Call Makers News was developed by an avid sportsman and duck call maker with the intention of providing helpful information to all call making enthusiasts.    The information contained within this site reveals pictorial and video step by step instructions for making a duck call as well as listing various suppliers within the call industry, national events, game call forums and links to other call makers websites.

We also have a tool discussions section where we provide extensive product reviews on the various tools that are used in making a duck call or goose call.  They are graded on durability and practicality with the call maker in mind.  Our shop talk section contains “how to” information regarding the different steps of making a duck call or goose call.  This section also contains a step by step pictorial and video instructions on how to make a duck call.

We welcome any idea’s or suggestions for the content of this site.  Please feel free to contact us!

BANDSAW

My Powermatic bandsaw came with a 4” dust collection port built into the back of the unit.  While it catches a lot of the dust and debris from the materials that I use in making a duck call, it does not catch it all.  As you will notice in the pictures I added a Stay Put Hose Kit and Stay Put Hose Bracket so that I can now capture a lot more that comes from the blade area on the top of the table.  This works great and I am well pleased.  I have also seen pictures where the hose was installed on the back of the bandsaw and the Stay Put Hose was routed over the top and down beside the blade.  This will also work but be sure to purchase an extra Stay Put Hose Bracket.

DRILL PRESS

Like all drill presses, my Powermatic drill press did not come with any dust collection hook ups.  I added the same Stay Put Hose Kit and Stay Put Hose bracket that I used on my bandsaw.  This eliminates virtually 99% of the dust and debris that are generated while I am boring the holes into the body and insert of a duck call.

SANDERS

As you can tell, I really like having several sanders with various grit belts and pads when sanding the duck call.  I have the dust collection designed so that I can restrict or increase vacuum pressure to each machine.

DUST COLLECTOR

I have been making duck calls for many years and in the past was limited to a small dust collector that only had one port.  Therefore I would have to disconnect the hose from the unit every time I used a separate machine.  Once my new shop was built, I researched every dust collection system known and finally landed on the CV 1800 LH 1P Cyclone Bundle with Filters from Clear Vue Cyclones.  If I had it to do over again I would purchase the exact same system!  It is powered by a 5 HP Leeson motor and has a 6” inlet that reduces down to the standard 4” at the machine.  It definitely has more than enough suction!  The folks at Clear Vue are awesome to deal with and were available by email and phone anytime I needed assistance.  I highly recommend them!

I start by cutting my blank to a length of 3″.  I will actually only be using 2 13/16″ of the blank for the barrel, but I like to leave plenty of room to take my parting tool and square up the ends while it is mounted on my lathe.

The 3″ long blank is now mounted into my vise and I drill a 1/2″ hole all the way through the center of the blank.

I use a 1/2″ mandrel to mount the blank onto and mount it into my collet chuck.

The blank is now mounted onto the 1/2″ mandrel.

I measure the outside of the 12 guage shell head in order to know what size to turn the blank down to.

The blank is turned down to the size of the shell head.

Measure the length of the head in order to determine the size of the tenon that needs to be cut.

Measure the inside of the head in order to determine the tenon size needed.

The tenon has been cut on the blank.

Two shallow grooves have been cut in the tenon in order to add strength when the glue is applied.

Sand the barrel using 600 grit first and them proceeding to 800 grit.  I always stop the lathe and sand lengthwise to the barrel after each grit.

Barrel after sanding is complete.

I use Medium CA glue as a finish on all of my wood calls.  Note that this one is “odorless”.

I cut Bounty paper towels into small strips and fold them several times to use as an applicator for the CA glue.

This is the CA accelerator that I spray on the barrel after each coat of CA.  It dries the glue instantly.

The CA glue is now being applied to the barrel.

The CA finish has now been applied to the barrel.  I used 6 coats on this one.  Notice the marks that is left from applying the CA with the paper towel… No Worries as once it is wet sanded, they will disappear!

The barrel has now been finished with CA glue and is now ready to be wet sanded.

I use the plastic finishing kit for pen turners that contains perfect size pads for wet sanding.  Each color on the pads represents a different grit.  They range from 300 grit to 12000 mm.  Caution:  Do Not apply any excessive pressure to the pads when sanding.  Let the pads do the work?  Also, only use them for a brief amount of time and keep them wet!

One Step Plastic Polish is what I use for polishing.

Apply One Step and polish using a small soft cloth.

The polish is complete and I have lightly sanded the tenon area in order for the glue to adhere better.

Wood duck reed assembly.

Reed assembly being placed into the barrel.

I use a 1/2″ wooden dowel to press the reed assembly into the barrel.

Reed assembly pressed into the barrel.  Note: the distance that the assembly is pressed into the barrel will affect the tone.

The shotgun shell that I typically use.

The casing is placed into the vise.

I use a hacksaw in order to cut the head from the hull.

The inside view of the head after it has been cut.

Using a punch to remove the primer.

Inside view after the primer has been removed.

I use a carving knife to cut the tube in four places as shown below.

Cutting the tube in four places.

The tube has four slits cut in it for removal purposes.

I drill holes in the cushion in order to make the removal process easier.

Holes drilled into the cushion.

Insert needle nose pliers into holes in cushion as noted in above picture, hold the head in one hand and while gripping the pliers in the other hand, twist on remove the cushion.

The cushion is now removed from the head.

Head ready to be mounted onto the barrel.  I use 300 grit sandpaper to scuff the inside surface and the apply Medium CA glue to the inside of the head and a small amount into the grooves cut in the tenon.

I press fit the head onto the barrel.

Finished product.

]]> http://callmakersnews.com/shop-talk/how-to-make-a-duck-whistle/feed/ 0 http://callmakersnews.com/shop-talk/make-duck-call/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=make-duck-call http://callmakersnews.com/shop-talk/make-duck-call/#comments Sun, 16 Jan 2011 01:46:15 +0000 http://callmakersnews.com/?p=535 [continue reading...]]]> Learning how to make a duck call is something that is constantly gaining the interest of many wood turners, duck hunters and outdoor sportsmen.  This art has been around for many years and while a lot of the techniques still remain the same or similar, there are also a lot of options available when selecting the material or the tools that are used.  I have listed a lot of sources in our Suppliers Directory.

The most widely used material in the beginning was what I refer to as “common wood”.  This was wood that was readily available from the natural surroundings of the call makers such as Oak, Cherry, Cedar and Persimmon just to name a few.  Today there are a lot of exotic woods that are being used frequently for turning calls.  African Blackwood, Bocote, Cocobolo and Purple Heart are just a few of the many that are readily available.

Acrylic is being widely used today for a lot of the duck calls whether they are handmade by a callmaker or manufactured by a major call company.  They great thing about both acrylic and wood is that you are able to use the same tools for turning both of them.  In this video tutorial, I use acrylic along with a Sorby round nose scraper, skew chisel and parting tool.

While learning how to make a duck call does require practice,  this video tutorial will give you a great start!

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As you will notice in the video below, I used The Little Torch by Smith and started on the end of the duck call barrel closest to the lathe headstock/4 jaw chuck.  I held the torch tip just close enough so that the blue tip of the flame touched the duck call barrel.  Once I started, I continued to the end of the barrel using a steady and constant speed.  I then barely touched the torch tip to the end of the barrel in order to polish it and then proceeded to polish the inside, again using a steady and constant speed.

I have also included a picture of an acrylic duck call barrel after it was flame polished.  Again, the video tutorial below shows the entire acrylic flame polishing process.  More information regarding The Little Torch by Smith can be viewed in our “Tool Discussions” section.