Hi!
The more I lurk on here the more I become interested in assembling my own pot calls. I say assemble because making my own pots would not be a realistic option. Are there any rules of thumb with tone qualities amongst certain woods, striker materials, and playing surfaces? Any that do not work well together? I really want to make a pot that will carry a distance and get a bird fired up with my run and gun style of hunting. Thanks!
A good first attempt would be a walnut pot, copper playing surface over a glass sound board. For a striker, I would go with a hickory, diamondwood or one of the laminates. It should carry well with good tone. Good luck!
There are lots of rules of thumb that all affect each other. The complexity there is what makes callmaking such a fun challenge.
At the most basic level, I would say balance. The wood and soundboard in your pot have to be able to jive with the amount of vibrational energy coming from the surface.
Padauk is a wood that works real well as both a pot and striker with any surface. The first kit call I ever assembled was an aluminum over glass in a padauk pot with a padauk striker and the first call I ever turned out on my own was the exact same combination.
I can't say that I ever put a kit together, but I can say that the wood choices are a must. Always go with a wood that is definitely known for its musical qualities, because they will resonate where others will not. I love Cut*N*Run's (vibrational energy) statement....because that is exactly what you should be looking for in a pot call, kits should be basic, so you would more then likely have to do the finishing touches.....like making sure your measurements between the top of the sound board and the bottom of your striking surface is right .... too close or too far makes a dead caller.... floor thickness too much creates less vibration too thin creates echo valley....I know it sounds like a lot, but even in kit form you should do what you can to make a presentable caller for those Toms. Hard woods with straight tight grains make great pots, use materials that will make your pot easy to use, I would recommend using combos that are established call producers. You simply can't go wrong with the basics.