Many times a reed is recommended to us to try because a buddy does very well with his. Maybe he has a large palate so he uses the wider version so we try it & hate it! (grin) Next thing you know is we feel reeds aren't for us because we assume all reeds are the same! This is the # 1 mistake, make sure to choose the right reed for you! Newer hunters should start with single reeds.
One thing to note is any hunter can use a narrow framed reed, doesn't matter if he has a wide palate or not but not anyone can use a wide 5/8" reed. If in doubt consider a 1/2" reed first!
A big question hunters have is "can I use a mouth reed"? If you can brush your teeth without gagging then yes you can learn to use a mouth reed! (grin)
ElkNut1
ElkNut1
Yeah, I know I can do a forum search, but why not ask the question in a relevant thread?
As of right now, I have no desire to let out my own bugles. I would much rather hear my first one and see how the addiction takes hold of me. From what I have been told, it is a POWERFUL addiction at that.
Mike, good thinking! No need to experiment in the woods with sounds you have no confidence in! Now's the time though to learn how to use a mouth reed & conqueror your fears of not knowing how to use one properly! The off season is a perfect time to learn the ins & outs of their use. As you learn to cow call you may want to graduate to bull sounds, it's a personal decision of course! The Mellow Yellow Reed is a Palate Plate reed & is a user friendly reed that will produce fantastic cow sounds & could also be used for many bull sounds if so desired, it's also a 1/2" size reed, this should do well for you.
Here's some additional instruction on their use! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Should I use a standard reed or a palate plate reed? Does it matter & what's the difference?
When using a Palate plate reed the part of the reed with the shed roof or dome goes up towards the palate & the latex faces towards front teeth, these type reeds are not intended to bend or shape to ones mouth, they are to be used as is. If non palate plate reed you'll generally notice a small bump on one side of the reed in the frame about center where vinyl covers top part of horseshoe. Most these reeds with this bump will face towards the palate not the tongue but quite possibly can work either way if a single reed. (this can vary from call maker to call maker) If double & triple reeds make sure the layering where you can see them stair step face up towards your palate not down for best results. These types of reeds can be shaped to ones mouth or at times slightly trimming of the vinyl tag for best fit & feel. Don't get carried away on the bending or you will have a saggy or lazy latex if bent in. If bent to your desired fit it may be necessary to pull apart the opening of the horseshoe open end to tighten latex to achieve like new condition.
Too, I like nibbling or chewing on nearly every reed I use when it's new before putting on my tongue & lifting into place. This softens the canvas vinyl like a wet T-shirt so it molds to your palate & dams all air from escaping as well as softens edges & corners so they aren't poking at your gums. Do not chew on the latex itself.
All this can take a minute or two depending on what's needed to soften material. The first time will take the longest & from there it's pretty easily done with continued use.
Before there's any bending, trimming or shaping on non palate reeds you must know where the reed goes! Here are a few points to consider. The reed is not clamped down by your back teeth or any teeth for that matter. Now allow the right & left corners of the vinyl tag to slightly rest against top inside front teeth. The very front of the latex or horseshoe opening should be in the proximity of the ridge or cleft of your palate, the mouth reed itself does not touch your front teeth so it's actually 3/4" or so from teeth, only the corners of the vinyl should be touching inside of top teeth or gum line. You can use center of tongue as contact point on latex for more subtle sounds as cow calling or smaller bull sounds. Tip of tongue, front or the back of tip portion can be used for louder bull sounds as lip bawls or long range location bugles.
One of the easiest sounds to perform are cow sounds, use center of tongue if so desired with light to medium pressure & say Shhhhhhh softly, by adjusting air-flow, tongue tension and or position of tongue in a forward or backward motion very slightly you will achieve the desired tone. You want to practice this first before you move on to bull sounds. Take one step at a time, conquer it, then move to the next step towards bull sounds. One note with bull sounds is you will need to add your own voice inflections into most of these sounds, the mouth reed can only be counted on for those creative higher notes & raspy aggressive sounds, it's a learning process but easily done with the proper motivation & understanding that it will take a few practice sessions to get comfortable with the reed in ones mouth. This cannot be done as a 1st timer in one or two 5-10 minute sessions. Plan on 4 weeks of persistent practice 10 minutes a day, some are quicker learner than others. (grin) Give yourself a chance & be persistent & you can succeed!
Final note, mouth reeds can get old! The latex can fatigue quickly if left in direct sunlight in rig or at home, sometimes in less than 30 minutes. You also have to watch out if left in the home on a table or desk where direct lamplight or sunlight can attack the latex. With lots of daily use they need to be traded out with a new one in a month or so. If doing lots of lip bawls or harsh aggressive bugling their life expectancy can be much less! When sounds are not crisp & clean as the first day of use it's time for a new one! Store in cool dry places.
ElkNut1
As a new elk hunter, I would advise you to get over the aversion to bugling.
As a whitetail hunter, it took me 3 elk hunts to bugle and I consider this one of the biggest mistakes (Learning curve) that I should have taken advantage of on earlier hunts. (On hunt #3, I started bugling out of desperation because I figured it couldn't hurt! After my experiences on that hunt, I felt like the pied piper and kicked myself as I looked back on previous encounters)
If you can call turkeys with a diaphragm, use one for elk. No question. The advantages of diaphragm for a bowhunter (handsfree) put it at the top of choices.
That being said in response to your question. If it works, I would try the Mellow Yellow (Bugling Bulls mfg.). For me anyway, it is probably the easiest call. I can make sweet cow sounds. I like it because I can slide into small bull sounds with the same reed, if that is what the situation requires.
The best part of a hunt, to me, is the 10 months leading up to it. It helps get me thru the off seasons.
ElkNut1
Here ya go Mike. Learn from the real experts not the self proclaimed ones.
WW, no problem sir! I've been teaching hunters how to use a mouth reed since the 80's, I believe this will more than qualify me to help out others. After all it's not rocket science! (grin)
When helping others out they need to know the basics, after that they can build a repertoire as to how far they want to advance as individuals, most are interested in being productive elk callers/hunters not the next world champion. Thanks for the input!
ElkNut1
I can agree with that statement 100%.
For me being new to elk hunting, if a guy is willing to help me out, and he does it with respect towards myself, and others, he gets my respect. If for some reason someone disagrees, it only helps if disagreements are done in a civilized manner.
Typically, negativity breads more negativity, but in Paul's (Elknut1) case, he treats it like water on a duck's back. He just lets it roll off and he moves on. That, right there, speaks volumes about a guy's character.
Thank you for the beginners intro to mouth reeds, now please feel free to give some more "classes". That applies to anyone who has something positive to contribute.
Elknut: I'll take that as a complement. But I have no desire to be a world champion caller. I'm far too old and to broke to ever follow a dream like that. But it was a lot of fun competing with some of the pros several years ago. It lets you know just where you stand and provides opertunity to pick up new tips and tricks from the experts.
The video I tried to post was to actually show those that may be having problems with their calling just how real world champions master the diaphragm. It is just so much easier, especially for me, to visually see something done properly than it is to hear someone talk about it.
ElkNut1
On pallet plate reeds there shouldn't be a need to trim the tape as long as the reed is the right width for the user. This can also apply to non palate plate reeds. What happens so many times is hunters buy a reed & do not realize there are two different sizes/widths. Most companies out there that produce non palate plate reeds build them with the 5/8" frame, this is a very wide frame for most hunters. These hunters get the sensation that the reed is filling their mouth! So they start trimming away, in actuality they need to make sure they use a narrow pallet reed & in many cases move the reed forward & this can eliminate any trimming in most cases!
We see most newer hunters start with their reeds too far back, it's an easy adjustment to solve their issue!
ElkNut1
When giving a bugle you do not need any chuckles or grunts, just the high pitch note will work. This may help conserve air?
I'm not aware of a bugle that doesn't take similar air pressure whether it's mouth reeds or an external bugle.
ElkNut1
DPowers, what is your sequence? It takes about 2 seconds to give a location bugle.
ElkNut1
Elkut1
