I know JLH makes strikers out of pecan wood, but as I understand it, it's pretty low on the weight/density scale compared to other striker woods (snake, macassar, rosewoods etc). As for call wood, I'm fairly sure I've heard of old timers in the States making pecan boxes, but as you say - no one's cutting down their trees for lumber if they can get a good crop yield off of them! I often wondered the same of Butternut though - seems no one makes a pot in it!