Bad Calling - Advantage or Disadvantage

[Greg Massey]

Does bad calling on public or private land for gobblers have an advantage sometimes over good calling / cadence? Why i ask this question on a lot of these YouTube video's and especially on some of these outdoor channels these people are using less than desirable calls and you can tell from watching them, they haven't practiced and they still manage to call up gobblers and make the kill... It's amazing how much they spend on camera equipment etc.  So again advantage or disadvantage?

So is calling overrated in most cases? 

What do you strive for in calling gobblers?

I do know some of you don't watch YouTube, but i do know you hunt public and private ground and have heard some pretty bad calling and some pretty good calling.

[Tail Feathers]

Bad calling will rarely be an advantage.  Sometimes the turkeys don't seem to mind much.  If you find the right bird on the right day, bad calling can still get him in.  Yes, I've heard some real hens that sounded pretty bad, but overall, good calling is better.

[roberthyman14]

I'm not a very good caller.  But I mainly work on purring, I believe purring and leaf scratching will get more birds in range vs tons of yelping.   

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[Jfowler82]

I believe location trumps calling almost every time . Being where that turkey wants to be or is comfortable coming to is a huge part of the puzzle. Although I try to be as real as I can with my calling and just enough to keep him coming . Kinda like reeling in a fish ! From a calling standpoint I do think that a little more practice for some wouldn't hurt .

[ScottTaulbee]

In my opinion, for most scenarios, the realism doesn't matter as long as you say what he wants to hear when he wants to hear it and you're set up in a spot he wants to be. But, with that being said, I feel realism is going to kill more turkey when they've been hammered by the other guys first. But, you can be the best grand national caller to walk the earth and if you don't know when or what to say, or set up where the bird doesn't want to go, you're not going to call up very many. If that makes sense. I called up and killed an awful lot of turkey when I thought I sounded less than realistic when I was starting out. But one day, I was hunting a family farm and unbeknownst to me, a cousin was on the same farm and I was working a bird with a hen and didn't get him. I walked out of the holler and ran in to his set up about 75 yards away out the opposite ridge and he asked me if I heard those two hens going at it. I told him there was only one hen and me having some words. He told me that i sounded exactly like the hen and after that, hunting on public land, i seemed to be eating more turkey than other guys hunting the same areas. 


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[Tom007]

I think if the Tom's in the mood, he's coming to a hen sound, even if it's sub-par. I rather be a good caller than a bad caller, but I have heard some hens that sounded like a beginner on a mouth diaphragm. The right set-up and simple leaf scratching has killed many 3 year old Tom's for sure....

[zelmo1]

Worst calling I ever heard was a real hen, lol. Our ears are different than our prey. Keep them interested or wondering and you have a chance. Their senses are far superior to ours. Patience and preparation is how we beat them. Z

[Paulmyr]

I guess the questions I have is, are these poor callers you are seeing on YouTube calling up gobblers or is there a decoy in the works drawing them in?

[Greg Massey]

I guess the questions I have is, are these poor callers you are seeing on YouTube calling up gobblers or is there a decoy in the works drawing them in?

I think it's some of both, but getting that gobbler's attention in most cases you still at least have to make a squawking sound.  Hey I'm over here.

[Tom007]

Does "Poor" calling immediately turn off a gobbler? Or does it make him more "skiddish" on his way in, maybe causing him to hang up just out of gun range?

[quavers59]

  Excellent Thread!
    I have been bouncing around and watching lesser known Utube Turkey Groups  and sometimes just a single Hunter.
    I have heard bad calling mostly on the Horseshoe Mouth Diaphragms.  That is all some were using. Somehow the Gobblers kept coming.
   I only hunt Public. You can't  make any mistakes  there. I think a Private Land Gobbler if unpressurized will probably  keep coming on.

[Paulmyr]

I guess the questions I have is, are these poor callers you are seeing on YouTube calling up gobblers or is there a decoy in the works drawing them in?

I think it's some of both, but getting that gobbler's attention in most cases you still at least have to make a squawking sound.  Hey I'm over here.

I agree. I maybe should have expanded a little and said  "a decoy in the works drawing them the last bit enabling a shot".

[Greg Massey]

Does "Poor" calling immediately turn off a gobbler? Or does it make him more "skiddish" on his way in, maybe causing him to hang up just out of gun range?

I do think it can cause a gobbler to shy away. But in all honesty it shouldn't , i think having yourself in the right position and where he wants to go is important.


Good question Tom, i look forward to what others think...

[bbcoach]

Personally, I don't think any of us has the slightest idea of what GOOD calling is.  I'll explain.  We are human beings and are hunting a wild animal.  For the most part, we all have that Perfect Hen in OUR HEAD.  We try to immolate that hen.  We buy calls because of that hen.  We have calling contests, entered by humans and judged by humans and award what those judges think is the World Champion based on this bias.  To me, there is only one judge we should rely on and that is that Gobbler we are trying to bag.  It is evident, all of us has bias on this forum, because everyone of us agree to disagree of what we think the Best call is.  We ALL get beat, even World Champions, every day of the season.  I believe calling and woodsmanship play a very Big part in calling in that gobbler and it depends on what that gobbler has in his HEAD on any given day.  Carry a bunch of different calls every hunt and see which one will get in HIS HEAD.  You may be surprised.

Great Thread Greg.  I think we will see some great comments.

[deerhunt1988]

Mediocre calling and good woodsmanship trumps awesome calling and poor woodsmanship when it comes to killing turkey.

It is more important to understand WHAT you are saying and WHEN to say it than it is to just sound like a world champion.

As far as the woodsmanship part, a lot of that is the set up like has previously been mentioned. And moving through the woods undetected, understand turkey patterns and behavior, etc.