I bought a wing bone call from a local guy, who was doing this on the side. I have been using a little bit, and can make descent calls. My question is....is there any secrets to using, or is it just a matter of practice makes perfect? Does the maker make a difference, or are they all pretty much made the same way and look different? Would love to try one this coming spring. Thx
Practice, practice, practice. No short cuts to it
Practice,practice,practice, then practice some more, there is a difference in makers, but starting out you want notice the difference.
They are not all put together the same way,
In my opinion there can be a big difference in ease of play from one put together and tuned correctly compared to one just stuck together.
If your starting out you'll have an easier time learning on a properly tuned one, just like you would with a trumpet from a maker who has his internals figured out compared to a trumpet somebody just drilled some different size holes thru it.
search the old threads on here for trumpet instruction on youtube, any of that will help you with learning the wingbone
Quote from: jhoward11 on December 20, 2022, 11:03:03 AM
I bought a wing bone call from a local guy, who was doing this on the side. I have been using a little bit, and can make descent calls. My question is....is there any secrets to using, or is it just a matter of practice makes perfect? Does the maker make a difference, or are they all pretty much made the same way and look different? Would love to try one this coming spring. Thx
Practice and practice some more.
I bought one last year, first one I've owned. I practiced for a week and I thought it sounded horrible. Took it to the woods and set up a bird that 3 different people ( including me) had been working over the last month. I tried everything I had in my vest and no answer. Said what the heck pulled out the wing bone and he answered it and only it. Called him in from two hens and killed him. Apparently he thought it sounded ok.
I will say they sound much different from a distance then they do up close.
Have fun and good luck with it.
Practice, practice, practice, with a good wingbone. Mark Sharpe and EZ are two that come to mind. I have ine from Mark Sharpe that Inwould be heartbroken if something ever happened to it.
I made my first handful of them last spring, called in and killed a bird the first morning using one. I love the sound of them but I am limited to yelps, clucks and sort of cuts.
Made 7 or 8 of them and most sounded good but a couple not so much, now I have been thinking of all the wasted wing bones over the years!
Practice, listen to real hens, practice, listen, practice, listen, practice, listen, practice, then listen some more.
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First remember to turn the open end of the wingbone in the direction of your chest and practice. I know some think it's to turn the open end of the wingbone out away from your chest... Just a tip...
Greg do you mean curved downward instead of upward?
Perfect practice. It will come.
Look on YouTube. Curtis Terrell had a pretty good one I think? It was how to run a wingbone specifically
And yes there's a difference in the calls from different makers. EZ makes an excellent wingbone
Mark sharpe does as well. There are others but those are only ones I've used
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I may try to find one from a reputable maker. The one's mentioned here... EZ, Sharpe, will they be at the NWTF this Feb.? Or do we have a sponsor on this sight that I can support? Looks like I'm going to be driving my wife crazy with practice.
Quote from: Dtrkyman on December 20, 2022, 09:45:31 PM
Greg do you mean curved downward instead of upward?
That is a preference as it really makes no difference.
Quote from: jhoward11 on December 21, 2022, 01:38:39 PM
I may try to find one from a reputable maker. The one's mentioned here... EZ, Sharpe, will they be at the NWTF this Feb.? Or do we have a sponsor on this sight that I can support? Looks like I'm going to be driving my wife crazy with practice.
Probably be at Unicoi in January
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Quote from: wchadw on December 21, 2022, 03:27:48 PM
Quote from: jhoward11 on December 21, 2022, 01:38:39 PM
I may try to find one from a reputable maker. The one's mentioned here... EZ, Sharpe, will they be at the NWTF this Feb.? Or do we have a sponsor on this sight that I can support? Looks like I'm going to be driving my wife crazy with practice.
Probably be at Unicoi in January
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
EZ wing-bones not only look good, they sound good, and I am a complete rookie on Wing-bones and trumpets....
For me, wingones are easier to play than trumpets. I think that's due to the diameter of the radius bone being larger than most trumpet mouth pieces.
How tight you purse your lips, how tight you squeeze the mouthpiece with your lips, and the angle you put the mouthpiece on your lips all make a big difference. Along with how you cup the bell.
Like everyone said, you just gotta practice and see what works for you personally.
Then there is how you draw air through the call. The. "Kissy" action with some jaw movement works well for me for making rapid excited series of yelps, because i can breath through my nose and play the call at the same . Drawing air from deep in your chest makes for a "fuller" better sounding yelp, but harder to do longer runs of yelping.
Quote from: crow on December 20, 2022, 11:59:42 AM
They are not all put together the same way,
In my opinion there can be a big difference in ease of play from one put together and tuned correctly compared to one just stuck together.
If your starting out you'll have an easier time learning on a properly tuned one, just like you would with a trumpet from a maker who has his internals figured out compared to a trumpet somebody just drilled some different size holes thru it.
search the old threads on here for trumpet instruction on youtube, any of that will help you with learning the wingbone
100% spot on. No different than any other call.
You can only play a call as good as it's potential, no matter how much you practice. Conversely, if you practice wrong, you may never get the full potential of a well made call.
There are many good practice videos from Marlin Watkins, Ted Petters, Del Crow to name a few that will get you started the right way. I enjoy helping folks get started or get better. I love doing it face to face at shows, but I do it over the phone all the time.
A fellow that's very good on a wingbone, cane yelper or trumpet can usually give you five minutes of starting instructions and save you years of frustration, lol.
I will just say this, the time spent learning on a "suction" type yelper is time very well spent!!!
I love the sound of them, and so do the birds more importantly.
EZ any simple tips for putting them together? I have had good luck with my first handful I made but no clue what would make them "tune" differently?
I understand you not giving out any secrets but something basic.
Here's the Curtis Terrell YouTube
https://youtu.be/y33y7aKU9Zs
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Quote from: Dtrkyman on December 23, 2022, 11:05:54 AM
I love the sound of them, and so do the birds more importantly.
EZ any simple tips for putting them together? I have had good luck with my first handful I made but no clue what would make them "tune" differently?
I understand you not giving out any secrets but something basic.
There's lot's of little things I've learn in 35 years of making them, especially since every call (and every set of bones) is a little different. Best starting point is to make sure you have a good seal at the joints and that your bones are nicely aligned so as to get a smooth air flow.
Modern day adhesives help a lot, lol. Glad I'm not using pine pitch or horse glue and cotton!!! ;D
Been practicing on my home made call, my first I've made. I've progressed making up to about 50%
turkey sounds, and about 50% horror movie sound effects, so I'd call that an improvement from when
I first started!
Well, I've only got one wingbone and, quite frankly, can't imagine a better or easier to run call that what I've got. It's a Tony Ezolt "EZ" call. Since purchasing I've gotten to know Tony quite well...you'll never meet a better person and his calling/tutoring skills are superb.
Quote from: Turkeyman on December 24, 2022, 02:30:53 PM
Well, I've only got one wingbone and, quite frankly, can't imagine a better or easier to run call that what I've got. It's a Tony Ezolt "EZ" call. Since purchasing I've gotten to know Tony quite well...you'll never meet a better person and his calling/tutoring skills are superb.
Thanks Dad, lol
Quote from: Turkeyman on December 24, 2022, 02:30:53 PM
Well, I've only got one wingbone and, quite frankly, can't imagine a better or easier to run call that what I've got. It's a Tony Ezolt "EZ" call. Since purchasing I've gotten to know Tony quite well...you'll never meet a better person and his calling/tutoring skills are superb.
I stubbornly tried one of Tony's "Death Tools" after much convincing from him to try something other than a mouth call.
I could just kick myself for waiting so long. After a few phone calls for instruction I had it singing like a bird.
My EZ wingbone will be around my neck while I'm in the turkey woods from here on out.
He even made a "kids version" for my kids to play around with. My 8 year old called in a pair of gobs and killed a monster 22.4lb Tom last year with his.
I'd say the hardest part of learning on the EZ call is just how simple it is. It needs very little air and almost no lip puckering to make it run. I can get better rasp by relaxing my lips so that they vibrate when air is drawn over them. Play the call contently and it shines, but I can crack out some super sharp cutts when I feel the need.
Had wing bone call gave to me a few months ago and was really suprised as to how good it sounds, not sure who made it but will be looking buy a couple before season gets here.