Call Care

First thing to do is get a big mouthfull of cheesy hashbrowns then blow through the call to get some chedder and tater stuck in it.........LOL

J/K of course, that always seemd to happen to me. Acrylic calls are pretty maintenance free, I rinse mine with cold water everyonce in a while that about it. New cork and reed as needed for my duck calls.

I'm a fan of the Bolens CAllin' Strings

Seems like everyone who has a MuddyDog Lanyard is very happy with it also.

on both replies... since its acrylic just rinse with clean water. Its amazing what a new cork will do if your call is sticking, have a few around

Yep. Snapping the tip of the reed will make it break over easier. i also like to tap the wedge into the insert a little deeper with the barrel from time to time. That seems to make it a little more crisp. Buy a couple extra reeds and keep them in the blind bag. And again, run some water through it every now and then. As far as the acrylic and band go...Im going to give mine a polish once I get a chance but they are quite durable.

If you feel the need to take the guts and reed out, a sharpie is your best friend.

Hountzmj,
Where do you live buddy? Let me throw a few things out there for you... First off if you are close to me, we can go over a few things sometime in person. As far as maintenance on your call, again acrylic is a very maintenance free material, mainly just rinse out with cold water, and I use a 12 gauge cloth swab, or a paintball marker swab to use to wipe out the barrel and insert (on a goose call), mainly you are rinsing it off to keep from buildup of junk on the toneboard. Like mentioned before you'll want to watch your reeds, they will last a long time, but check them out from time to time to make sure they are not delaminating, if they are you will see a milky white spot in the reed or edges, and then it is time to replace, also if you crack a reed you want to replace it. In your duck call, if it is real cork, you will want to replace quite regularly, and you should learn to be able to determine if it's time...the call will seem flat and also may want to start "sticking" more. With santoprene "cork", it is rubber and will last an extremely long time before it needs replaced. To shine up your bands you can use a product called Flitz metal polish, and it can also be used to shine up your acrylics (to a certain degree). Acrylics can be brought back to the original shine with a rubbing compound and alot of elbow grease. Your poly calls do not use abrasives as it will only ruin the finish, these calls are laser polished when new and that is it. Wood calls, you want to keep them hydrated, don't let them sit out in direct hot sunlight or in extreme wet for prolonged times, and if they do get extremely wet, let them dry out on their own in a well ventilated shaded area out of extreme heat. Some may use chapstick, etc. around the mouthpiece to keep it hydrated, this is usually the area that gets abused the most with the moisture from you mouth raises the grain and ruins the finish.

If you want to learn to call, get you a copy of Shawn Stahl's "Honker Talk" DVD, and also a copy of Scott Threinen's Bad Grammer CD. Also Shawn has a CD out called "Straight Talk" through Buck Gardner Calls. I can get these for you if you can't find them anywhere. Also want to let you know, that we are having a in depth calling/hunting seminar called "Grammer School 101" with Scott Threinen coming down to conduct the class, it will be in depth with plenty of time for each participant, everything you ever wanted to know about goose hunting and calling. Cost is $25 per person and we are providing a meal of hotdogs/hamburgers, chips and drink, also you will receive a copy of the Bad Grammer CD.

If I can help out in any way, just let me know.

Thanks for the hints guys.

I thought just the "pluck" was what everyone meant by snapping the reed. I've done that and it seems like it might be breaking a bit easier.

I am planning on attending the HIT Squad seminar in December. It's just a bit early to register for it yet... I travel for work and sometimes don't know my schedule until a week or two in advance. Closer to December I'll register.

I'm in the Warsaw area so it's not too far off from me.

In the mean time I'll just keep practicing. I'm not expecting to me good or even passable on my call for the opener on Saturday. I'll be hunting with my dad so I'll let him do the calling on his flutes. I would like to be able to be decent by the time the later season gets going. I think I should have the basics by then as long as I get lots of practice in....

I'm not looking to be an expert. Just to kill some geese. Maybe in a few years I'll try out some contest calling... but for now I'd just be happy to put some geese on the ground.

Thanks Again.

--hountzmj

A few clucks, moans, and feeding calls will do that for ya.

When mine get full of donut crumbs, I just spit on them. ;D