Alright, Gobblenut wanted me to post how I liked my new longbox from Ronnie Clough of Close Calls. Well, I got it today and decided to post reviews on all three new calls I got from him this spring.

We' ll begin with the pot and peg callers. Ron' s pots are my favorites, their slightly smaller than most and they just seem to fit my hand superbly.

" Chestnut glass"

The first was a glass call in a hand-turned pot of 100 year old American chestnut.

Visual Appeal: 10
The wood is really pretty. In the light it shines with a glow similar to honey, very nice. Couple that with Close Calls' signature green decal under the glass and you have one awesome looking turkey call.

Sound quality: 9
The striker that came with the call didn' t perfrom well at all, it just sounds flat and dead. So, I put my favorite striker to it, a laminated birch by Pete, and the call began to sing. Nice low key clucks and purrs. Great two note yelps. With the Pete' s stick, the yelps have a real high front end, but the rollover has lots of scratch.

I haven' t decided if I' ll take this call hunting or not, maybe just keep it nice because of it being chestnut.


" Double Trouble"

Second, I bought one of his famous " Double Trouble" turned, red cedar, slate over slate calls.

Visual Appeal: 10
Cedar has always been one of my favorite call woods, the grain on this particular piece is exquisite. The pot he picked for me has a great little knot in the middle that adds tremendously to it' s character.

Sound quality: BIG 10!
This by far the sweetest talkin' slate call I have! The striker that came with it is pretty " plain jane" , just a hickory rod with a corn cob cap, but it sounds wonderful on the call. With this striker the call is very clear and piercing, great sounds. With my Pete' s stick, the sound is just as good, with more rasp.

The call sounds great when it' s toned down for tree calls and such, but it can crank in a hurry! My favorite of all my slate calls by far!It' ll be riding in my vest for sure!

" Spring Fever"

On to the Spring Fever long box, which just arrived today. I chose the unpainted " hunter' s" model, with just a clear finish.

Visual Appeal:another 10
I' ll start by saying the looks of this call blew me away. I knew what it would like and everything, but when I first removed it from the wrapping I was just in awe [:-]. It' s made from sycamore and heart walnut. If you' ve never laid eyes on sycamore, it looks similar to curly maple, very fancy wood. One of the best looking boxes I' ve ever seen.

Sound quality:9
As most of you probably know, boat paddles don' t sound like regular boxes. They are very, squeeky squawky. If you don' t know what you' re buying, you may be quick to return a paddlebox. I took it outside and really cranked on it and the call sounded very realistic. The calls just slice the air, should be awesome for locating. I also toned down a bit and was pleasantly suprised. It' s tough to call soft because the side rails are so long, the switch from high to low is pretty sudden, but I got the hang of it.

This is exactly what I wanted. A good loud longbox for striking birds, but also one that looked good. Now I just need a holster for this bad boy and I' ll be set. I might make one from tanned deer hide.

If your interested in Ronnie' s calls, check out his website www.close-calls.com
If you order, just tell him Tyler(the kid from PA) sent you. He' s a great guy, and as of now, my favorite custom call maker.

PBB