Help!

[David @ Mad Duck Game Calls]

Hey guys, I am needing some help with Turkey pot calls. I am determined to make a pot call that WORKS and works GOOD! I have made 4 so far, all but the last one pretty much sucked. On the last one, I made it slate over glass, and used spalted poplar. I used a pot I got from brookside game calls to get some general measurements, and I think it sound pretty good. One thing that is different (other then the wood) is the pedastal width, mine is a little bit thinner. I let the goop dry and tried it out, and it sounds like a turkey. But, it isn't as loud, the one from Brookside has that ear-piercing crack when it rolls over, and mine doesn't. So, how do I get it to "crack" like the one from brookside?  Also, on my call, if I don't get the right pressure on the striker, it will kind of "die", what I mean by that is it just stops sounding like a turkey...... Is that normal or do I need a different striker wood? Thanks for any help, I am going to try and make another one here soon. I have to get some more slate and flass, and I am going to get a bunch of red cedar blanks to test stuff on. Thanks!   

[K. RUGE]

I wish I could help ya , IM in the same DELIMA AND I HAVE ONLY ONE DAY A WEAK TO MAKE ONE BECAUSE OF WORK  AND I STARTED ON 3 1/4 SOUNDED HOLLOW  SO I WENT TOO 3 SOUNDS BETTER JUST NOT THERE , EVERY TIME A MAKE A CHANGE ON THE INSIDE MAKES A DIFFERENCE 

[David @ Mad Duck Game Calls]

Yep, that's how I am. With school I only get a few hours a night to do stuff......  I need to go make another one but I want to start making them all from 1 wood, I think it will be easier to get my dimensions right...... And Cedar seems like a good choice.....

[Scott Ashburn]

Its kinda hard to tell you a direction to go without seeing what your working with, but I can give you some direction.
1) Air gap between the bottom of surface to top of sound board should be around the thickness of the glass, roughly .085.

2) The ledge that you glue the surface on, I try to keep mine at .100.  The wider it gets  the less roll over you will get.

3) Soundboard pedistal.  Thats a big variable, but I can tell you for sure, if you are using ring type, and don't  vent it, either with a sound hole out the back, or buy cutting 2 openings oposite each other, it will sound dead.  The pedistal would look like a pair of parentheses facing each other. ( ).   

4) Distance to the back wall and sound holes.   The smaller that distance, the higher pitch your gonna get, and using too large sound holes, and you'll   loose the effect on the soundboard.  Too big a sound hole is not nessasary a good thing, again they all effect each other.

hope this helps.

[Scott Ashburn]

I should have also mentioned, the harder and denser the wood is that your using for the pot, the higher the pitch will be.  using a spaulted wood, which is partly  rotten, without stabilizing it first, you will loose volume out of it.  Light, soft wood, absorbs the sound waves inside, reducing the effect on the soundboard.  I learned that one the hard way.

[David @ Mad Duck Game Calls]

That helps a bunch. I will get a pic of it up here in a little bit (If I remember to) I have 8 - 3/8 holes, and the center hole is 1/2 (Using my mandrel to turn them) I was thinking that the soft wood would absorb the sound, and didn't think to stabilize it..... I got the gap in between the outside of the slate and the wood, so you can see the glue. I had my ledge at about 1/8, and with it being to big for my slate it is probably only touching 2/3 of the ledge, so I think that might be part of the problem, but I may be wrong. I am gonna order some different blanks from dbroswoods, as well as some cedar from a guy on face book. I will also have to get some more surfaces and soundboards... Thanks for the help so far!

[K. RUGE]

HEY DAVE I THINK YOU CAN GET SOME GOOD PRICES HERE FOR MAKING CALLS  : http://route66woodworking.com/call-blanks-for-sale.html

[David @ Mad Duck Game Calls]

Thanks, I will have to check them out

[jcz]

Best bet is to use one wood type to learn with. Personally I don't like cedar just because it cracks so easy. I can't make a cedar call with out messing it up. I know Vince loves cedar.

[David @ Mad Duck Game Calls]

That's what I was thinking. One wood until I get my dimensions hen I can change woods.... I just bought a box of cedar blanks so I am gonna be busy! Well, atleast until I run out of slate and glass. lol

[VECtor Calls]

Best bet is to use one wood type to learn with. Personally I don't like cedar just because it cracks so easy. I can't make a cedar call with out messing it up. I know Vince loves cedar.

Maybe we are working on different cedar (mineral content from the soil it grew in or such), or maybe what you have used in the past was kiln dried?

At the same time, I suppose I only use about 1/3 of each air dried board I have to use.

Random thoughts.

[David @ Mad Duck Game Calls]

One question, when you put your soundboard in, how big of a gap should there be between it and the side of the pot? Is it supposed to be a small gap or big? According to what I have read it should be a small gap, but on all of my calls there has been a 1/4 gap, give or take a little. Is that bad?

[VECtor Calls]

My gap is big enough to put tooth picks around the glass to keep it off the wall while the glass dries in place. Green bean can on the glass for drying.

[VECtor Calls]

A 1/4" gap from a 3" peice of glass would mean the 3 1/2" slate top would fall through. So your gap must be less than that. :)

[dogcatcher]

Did you use the same striker on both yours and the Brookside call?  Are the sound boards and the playing surfaces identical in both calls?   Remember when comparing you have to compare "apples to apples", they have to be as close as possible.  The walls of the side, the thickness of the pedestal, the gap between the sound board and the playing surface, the distance between the walls and the sound board, and the list goes all the way to the finished call. 

How close are you on the measurements?  A little bit or a lot, are we talking 1/16" or 1/4" or is it a 1/32".  The last issue, sometimes regardless of how much you work at it and how close you are, you have a dud, it's called the shop Gremlin's fault.   

Marvin