Vintage duck calls were used to bring ducks within the range of the hunter’s gun. Many of these rare and antique calls were made of wood. Some were hand carved, but many were also produced on a lathe. Some of the more rare calls were carved from ivory.
A duck call is a whistle like device. It has a barrel, reed and sound block that change the hunter’s voice into the sound of a duck. The sound produced by the call should be a quack that is very similar to the voice of a duck and is one of the key components of duck hunting equipment.
The wood used in antique calls varied, but some of the most beautiful ones were made of rose wood. This is the same beautiful dark red wood found in woodwind instruments of the highest quality.
One of the problems with wooden duck calls was temperature changes often experienced while in a duck blind. Hunters would often begin the day moving into the blind well before sunrise when temperatures could be very cold. Once the sun rose, the temperatures could rise very rapidly. These sudden changes in temperature could change the sound produced by the call. For this reason, many modern hunters prefer the acrylic models that are less affected by temperature changes.
Since geese and ducks primarily inhabit the same waters, many hunters would also include goose calls with their hunting gear. These calls were similar to those used for ducks but larger and would produce a deeper sound to call in geese.
Today many vintage duck calls sit on the collector’s shelves. Other calls may be in a hunter’s vest or stored with a grandfather’s hunting equipment. Many are no longer used as many of the modern calls provide an easier way to reproduce the sound of a duck and are more effective at attracting the duck to the blind.
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