Help a beginner pick his next pot call!

[DeadEye09]

First of all, I just wanted to say  for all the awesome info on this site. I hunt eastern turkeys in Georgia and I am wanting to get a new pot call and I was hoping y'all could help.

The only 2 pot calls I have now are a Knight and Hale Yella Hammer and a Primos Power Crystal (I know...rookie selection haha ) But I want my next one to come from a custom or semi-custom maker. The only thing I might add is that I have a little trouble being consistent with my purrs, so if y'all can recommend a call that can also help me purr better.

I have the hardest time making a decision and when I look at all the calls on this forum they all just look so sweet! But I am just not sure which surface and wood will fill my need best (I guess Im the only one that can figure that out!) ....but I figured, why not ask for help??
Thanks!

[scoot12]

I would look into a cherry bronze glass from WillowRidgeCalls or a sassfrass slate from MarkJM.  Both these calls sound great and make all the calls with ease.  You will end up buying more because I have never seen anything so addicting.  I know I have problems.  The cherry bronze glass was my first custom call and I killed a bird with it the first season using it. 

[misfire]

I would recommend a slate call. Slate is very user friendly and easy to keep conditioned

[afoshie]

for purrs and clucks cant beat a woodhaven cluck n purr pot. as far as the rest there are alot of talented makers around this site.

[dirt road ninja]

Don't worry about the surface or wood. Decide on a builder, tell them what your looking for sound wise and let them do their thing. You'll end up happier then trying to spec the call out yourself.

[davisd9]

M, Yingling makes a heck of a call.  Slate is one of the easier surfaces to use and as dirt road ninja said the wood is just for good looks mostly.

[honker22]

IMO- The bronzed glass pots are the best sounding and easiest to run.  Many of the call makers on here make them... also The Hooks Assasin (bronzed glass) is hard to beat

[Turkey Trot]

There is a passel of good builders in GA that you could visit.  Where in GA are you?


Just a few GA makers off the top of my head, which is not complete:

Misfire above is a Ga maker.
BeardHunter of Buford.
Waddle Whacker of Dallas.
Lonnie Mabry of Waleska.
Lonzo's of Bronwood (2 recent awards for glass calls)
Bud n Betty (Russell Lynch) of SC--award winner for pot calls
Dominator (Chad Hutcheson) of McRae/Helena GA
Tom Teasers
Dad's Custom Calls, Hazelhurst, GA
New Moon Calls (Alan Sentell) Summerville, GA.  He sells his crystal pot with two custom one piece strikers for $50 delivered.

There is a bunch of good makers on this site.

Someone has a LightsOut slate call in the classifieds for sale right now for $35, which would be a good deal.  

[DeadEye09]

Wow, I was totally clueless of all the call makers in GA, thanks! I am actually in the Powder Springs and Hiram/Paulding County area

And I have seen that LightsOut slate in the classifieds, and it seems very tempting..

[TauntoHawk]

No problem with those calls you listed, some of the very same calls I started with and killed birds using. But they dont hold a candle to some of the customs I have now

IMO the Hooks assassin in anodized aluminum http://www.mackspw.com/Item--i-HOOSMSS is one of the best bang for buck out there at a sale price of $30 (regular 45). Its an extremely user friendly surface with plenty of grip to help with your purrs and takes almost no conditioning.

the lights out slate in the classifieds is a good deal too, I have one his slates as well. My only dislike about slate is that its moody based upon weather and my aluminum is not

[Turkey Trot]

I liked the Hooks crystal and bronzed glass that I ran at the show last year.  I almost bought the crystal, but already had so many calls and additional items bought at the show.  The aluminum is very tempting at that price.

Slate is not good in the rain, but one can dry it out from time to time by holding a lighter a couple of inches under it and watching the moisture evaporate in a ring from center to edge. 

[jblackburn]

I like the pot calls from Gooserbat.  Either the slate or anodized aluminum with a hickory striker!

[mudhen]

I've been using Lights Out slates & aluminums for many years.

I like them all, but slate over glass is my go to call if it's not raining.

I think the key is the striker.  I carry 4-5 different ones and end up using all of them on most hunts.



I'm fond of Kaiser Kalls too:

Good luck with your search!

mudhen

[TREEDOG]

bud & betty slate call would be hard to beat for new turkey hunter and purr are great so are the yelps and cutts. You can get one for 55.00 on ebay from him. david halloran makes great call as well. I love he's crystal mistress ($65.00) and cherry slate call ($45.00) both are easy to play. only thing about david halloran if you order from he site it might take few weeks before he mails it.

Good luck get ready spend some money lol.

[redleg06]

There are a lot of great call makers on this site and I havent tried the majority of them....yet. But if I had to make a choice and go with only one call in my vest it would be an anodized aluminum calling surface.  I have two from Wendall Rye at Lightsout calls and couldnt be happier.

I think Aluminum is about as user friendly as slate but is more versatile with the range of sound it can make from soft subtle stuff to extremely loud and everything in between.