# Heartland calls?



## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

Does anyone use these calls?


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## T Shot (Oct 4, 2002)

Yep... anything else?


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

> Yep... anything else?


Are they good calls? How do they sound? Is it a good call to start learning how to blow a short reed?


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## Old Hunter (Mar 8, 2002)

They are very good calls the price is reasonable and they are easy to learn on.


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

I thought they were a good brand. I have a friend that has a new flatlinerII and he offered it to me for 60$ I have never heard of the brand before but after doing a little searching I told him I would take it. 60$ canadian is a good deal for a 120$USD call don't ya think?


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## Pato (Oct 7, 2003)

The flatliner II is a good call, hands down. Delrin is cheaper than acrylic, but both sound good.
Also try a PIPSQUEAK by Heartlandcustomcalls. It is loud and fast! Brian tuned mine about as deep as it could go for me as I don't get under the lessors usually. It worked very well as an attention getter. Good calls and good service.


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## T Shot (Oct 4, 2002)

You can't go wrong with any of Heartland's calls. All great calls in my book.


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## goosehauler22 (Dec 16, 2004)

I have a Flatliner II call I would like to sell for around $85. If anyone is interested pm me.


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## averyghg (Oct 16, 2006)

i bought the flatliner II over christmas break at sportsmans warehouse. Me and a buddy went in there and blew just about every goose call they had, from ground, to zinks, to foiles, to RNT, and we both thought the flatliner II sounded the best. SO we bought two of them at $130 a pop


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## 870 XPRS (Mar 12, 2003)

live and die by them.................

But.. mostly live


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## nickwesterholm (Nov 16, 2006)

if anyone knows where i can find a flattliner one i'd be greatly appreciative. pm if you know where i can find one. i'm very interested in buying


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## mallard (Mar 27, 2002)

Nick,Go to Scheels,to try out the heartlands,Grounds,Foils, etc. Also go to sportsmans warehouse and try out the wide variety of calls they have there.All of the calls work well, it may be that only a few of them will work for you.
Good luck


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

Well I have my call and some instructional cd's but for some reason I can't get the reed to "break" at all. It is driving me crazy, anyone got any tips? :idiot:


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## bandman (Feb 13, 2006)

headshot said:


> Well I have my call and some instructional cd's but for some reason I can't get the reed to "break" at all. It is driving me crazy, anyone got any tips? :idiot:


Make sure you can just barely push the tip of your reed into the tone board. If the tip is too far forward or too far back, your call won't turn over.

I guess I should ask if you have blown short reeds ever or if your just starting to learn? If it's the latter, don't mess w/ anything (the guts) on the calll. :wink:


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## GooseBuster3 (Mar 1, 2002)

They are goose killers for sure if used in the right hands. :wink:


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

I am new to the shorteed call. It is a brand new call. I have the "Bad Grammar" cd and another 1 called "Dave Smiths Breakthrough II" On the DS cd my call sounds just like his when he is explaining how to put air into the call with your cheeks puffed out. When he goes on to demonstrate how to "close off" your airway to make the reed "break" it just makes the same sound. I have been trying and trying with different amounts of air and the call will only make the one sound. I don't have any unreal expectations like mastering the call in a day but there has got to be something wrong with the call. I should at least be able to get the reed to break, shouldn't I?


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## GooseBuster3 (Mar 1, 2002)

I really cant tell if it is sitting on top of the tone board or not. But it looks like it is in the right place.


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

I haven't moved anything and the reed just goes into the groove. Maybe it is me? I am going to leave it alone for a day or 2 and start fresh unless someone else has any ideas? Thanks for the help.


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## GooseBuster3 (Mar 1, 2002)

You should be fine then, just keep at it!!!


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## bandman (Feb 13, 2006)

I gave a buddy a call about a week ago to get practicing on. He came over yesterday and started blowing on one of mine and I told him right away, "You're still not getting the call to turn over, but your grasping the idea better. I could tell he's not bringing the air up from his diaphragm which is to be expected from a new caller. He's just trying to change the pitch of the call by blowing a little harder midway through w/ no lower air.

He's been trying for quite awhile so don't feel bad, it is going to take some time. It will just come to you all of a sudden.

Remember: Gooooo-itt or Hooooo-it and you should feel your mid-section flex. (Blow the call backwards to make sure them words are coming out of your mouth and keep at it.) :wink:

Good luck!


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

Thanks for the advice guys. I know what you mean about blowing from the diaphragm, I used to play the trumpet for years. I will keep at this til I get it right. Sometimes I wonder about all the time and money i put into waterfowling, but I guess there are more harmful obsessions out there. :beer:


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## bandman (Feb 13, 2006)

You'll have it in no time and keep us updated on your progression.

"Time & money spent on the outdoors is time & money that couldn't be better spent."

:beer:


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## PJ (Oct 1, 2002)

I think it took me like 6 months to get a short reed to sound decent. I was handicapped because I blew a flute for so long. My buddies say I still don't put air into it properly.


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## Barry (Mar 11, 2006)

Sometimes you have to mess around with the amount of barrel that you choke off to get it to break. I would mess with that as well. Once you get it to break over, then you can refine your methods.Each call brand is a little different. One Heartland call I own, I choke off a lot and another uses very little choke.
Nonetheless, Heartland is a great call.

good luck


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

Round 2 today. As soon as the neighbors go to work I am going to give it another go. So far I have about 1 hr of screwing around with it. I will keep you posted on my progress. I have a good feeling if I put in 3-4 hrs today it should "break" :roll:


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## Shu (Oct 21, 2003)

Barry, do you know Carl Gerbschmidt?


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## Barry (Mar 11, 2006)

Never heard of him, why do you ask?


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

I worked on the call for about an hr yesterday. I got it to break so now I am just going to practice controlling the air until I can't do it perfectly. To get it right I had to lay on my back and practice. I just wasn't putting enough diaphragm into it. Out of all the sounds you guys can make which ones are the most productive in the field? Should I worry about learning the "spit note" or are the basics "honk,moan,cluck" good enough?


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## Barry (Mar 11, 2006)

clucks and moans are the bread and butter of goose hunting


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## bandman (Feb 13, 2006)

For now you should just stick to the basics and get them perfected. Check out the bottom of the page on this website: http://www.lib.niu.edu/ipo/2001/oi011102.html :wink:


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

> For now you should just stick to the basics and get them perfected.


I was just wondering which sounds to focus my energy on. I practiced yesterday until my lips were numb. I am going out in the field to practice today and to listen to the real thing.


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## Old Hunter (Mar 8, 2002)

headshot You started doing the exact things that will help you to learn what the call will do. When you said that calling on your back helped to learn the call you were going in the right direction. I tell people who are starting on a short reed to fool around with the call and see what kind of sounds it will make. Try to play a song on it, use hands to create back pressure until it chokes out, humm into it,play it like a kazoo,change the shape of your hands, try many different things to see what produces sounds. When you are practicing and things are not going well just put the call down and forget it for a while. Dont get stuck in a rut and practice the same thing every time . Good luck


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## Pato (Oct 7, 2003)

Headshot, it is explained on an instructional cd thjat the air must come up as if you were going to fog up a pair of glasses to wipe them off. This is the help point that got me over the top with air presentation. We had to puff out our cheeks with the flutes and old style calls, but not the short reeds. I used old style and flutes for 7-8 years before trying to switch over and it was tough. The upside is that I can call birds in now, and that makes a goose hunting trip so much more rewarding! I made a commitment to get switched over, started in January, and calld in geese last fall. Here are some resources that helped me get going:
Honker Talk by Shawn Stall, DVD, and I hear that he has a cd now. 
Foiles has an instructional cd also.
You mention that you have a Dave Smith cd, good one also.
I used all of these and learned something from each one. I was not able to get everything from one source though for some unknown reason. Keep going, take a break if you get frustrated, but pick it up again! It is worth it over and over in the end!
A good hunting buddy said the best part of last years ND hunt was laying there in the field watching my son and I call in a pair of honkers that were clearly going somewhere else, turn around and come in to the calling and decoys! Son and I bloodied the decoys with them! 
I am not anywhere near ready for contest calling, but that is not my goal for now, but getting geese into the decoys is. 
When you hit a spot that you can't get past, try going to a sporting store and asking the call sales people to listen to you. They can be a great help in getting past a stumbling block.
Keep trying!


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

> tell people who are starting on a short reed to fool around with the call and see what kind of sounds it will make.


That is basically what I did. I stopped trying to sound like a goose, for now. :lol: I had to figure out how to get the call to make the whole range of sounds.



> try going to a sporting store and asking the call sales people to listen to you.


This is the problem. I have to get everything by mail order, I can't even try a call before I buy it. My hunting partner can't call and the guy I got the call from said it was an easy call to learn on.


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## Pato (Oct 7, 2003)

Headshot,
PM me and I will try and help you a bit more with this call learning.


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

Well I have finally figured it out. It only took 6 weeks but I am confident that I am now holding the call correctly and putting the air into it properly. I was closing my hands to "tightly" and the call seems to like "no backpressure" I feel like a 1000lb weight has been lifted of my shoulders. Special thanks to all that have helped me with the call. :lol:


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## bandman (Feb 13, 2006)

Congrats! :beer:


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

Wow. This call sounds awesome. My calling has improved more in the last 12 hours then the last 12 years. I am not an expert caller yet, lol but my advice to anyone learning to call is to talk to as many people as possible and keep at it. I was so frustrated that i was going to pitch the call in the river and cut my losses. Bandman and Pato: If you guys ever come to Sask let me know and I would be glad to take you out for a drink and hunt with you. It's good to know that there are complete strangers willing to help a guy. :beer:


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## headshot (Oct 26, 2006)

I have been putting in an "honest" 4-5 hrs a week on the call. We were fishing today and I had geese circling the boat all day. I have killed a pile of geese in the past with "medi-ocre" calling at best, this season they aren't gonna know what hit them.


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## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

Hunting Canadas is so much more enjoyable when you can work them with a call. 4-5 hours a week for the rest of the summer and you'll be on fire in Sept.


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## Blue Plate (Jul 31, 2006)

I would strongly suggest anyone getting into goose calling watch Honker Talk by Shawn Stall. It's even better when you watch it with your hunting call. It will help your calling 100%. I almost always use: the honk, cluck, moan and feeding murmers when hunting. For the most part if you can by making a realistic high/low goose, you will kill geese. It's more important to learn how when to call geese and what type of calling you should use.


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## Matt Jones (Mar 6, 2002)

GooseBuster3 said:


> They are goose killers for sure if used in the right hands. :wink:


What call isn't?

Except for a few that REALLY suck.


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## muddy river (Jan 16, 2007)

There's a Heartland "Stage Fright" on ebay right now for only $50 so far. If I hadn't just bought a "Shore Thing" recently I'd buy this thing for sure. :wink:


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## NDTerminator (Aug 20, 2003)

I like the Heartland X-Out so much that I have one one every lanyard, including my primary with my high end customs.

You absolutely can't go wrong with Heartland calls...


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## muddy river (Jan 16, 2007)

I just visited their website and it leaves something to be desired. Some of their calls have no description, one has no picture, and one says coming soon with no description. I need the manufacturer to tell me about these calls if I'm going to buy one. :eyeroll:


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## NDTerminator (Aug 20, 2003)

muddy river said:


> I just visited their website and it leaves something to be desired. Some of their calls have no description, one has no picture, and one says coming soon with no description. I need the manufacturer to tell me about these calls if I'm going to buy one. :eyeroll:


Looks to me like those couple pages are under construction. Most of their calls have both a descriptive paragraph as well as demonstration sound bytes.

If you have a question, give Heartland a call. It will be well worth the effort. Believe me, they will bend over backwards for you.

Again, I highly recommend the X-Out. It's a great call for a someone new to the short reed to learn on, yet has the range and goosiness for a caller with skills. It has a threaded barrel, so you aren't going to reach down for it and find you've lost the guts. And it's acrylic. You just can't go wrong at $50, but I've gotten one even cheaper off the Classifieds...

As I said, I have an X-Out on each of my lanyards...

www.heartlandcustomcalls.com


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## GooseBuster3 (Mar 1, 2002)

Brian is changing alot of the pictures and so forth on the site. He just moved back to SD. He told me he is sending me some new stuff, so I cant until I get it!!


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