Leon's turkey caller

[Turkz39]

Does anyone know anything about this call?

[Turkz39]

Does anyone use this type of call?

[Rapscallion Vermilion]

Cool find.  Hopefully Herb McClure (a OG member) will see this and chime in.  That is his favored call and he has chapter about this call in his book Native Turkeys.  The call was introduced by Leon Johenning around the late 1950s or early 1960s, I believe.  Leon Johenning also mentions it in his book The Turkey Hunter's Guide.

[Turkz39]

Thanks for the info!  I hope Herb chimes in for sure. 

[Herb McClure]

Leon Johenning   Leon, the man and his unique turkey caller have been in my life as a turkey hunter since 1964.  There are very few turkey men today, who knew him personally, or ever knew much about him, except from reading his book which he wrote or from collecting his callers.  However, Jim Cassidy, has a good chapter about this old call-maker in his book "Remembering the Greats".  Leon and I had many conversations back and forth;by telephone and letters about his caller and why he developed this type of caller.  The following are things he related to me.  Leon was a turkey hunter going back into the late 20's and 30's, and when World War ll began he joined the Navy and was schooled and taught to be a sound and vibration expert to detect enemy submarines.  After the war was over, Leon,in his later years used his sound knowledge, taught to him, experimented in trying to duplicate sound vibrations, as well as sound-tones; much like the calling of real live turkeys.  Leon, being a Fall turkey hunter, also wanted a caller that would duplicate the kee-kee calls of the young turkeys, like the  wing bones and trumpets do.  He emphasized, to me, that with breath calling, one can put feeling into the calling, especially when having a real live turkey in one's mind's eye. This makes the calling more natural and life-like.  He, also knew when calling that the wing-bones and trumpets were very similar in sound vibrations of a real live turkey.  So, Leon using his Navy sound training to devise a caller that would have sound-tones, and also sound-vibrations like live turkeys.  He did this by using a rubber diaphragm, which is inhaled to make it vibrate.This was a more natural sound-vibration; like the wild turkey have. This was measured using a scientific way of measuring with an instrument; instead of using just human ears to judge how a turkey's calling is duplicated.
  All call makers, that I have knowledge of, use their human ears to listen to how a caller sounds, and no knowledge of the vibrations produced.  But, Leon being a trained sound-vibration expert, as well as an expert turkey hunter recognized the true results being duplicated. 
Unfortunately, for Leon, he did not have access to various rubber back in his time, and the only available rubber supply was condom rubber which he used doubled-up to apply.  The double-ply wound stick together and become like one thick-ply. To thick; when all slavered up.  This caused multiple bad things to happen thus keeping a user from being able to make the caller call ; not to mention , trying to learn how to use the caller and keeping the two ply rubbers in good condition.  Very few people ever haD the patience to learn how to make this caller call IN it's full potential.
Many years later, after Leon had passed away, my long time good friend and hunting partner, James McClure, who also uses a Leon caller, experimened and taped on a single rubber dispragm or modern-day thickness on his caller .  This result eleminated the trouble of diaphragms sticking together.  Another friend made an exact copy of Leon's box caller for me except for the way Leon made his caller using the condom rubber diaphragms.  On this duplicated caller, the rubber diaphragms, which are available today are taped on this caller, like the way, James and I are now using our original Leon callers. 

As for me, having artificial hearing , I cannot judge turkey callers,the sound-tones, However, nothing has ever equaled my Leon caller in bringing gobblers into my calling. I, will leave the judging of this turkey caller, to the gobblers that have responded to my caller and also to a friend that I demosrted my Leon turkey caller too; at Unicoi last mounth, who is a calling judge.  That was Mr Larry Proffitt, who judges at the Nationals; in Nashville and an expert turkey caller.

[yelpy]

Pretty cool history behind that little call! Thanks for sharing!!! 

[sbbow]

Thats a nice history lesson. Thanks !!


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[greencop01]

Thanks for sharing your life's experience with Mr Johenning and with your gobblers. I  like your book too Mr. McClure.   

[Rapscallion Vermilion]

Thanks Herb.  Very interesting history.

[larry9988]

I heard a recording of Mr. Joehenning gobbling on his call and it was the most realistic reproduction of a turkey gobble I have ever heard.

[Turkz39]

Herb,  thanks so much for the information

[Spitten and drummen]

Its awesome to hear from one of the turkey hunting elders. The old school way of hunting turkeys are about gone. That is why I love Unicoi. You get to meet some of the best turkey call makers and more apt to meet some of the seldom heard of legends. You are able to talk with them and hear some good tales.

[Turkz39]

I have never been to unicoi, but I would love to go sometime

[southern_leo]

Sounds cool. Does anyone make a version today? If not someone should so this style doesn't die since it's that good.

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[Herb McClure]

In reference to Southern-Leo's post, cocerning some modern-day call maker, re-making the Leon turkey caller and improving it to a modern-day caller; thus using today's rubber diaphragms, and keeping the legacy alive; for this type caller. This was my reason to post on here too begin with; hoping to keep his legacy.

Originally, I had planed to tell my same story, at Unicoi's Call Makers Event; and the call makers there. However, I not being a call maker, I was not allowed to talk, or tell my story. Even, after the round table discussion was over; on in-haled wind instruments like wing bones and trumpets; this year.

One more ti-bit, about Leon's caller.  Back in 1964, in Yatesville, Ark., a Mr. Bill Clements, won the Champion of Champion Turkey Calling contest; using the Leon Turkey caller.
Herb McClure