Quite frankly I have never called elk so perhaps my input means nothing at all. I have called alot of moose however and for some it will be the same question as this one. I find when calling the moose it depends on what season you are hunting them in. They have a time when they are challenging other bulls just before the rut kicks in. I find a bull call works best during this time of the hunt. Then when the bulls are joining the cows a cow call works best and the bull most of the time ignores the bull call. When using a bull call every time a bull answered I would call back to it. Trying to mimmick the sounds the bull is making. But like I have stated I have no experience hunting elk. I would just think it would close to the same thing how ever...