Call for Beginner
 

This will be my first year seriously going after turkeys. I hunted them two years ago and got one, but only from being in the right place at the right time. I'm planning on hunting them this year and wanna learn to use calls. What call should I look at to get? I want it to be simple to use, I'm new at this. I have a gander mountain and a **cks sporting goods near me. Plus a few local shops.
Thanks for the suggestions!
-jake

Also, I'll be hunting Ohio and Pennsylvania, no electronic calls.
-Jake

Welcome to the sport Jake. In my opinion, the most exciting game animal out there.My turkey hunting mentor started me off using a slate friction call. They are very easy to use. Either have an experienced caller show you the basics or get yourself a few instructional videos. Knight and Hale used to sell a slate call and a DVD combo that was pretty good. If you learn a few basic calls, and know when to use them, you can kill birds. Just my opinion and experience. Good luck.

You can get instructional cds and dvds that come with calls. Good luck

For a beginner, I'd say nothing is easier to learn than a "slate". That would include glass, ceramic, metal, etc. They work when wet and with very little practice, you can easily make all the calls that turkeys make with little movement.

So I should be looking for a slate call with an instructional DVD. My sister will likely tag along on a few hunts. Can we set up say, fifty yards apart. Let me call and hope the turkeys pass one of us? This works with predators, Can I expect it to work with turkeys? She won't want to learn how to call. But she'll likely ask to come out hunting a few times when I go. If one set-up would work, that would be ideal!
-Jake

Set up together. Much safer.

Alright, we'll do that. I have a couple ground blinds, I'll try to find a set up where we can watch two different ways. I'm getting excited already!
-Jake

Be sure to put in your scouting time. Knowing where the birds are and what they do once they hit the ground is important. Learn the area your hunting like the back of your hand.

Box calls are also very easy to learn, that's what my dad gave me as a kid. Whatever you decide to go with, hope you enjoy the turkey woods this spring!

RP, I know my land pretty well. That's how I got my first bird. I knew where they were feeding and set up close by. But I wanna try the calls this year and hunt them "For Real", if that makes sense. I've looked at Gander Mountain's website, and they have a lot of options for the slate calls. So I'll stop by there sometime and see whats on their shelf. Thanks for the help so far.
-Jake

this spring is also my first season turkey hunting. I picked up a 3 pack of primos mouth calls and a slate call a few weeks ago and have just been practicing with those haha i'm getting it down pretty good though

Last year, on opening morning I set up on the edge of a small walnut plantation that abuts hardwoods where the birds roost. They were gobbling from the roost nearby and I thought it was a done deal. At fly-down I called and got a response. Then a hen came from my left and she was going nuts, putting, looking for a fight. She came up to me trying to run off the new "hen". Then she went back the way she came, yelping her head off. If I heard that without seeing it, I'd think it was a rookie hunter working too hard at calling. The gobblers went her way though.

The point is, when you are in the woods, listen to what the hens sound like. Do what they do, and even out-call them. The next weekend I set up in the spot that hen came from and did my best impression of her yelping fit. Shot a nice Tom.

Also, don't leave the woods if the first couple hours don't pan out. Toms will be looking for new hens between 10 AM and noon. I've had about half of the birds come in silent during late morning, so don't get discouraged.

I've found that there is a lot of variation in the sound of live turkeys, and that the rhythm of your calling is more important than the actual sound. Don't worry if your calls don't sound perfect.

Good luck!

Agreed. Within a couple of minutes my fiancee was using my friction call, and sounding dang good.

That dose make sense, I feel a lot of pride when I call up a bird. With that being said, you knowing where they wanted to go and being there is a big part of turkey hunting many people don't know, especially if there's no big fields around. Crawling up and closing the distance, waiting on a field edge or logging road, or what ever I can possibly do to go home with a bird in the truck is "For Real" hunting. It is fun to call, I love it, but when I fold one up that wouldn't respond or come in to a call and you dug deep into that woodsman ship is what I like!
Anyways, that just me! Hahaha!! Hope you call em up and were em out this year! Good luck!

You'll be amazed how good "you" sound !


https://shop.primos.com/pc-757-29-so...le-turkey.aspx

I would say a box and a twin reed mouth call.It doesn't take long to learn how to use a mouth call and once you do you'll have a gazillian to choose from but start with the twin.

Slate calls are easy, and I still use them some. I just keep losing pegs. :)

There are some of those "egg" type calls out there that are even easier to use, but I just never liked the tone. I can contol the tone better with a mouth call or slate.

No matter what you do, make sure what ever you buy, you get a CD/DVD. I find the box call easy to use and picked up the diaphragm pretty quick. Some never get it as it makes em gag. Good luck, nothing like calling in a Tom and leaving with it over your shoulder.

Ya I'm getting one with a dvd for sure, cause I don't know the first thing about calling one in. Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I'll get out to do some shopping and see what's on the shelves next weekend.
-Jake

I started with a box call, and both boxes and slates are easy to use. If you only have one call, make sure it's one that works wet. I put off learing mouth calls for a while because I thought they'd be hard to learn. They are harded than a box or a slate, but not that difficult. I picked up a 3 pack, left them in my Jeep, and practiced on my way to work--Picked it up pretty quick. One problem with boxes and slates is that they require considerable movement. If you don't learn to use a mouth call, consider an "egg" call, also known as a push/pull call (i.e., Knight and Hale's Tom Coffin). You can work these one handed with minimal movement when a gobbler is close enough to see you and you don't want to use a call that might give you away by moving too much.
Good luck.

Your best bet when hunting as a pair is to try and choose two trees within a few yards if each other to setup. This will allow you to communicate better. Setting up further away is okay, only if you have some years in the turkey woods and really know how the other person thinks. My brother and I have used that tactic many times, but we've been turkey hunting together for over 20 years.

I don't hunt out of a blind (too restrictive for me) but you would probably be better off sharing a pop up blind.

Definitely get a slate call. Slate is easier to get good sound on and needs less care than glass, crystal, or aluminum. Learning how to hold the call and the striker properly will go a long way to helping you call in a bird. Good luck.

You don't need to waste money on DVD/CD's.Just go to You Tube and you'll find enough vids to last a lifetime covering how to use every turkey call type in existence.

I didn't even think about that, that's a good idea. Thanks
-Jake

The slate call is easy to learn,I use the mouth call a 2 reed version to free my hands up when they are coming in close. They are not that hard to use for the basic yelp and cluck,the purr is the hardest one I have learned how to do with the mouth calls. Start practicing now and you will get it down in no time. Also I learned a lot by watching hunters on Youtube and hunting shows,this helped me to know when and how to use certain calls. Good Hunting.