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reeds for grunt tube

I have a few Knight & Hale ez twist pro grunter grunt calls with mangled reeds and can't find new reeds. What do I do? They are old but the were good calls.

You can try getting some from call making stores online. I’ve used wood turners catalog and Brook side game calls for the guts to make calls. I’ve also seen the kits on Etsy. I’ve never searched for just the reed tho.

Craig

I use X-ray film, and cut the replacement, using the original as a template. I don't necessarily cut a new reed because I damage the other, I do it, because the flexibility of the X-ray film is twice as flimsy, and the reverberation is a perfect match to a live animal. The other thing you can do, is take 2000 grit sandpaper, and shave the original reed until you achieve the same tone. I know it's arguable, but I think all deer calls sound wrong out of the box, and I'll shave the reed, or replace it altogether on every call. I don't blow through the barrel of the call. I leave the flexible tube on the end, muffling it with one hand. I bite down on the reed with my front teeth, pressing it against the board, and instead of blowing a kazoo, I breath through the call from the diaphragm instead. I can achieve an assortment of tones simply sliding my teeth up and down the reed and board. Store bought deer calls sound too much like a pig grunt. I find a live deer to be much more quiet with a sort of rattled reverberation in their tone. Most duck hunters work their duck call's reeds in the same fashion, so less air breaks the reed from the board, and that's where I learned this.

I was hoping Pete-pec would enter this conversation. A few years ago he sent me a piece of X-Ray film and cut it per his recommendation and as needed. Listen to him, this man knows of what he speaks.....

Awww Bill, I still need to just tune that call for you. You should send it to me, along with the original reed, and let me see if I can get the original (less apt to stick) reed ready for you before season starts.

Pete id love to hear about the X-ray film procedure

i've used milk jug plastic in all types of calls for reeds and they worked fine. ya might try that.....

Craig, the only downside to the X-ray film, is the fact that it likes to grab the moisture from your breath. Again, I use the call differently. I don't use the barrel to call. I use the barrel to cover or protect my call to and from hunting, but I slip just the board, keg and tube assembly in my pocket, and blow without using the barrel. I see you're a call maker. Consider it. You didn't start making calls for money. You did it, because you can make them better. Take your reed, and only sand one side of it down gradually. I use 2000 grit. I assemble the keg, cork, and board plus the reed, keeping the factory side down, making contact with the board, and just use your two front teeth as the tone changer. Obviously the closer to the keg the deeper the grunt, but I can make a rabbit distress call from the same call, provided you shave (sand) your reed thin enough. I assure you this. You'll immediately realize your call can be improved upon, and I'm not doubting its authenticity. I just know it can be better. Add the wrapped hand over the tube, and the sound is quiet like a deer, and guttural. Deer have incredible hearing. Of course in high winds, or preoccupied by the chase, they may not react, but quiet is what I've found to actually turn deer with a modest vocalization versus a loud pig grunt that can send even a dominant buck running to the next county. I sort of think like this. Does a pre-rut deer really want to fight another deer who immediately sounds like the aggressor, or does he perhaps want to investigate who this subordinate buck is? Of course when I rattle or decoy, I can turn up the intensity as well as the volume. I'm not selling anything. I'm giving away the recipe for what I've experienced. People ask what is the one thing they could not hunt without? Of course I need my bow, arrow, and release, but the first tool after that, would be my call. I don't care the brand, I'm adjusting that reed. The X-ray film is literally almost a perfect match. That said, I'll take the original reed, and achieve the same thing in 30 minutes of light sanding and testing, until I reach that sound or tone that is music to my ears. The picture above, with the two calls, minus their barrels, is exactly what I use. The fact that flex tone has a soft tube I can close, is the best recipe I've found, and I think they're like 8 bucks lol. Breathing through the call is the difference. A stiff read to break and reverberate takes some excess blowing, making the call sound loud and snappy. In my opinion, intimidating to most deer.

Thanks Pete

You bet! Nice calls by the way!

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