DUCK calls

[buckpredator]

this past year was the first year I really did any serious duck hunting. The thing is in the large group of guys I went duck hunting in only a couple were and good at all at calling. It was fun but it just didn't feel right to me to just shoot the ducks and not help call. Any way, I've read up on some calls from Foiles and Rich and Tone among others and just want to know what every one else has had luck with. One of my friends recommends the Strait Meat by Foiles, but i want to hear other opinions before i pull the trigger. I'm trying to figure out now so I can practice and get efficient before next season. any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated.

[huntingmaxima]

Stick with the Foiles Straight Meat. I guarentee you he will take care of that call for you for as long as you own it. I know Jeff very well.

[H20fowlr]

My personal favorite is my Big Guy's Best(primary call on my lanyard). I spent quite a few years in Missouri and Illinois facing huge competition and learning to call is a must. I buy calls anytime I find a good deal. I have found the best polycarbonate is a rich n tone call(my back up on my lanyard) , and I don't remember the model. I have used Foiles' calls(and they are very good), Duck Commander Call's, Rich n Tone, Haydel's, Primos Quaker boy, etc. I still have most of these calls and practice with different ones all the time.

My suggestion is that if you are new to calling, buy one of the tapes. Lohman's tape is not bad(don't like their calls), and I can't remember the other's I had. Lohman's tape really taught me how to call from my diaphragm. It helped with the hail, the cluck, the come back call. Do this on a cheaper call and then once you feel comfortable and can do these calls relativley well, then go shopping. If you are going to spend $125 on a good call, you can tell how it sounds, how it feels and if it's going to lock up after 2 mins of hard calling. I did find that starting out it was easier for me to blow a double reed, but now I don't use them as much as they typically lock up easier.

just my $0.02.

[wooduck26]

If you wanna sound like a DUCK, not a duck call buy an XR-2 Heres a sound file I made blowing my XR-2 and a Drake Mllards Whistle, You will have to turn up your speakers a bit as it recorded pretty quiet...............Dave

http://media.putfile.com/Drake--Hen-Sound-File

[wooduck26]

Heres another sound file I made with an RNT Timbre' Another call I highly recommend....

http://media.putfile.com/Hand-me-down-call

[H20fowlr]

Woodduck26, That's great. I think good callers can make almost any call sound good. A good musician doesn't blame his instrument. I think once you get through the bad calls, that most of the $25-30 range calls can be made to sound pretty good. Heck how many susies have you heard with that terrible hoarse voice. Each duck sounds different. Get the cadence, the air flow control, and know when to hit what sound is more crucial than pitch. I would say buy one of the polycarbonates(RnT is good) and practice. Then when you feel you done pretty well, then look for a call that you like if it differs from what you have.

After listening to Woodduck26, I guarantee you I can give him any number of calls and he will make them sound good.

Here is my analogy. We typically don't go out and by a $1200 shotgun for our first duck hunting experience. We go hunting, usually with a much cheaper gun, either borrowing or using a family hand down. We learn what we like, watch others, research (ie this site) and when we feel more comfortable we make the bigger investment(May be less than $1200). I think calls are the same way. Buy a lower priced call, try it, maybe buy another, and then move to soemthing different.

OK that's more than $0.02. I just get passionate about someone actually wanting to learn to call.

[koutdoors]

"A good musician doesn't blame his instrument."

But a good musician doesn't buy his instrument at Walmart...

A quality call WILL make a difference. Don't get me wrong, you can kill ducks over a $10 call but a quality wood or acrylic call will last forever and the sound won't change like those cheap calls.

[Tom Wilson]

I too firmly recommend the Foiles Straight Meat call. I have it in a single reed. I have others as well, but it is my primary call now.

I know you didn't mention price, so this isn't directed towards you at all, but I see so many of these posts that it cracks me up. Guys worrying about the cost of a duck call?? I'm not sure what you're looking to spend, but you can go to the store and get a good sounding inexpensive call, however, you will get what you pay for with a duck call. It kind of reminds me of those Master Card commercials...

bag full of decoys $200.00

New shotgun $1,000

New Gore tex camo parka $300

Duck Boat & Trailer $3,000

Shells & License $100.00

Food & Gas for the weekend $125

Not wanting to spend more than $12 on your most important piece of equipment... Priceless

Good luck on you're decision

[IceHawk]

I use alot of the Duck-commander calls and Carlson calls and I have been real pleased with them. I have had Phil Robertson custom make a few of my calls. To me his calls are very ducky sounding. I agree the Foiles calls are of good quality and sound great. I just haven't purchased one yet as I have found great success with these other calls.

[H20fowlr]

I guess I wasn't clear on what I was trying to express. I think you should buy a good call. These are going to be acrylic or expensive wood. But you don't need to start off there. Buy a decent one, and I don't mean the $12 ones, but for that $30 range there are some "decent" calls. Are they as good as a Foiles , or Big Guy'sBest, or all the other $100+ acrylics, I don't think so. But learning on the cheaper call allows you to know more of what you like and don't like before plopping down the bigger investment. It would be a bad situation for you to spend the money and then not like it. You have plenty of time to get one now, practice, and then buy a better call later this summer after your calling has improved and you have a better feel of what you like and dislike.

At the end of the day it's your decision.

Remember if your a bad caller, it doesn't matter how good your call is.

[eyehead]

RNT daisy cutter

Ever since i started using it all I shoot are big greenheads, with bands of course

[dukhnt]

I won't go in the marsh without my Foiles Strait Meat. Best call I have ever blown.

[wooduck26]

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I won't go in the marsh without my Foiles Strait Meat. Best call I have ever blown.

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Another Foiles Groupie? Try other calls you'll be amazed how much better other calls can sound....trust me, one of my first acrylic Duck calls was a Foiles, (#13 ORIGINAL design SMM) and I dont regret selling it for one minute!

[Quackaddict9]

I wouldnt go in the marsh without my Primos feedin' shaker call

[dukhnt]

Quote:

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Quote:

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I won't go in the marsh without my Foiles Strait Meat. Best call I have ever blown.

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Another Foiles Groupie? Try other calls you'll be amazed how much better other calls can sound....trust me, one of my first acrylic Duck calls was a Foiles, (#13 ORIGINAL design SMM) and I dont regret selling it for one minute!

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I have tried dozens of other calls. To me, this one blows them away. But everyone is different I guess. To each their own.

[koutdoors]

"Another Foiles Groupie? Try other calls you'll be amazed how much better other calls can sound....trust me"

That's my opinion as well. It's a decent call but compared to a few others on the market.....

But, you can kill birds over it and all that matters to some!

I prefer to steal birds from the guys blowing the Foiles

[Flick]

Take a look at an RNT Hunter, it's got the same guts as an Original which is much more expensive but the Hunter just has a poly insert, or the piece opposite your mouth when blowing into it. Sounds awesome for 40bucks

[dukhnt]

Quote:

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"Another Foiles Groupie? Try other calls you'll be amazed how much better other calls can sound....trust me"

That's my opinion as well. It's a decent call but compared to a few others on the market.....

But, you can kill birds over it and all that matters to some!

I prefer to steal birds from the guys blowing the Foiles

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Chances are you won't be stealing my birds. I prefer to find places where I am the only one on the lake or pond. I would rather hunt a secluded spot and shoot a couple of ducks than hunt a place that has you a hundred yards away from another group and getting your limit. It's all about the experience for me, not the killin'.

[ikeslayer]

I look at it like this. Every duck and goose sounds just a little different from the next. And it might not be enough that we notice but some suzy probalby does. So what i am guessing is that each call that comes out of a box sounds the same with some degree of difference i am sure but the are probably pretty close very close. so lets say that every time you heard this voice we will call it Malarie's voice you got shot at. It wouldn't take very long before you stopped going over to malarie's when you heard her call your name. I think ducks do the same thing. It is classical conditioning. They hear this certain sound and if they go to it they get shot at. yes ducks can't reason like we do but i think this happens. So i think foiles makes great calls however his success may be his own enemy because the more people blowing a foiles the smarter the ducks get to that sound. I personally blow a Custom made call from C&S Custom Calls the owner is my friend so that helps but with a few strokes of a file and shave here and there he can make a call sound different not good or bad just differnt and it suits my style. I think it doens't get any better than a custom call. You can get whatever the heck you want and then you have confidence and the sound all in one not to mention it can look as flashy and sharp as you would like and your name or nick name on it. that is just my theory of what i think. ike

[NEANGLER]

Foiles, Zink, RNT are the best calls for the money and all have good customer service. If you are a true duck hunter you are going to end up with a blethera of calls on the lanyard as you'll end up using different calls in different situations. i.e. one is raspier, one has better high end or low end, etc. Just make sure you go to a store that you can try them all out and make up your own mind by what sounds good to you. Good Luck.

[TeamStraightMeat]

[Note from admin: Please read forum policy before posting again]

[eyepatrol]

I'm one of those guys that uses the $10 Sure-shot duck call. I've used one for close to 20 years now. I personally love the call. Raspy, can blow loud or soft, easy to blow plus I can use it effectively on diver ducks. I've always thought about getting one of those $60 - $120 duck calls, but I've never had a need to. I get my fair share with the Sure-shot.

There are so many things and variables that are involved in bringing in ducks though. The brand of duck call is only one of them. You need to learn how to blow any call correctly and when to use and not use certain calling techniques.

I live on a lake with a slough nearby and what I've found the best thing to do is, during the spring when ducks fly back north (and in the fall too) I'll go down to that slough and just listen to how the ducks are calling. I'll have my call along and try to imitate the exact same calls they're doing. Practicing along with the real deal...that's what I've found helped me the most. Calling like a duck, in my opinion, is the most important factor. The duck call is second. Decoys and decoy placement all fall in line after that (in my book).

Just my $.02

[Dotch]

I agree basscatcher! Some of those calls blown improperly that require one to blow from the diaphragm sound like someone just got a hernia with a duck sitting on top of them. Never heard a duck that actually sounds like that. Well, maybe once, when I ran over a muscovy with the tractor, but I digress. Do the calls work when blown properly? Sure. Do they work any better than anything else? Hard to say on any given day with no basis for comparison. Like you, the thing I enjoy most is listening and imitating. We raised mallards for release as a kid and listening to them daily was the foundation for my calling. Listening to ducks since that time in ND & more recently on the CREP acreage has added to it. I still like playing around with some of the old Faulk's calls because they're easy to blow and that's what I could get my hands on easily in the flyway of North Central ND in the early '80's. Had a plastic Olt call that was an absolute piece of crap. That sounded more like a whoopie cushion than a duck. Am certain I'll buy some of the "gut-blower" calls too (Cabela's is way too close) but have turned a lot of ducks back into the dekes over the years with simple little Faulks calls. How much money I spend on calls is secondary to as you point out the set and how much fun I have.

[eyepatrol]

Right on Dotch! There's no better teacher than the duck itself. I do the same for Canada geese too. It's amazing the different calls they make beyond what is thought of as being "standard" sounds. Okay, now I want the spring to come so I can listen to the "sound of music" again!!!

[fishkid]

my friend bought a mallard mauler at the game fair and i liked the sound of it and the next year bought one. i think they are real nice calls. run from $40-175.

[NEANGLER]

Right on guys, alot has to do with how you rtblowing and what you sound like. Another is when to call and when not to call. You need to read the ducks and how they respond. Especially in late season when they have heard everyting under the sun the simple lonesome hen and less aggresiveness or even the drake whistle work wonders. Get out in the field and watch em - especially right now if you snow goose hunt when its slow and the ducks are working you - listen to what they are saying and play with your call with em.

[The_Duckslayer]

I have always had real good luck with the Haydel calls and they are less that $20.00. I have the double reed dual tone and the cutback. When you lay into that cutback the ducks in the next county can probably hear it. I am not much good at the "chuckle" or "feeder" call but my son is. I get them close and he finishes them. Have a good one and N Joy the Hunt././Jimbo

[buckpredator]

hey guys thanx for the replies, I have taken your advice and I have bought a cheap double reed and am getting better for the most part. One call I am really having trouble with is the feeder call, but I'm sure with time I will get used to that, anyways thanx again.