Raspy or not?

[deerbasshunter3]

Maybe I have not heard enough hens yelping, but it never seems like they have much, if any, rasp in their yelps. Why is it that so many calls are raspy? Wouldn't this hurt your chances of calling in a gobbler?

[TerryLNanny]

As the turkey hen gets older, they start to sound more raspy. I've heard it in the woods as well. The Gobblers like it.

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[1iagobblergetter]

I like a good raspy call. Seems to get em cranked up and on a windy day I feel like my calling travels well. It's kinda what floats your boat,but that's what I've had goodluck with and prefer.

[Marc]

I like to have a mixture of calls with varying amounts of rasp.

Maybe at the end of the season, that young high-pitched hen is the only one not sitting on a nest...  Maybe that raspy call will seduce that horny tom mid-morning...

Admittedly, I have come to like a bit less rasp than previous...  I like mid or moderate rasp, and I prefer a bit higher pitched call...  Seems like game in general responds better to a bit higher pitch (at least in my limited experience).

[MK M GOBL]

I don't use the super raspy calls much either I like a 2.5 reed or 3 in a diaphragm and like the sounds on my slate, I do have a "ringy" high pitch aluminum call I use at times that a bird will hit when it didn't respond to other calls. My thought is give them what they like and they'll come runnin' 

I think if you really learn "Turkey Rhythm" when your calling you'll be far ahead of the game!!

MK M GOBL

[Happy]

I personally am not a fan of super raspy calls. A lot of turkeys have died from them but I just don't run into many super raspy hens in my neck of the woods. I do carry a raspy diaghram for jake yelps but if I am trying to emulate a hen I like a clear front end dropping down to a slight rasp.

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[EZ]

I like a clear front end dropping down to a slight rasp.

My preference also. And you can always make it more raspy by dropping your tongue more.

[slwayne]

I like to have a mixture of calls with varying amounts of rasp.

Maybe at the end of the season, that young high-pitched hen is the only one not sitting on a nest...  Maybe that raspy call will seduce that horny tom mid-morning...

Admittedly, I have come to like a bit less rasp than previous...  I like mid or moderate rasp, and I prefer a bit higher pitched call...  Seems like game in general responds better to a bit higher pitch (at least in my limited experience).

x2

[Bowguy]

I've heard/seen guys call birds so unraspy they were almost flutey. It's not my style as I want some rasp. Sections of most pots can add or detract rasp from the call, you can change it up by different striker usage, running in dif areas or w mouth calls all fairly easily.
Some birds fire up to different things n it's best not to generalize until you see what works best for you n in your area.
Confidence in a call or type of calling can go a long way so if you want to use less rasp, go for it. Cadence n knowing when to call n when not to I believe is more important. I call it positive/negative response. If it's not working don't do it. If it is continue. That can be either calling or not. Weigh out your responses. Hope that made sense

[TauntoHawk]

I have heard some of the raspiest yelps come from what has to be a chain smoking hens with a sore throat but you are correct lots of hens don't have a lot of rasp as well... I think as far as calls go and seemingly people want raspier the better its a combo of calling to sound like other peoples calling, rather than trying to imitate hens they've heard they try and sound like another raspy caller they've heard. Another reason is raspy can cover up the fact that a caller doesn't have a good two tone yelp and roll over. Its easier to go from mid tone to really raspy on a mouth call than a high front end with a sharp break into moderate raspy, the later takes more control over the call.

[M Sharpe]

Most people get more wrapped up in their calling than they do hunting!! I like a clear front end that falls into a nice rasp. About 3-4 notes of it.

[MG150]

One helpful tip I got from talking to Glen Marrer on how he plays a pot call.The smaller and tighter circle you play the clearer the yelp,as you expand your circle size you can hear the rasp come in

[wvmntnhick]

I like a raspy call personally. Seems to work for me better than a clean Yelp. Not so much rasp as it sounds like the bad is choking but enough to be more than noticeable. It's worked so far and I don't intend to change it any time soon.

[GobbleNut]

 Speaking only about the use of the yelp in turkey calling, from my experience, I have concluded that there are yelps that hens make when they are just going about their business,...and then there are yelps hens make when they are looking for the company of a gobbler.  Having said that, just like people, turkey voices are not all the same. One hen that is urgently seeking a gobbler does not necessarily sound like the next one,...or the one after that. 

The trick is getting a gobbler to interpret your yelping to be that of a hen that's looking for a gobbler,...and not just that of a hen that is "going about her business".  Depending on a gobbler's state of mind, he might go to any yelping he hears, or he may need some pretty specific sounding yelping before he gets interested. 

If I was to generalize based on what I have personally experienced, I would say that the most consistent producer of "positive" responses from gobblers for me has been a more raspy back end on yelping,...more so than a clear or less raspy yelp.  However, there seems to me to be a "window" of raspiness in calling.  That is, if a yelp is either not raspy enough,...or too raspy,...it will get less-positive results than a yelp that is within that window of what a gobbler wants to hear. 

We always refer to the two-note, or high-low ends of a yelp,...and some people extol the importance of having a good break-over on their yelping.  Honestly, from what I have seen, the important element in the yelp that seems to attract the most gobbler attention is the back-end,...and specifically the emphasis and inflection that is put on that. 

In the end, success or failure in calling a bird is going to be based on what HE wants to hear, rather than what YOU THINK he wants to hear.  Sometimes anything will call them,...and sometimes nothing will,...and sometimes there may be something in between that, if you discover what it is, will bring them to you. 

As others have noted, being able to vary your yelping can, at times, be the key to success.  ...And do not underestimate the importance of sounding like a hen that a gobbler is familiar with,...either accidently or intentionally.  I am pretty certain that many a gobbler has met his end by the sheer good fortune of a hunter hitting on a sound that reminded that gobbler of a current(or long lost) love interest.     

[beakbuster10]

I think just saying clear or raspy is generalizing calling and turkey hunting too much. There are way too many things that play in to killing a gobbler other than the the call itself. Saying the right thing is the most important thing IMO when calling. Being where he want to be is also paramount. The best callers and hunters in the world aren't going to kill many turkeys by calling them down a bluff across two woven wire fences and a wide creek.
Knowing where gobblers want to be and patience will kill more turkeys than any other aspect of turkey hunting. Unless you're reaping them, but that's a different thread.


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