# calling



## herefishy (Feb 23, 2006)

This will be my 4th season going after turkeys. my first was unsuccessful but i got 2 jakes the last 2 seasons. Here is my problem. If i know there is a tom/ jake off in the distance ( i hear the gobbles) and i go to call they move away from me. If I'm calling blind i'll go the evening without seeing anything. long story short i can't call in a bird so i end up still hunting and hoping one will wander by. Fortunately i know the woods well to know what area's to wait in ambush. This year i would like to be successful in calling in a bird. I have a slate call, and a push-buttom box call, and the mouth calls i have tried but can't make the right sounds out of them. Does anyone have any pointers for a more aggresive approach?


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## Thunderhead (Feb 2, 2002)

Watch every Turkey hunting video you can get your hands on and practice to them.

Good Luck.


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## djkillaz (Mar 7, 2004)

turkey calling is like deer calling. Some like different pitch's and some like soft calls. Having a few decoys out there will help get there attention. Especially if the tom sees the jake going after the hens. And sometimes it doesnt matter what you do. They wont respond or come close. Its more or less trial and error . Good Luck !!!!


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## Gobblerman (Dec 19, 2004)

Keep at it! Continue to practice. Have you tried using decoys along with some calling? If not try it. I agree with Thunderhead, check out the A-Way turkey tech video. Greg is a great teacher and their calls are easy to use and sound great.


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## JAG (Aug 19, 2005)

Buy an audio tape or CD and keep it in your vehicle. When you are alone, for obvious reasons, listen and mimmick what you hear. If you do it from now until turkey season you will probably be good enough to call in a bird. If you have trouble with a mouth call try a box call. They are just about the easiest to learn. Hard to practice while driving thou.


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## Thunderhead (Feb 2, 2002)

It sounds to me like your calling needs to be worked on.

I have a theory. A guy can speak perfect russian, but, if he has no idea what he's saying, it's still just gobbley ****.

Forget the dekes and all that stuff for now. You need to learn Turkey vocabulary. 
Like I said, watch every Turkey hunting video that you can get your hands on and watch what and why they are doing what they're doing.

You should have at the very least a Tom answer your calls......something is wrong.

If you'd like to get more indepth, I can look up some old articles I have and post them here. Some I wrote, some are by others. All will help.

Turkey hunting is the most unforgiving hunt that there is in my opinion. The smallest details will make or break a hunt.


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## herefishy (Feb 23, 2006)

I already went the route of going to the local video store but they don't carry hunting video's. I do watch hunting shows on tv, though. they seem to be for more experienced or intermediate hunters...not hte downright basics. I use decoys which seems to be a 50/50 affectiveness radio. I also hunt the 234 ( I think that is right) its the may hunt. would calling then be different from what i see on the outdoor hunting channels on tv. should my next purchase be regular box call instead of the push--button?


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## adam bomb (Feb 27, 2006)

if they're not answering you, then something is amiss. they may not come to you because they're hened up? this is possible. do allot of scouting and figure out the "strut zones" and travel cooridoors. if you have turkeys fly down and go the opposite way, try and go way out around the wood lot, if possible, and set up in front of the tom. its allot easier to call em in if your calling from the direction they want to go. this is where allot of scouting pays its dividens.

some of your troubles could come from hunting highly pressured turkeys. to relate this to calling, less is sometimes more. that tom i have pictured above gobbled once on the roost and that was it. he flew down and came out into the cut corn. i yelped a grand total of 3 times and he strutted all the way in to the dekes...good luck


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## Thunderhead (Feb 2, 2002)

Alot of times when then Toms are being led the other way, it's the hens that heard you calling and are the ones doing the leading. This is when you need to call the hens. Just like in Deer hunting, call the doe and the buck will follow.

Have an appointment in a few. I'll post a few tricks that I've learned over the years in calling in those pesky hens later this afternoon.


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## Benny (Mar 5, 2004)

First off calling in a tom is no simple task. It's the birds nature to sit and wait for the hens to come to him. The trick is to give him a real reason to want to come to you. If he's got hens already its even more difficult. For example... your at the strip club and there's ton's of hot chicks all around you dancing and showing off, but there's also the voice of this one woman you can hear off in the other room "calling" you. if you leave all the women you're with now some other guy will take them and your SOL so do you leave all the hot chicks for one girl you cant even see? Prolly not. this is a stretch but its basically what its like. 
So maybe the tom/jake will gobble back all day long but if your calling is sub-par he'll prolly stick with his harem. If you can find good videos on calling they'll help you a ton. You asked how you could be more aggressive.... my advice would be to be less aggressive in your calling. once you get the birds attention and he gobbles back, try being quiet for 5 mins and then only give off a few soft purrs and clucks only call aggressively every so often and when the tom quiets down for maybe 10-15 mins to keep his attention. also if the birds cant see you, try raking the ground with a stick some to mimick scratching, followwed up by a few soft clucks and purrs. I guess basically you want to sound like a chick who's ready but not so really excited about it..LOL anyway hope you figure it out and maybe this helps some, and good luck this spring!


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## joefsu (Jan 9, 2005)

After learning the basics, my best teacher as far as turkey calling was the turkeys themselves. Listen to what the hens are doing. Next, go to an area where the birds commonly hangout. SCOUT SCOUT SCOUT!!! 

Just my .02,

Joe


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## Sib (Jan 8, 2003)

1st update your profile. Most of us have DVDs and tapes, if you list your location someone might be in the neighborhood and lend you some material.

2nd If you're not sure of your calling and you feel your pushing birds away, try calling less, you can call too much. Listen to the real birds and don't start calling too early in the darkness and when you do, just a couple tree yelps early. 

3rd if you can't find any calling instructions order some online, Cabela's is always a good start.

4th Consider checking out Smokey's Archery Turkey Hunting Extravaganza, though I didn't attend the 1st annual, it was a great event from the accounts of those that attended. You'll learn the most and quickest from those with experience. 

Scout, watch the birds before the season and leave your calls at home. The turkeys have a way of doing things and watch them naturally move around after they fly down. Then try and put yourself between where they want to go and where they roost. Be very cautious not to get too close to the roost, but when you're hunting try and put yourself close to where they would naturally go. Don't put yourself between the turkeys and where they want to go when your scouting, tho, scout from a safe distance that won't disrupt the birds.


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## moonphase (Oct 22, 2005)

Maybe they are coming,you have to be patient,sometimes it sounds like they are going away but they just might have their heads turned or on the other side of a ridge,dont get discouraged wait him out,he can hear you and sooner or later he will loose. good luck


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## funebonz880 (Feb 17, 2004)

Benny said:


> For example... your at the strip club and there's ton's of hot chicks all around you dancing and showing off, but there's also the voice of this one woman you can hear off in the other room "calling" you. if you leave all the women you're with now some other guy will take them and your SOL so do you leave all the hot chicks for one girl you cant even see? Prolly not.quote]
> 
> FINALLY, one we can all relate to. :lol: But as for calling the hens, if you can hear the hen, mimick hey pefectly. Yelp for yelp and cluck for cluck. My favorite call is the slate, in my opinon, the easiest to use and make good sounds with. Try getting a good sequence of yelps and clucks. And start making some tree yelp while they are still roosting (early morning).


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## Cherokee (May 24, 2004)

I found that my two trips with a guide was all it took to "perfect" my calling. Hearing / seeing it done is a great way to speed up the learning curve.


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## Fishbum2 (Jan 15, 2005)

You may want to check out Midwest Turkey Supply on the web. They have several good CDs/DVD/Videos on the topic. I got one from Ray Eye and Woodhaven calls to listen too. I also got the Turkey Hunting Strategies book by Ray Eye. They are loaded with information. Also, check out the NWTF website. They have some calling info with audio.

I got second week of the early season....can't wait to get out there!!


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## panfishpuller (Dec 29, 2005)

You should try a wingbone they make natural sounds that you could not belive and lots of gobblers cant resist the great sounds of them. Click on the link in my signiture to learn more about them.-Mike


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## mwakely (Jan 7, 2004)

I will sometimes call and then move back away from the Tom's! Sometimes it will bring em to ya! Other times it won't but it's worth a try and it will at times Work!


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## herefishy (Feb 23, 2006)

thanks for all the info. just found out this weekend that there are quite a few guys hunting the section in the earlier seasons. my guess is they are educating the birds then throw in the fact that i'm a novice hunting in may adds to the dilema. all i know is i'm determined not to shoot a jake this year! I know there are different calls such as purring, yelping, clucking, and i think i can immitate them, i'm just not using them in the correct scenerios. i have had toms call back to me as they fade off into the distance. During the spring about 90% of the woods has standing water. will turkeys get hung up if there is a few inches of water between us?


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## adam bomb (Feb 27, 2006)

fishy,
water will deture a turkey most of the time in my experiences. but if there are places close by that a tom can get through, they will usually come around it, as long as they dont have to go too far. now, having said that, the first turkey i ever killed came gobbling down an oak ridge and flew across a river 20' wide and then strutted right into the decoys...he was tasty! ...so to say they wont cross water is not totally true, but it will hang em up sometimes IMHO...since your hunting an area with lots of water, lots of scouting will really pay off. find the areas that the turkeys are using to navigate around the wet spots and set up in these locations. remember, its easier to call a turkey if he already wants to go that way.

hey, theres no shame in shooting a jake. it doesnt take anything away from your hunt or the hard work youve put in. some guys are hunters and others are trophy hunters, to each his own. i for one will hunt for a tom until late in the season. although, if things look grim and i get the opportunety at a jake, i let em have it. afterall, i like to eat turkey....im not too proud to shoot a jake. to me thats just like guys that wont shoot a doe because their the big buck hunter. thats just too much ego for me, its hunting man! i go for the experience and a little turkey for the table. dont measure your succsess by a jake or a big tom, thats all im getting at.

good luck to you, i hope you bag that big tom. keep at it,it'll happen.


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