# duck calling



## chunick (Sep 9, 2010)

I never been that great of a caller...I was wondering how some of you guys have learned this trade. I have tried various calls dvds CDs etc...just cannot seem to get the hang of it. Wondering if any of y'all could give some pointers to a newbie on this. Thanks


----------



## Dave B (Oct 1, 2007)

Honestly the biggest thing is practice. Focus on getting the right air without grunting into the call. Most people grow up or learn by grunting to get the call to be raspy, and is one of the hardest habits to break. I am assuming if you have listened to various cd's you've heard about getting the air from your diaphrgam. Master a proper single quack and build from there. 90% of the time it's not the calls fault, just need to keep at it with diligence. Alot of folks skip over getting the proper tone out of a call because one duck responded to the mess they thought was sounding like a duck. Proper tone can make a significant difference when things get tough.


----------



## Hoopermat (Dec 17, 2010)

Practice practice practice. I think it took atleast 20 hours to master the feed call. Every chance I get driving down the road I am blowing a call. I would say I am no master but I do ok I think.
Ha ha drunk texting suck


----------



## Bret (Sep 7, 2007)

I am a slow learner with a call and have very little natural tallent. You can and will get it with some persistance. Most people try to do too much too fast when they are first learning.. Work on basics.... master the quack! Nearly everything in duck talk is simply cadences of quacks. Master the quack everything else will be much much easier. There is much to learn in the call operation part of calling ducks and even more in how to use your skills to manipulate the movements of ducks. I started learning to work birds 23 years ago and I learned something new yesterday. There is always something to learn with calling. Call me if I can help you.
8016633877


----------



## fish-n-fool (May 26, 2009)

You can watch all the dvd's you want and not learn to sound natural, go to the river or park where there are allot of wild ducks listen to them and try to call just like them in a natural setting. feed call is over rated in the marsh i think and the ducks do not react to it as well as in a field, a hen quake and a hail call is what you need to master and can be learned from the real thing. you master that and they will drop into the decoys with no hesitation.


----------



## dixieboy (Jul 26, 2013)

I think the dvd's will help you learn the tones and sounds in the absence of an experienced friend/family member, etc... but to agree with the above posts it still takes an awful lot of practice. Remember this too, while a mallard call can and will call in a variety of ducks it never hurts to get yourself familiar with other calls especially your whistlers (pintail, wegion, teal etc)


----------



## fish-n-fool (May 26, 2009)

dixieboy said:


> I think the dvd's will help you learn the tones and sounds in the absence of an experienced friend/family member, etc... but to agree with the above posts it still takes an awful lot of practice. Remember this too, while a mallard call can and will call in a variety of ducks it never hurts to get yourself familiar with other calls especially your whistlers (pintail, wegion, teal etc)


I agree with this the high roller makes it easy to call pintails, widgeon, but teal will work into a hen mallard quack all day long.









And unless you get a good ducky call there isn't a dvd or practice that is going to get you any ducks into the blocks. I have a great one but it's 20 years old and they don't make this call anymore. all the guys I hunt with all agree it sounds exactly like a hen mallard not to raspy like all the calls of today. you don't have to spend half your paycheck to get a good call. I did her a young man work a duck commander classic very well this last weekend and it sounded great. $40.00 there will be some opinions after this comment but I have been calling in ducks for over 30 yrs I'm not the best but I have found a good call is the first thing you need to get.


----------



## Bret (Sep 7, 2007)

Pins and wigeon will too. All the puddle duck hens quack. Not always beautifully but they do quack. The drakes whistle. You want to hear a funny sounding duck listen to a hen wigeon.lol


----------



## roseman (Sep 19, 2011)

Like Hoopermat said, put your calls in your car/truck and practice every day. I'm also a huge believer in the phrase "you get what you pay for". While you don't need to go out and buy a $200 duck call to be able to call and kill ducks, there is a huge difference between the $20, $50, and $100+ calls.


----------



## Dave B (Oct 1, 2007)

roseman said:


> Like Hoopermat said, put your calls in your car/truck and practice every day. I'm also a huge believer in the phrase "you get what you pay for". While you don't need to go out and buy a $200 duck call to be able to call and kill ducks, there is a huge difference between the $20, $50, and $100+ calls.


While I somewhat agree, I would not say there is a HUGE difference.


----------



## Hoopermat (Dec 17, 2010)

I started out buying some cheap calls. Then I bought more cheap calls. If I would have been smart I would have saved and got a good one. I'm not say that only high end calls sound good but my ability to call ducks greatly improved when I got my first daisy cutter. 
Best money I ever spent!

Next time your out hunting and a hen lands in your spread. Don't shoot her. Listen to what she says. You can pick up on a ducks cadence. It's not just making a quack with the call but how she does it and with what rhythm. 
You will hear all kind of different tones and emotion. Most of them sound nothing like most people's calling. Those quiet and rhythmic sounds are sometimes the difference that duck needs to hear to convince them your a duck. And that is what you are after sounding like a duck. 

Those guys that blow the call as loud as they can and as fast as they call are usually just wasting their breath. Most of the calling guys try is comp style and has nothing to do with hunting. Just like the guys taking the 100 yard shot are wasting money. If you learn some good cadence and tones you will have them right over the decoys to take your shots. 

Good luck and remember to practice practice.


----------



## APD (Nov 16, 2008)

Hoopermat said:


> Every chance I get driving down the road I am blowing a call.


Do you get as many dirty looks as i do? People just assume it's a pipe. I still put it down when I see a cop because i don't want to incur the hassle.

I'm not great but do enjoy trying to imitate live birds. it's nice to just sit and listen. every now and then i feel like i'm picking up on the language.


----------



## Hoopermat (Dec 17, 2010)

APD said:


> Do you get as many dirty looks as i do? People just assume it's a pipe. I still put it down when I see a cop because i don't want to incur the hassle.
> 
> I'm not great but do enjoy trying to imitate live birds. it's nice to just sit and listen. every now and then i feel like i'm picking up on the language.


For sure
I get people drive up real fast look over then slow down. It's funny. 
I wore out a reed in a call one year. I was driving from utah to Washington twice a week. That's about 12 hours of blowing a call each way. Got pretty good at one handed goose calling.


----------



## Bret (Sep 7, 2007)

Hoopermatt I mostly agree with you. I do disagree with your thoughts on expensive calls. I think I could blow three echo timbers in three different sound files all the same way and few people could tell the difference between the $30 poly and the $130 acrylic. I like nice duck calls, but don't think a beginner needs to drop $150 on a acrylic.

There is more to calling ducks than natural cadences. That is a good starting point though. Fast cadences are sometimes money, draggy pleading cadences are in no way natural but often work to move ducks. Even that high pitched ring has its purpose in hunting. Not often but it does have a purpose. Most of us contest types called to hunt long before we even thought to step on a stage. I was calling birds in the late eighties but didn't compete until around 2000.

Here is a test can you work other ducks while that hen sits in your decoys? Or does she fly away? If you can keep her there while you call you are doing somthing right.

The other day when I was out I couldn't get a duck to turn to that old five to seven note decrescendo greeting that we all know. I had to nag at them to get them to turn. I mean complain and nag even bitch with fast demanding cadences. Once I got them turned I would have to blow softer, lazy, dragging, contented hens to settle them down, keep them working, hold their attention, and finish them. If I did anything else I would lose them and have to get after them again.

Another day several years ago I couldn't get ducks to react all day. Out of frustration I blew a bouncing hen. Not a very good one at that. The ducks broke and crashed into the decoys. Nearly everthing I blew a bouncing hen at that day committed suicide. We went home with limits. I don't know why.

When birds aren't working try something different until you see are reaction. Sometimes digging in the bottom of your calling "toolbox" can be the difference between success and going home with an empty string.

The biggest thing I have learned in recent years is to keep your mind open.there is always something new to learn with calling. The second you think you have it all figured out the ducks will make you a fool.


----------



## chunick (Sep 9, 2010)

Thanks guys for all the pointers. Some I have tried in the past, guess just gotta keep practicing. Been doing a lot more calling in the truck. Boy some of the looks are hilarious. Appreciate it all guys.


----------

