# Mass Produced Calls



## sman (Feb 3, 2012)

I posted this on another forum and it was interesting to see the responses.

I prefer a custom call from the guys on here.  I like being able to give them a test run first.

Are there any mass produced calls you like?

That being said I bought a primos sonic dome 3 days ago.  The one I bought was not good at all $20 down the drain.  Maybe I just got a bad one.  I hear there power crystal is a good one.


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## MKW (Feb 3, 2012)

*...*

Every call I use is a custom call.

Mike


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## BASS1FUN (Feb 3, 2012)

My best mass production call has been a h.s strut field champion box call


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## ridgestalker (Feb 3, 2012)

All i carry is custom calls.Have heard one or two mass produced calls that sound ok by primos but for the most part every one i have ever played has sounded off or like crap.

I guess i should rephrase that, Most all pot calls i have tried were not up to par to me as far as sound to be more specific.
But have heard other types of calls that are good sounding that are mass produced.


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## sman (Feb 3, 2012)

I do still like my thunder dome.  I use to have a little duece that was pretty good as well.


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## dukslayer10 (Feb 3, 2012)

pm sent


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## Etter2 (Feb 3, 2012)

primos power crystal is a great call.  I've called in a bunch of birds with it.  When paired with a tom teaser bocote striker, it is hard to beat.  I think most any slate call sounds good in the right hands and I buy a lot of the cheap hs strut diaphrams.  Really like their "raspy old hen"


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## deerslayer357 (Feb 3, 2012)

I've got a HS Strut "Black Magic" that I really like.  I dunno if I just got a good one or if they were all good, but it works for me.

As far as mass produced diaphragms I have given up on them.  When you do happen to find one you like you can never find another one like it when you need it.
I switched to Tom Teaser's diaphragms and haven't looked back since.

I can't run a box to save my life, so I don't even bother with them.

JMHO.


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## Hawken2222 (Feb 3, 2012)

I am custom guy myself, but I have two mass produced calls I still tote.  One is an Old Lohman Crystal Thunder Dome.  The other is the Primos Box Cutter.


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## flatwoodsgobbler (Feb 3, 2012)

I have a couple of older mass produced calls that have called in a few and I still carry on occasion. I now prefer to buy custom calls because I know I will be getting a good call for my money. You never know what you are getting with a mass produced call until you get it home. I have bought my share of junk through the years.


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## sman (Feb 3, 2012)

Hawken2222 said:


> I am custom guy myself, but I have two mass produced calls I still tote.  One is an Old Lohman Crystal Thunder Dome.  The other is the Primos Box Cutter.



The thunderdome series were good calls.  Hate you can't get them anymore.


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## TurkeyKiller (Feb 3, 2012)

What do you guys consider to be mass produced?


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## ssm (Feb 3, 2012)

sman said:


> The thunderdome series were good calls.  Hate you can't get them anymore.



This X 2

Does anyone remember those old Pepsi commercials where they did the blind taste test?   The people in the commercial would always pick the Pepsi and then act all surprised.  

I would like to do that with turkey calls ( me running them of course)and see what people  here on the forum would pick and get to hear their responses!!  

"Oh my gosh, I cant believe that wasnt a custom". 

" I dont call very much when I turkey hunt, but when I do call, I only run custom!"


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## MKW (Feb 3, 2012)

*...*



ssm said:


> This X 2
> 
> Does anyone remember those old Pepsi commercials where they did the blind taste test?   The people in the commercial would always pick the Pepsi and then act all surprised.
> 
> ...



Call lightly, my friends!  
Love that XX Dude!

Mike


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## ssm (Feb 3, 2012)

MKW said:


> Call lightly, my friends!
> Love that XX Dude!
> 
> Mike





   you should make that your new signature!!


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## WestGaJohn (Feb 4, 2012)

Squealin' Hen is all you need...haha


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## icdedturkes (Feb 4, 2012)

I run all custom now because when you find something really good, its actually really good.. 

But with that being said their are alot of customs that sound no better and actually worse than some of the production calls that have been built.. Your test run theory is entirely correct, after walking through the convention one time I can how a guy could blow alot of money, buying blind.  For the guy running "inside out" yelps or straight line yelps in the center of the pot, it really does not make a difference. 

_caveat emptor _


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## Nicodemus (Feb 4, 2012)

The only 3 mass produced calls I own are a Lynch Jet, Foolproof, and World Championship, that I bought back in the early 1970s. They still sound good to this day. My other calls are homemade, and a couple of custom calls.


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## sman (Feb 4, 2012)

MKW said:


> Call lightly, my friends!
> Love that XX Dude!
> 
> Mike



   Stay turkey my friends.


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## palmettoswamp (Feb 5, 2012)

I have two...Quaker Boy Mini Boat Paddle and a tore up HS triple glass pot call.


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## Melvin4730 (Feb 5, 2012)

I've use mostly custom calls, but I've got a Primos Cutter box call that sounds really good.


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## sramagesr (Feb 5, 2012)

custom calls are the only way to go


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

I have a few "custom" calls, I personally think they are over-hyped and over priced.


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## Dupree (Feb 6, 2012)

My friction calls are not mass produced, and neither are most of the mouthcalls. Two good mouthcalls that are store bought is a primos Kevin meacham and a woodhaven sadler mcgraw. 

Some may argue over what is custom or mass produced. I think if you can buy it from bass pro or cqbelas it is no longer "custom". Custom to me is sitting around talking to the man who made thém in his shop before you buy one. The ones that don't have a website or even advertise is what's really "custom" to me.
Fire away! I know its coming.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

"Custom" calls are a waste of money


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## stumpy1 (Feb 6, 2012)

I have thousands of custom calls and most are better than mass produced calls, I also make calls and I can tell you it is a big difference in custom and mass produced calls.
I saw a glass call hanging in a store by a well know call company (one of the biggest around) on the front he stated he matched two strikers with the call and the surface wasn't scratched, now I don't know how you match a call with a striker if you ain't never played it.
a bad striker will make a great call sound like crap
I will not sell a call without the sound I want in it, if it dont make the cut it gets trashed.


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## WestGaJohn (Feb 6, 2012)

David Mills said:


> "Custom" calls are a waste of money



IMO, they're not if you enjoy hunting turkey while using them, or hand them down to your kids/grandkids for them to use......but I would agree that 'custom' vs 'mass produced' when speaking purely about cost, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to pay that much more $.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

WestGaJohn said:


> IMO, they're not if you enjoy hunting turkey while using them, or hand them down to your kids/grandkids for them to use......but I would agree that 'custom' vs 'mass produced' when speaking purely about cost, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to pay that much more $.



I do enjoy turkey hunting,,, a lot.  It looks like these "custom" call makers are just trying to get rich off of poor folks like me.

You're better off going to Wal-Mart


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## Gadget (Feb 6, 2012)

The best mass produced call I've ever owned is the Silent Whistle Turkey Shock Gobbler by Madd Calls sold in the early 90's.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

Gadget said:


> The best mass produced call I've ever owned is the Turkey Whistle Shock Gobbler by Madd Calls sold in the early 90's.



I have a plastic slate call I bought at Wal-Mart about 8-9 years ago, it's my "go to" call.


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## stumpy1 (Feb 6, 2012)

David I am sorry you feel that way but you used to build custom calls and to say someone is getting rich off poor folks, you might get rich some other way but callmaking aint it, I build a call because I enjoy it and have great satisfaction out of people calling me, or sending me pics of dead turkeys and telling me how much they like the calls I built for them, it aint about the money for all of us, it is about the enjoyment of building calls.
Stumpy


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## hawglips (Feb 6, 2012)

I use all custom calls with one exception.  

The Primos Power Crystal is my go-to pot call.   It bats 3rd in my lineup, and sometimes leads off on a roosted bird in the morning.  And I use a mass produced striker on it too.  The black acryllic "wet" striker Primos makes for it produces a very nice sound.   There is usually at least a bird every year that dies specifically from wanting to hear me play him that call.

Georgia birds seem to be particularly fond of it.  The last two years an opening day GA bird has died from gobbling hard at it and coming to it.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

stumpy1 said:


> David I am sorry you feel that way but you used to build custom calls and to say someone is getting rich off poor folks, you might get rich some other way but callmaking aint it, I build a call because I enjoy it and have great satisfaction out of people calling me, or sending me pics of dead turkeys and telling me how much they like the calls I built for them, it aint about the money for all of us, it is about the enjoyment of building calls.
> Stumpy



Chad, you ain't taking me seriously are you???????

In all honesty, most mass produced calls are junk.  You have people making calls that have no idea what a turkey sounds like while most custom call makers tune each and every call themselves to ensure the best quality in both craftsmanship and sound.  You may find a good one every once in a while.

And like you Chad, I enjoy making the calls and meeting people and I dang sure ain't gettin rich.


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## Mark K (Feb 6, 2012)

Everything gets taken seriously on the net!!!! 

All my friction calls are custom, and most of my mouth calls are. The only problem I've had with mass produced calls are inconsistency. One call may have that turkey sound and you'll get another that isn't even close.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

Mark K said:


> Everything gets taken seriously on the net!!!!
> 
> All my friction calls are custom, and most of my mouth calls are. The only problem I've had with mass produced calls are inconsistency. One call may have that turkey sound and you'll get another that isn't even close.



I probably should not have been jerking folks around.  I just saw a lot of new names and in my warped sense of humor, I thought I'd have some childish fun.

But, it's more like for every one that has some turkey in it, 20 don't.


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## stringmusic (Feb 6, 2012)

David Mills said:


> Chad, you ain't taking me seriously are you???????
> 
> In all honesty, most mass produced calls are junk.  You have people making calls that have no idea what a turkey sounds like while most custom call makers tune each and every call themselves to ensure the best quality in both craftsmanship and sound.  You may find a good one every once in a while.
> 
> And like you Chad, I enjoy making the calls and meeting people and I dang sure ain't gettin rich.



I'll delete my post, I didn't know you were kiddin', and now that I know that you were kiddin', it's kinda funny.


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## TurkeyKiller (Feb 6, 2012)

Please help me understand. If I go to the show and vist a (custom call makers) both and pick me a call out of the 50 he has. Have l bought a custom call or a hand made call. I thought custom ment to my specs, wood species or design just built for me.


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## sman (Feb 6, 2012)

I see what you mean...by custom I am referring to hand made calls.  Most hand made calls come in such a wide variety that they could be considered custom.  They have all different woods and calling surfaces.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

TurkeyKiller said:


> Please help me understand. If I go to the show and vist a (custom call makers) both and pick me a call out of the 50 he has. Have l bought a custom call or a hand made call. I thought custom ment to my specs, wood species or design just built for me.



Good point, the term "custom" is used rather loosely.  I and most call makers are not going to change dimensional specs in order to make a CUSTOM call.  I have certain woods that I use and if someone wants a certain type of call, they are going to have to live with the woods I might have availble.  But, if someone tells me that they want a slate call with a glass soundboard and I make it for them specifically, then that can be considered a true custom call.  I have also seen some call makers that advertise their calls as "hand made" as to delineate it from a true custom call.

The term custom is freely used to differentiate it from a massed produced call.  But, don't get caught up in this too much. If you find a call that you really like it doesn't really matter if its custom or hand made.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

stringmusic said:


> I'll delete my post, I didn't know you were kiddin', and now that I know that you were kiddin', it's kinda funny.



Don't sweat it, I don't hang out here as much as I used to so a lot of folks don't know me.  I used to moderate this sub-forum. Most that know me, know that I'm full of it.


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## goblr77 (Feb 6, 2012)

The only noncustom friction call that's in my vest right now is a H.S. Strut Li'l Deuce II slate with a carbon striker. I will use it on occasion when I want them to hear something different. It's high pitched but not too loud like a crystal. Birds will gobble at it.


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## stumpy1 (Feb 6, 2012)

David I was wondering if you had fell and bumped your head HAHA

Stumpy


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## deuce1 (Feb 6, 2012)

David i thought someone had hi-jacked your computer.
Brandon


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## Curtis-UGA (Feb 6, 2012)

Do people actually kill turkeys using mass produced calls?


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

Curtis-UGA said:


> Do people actually kill turkeys using mass produced calls?



Sure they do,  I killed my first bird using my dad's Lynch Foolproof box call

But, suppose you go into wal-mart to buy a call.  They are not going to let you unpackage calls and let you keep trying them until you find one that you like.

Sort of like the difference in a Ford and a Rolls Royce.  Fords are built on an assembly line, Rolls Royces are individually built.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

stumpy1 said:


> David I was wondering if you had fell and bumped your head HAHA
> 
> Stumpy



No, just naturally crazy.


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## hawglips (Feb 6, 2012)

David Mills said:


> The term custom is freely used to differentiate it from a massed produced call.  But, don't get caught up in this too much. If you find a call that you really like it doesn't really matter if its custom or hand made.



It matters to hunters a lot more than it matters to the turkeys.

The best sounding caller I've ever heard in the woods uses nothing but mass produced mouth calls.   And his box call is a very old springy sounding Lohman's call he paid all of $11 for back in the day.  I don't like the way it sounds, but I ain't a turkey.  They seem to like it, a lot.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

hawglips said:


> It matters to hunters a lot more than it matters to the turkeys.
> 
> The best sounding caller I've ever heard in the woods uses nothing but mass produced mouth calls.   And his box call is a very old springy sounding Lohman's call he paid all of $11 for back in the day.  I don't like the way it sounds, but I ain't a turkey.  They seem to like it, a lot.



Hal, sometimes turkey sound like anything but a turkey


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## hawglips (Feb 6, 2012)

David Mills said:


> Hal, sometimes turkey sound like anything but a turkey



Their voices vary a lot too.  

I think it's more important to have a variety of different tones and sounds at your disposal, because sometimes they will respond better to a certain or specific sound or tone than they will the others.  It happens enough for me to believe it.  And I'm not good enough on any one call to create the range of sounds I want on just one of them, so I just carry plenty of calls.


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## Dudley Do-Wrong (Feb 6, 2012)

hawglips said:


> their voices vary a lot too.
> 
> I think it's more important to have a variety of different tones and sounds at your disposal, because sometimes they will respond better to a certain or specific sound or tone than they will the others.



absolutely


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## Melvin4730 (Feb 6, 2012)

Thats what I do too. I've got calls that I think sound just like a turkey and I've got some that are rough sounding to me. I take a variety of calls with me in the woods. I try to test some of the different calls out on the bird I'm working. I stick with the call he responds to the best. Often times, its a call that I think sounds awful.

Because of this, I try to buy calls that have a little different sound, so I won't have a vest full of calls that sounds the same.


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## T.W. (Feb 6, 2012)

I get on here every year and decide I need a bunch of  mouth calls from some of the favorite small time makers on here. I buy a bunch and I have never found any that sound any better than the cheap ones from walmart. I'm not a great caller so maybe it is operator error. Or maybe I get impatient with them and dont break them in. Or maybe I just have my own little idea of what has worked over twenty years? I don't know but I will probally look at threads and end up buying a handful of mouth calls from small time makers again this year. What do yall recommend?

 I think most guys that have been at it long enough can call a turkey with just about any call you hand them, they just might not win any contests.


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## sasmojoe (Feb 6, 2012)

don't forget the sqeeling hen


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## Melvin4730 (Feb 6, 2012)

I've tried just about all of them. My favorite is the Copperhead mouth call made by Woodhaven. Some mouth calls just fit how you call and this one fits me.

I also found a little gem while over in Cleveland, GA. I stopped at a little shop that carried a few guns and hunting supplies and they had some turkey calls. I bought a mouth call made by Mountain Callers. Its called Moon Cutter. I walked out to the truck and put the call in and when I finished playing with it, I went back in and bought two more of the same call. Its another one that just fits me and it sounds good.

I tried finding a website for the call, but I didn't have any luck. It appears to be made by a guy located there in Cleveland, GA. The box has an address and phone number. I googled the phone number and the name Mark Adams came up, but I don't know if thats correct.

They are good mouth calls.


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## Kevin Farr (Feb 6, 2012)

Melvin4730 said:


> I've tried just about all of them. My favorite is the Copperhead mouth call made by Woodhaven. Some mouth calls just fit how you call and this one fits me.
> 
> I also found a little gem while over in Cleveland, GA. I stopped at a little shop that carried a few guns and hunting supplies and they had some turkey calls. I bought a mouth call made by Mountain Callers. Its called Moon Cutter. I walked out to the truck and put the call in and when I finished playing with it, I went back in and bought two more of the same call. Its another one that just fits me and it sounds good.
> 
> ...



That's probably correct.  Mark has been known to build some great mouth calls.  You made a good find.  Some are even very popular and well known under another name.


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## Melvin4730 (Feb 6, 2012)

Gobble & Strut said:


> That's probably correct.  Mark has been known to build some great mouth calls.  You made a good find.  Some are even very popular and well known under another name.



Yep... I didn't know they are both made by the same guy.


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## qball594 (Feb 7, 2012)

I like my primos slate call it does good with a custom striker.


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## Arrowhead95 (Feb 7, 2012)

I prefer a custom maker when it comes to boxes or slate/glass calls.

Diaphrams - whatever is on sale or free/trade I will make use.


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## Gaswamp (Feb 10, 2012)

I use custom calls only.  However there are a lot of poor custom calls made too.  I can count on one hand the callmakers that I trust enough to make me a call that I will hunt with sight unseen and unheard.


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## sman (Feb 10, 2012)

I just picked up a Primos Power Crystal.  Cost $10 at Simpson's Ace Hardware in Sumter, SC.  Definitely worth the $10.  Good call.


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## bull0ne (Feb 12, 2012)

Of  course I agree with the masses that most production run/blister pack calls are junk and greatly limits a hunter's  ability to kill turkeys. 

The best production run calls I have used were Primos products.  The true double mouth calls are the best of the lot IMO.  I still use them till today.  Buy several. As there will be some that won't sound as good as others. 

Plus a Primos slot call in slate has called in several over the years.  I will use it in the afternoon. When moisture or humidity isn't an issue. 

Past those..........it's all custom calls.  Mostly Dad White's  custom boxes and pot calls that I cherry pick from the lineup to suit my taste


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## Buck killers Wife (Feb 12, 2012)

I use a push button by primos, sassy hen!


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## GA DAWG (Feb 12, 2012)

I don't recken I have anything other than mass produced stuff that I use. Well I got a couple boxes and a wingbone that I never use. Its a wonder I kill anything.


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## Gaswamp (Jan 6, 2013)

Gadget said:


> The best mass produced call I've ever owned is the Silent Whistle Turkey Shock Gobbler by Madd Calls sold in the early 90's.



combine that with Dr. Tom's turkey scent and you'll limit out the first weekend.


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## GLS (Jan 6, 2013)

Gaswamp said:


> combine that with Dr. Tom's turkey scent and you'll limit out the first weekend.



I agree whole heartedly. I wish y'all hadn't blabbed.  Now the population will be down by critical mass after this year.   I have never failed to have a turkey answer Madd's silent whistle.  Unfortunately the answer has been silent, but both my dog and a psychic friend can hear the responsive silent gobble and point in the direction.

As for the turkey scent, my bottle was leaking last week so I threw it away in this dumpster located inside Savannah city limits.  Shortly afterwards this hen showed up.  I can't say enough about the effectiveness of Tom's Turkey scent.


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## Victor DeVine (Jan 6, 2013)

Rohm Bros slate


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## Jody Hawk (Jan 6, 2013)

Primos Power Crystal was probably my favorite mass produced call.


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## Brad (Jan 6, 2013)

I bought a power crystal years ago and it sounded great,so I bought one for my dad. His never sounded right couldn't get it to sound the way mine did. A friend of mine bought one after hearing mine and his was the same way. sounded terrible. That's the problem with mass produced calls,inconsistency. That and they go through so many hands before they reach you. I deliver to a lot of these box stores and seeing how stuff is stored and treated in the back its a wonder you ever get a decent product from them. I also like the personal dealings with talking to custom call makers. You can tell the ones who are turkey hunters who happen to make calls as opposed to a guy who is a good woodworker but can't put a turkey in his calls to save his life. I've been lucky in my dealings that I've dealt with great guys who put there name on there work. And the customs I have aren't too much more money than some of the mass produced calls. I love calling in a gobbler with a call a guy has made for me and sending him a pic of his call on the gobbled.


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## TK1 (Jan 6, 2013)

HS Strut World Champion triple glass from the early 90s and the slate version..For the most part production companies have spent to much time dreaming up goofy calls like multiple surfaces,million hens in a box,squealing whatever's,etc and not on actual calls or the way they sound..and it continues cuz now there's a call that will be banned in calling contests that is new on the market..


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## The mtn man (Jan 6, 2013)

Lynch world champion box call, bought it when I was 12 years old with grass mowin money, have had it for 24 years now, there have been a lot of birds that the last thing they heard was sweetlips lol...I still carry that old worn out call in my vest, when they wont respond to anything else I pull sweetlips out, if they dont gobble at that I go home.


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## Thanatos (Jan 6, 2013)

One of the most answered to calls I carry is Primos' plastic slate call Ol'Betsy. $9 at Walmart several years ago...


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## Scotsman (Jan 6, 2013)

I carry an old Lohman's box that I've had for 20+ years, maybe even longer, a Camp callers slate call that I've had for at least 10 years, and self-made wing-bone calls.


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## Natty Bumppo (Jan 7, 2013)

Primos power crystal is my favorite mass produced call.


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