How to blow duck calls

[TexasBlake]

Can't do it! Any advice, tips, suggestions?

I have a double reed, acrelic(cant spell) echo call.

Thanks

[Bill]

When you find out, let me know. I've listened to a half dozen CDs/tapes, have a son who could be a championship caller (but he says he's a duck killer, not caller) and have had a bunch of very good callers try to show me, tried 10 different single and double reed calls, own 3 or 4 myself, and it still squeeks like a kazoo. If there is somebody who I could call over the weekend and put my phone on handsfree (or maybe my headset would work) and give me some help, it be very appreciative.

My one duck hunting partner called me "the chuckler"- I've got a feeding chuckle down to a science.

[temple droptine]

Get some tapes and cd's and listen to them. My advice is do not blow, you try and make the noise in this cadence (if you will) tug, tug, tug, tugga tugga tugga tugga. For a lonely hen call with a double reed as well, I recommend facing the call downward, and blowing the word blood out, but long and drawn out blooooooooooood.

Then when you get that down remember, call at their butts, and their wings going away. It is a good start, but practice practice and then practice some more. Try calling some when it is not season, that way you don't blow some shots.

cb

[temple droptine]

Oh yeah, and get a whistle. Pintail whistle that is, and go with some short peeps. peep, peep, peep-peep.

cb

[h20thief]

I always force the air from my abdomen rather than "blow" in it. If you blow in it hard is will squeek or shrill call that sounds nothing like a duck call. It's almost a grunt forcing air from the diaphram unlike blowing in a whistle. Hard to explain without being able to show it.

[Blake8504]

like h20 said, was typing as he posted.

make sure you use your diaphragm to give it that deep sound and not just like blowing air through the call, I like to say.. "vutttt" or "quit" into the call. Make sure you cut it off at the end by placing your tongue to the roof of your mouth to stop the sound..this is what works for me...

[Bonesplitter]

Learn to quack, use your diaphramn instead of blowing into the call, try and make a "git" sound. Once you get the quack down you should be able to quack for a long time without running out of breath, your pushing bursts of air thru the call but not with your lungs. Once you get the basic quack down you can start putting it together and draw out the length of each note and produce comebacks, highball's, greeting's and lonesome hen calls. Honestly a basic 3 or 4 note note call works 90% of the time.

[Ouch]

Don't blow it, talk to them through it.

[E.TX.BOWHUNTER]

The magic word for a feeding chuckle is ticket. This allows the tip and middle of your tounge to stop the air twice as fast as just using the tip of the tongue. The quack how can I put this where it won't get edited. The word for this is a bad word. It is a 4 letter word that starts with a "t" and rhymes with what. I apologize for that but it works. Besides you are not saying the words. You are using the tongue movement as if you are saying the words. The come-back is strait from the diaphram. Practice that one. I use a gym whistle too. I removed the ball from the inside and it work well.

[TexasBlake]

Thanks for the tips.

[jettech17]

For some rasp,do your best slingblade imitation when you quack..

[Sinkey]

In all honesty, I would put the Echo down for now. Start off with an easier call like a Hydel DR-85. It is way easier to blow. Echo makes more custom callas and can be a little more difficult to blow.

Learning to blow a duck call takes a long time to really master. CD's are a gimic! Dont waste your time on them. I come from a long line of Champion Duck callers in Arkansas, and I can tell you, it takes time and practice.

Put one in your truck and blow it all the time while your driving. In traffic, driving around, whenever. It will get you alot of time.

Hope it helps.

[LeanMachine]

i agree with the practicing in the truck. I did a lot of that.

Best advice i can give you is to say "fit" into the call. FFFFFIT. The T on the end puts a positive stop to the air flow giving it a sharp cut off. Master this before trying to feed call.

Feed calling is super easy once you learn how. It takes a lot of practice to train your tongue. You want to say ticka, ticka, ticka. If you want a deeper sound say ducka, ducka, ducka. Start slow with it and go faster as you can.

[Dugie]

go get a cheap single reed call, easier to blow...put in your car and practice getting different sounds...

REMEMBER when calling ducks, less is more, most people over call. A simple high ball call and a few quacks is all you need MOST of them time.

and don't listen to the calling contest tapes or shows, calling for judges and calling ducks are 2 different things.

[Mike D]

I always found it easier to start out with a basic single reed call. Also, blow using your diaphragm and for a hail/comeback call say a cadence like "quit" starting out drawing it out long and tapering off to shorter lengths. It needs to be almost a guttural sound in your chest. It will also take some time to build up your stamina so to speak and strengthen your lungs and diaphragm.

I used to practice in the truck to a Buck Gardner CD all the time. It helped me.