gr8white said:
Did you see the others that were listed around the same time brought more money. The others appeared to not be hand cut, but brought more$$...what was the reasoning behind that? I'm trying to learn about these calls so forgive the questions if its been asked 1000x before...
I did watch all those calls and don't know that I understand why this call was cheaper than than the other calls. From what I have read and seen, this call was older and more rare than the others (although they were all hand cut). The others were in better shape but not that much better.
This is a repost from Davy Hunt on the Refuge forums who used to work at RNT. I found it to be pretty helpful.
From Davy Hunt: Here is a pic that I took of the Rich-N-Tone calls that sort of show the progression of what they looked like. I just pulled these out of John's office and lined them up so I could compare sizes. I had been working on the website around 2003 when this was taken. These are John Stephens' personal calls. John is an avid collector. He has an example of nearly every RNT ever. Y'all ought to see this guy's collection... its absurd. Butch made some crazy-looking stuff over the years.
This isn't official or anything, I could be wrong. Remember, this is an old pic from almost 10 years ago and I am working from memory. John can correct me.
-The first call on the left is one of the first 7 calls Butch made after Chick Majors died (cedar, I think). He had enough wood for 7 calls, and made them to sell in Mack's Hardware Store. This was prior to him coming up with a name, 1976.
-The next 2, were made within a year or so, and you can see where Butch began developing his shape.
-The 4th is an example of the first banded calls he made. John can tell you when that happened. This is still in the 70's ('78 maybe?)... I think.
-That blue call is weird. It isn't acrylic. I think it is some kind of nylon or something. I used it for its shape. 1980-ish.
-That brown call isn't acrylic either. I think it is some kind of mylar. The shape had started to settle in by then, early/mid-80's. Notice the fat lip.
-The next 2 (futurewood and clear/blue acrylic) are CNC'ed (acrylic) or made on a lathe with a duplicator (wood), so it is hard to tell how old late 80's through 2000 or so. I THINK.
-2001/2002 Original. CNC'ed I am pretty sure.
-Then, a priceless, stickered, short barrel from 2001/2002.