Elk call brands, calling techniques

[JakeC]

Curious what people use for diaphragm calls and why. Does it come down to spending fifty bucks on a pile of them to find the one that suits you the best? I tried one beginner call last year and just could not get it to be reliable for me the way i could with turkey calls. As a former woodwind player maybe I'm just automatically past beginner status and need something heavier duty. Or maybe I'm just using it wrong.

Also I'm curious about what, if any calling people do when hunting through the timber. What little cow calling I did last year taught me a little and got some responses from cows and different wildlife, but I don't know what to expect if anything from immature bulls. I've read a little here and there about lonely youngsters coming in hoping to find someone to hang out with, is there any truth to that? Is it worth learning to bugle at all outside of the rut? I heard some very early in bow season, one guy I knew stalked a bugling raghorn before labor day. During the spike rifle hunt there was still a fair amount of bugling, late october. I know I certainly won't be joining the hordes of guys tooting away like it's a mardi gras parade in every meadow and hilltop like I encountered last year, but is it worth even worrying about for my second year out?

I guess I just wonder if it's worth making any noise part of your routine when still hunting. Thanks.

 

[dogz]

you looking for cow calls or bull bugles?

 

[dogz]

Buy Cow Girl™ Elk Call - Primos Hunting

Cow Girl™ Elk Call | Primos Hunting

www.primos.com

boom done, all you need to know for cow calling

 

[dmj]

I'm sure you will get answers from more qualified members than me. Back in the 80's seemed like you could call in bulls with fairly good success and didn't have to be an exceptional caller. Now days it's a lot more difficult, didn't say impossible. My feeling are that lots of people are out there calling and the elk are getting more educated. Plus some contend that the elk are learning that by being vocal they are advertising to the wolves where they are at. And that is probably a whole other can of worms. Any way we use the mouth reeds for both bugles and cow calls. We use them sparingly. As far as the kind, usually use the double reed ones. And it does seem to us like some brands do fit our mouths better than others. So unfortunately you will probably just have to experiment to find what you like, sometimes bending them slightly to fit the roof of your mouth helps. Good luck with your hunt and be safe.

 

[JakeC]

I'm sure you will get answers from more qualified members than me. Back in the 80's seemed like you could call in bulls with fairly good success and didn't have to be an exceptional caller. Now days it's a lot more difficult, didn't say impossible. My feeling are that lots of people are out there calling and the elk are getting more educated. Plus some contend that the elk are learning that by being vocal they are advertising to the wolves where they are at. And that is probably a whole other can of worms. Any way we use the mouth reeds for both bugles and cow calls. We use them sparingly. As far as the kind, usually use the double reed ones. And it does seem to us like some brands do fit our mouths better than others. So unfortunately you will probably just have to experiment to find what you like, sometimes bending them slightly to fit the roof of your mouth helps. Good luck with your hunt and be safe.

Makes sense about the elk getting educated, I assumed that was at play. I hunted an area during bow season last year and a guy hunting near me heard some bugles on the other side of the plateau from me, wound up calling in a nice raghorn twice and killing him. This was before labor day. Same area two weeks later was absolutely crawling with guys from all over the country horning away like a high school marching band. There were a few elk still around but they knew exactly where these dingdongs were going to be and what they were going to be doing. One of my camp neighbors went to an area after legal light to try to get a response bugle out of a drainage he wanted to hunt the next day. He got a response all right: two utvs full of locals came down on him from either side trying to corner themselves a bull.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[bigngreen]

Pretty much don't make a peep anymore, definitely do NOT buy a hoochie momma, you might as well use a wolf howler both will push elk over the mountain!!!

 

[jaspepp]

look up "Elk Nut". His name is Paul Medel (spelling?). He REALLY breaks down calling to a whole new level. He's been on the exo backcountry podcast several times. He's an absolute wealth of info on this topic