The DRT stands for double reed timber so the difference is the number of reeds. XLT stands for extra loud timber so you might avoid that one since you said you don't need it overly loud. The timber diamondwood with poly insert is just that, the barrel is diamondwood and the insert is polycarbonate. The difference in materials changes the tone and volume of a call. Some people like wood calls. Others like acrylic. Others like polycarbonate. Only you can make that decision.

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Thanks. I know what they stand for. I was more interested in what the different materials will do to the actual sound, and if they change the ease-of-use.

The DRT only comes in acrylic, so would i be better off with that, or the wood/poly insert? Again, would it be better to stay away from the single reed timber for now?

 

You need to blow some different calls. Some of the larger stores will gladly let you test drive calls. Try a friends calls if they don't mind. This is honestly the only way to get a good feel for them. Don't get caught up in the whole "Double reeds are for beginners" or "The best callers only run single reeds". Someone with a good command of any call,be it goose or duck,will run all of them well. Buying a lanyard of single reeds to "fit in" is a mistake. My Echo Coco Timber is one of my favorite calls. New callers that have tried it get surprisingly ducky sound from it. Even as new callers. The general consensus is they shouldn't be able to do that well on a single. The Zink ATM is one sweet double reed. Crisp with decent range and comparable volume to my Meat Hanger. Straight out of the box. Now to me,the Zink Nothing but Green needs a tuning up right off the bat. LOTS of folks flat love the NBG,and I don't dispute their claims. For ME,it can't stand with my little coco Timber without a home tune job. Others would be ready to get a rope and find a tree to swing me from just for saying such a thing. I guess it all boils down to this. Don't buy someone else's idea of perfection. You have to decide which call / calls work best for you.

You don't have to spend a fortune to get outfitted either. There are a bunch of high quality calls out there for under $100.00. Most custom call smiths will help you get the tune you want first time out. Many will offer a re-tune for maybe the postage price as well.When I was turning calls I sold a BUNCH of Dymondwood calls. Nearly indestructible. It isn't one of my personal favorites but it's no slouch as a call material. I've just turned too much of it and burned out on all the different colors,lol. Nothing wrong with the Poly inserts either. I'd much sooner have to replace a poly insert than an acrylic one. A replacement acrylic can cost as much as a whole new poly call.

If volume isn't a high priority,look to the better wood calls. Hedge,Cocobolo and Bocote are all pretty well represented. My personal favorite for calls is Cocobolo. I've turned a pile of all three. Hedge is a close second. Personal preference mostly.I do like the natural oils present in the rosewoods for calls. It helps to preserve the call through the course of being wet and dry repeatedly. It will darken with age so be prepared for that. Hedge is just plain functional beauty. It's hard not to like a call turned from it. Relatively light,it gives a nice crisp sound quality. Bocote,when well figured,is drop dead gorgeous stuff. Middle of the road for call material. It's neither heavy or especially light. Most calls turned from these woods are between $80 and $100 and should last for many seasons for you.

 

Double reeds are generally more forgiving. The second reed acts sort of as a governor and makes them hard to overblow. They are very ducky, but generally lack the range of a single reed. A lot of guys say, "you can do everything on a single that a double can do and then some." I agree with that. After I made the switch to a single reed, I never use doubles.

As far as material, acrylic is dense so it has a crisp/sharper sound than the other materials (sometimes you want that, other times, the more mellow sound of the wood calls seems to be what they like). Acrylic is also more stable over temperature and humidity changes. Acrylic is no more difficult to blow than say poly.

Poly is cheaper to manufacture and thus has a lower price-point. My experience (myself and others I've introduced to duck hunting) is a lot of guys start with a poly call and then get hooked and want acrylic/wood. I wish I would have just gone straight to acrylic and skipped poly--too much money wasted in poly calls that have all been given away.

Anther Echo double you should check out is their Meat Hanger. A guy I hunt with has one and it's a great call--it can get louder than a Timber (or DRT) but can also get softer.

 

+1 for the Meat Hanger. I could be content with it and the Coco Timber. Throw in a whistle of some sort and away we go. But.......what fun would that be.

 

Thanks guys for all the great help! :beer:

Silas, i sent you a pm.

 

I like the DRT, softer and not as raspy as my daisy cutter

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ordered a timber in coco, single reed. with cabelas points, $35 shipped :thumbsup:

less than 2 months left in the season, I should be golden by next season.

Thanks for the help guys!

Tom

 

Get a coco bolo echo timber single reed and don't look back. Of all the calls I own, that's one of the only calls that I will blow. I find myself blowing it more than anything. It's such a smooth running call and is easy to do everything you want it to do.

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