I\'m not a good caller so should I even try?

[Guest]

At least some effort and practice is needed and no I do not recommend anyone buy a call and opening it the day before the hunt. Unless you are a proficient caller of coarse !! But we are talking beginner callers here.

On that note anyone can buy a plastic bite style reed and be making nice cow sounds in about 30 seconds. You can call many many elk in with just this one call. :mg:

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

Good points Trav.

So, what is the dividing line between someone who needs more practice In the off season and someone who is a beginner and needs live exposure?

 

[Guest]

Good question John and personally how I go about it is I\'ll ask them in the truck or as we ride to our location how they feel about there elk sounds. Once we get there or many times in the truck as we drive I will listen and make my observations on there sounds. Then I will give them input and show them how my sounds are with a reed and have them mimic me as we drive.

Any good caller should be able to do this and have a new caller making decent cow mews on a short drive. Same with bugles as a bugle is just an elongated cow mew !! So if they can make a cow mew they will be able to make a longer bugle. Now it will probably sound rough but it will work fine. New callers need not focus on any fancy calls. Stick with simple cow mews and a simple longer cow mew for a bugle.

This how I teach others to call and many have gone out the same season without me and successfully called in bulls and in many cases have taken the bull they called in !!

I tell you there is no better feeling than seeing the smile on there face when the get that first answer back from a real bull elk !!! I also enjoy the phone call from them after the killed a bull !! It\'s just fantastic !! :dance2: :dance2:

Cheers !!

Trav

 

[AndyJ]

I just wanted to address FM\'s squeaker question: First-yes, everyone has them but a few things I do that really help minimize them are

(1) try out every different diaphragm call you can. I have tried practically every call from every company and there is only one I take in the woods and I probably go through 10 a hunting season, which brings me to #2.

(2) Don\'t use worn out calls. Some guys try to use them for years and wonder why their calls sound like crap. They don\'t last long and there is a huge difference in new and slightly loose calls. Spend the money and get new calls when you need to.

(3) I do my first mew soft and cover my mouth really well. The squeaker tends to be the first call, get that first call out quietly and you will be able to make the necessary adjustments so the next mew is good. If that first call needs to be good, I find less tongue pressure tends to produce much more consistent results than a lot of tongue pressure.

(4) For bugles start out with a little bit of a growl, it helps you adjust the sound without hitting too high a pitch right off the bat.

I hope this helps. These are just a few things that work for me.

 

[F M]

Good tips Andy Thanks

 

[mtnmutt]

I am new to using mouth reeds. I could call pretty well at home and then botched 30% of my calls while in the woods. In order to minimize my issues afield, I try to be pretty hydrated before calling and take a cough drop before I leave camp. The cough drop surprisingly made a difference.

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

Also make sure you practice more than just low to high bugles. Run through different tones you\'d expect to hear in a bugle and try to hold each for 10 seconds. Great workout and memorization for the tongue.

 

[F M]

Off topic but have anyone got a new diaphragm that has a really off taste to it. I got one this year that I cant stand to have in my mouth. I have used allot of them before turkey and elk hunting.

 

[WW]

FM: It wasn\'t one of the diaphragm calls that Swede accidently dropped from his tree stand, was it? I think he spit one out when he peed on that bear last year! Did it have sort of a tinkle taste? :haha:

 

[Swede]

I am new to using mouth reeds. I could call pretty well at home and then botched 30% of my calls while in the woods. In order to minimize my issues afield, I try to be pretty hydrated before calling and take a cough drop before I leave camp. The cough drop surprisingly made a difference.

Bah! Women and all of their store bought cosmetics to keep their skin toned, lips moist, and to avoid dry mouth. Yuck! You don\'t need no cough drops. Just pop one or two elk turds into your mouth and take a good swig of wallow water. Then just swish that around for awhile. Your mouth will not only moisten right up, but you will smell like a real elk. It is much better than cough drops.
Those store bought beauty and health supplements are not natural. Go with what the mature bulls use. With a couple of elk duds in your mouth and a rub down of fresh bull urine, and you will be in elk all day.

P.S. Happy New Year.

 

[bowhunter]

I am new to using mouth reeds. I could call pretty well at home and then botched 30% of my calls while in the woods. In order to minimize my issues afield, I try to be pretty hydrated before calling and take a cough drop before I leave camp. The cough drop surprisingly made a difference.

Patricia, I use Trident gum to keep my mouth moist. It helps with my mouth getting so dry on those hot dry days while climbing and gaspping for some oxygen. Give it a try this summer during one of your scouting trips.

 

[mtnmutt]

Bah! Women and all of their store bought cosmetics to keep their skin toned, lips moist, and to avoid dry mouth. Yuck! You don\'t need no cough drops. Just pop one or two elk turds into your mouth and take a good swig of wallow water. Then just swish that around for awhile. Your mouth will not only moisten right up, but you will smell like a real elk. It is much better than cough drops.
Those store bought beauty and health supplements are not natural. Go with what the mature bulls use. With a couple of elk duds in your mouth and a rub down of fresh bull urine, and you will be in elk all day.

P.S. Happy New Year.

:clap: Well done. Add in some bear turds that contain nuts & berries and it is a real treat.

Thank you for giving me a good laugh on this first day of this wonderful new year.

My cracked & foggy crystal ball says 2015 will be a better year than 2014.

Patricia, I use Trident gum to keep my mouth moist. It helps with my mouth getting so dry on those hot dry days while climbing and gaspping for some oxygen. Give it a try this summer during one of your scouting trips.

Excellent idea. I will try it. It would definitely have a longer lasting effect than cough drops.

Happy New Year to All!

 

[Swede]

Mtnmutt: Bear turds are pretty chancy, depending on what they have been eating. Stick with the elk as they are completely vegetarian. You get a reliable good flavor there. Those bears may have been eating dead coyote, salmon or the gut pile from a dead bovine. Pay attention. I always try to help a fellow bow hunter.

 

[F M]

FM: It wasn\'t one of the diaphragm calls that Swede accidently dropped from his tree stand, was it? I think he spit one out when he peed on that bear last year! Did it have sort of a tinkle taste? :haha:

After reading Swede\'s post to mtnmutt I think it must be one of Swede\'s used ones. :lolno: