Some of my thoughts on strikers, striker making, tooling, etc. What are yours?

[VECtor Calls]

Had a new member ask me about strikers.  Rather than just responding by PM, I thought I would post my response here also.  

I buy the cheap metal calipers from Sears.  They're about 10 bucks each.  You could use wrenches if you knew the size you wanted, but I never measure anything, so I don't know what size I would need/want.  I use the metal ones, because they have a lock on them, and stay in place.  I never change these locking points, and I've carved "striker head" and "striker stick" on each one.  I've also got other ones for my deer calls, etc.  

I remember when we were at KCtermite's get together, Highlooker was looking for some calipers, and almost unlocked a set of mine for use, and I about had a heart attack right then and there.  

As for length, I've got a friends striker that I know my striker head is soooo long longer than his, and my over all striker is sooo long longer than his.  I can't use one of my own strikers as a measuring tool, because I know I'd give it to someone while they were visiting the shop.    Its been done before.  

Keep in mind, the more dense wood you have, the less material you are going to want to leave behind.  My measurements are general measurements.  I know if I'm making a dymondwood striker (very, very dense) I want to go a little thinner on my striker overall compared to both calipers, but not enough for that material to have its own set of calipers.  I do know, no matter what wood type I use for a striker though, they will all fit within my calipers.  

The strikers custom call makers make vary in size by a LOT.  And there's a lot of them out there that will work well on a good call.  I've got to think you're just looking for a balance in the strikers you make, with everything comparing to everything else.  Not just a this long, this big does this kind of thing.  

You can just about bet, starting out, you're not going to make your striker sticks/dowels (what ever you want to call them) thin enough.  In time, you'll learn a steady hand, and how to sharpen your tools to the max to where you can get them thinner.  In general, you're looking for 5/16" diameter on them.  I go a little smaller than that though.  

What you can do starting out (and yes its cheating to some.....) is when you get down to just before your breaking point, you can use 80 or 100 grit sandpaper (the 100 grit gouge as you will hear it pokingly referred to on here) to get you down the rest of the way.  You will spend a TON of time removing the sanding marks from doing this method, so it really sucks, but it is a way to 'beat the system' and come out with a great sounding striker.  

Every peice of wood you pick up has the potential to sound different from the next.  Even if it is the same species.  You have to pay attention to grain tightness, density of the wood, amount of oil in the type of wood, etc.  And, also think about what kind of surface you want it to play on.  

In short.......EVERYTHING MATTERS.  If it doesn't matter to a call maker, then they're not listening to their calls close enough then IMO.  

Parker

[VECtor Calls]

Different folks.....being call makers, or turkey hunters.....like different kinds of ends on their strikers too.

Mushroom heads make a striker easier to run, but they take longer to make.

Some call makers round their heads, and some of them keep them fairly straight.  You could do a lot of the rounding on the lathe if you want to.  When you are doing a mushroom head, you almost have to do it on the lathe, or you'd REALLY have some time invested in your project. 

I make mine straight with a bench top disc sander, and then I round them by hand with a peice of 120.  Its just one of those final "I touched this up JUST the way I would do my own" kind of things. 

Parker

[sharpshooter]

Parker is the MAN. I agree with everything he said. I have only been doing these turkey calls and turning for that matter for about 8 months now, so my 2 cents aren't worth much though.
I believe it was Madarchery who had a theory about strikers concerning point of balance, or center of balance or something like that. I can't remember off the top of my head but he mentioned it on the forum right when I started and I hadn't made enough strikers yet to try it. Hopefully he can weigh in on it again here. I know it's in the forum but I can't seem to find it right now.  

Edited by Parker to add link to Madarchery's past thread:  http://thogamecallsforums.com/index.php/topic,7230.0.html

[Aaron at Wingerts Woodworks]

Good thread Parker.  

I think a lot of call makers really handicap their calls by not experimenting with different striker sizes.  I was guilty of that for a long time.  Materials definitely matter but what sounds good in walnut may not sound good in rosewood, size-wise.  Peg diameter, head weight and overall length if everything!  A heavy striker just flat kills a call's potential.  Best advice I can give someone starting out is when you're making strikers, turn it to the diameter you think it should be, then remove some more diameter for good measure.  To cut weight while still retaining some head diameter I hollow my strikers' heads with varying sizes of drill bits depending on the wood I'm using.  I don't flare my strikers' tips...Just a matter of preference.  I give them a convex shape on the sander and then finish them off with 150 by hand.

I don't measure anything when I turn strikers.  No calipers or anything.  I do it by eye.  

Hands down, my favorite strikers are the laminates.  Laminates sound awesome on every surface and make the best strikers, on my calls at least.  I really like diamondwood the best but it is a nightmare to turn.

[VECtor Calls]

No doubt dymondwood makes one HECK of a striker. 

Parker

[VECtor Calls]

(I am mentioning PSI tooling below because I feel they are a decent tool for a cheaper price than say Sorby, etc.)

Some lathe accessories you might find handy for striker making:

Penn State Industries (PSI) Collet chuck if you use one for your head stock......

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCDOWEL.html

I don't use one of these for striker turning, but I know a lot of folks do.  No doubt it would give you a very firm base to work with.  But, it would add to you making time by having to turn down the end to fit it in the chuck using some kind of drive center.

This tool set is also $5 cheaper if you go through Flint Hills Duck Works to get it.  And, he sells a setup for this collet chuck and the expanding mandrels to trick it all out as a package deal.



PSI Super Drive Center:

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCENTSS21.html

I was warned when I first talked about ordering one of these that the spring that holds the center tip in place would end up coming loose, and I would lose it.  This DID happen to me after many, many turnings.  I could have checked the screw that holds the tip in place more closely, I would have been fine.  Just something to keep in mind.  Now, I need a new spring.  I've never seen it, so I have NO idea how big it is, but I will be doing some asking around to come up with one.  Right now, I have the tip in place without the spring.  It still works, but not as good as I would like.  



Live Tailstock Live Center with 60 degree point:

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCENTLT2.html

If you are turning a striker head only, you will want to have one of these Tailstock centers.  This way, you can drill a hole for your striker dowel prior to mounting the striker head for turning.  This will ensure you have a great, balanced finished product.  

This tailstock is also a MUST in my opinion if you make other kinds of cylinder calls, and you use expanding mandrels.  Especially if you consider yourself a wood hogger.  This tailstock allows you to balance your pre-drilled work very well compared to your expanding mandrel on your headstock.  It works especially well when step drilling any call parts.  

You don't want to push your work against this tailstock too hard though, because you have to realize it is putting pressure across your work from the inside on one end, and the more material you remove to make your finished striker head, the more the chances of your work splitting from this pressure.  It is not a huge problem.  You just need to keep it in mind.

If you are turning one peice strikers, you can just use the regular type of tailstock that comes with your lathe.  



Super Drive Revolving Tailstock Center:

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCENTTS2.html

I see PSI has a tailstock in the same type of setup as the headstock drive mentioned above.  It would be a cool tool to have, but it will not be near as versitile to you as the 60 degree tailstock if you can only afford to get one or the other.  I've turned a lot of strikers, and do not feel this peice of equipment is a NEED for me.  



Longer tool rest:

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/CLTSET58.html

Again, not another NEED, but I sure wish I had a longer tool rest so I didn't have to move it while turning a striker.  



3/8 spindle gouge:

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LX320.html

or 3/8 pen making spindle gouge:

http://www.pennstateind.com/store/LCPM-G.html

One more NOT NEEDED, but cheap enough to give a try.  The longer one is actually cheaper than the pen version.  A small spindle gouge will help you be smooth and light in your work, as to not break a long striker.  I personally love 3/8" spindle gouges for work like this.  I currently use a 3/8" Craftsman spindle gouge for this work, but they are no longer available.  When I get mine ground down to nothing, I will do my best to find another, or I will be going to this one I have listed above.

Parker

[Prairie Game Calls]

I'll throw in some size stuff here. 7 1/2" to 8" in length for your blank. Figure out what you want your over all striker to be at in the length department and then divide your blank into thirds. 2/3's shaft 1/3 striker top. Remember when you do a fancy striker top you are removing more wood and need to make your striker a bit thicker as a blank. I cut most of my striker stock up into 7/8" - 1" squares. I like to use a chuck to turn them but if you use a drive center the Spurred centers in the 1/2" size work really well. If I have my chuck set up to do pots then I use my spurred drive center I hate switching the jaws around all the time.
Now on the heavy woods you can get by with a 3/4" blank just fine.
I use a 12" tool rest and I think it is a must for strikers. I marked on my rest with silver paint stick the length of my strikers head and tail end and I mark on the rest where the head or top ends and transforms into the shaft. Saves me lot's of time stopping to measure.
If I use my spurred center to turn my strikers I always predrill my blanks with a dead center bit on both ends. Don't drill in too far just enough to accommodate the centers of the drive and tail stocks. This will help you when you tighten the blank into the lathe and help you from over tightening the blank which causes stress when you start to get thin on the shaft and lead to a flying object.
Wear a face shield it saved my ugly mug several times you never know what lurks inside some pieces of wood and if it lets loose you may not be fast enough as I found out the hard way early in my beginning!

Larry

[VECtor Calls]

I need to get a 12" tool rest!  I really like the idea of having my striker measurements on the rest!  No doubt I get tired of moving my smaller rest back and forth. 

Parker

[sharpshooter]

Thank Parker for finding madarchery's post for me. I am really liking the 12" tool rest idea to, I still have some refining to do to my one piece strikers but I am having some decent luck with my 2 piece strikers.

[VECtor Calls]

   Anyone care to share their thoughts in making two peice strikers?  I don't make many, so I am interested to hear about your ways of going about them.

Parker

[dogcatcher]

Parker, do a search, I did a 2 part striker show and tell a while back, I want to say about a year and half ago.

Marvin

[aprilheadhunter]

  Anyone care to share their thoughts in making two peice strikers?  I don't make many, so I am interested to hear about your ways of going about them.

Parker

When I make a 2 piece striker.  I pick up both pieces and place them in the trash, take off my safety glasses and place them on the bench, hang my shop apron from the spindle lock on my lathe and head for the couch because its gonna be one of those days. 

[woodwzrd]

   HaHaHa been there before

[dogcatcher]

Photos are gone on the tutorial, but here is a quick run down.  I drill a 5/16" hole in my handle blank, and I mount it on a 5/16" steel rod that is in my collet chuck.  Using the tailstock for pressure and easy cuts with a sharp chisel I turn the handle.  I buy my striker ends from Brookside, he has them in all flavors of woods and acrylic. 

Here is an almost finished handle, all that is left is the final parting off of the live center end.  Next step is to glue in the striker end and apply the final finish.


Finished striker 

[Bill]

Marvin when putting the 2 piece strikers together will it make a difference in sound if you put the striker all the way in the handle or only part way and glue it together