away, kind of wished I would have kept one.

My recommendation would be buy one type of call that is of quality but too expensive and just try and wear it out!  That's my game plan, a trumpet and longbox are next.  I like air operated calls because I can practice while I'm driving. Good luck with whatever you choose.

[Bowguy]

You wanna mix up your sounds.

For pots- Schafer aluminum
Dawkins or Lonzo stoned
Dustin jones or MAC slick aluminum
Halloran crystal mistress

Short boxes- SS all the combos from they I've tried are great
Halloran Purple Heart/cedar

Longboxes-McKamey, l like his bloodwood over mineral poplar, got a bunch n they all sound great. SS also makes really good ones

Scratchers-no question SS. Their redheart/holly is hard to beat but I also like their yellow heart/ mineral poplar n their padauk/butternut

Cane calls n wing bones-Mark Sharpe

Just those couple n we'll recommend more but it's as good a start as any

[WNCTracker]

Good stuff guys. Thanks. I fooled around on wing bones when I was a kid so maybe I could run a trumpet but I think maybe a box call is gonna be my pick. I'm pretty happy with how my slate calls sound and I have 3 that all have different tones. They're probably what I'm best with but I've made myself use diaphragms and they've become my favorite for the obvious advantage of hands free calling.   What's the difference in sound in short and long box calls?  It's funny, the box I had as a kid was easy to play I just didn't like it as much as the pot so I never used it and got stuck in my ways. I think


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[Bowhuntr73]

Good reading guys!!!

[coyote1]

Long box is louder. I find it very hard to purr on a lb. It will do everything else including a kee-kee.

Short box will do everything except kee-kee. A good box will play almost effortlessly.

[boatpaddle]

DON'T put yourself thru it....

     Back away from your computer, then turn it off.....

     The ADDICTION is quite overwhelming, in choices of type of calls, woods, makers, & the COSTS.....

     

[SteelerFan]

DON'T put yourself thru it....

     Back away from your computer, then turn it off.....

     The ADDICTION is quite overwhelming, in choices of type of calls, woods, makers, & the COSTS.....

     

TRUTH