Five Turkey Calls Everyone Should Own 
I am guilty of filling my vest with dozens of calls. The belief is that I am well prepared when in reality, I am just over weighted with the calls I carry. Sometimes my vest can weigh as much as fifteen or twenty pounds before I put a turkey in the back. As I have matured as a turkey hunter I have learned to omit some of these calls, and bring it back to the basics. So for those of you who wonder, here are the five turkey calls everyone must have every time they go afield. Box Call: It is no secret I am partial to a good box call. I would argue more turkeys have fallen victim to the seduction from a well-made box can than any other singular call. The question is which one do you choose. Here it is largely preference as we will see with all of the calls. But for my money, there has never been a better box made than the M.L. Lynch World Champion Double sided box call. This call was first made in the 1930’s and ever since all other box calls are trying to match what M.L. Lynch perfected. Slate or Pot Call: This friction call is very popular because it is one of the easiest to use and master. However, I would like to divide this into two categories; real slate and all else. I am partial to real slate in all of my pot calls, I like the dependability and sweetness of the slate. But there is a place for glass and aluminum also to mix things up. So when I carry a pot call I will have at least two different surfaces and a half dozen strikers. From hardwood, carbon, laminate wood, all different and all produce different sounds on the same call.
Using a variety of calls brought this Gobbler to the gun
Trumpet/Wingbone: Perhaps one of the most overlooked calls in the arsenal. The wingbone is an old call and has been used for centuries. Made with the real wing bones of turkeys, the hunters inhales air through the bones to produce the sounds of the wild turkey. Similarly, the trumpet is an artificial wingbone call. The trumpet is usually made from wood and works the same as a wingbone. The benefit of these is the variety of calls that can be produced using these calls. From high volume to very subtle soft purrs and whines. This call is definitely worth the effort to master. Diaphragm/mouth call: This is one of the more popular due to its ability to use ‘hands free’. Hunters like to be able to call birds while holding the gun in the ready. The diaphragm comes in a very wide variety of styles, sizes and cuts to produce virtually every sound a turkey can possibly make. For some this is the easiest to use and others (me included) one of the more difficult to use. But again, the effort is worth the results. Tube Calls: This is my long range call. In fact it is so loud that I have to cover one ear when blowing it. I know there are some that can tone it down, but I have other calls for that purpose. But when I am searching for a gobbler, or see one a long way off, the tube call can reach out and touch them. I have called to gobblers over two hundred yards off, and some that I suspected further that have responded and come into the tube call. These five calls are not the complete list, but with these you can master the sounds to make turkeys do things they didn’t know they were supposed to do. If you are searching for the calls to put into your vest, start with these and you cannot be wrong.
