This is a review I did on the Johnny Stewart 612 back in January on another forum......
Six weeks ago, as soon as I sent back the call by another manufacturer that I had found so disappointing, I ordered a Johnny Stewart 612LR cassette tape call.
I had given up on the hopes of finding a light weight calling system. To reach across large fields, I needed volume. For volume, I needed a large speaker and an amplifier capable of driving it. Such an amplifier requires the power from a decent sized battery. The complete 612LR caller only weighs in at 9#; that's not too tough to handle.
The 612LR is basically the same call as I had used from about 15 to 10 years ago with great success. This newer version now had auto-reverse on the cassette deck and was remote capable but the remote was not yet available.
Here's a link:
Johnny Stewart 612LR
When it arrived, I felt like I was greeting an old friend!
The folks at Johnny Stewart/Hunters Specialties do things right! The call came with a wall charger, car charger, a cordura carrying case and three cassette tapes to be used for different calling situations. The "Baby Cottontails Distress" was the same tape as I had used so many times before.
In the past, I had used 100' of lamp wire to put the speaker out away from my location. The call now has 30' of wire included and I purchased an extra 50' extension to use until the remote became available.
In the field, this unit functioned exactly as I had come to expect from Johnny Stewart/Hunters Specialty products: Flawlessly!
While I didn't call in any coyotes (I must have gotten them all before I quit hunting 10 years ago!) I think I have managed to bring every red-tailed hawk from St. Louis to Hannibal, Missouri into the trees over my speaker!
The remote became available about two weeks ago and I immediately ordered one.
The remote base unit slides into a bracket on the call case that normally holds the speaker. In turn, there is a bracket for the speaker on the other side of the base.
The remote requires a 9-volt battery. There is padding stuck to the inside of the battery cover; I don't know how in the world anyone ever replaces it with the padding in the way. I pulled it off and put it on the inside of the case; it will secure the battery just as well there.
I shortened the 30' length of speaker wire that comes with the call to about 18".
I don't know what I did wrong, but the first time I hooked up the new remote, I blew a fuse. I replaced the standard 2 amp fuse with a "slow blow" fuse from Radio Shack and taped a spare inside the cover. Radio Shack has these in two lengths; you'll want the
longer one.
I finally got out today to give the remotely controlled call a shake-down. First came the acid test for utility..... Can I operate it with my mittens on? Yes!
I only had time to go to three stands today. At the first, I placed the call about 75 yards out. I hadn't had it on for but about 4 or 5 minutes when a red fox came trotting down the fire road not 15 feet away from me! She went right up to the call, walked around it a couple of times looking directly into the speaker, decided it was nothing she was interested in and trotted off in the opposite direction! I've called in many foxes over the years but have never been able to bring myself to take one. I find them to be just the most beautiful creatures and more cat-like than dog!
At the next two stands, I used the remote to a range of about 150 yards. Again, it functioned exactly as advertised. The volume produced met all my needs. When required for close calling, I could turn it down to a whisper. When I wanted to reach a quarter of a mile across a field and into the brush beyond, the power was there to spare!
I'm free of the wires that used to grab at branches as I walked! I walk around ravines after I place the call on the far side rather than climbing through it to string the connection! And now I can scratch my nose without fear of being discovered!
Welcome home, Johnny!
I'm glad to have you back!
me!
Finally, a special thanks to Shawn Davis at Hunters Specialties who has been answering all my questions about their products for several months now! I can be such a pain! He is a First Rate Representative of a fine company!
