What's the secret to the Tally Ho?

moonshine44

moonshine44

Well-known member
Guys: I figured this would be the place to ask this question, so here goes: what's the secret to the TallyHo? By that I mean, what's the best way to blow it? I've been using a Sceery AP3 variable pitch call, but it keeps locking up on spit, and I don't think it's been cold enough to freeze. I have a Tally Ho, but I'm not quite sure how to work it. I can make noises with it, but, well, you know how that goes. So, is there a secret, or is it just a matter of incessant practice until you drive the dog in your yard, and your wife and kids, nuts? Help... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
Don't mean to be too flippant, but just put your mouth over it and blow. Very easy to use and you will catch on very quickly. If it locks up on you just bend the reed up with your tongue while it is in your mouth between calls. Sometimes with enough spit on it and if you blow it too hard it will "lock up". That is when the reed sticks to the mouthpiece. Pretty simple and yet very effective call. I don't know if Cal Lockwood was the originator of the open-reed call, but he started with it many years ago. All the other open-reed calls don't seem to be a lot different or work on basically the same principle. I have a lot of open-reed calls and I think there are very few that won't work. However, the Tally-Ho is always around my neck.
Along with others depending on the day, stand, and my mood.
 
Intresting to me is that I see a lot of callers blowing an open reed and when they lock up from spit, they stop using them. A very simple thing to do on stand is just turn the call around and blow into the barrel end, this will blow most of the spit out and put the call back into operation most times(along with the ol' tounge adjustment above).In freezing temps, before you start calling with any call, open or closed reed, turn it around and blow warm air through it from barrel end, this will warm the reeds up and keep em limber. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Thanks, guys. I don't mind flippant. I tend to get that way myself sometimes.

I guess I'll just have to get it out of my pocket and practice with it, eh?
 
hello,after we were done hunting saturday evening we broke some calls out to practice while my hunting partner & i would walk away several yards to listen to each other.i can tell you this is the best $7.00 call i have heard!! i have gotten in the habit of flipping the reed up with my thumb between calling sessions.quietly of course.....anyway sometimes i just blow it,sometimes i blow & bite down with my front teeth while blowing just to change the pitch a bit... i think youre using the ap-6 ?? variable pitch from sceery? i have had problems with that one also.however i own several sceery calls & like all the rest.especially the open reed double barell calls.keep working on the old tally-ho!! good luck.......dave
 
Moonshine44,

I have a much different experience and opinion of the Tally Ho. First of all I really do like the Tally Ho and am envious of those that pick it up and successfully call the first time and every time after that. But that has not been my experience over many years and several Tally Ho's. I probably have at least 6 TH's and all but one has been modified to try and make it more reliable. There are many modifications that are supposed to turn a Tally Ho into a reliable call such as changing the angle at the front of the mouth piece, changing out the reed to a thinner thickness reed, sanding the original reed thinner, changing the shape of the sound board, trimming the tip of the reed, bending the red up before calling, ..... Nothing so far has worked. Rich Cronk has from time to time tuned up Tally Ho's with success. I've even changed the position of the call to the corner of my mouth and using less air and still no luck. I even read the instruction! For those that have a good Tally Ho they are very fortunate. For the rest of us it's a continuous frustration. I think everyone should have at least one Tally Ho because if you get one that doesn't work you can appreciate the good calls that are easier to use and are reliable. My Tally Ho's have a special place in my call box, in the bottom not to see the light of day. Until I get the itch to try and "fix it" on more time.

Bill
 
Never fear for the Tally Ho. It was one of the very first mass produced open reed predator calls. It is my belief that the first Tally Ho was patterned after a discontinued OLT duck call. I have one of those little duck calls in my collection by golly. Some folks love the Tally Ho while others hate it. You can't play the entire length of the reed, but then it was never intended to be used that way. I have used the Tally Ho calls to call a lot of coyotes, and I never had much of a problem keeping one of the buggers running. Just bend the reed upward a tiny bit. Not too much now, we don't want to kink it. Just make the reed bow upward a little, in a gentle arch. Now go blow the heck out of it and watch the coyotes come a running. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Rich, I've got no way to prove it or not, but I believe that the proto for the Tally Ho was a cooperative effort between Tal Lockwood and F. Robert (Bob) Henderson who eventually became the go-to guy at Kansas State University in ADC. I heard this from Henderson back in the very early 80's and he said then that the call was a modification of an Olt duck call. I know that Henderson was working closely with Boddicker at that time and Major may have played a role as well.
 
Lance H,
I believe that you are correct. I talked to Bob Henderson at a trapping convention back in the 1980's, and he showed me one of those little OLT duck calls. Those calls look exactly like an OLT D-2 that they forgot to sanforize before it went through the laundry. It shrunk. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif The reed was even same material as they use in today's Tally Ho, or at least it looked and felt the same.
 
Thanks Rich, Lance, Dave, Bill for your input. I'll do some practicing, and see what I come up with. I'm off on Wednesday for Nevada for the World contest, don't know if I'll use the Tally Ho or not, but it'll be in my pocket.

Soon's I save the pennies, I'm looking real hard at one of Rich's Killer Calls, but with Christmas coming on, and two kids with expensive tastes, well... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif I usually use a JS Power Pro electronic while I'm hunting by myself (which is most of the time), but sometimes I don't feel like carrying the box, and just take a few hand calls. I'm intrigued by the open reed calls, which is why I'm carrying the Tally Ho around...
 
Since you are saving pennies I would suggest almost any of Major Boddicker's line of calls, the Crit'r Calls, either the Pee Wee, Standard, Song Dog and I see that he just introduced the Song Dog Jr. The Crit'r Calls I find are very easy to use. Since you to are having trouble with the Tally Ho you might want to try a Crit'r Call. You can get through AllPredatorCall.com a call that I believe comes with a book and or a cassette tape. There is a lot of information for just a couple of dollars more.

Continue saving pennnies and do buy one of Rich's call or even some from other custon call makers. A custom call is worth every penny you will spend on it and will bring lots of critter and satisfaction for years to come.

Good luck with the open reeds and have a good time in Nevada.

Bill
 
Moonshine,

I asked a wise old caller one time about the Tally Ho... He looked at me and said, "CritR-Call" The CritR-Call will do much more than the TH and is easier to use. Get one, you won't regret it.
 
Does anybody know whether or not Sportsman's Warehouse sells Critt'r Calls? I'm always up for buying a new call, and I'll be hitting the Sportsman's Warehouse in Meridian, ID Wednesday morning...
 
I just can't figure out the problems you guys are having except when the reed sticks, but like I said in my earlier post and like Rich said all you have to do is just bend the reed up a little.
I have a critter call, Tally-Ho, one of Rich's killer calls, two of Randy Anderson's new open reed calls by Primos, and who knows how many others. I find that I use the same technique on all of them and they all work the same. I must have gotten a real good Tally-Ho because it works great and was easy to use from the get-go. I would love to hear you guys with the problems blow the Tally-Ho as I can't understand the problem or how you are blowing it as to not get the sound you want out of it.

I wonder if you guys are making it more difficult than it is because you expect it to be harder to call with than a closed-reed call. Good luck and I would be interested to hear your results after you have played with it some.
 
sorry moonshine they dont have the crit'r call.unless they brought them in within the last 10 days or so ?
but if youre going anyway what the heck,the were also out of the controversial tally ho,i was in meridian anyway & thought i"d pick up another for a backup. sportsmans warehouse has by far the best call selection of anywhere around here,youre not that far away & probably know that anyway.i have bought all my sceerys there.i think i"ll order a crit"r of the internet one of these days,i need a bigger call box i think. good luck.....dave
 
After carrying a Tally Ho around in my shirt pocket the reed gets bent down and the call sounds horrible and the reed will stick. I take the reed out and flip it over. Reinstall it and it sounds great.
 
Z,

I too would like to figure out the problem. If all I had to do was bend up the reed I would have fixed the problem years ago and to all the rest of the Tally Ho's I've bought over the years. Like you I have several open reed calls and the Tally Ho is the only one of the bunch that consistantly is a non preformer. You are probably right that you got a real good Tally Ho and I would guess that you probably have a better technique with the Tally Ho and you bend 'em just right. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif Yes, the open reed calls are more difficult to learn, that's the standard advice given out to new callers on a regular basis. But with a little practice they can be mastered. Since you asked, after a couple of decades with the Tally Ho, I still ain't got it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Moonshine,

If you can't find a Crit'r Call a couple of knock off calls of the Crit'r Call will work. HS has a knockoff Song Dog and Wayne Carlton has a bear call (Pee Wee)that works very well.

Bill
 
Bill,
Send me your Tally Ho. I will fix it and send it back to you. I don't make this offer very often, but there ya go pardoner. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
The first Tally-Ho was made from a modified Olt J-15. It is shown in my book.

If you are having problems with your T-H then try turning it up-side-down in your mouth where the flat of the reed rests on your bottom lip.

Tal Lockwood bites on the call with his teeth. Personally, I just use pressure with my lips.

Make sure that before you start blowing to line up the reed with the air channel and bend it up slightly away from the tone board but don't put a kink in it. The reeds get what is called a memory after time and will conform to the shape of the toneboard curvature. This is not what you want. You want the reed straight and not curved. Straighten the reed out by bending it up slightly. This exact thing is shown/discussed in my video.
 
Jay Nistetter,
A J-15 Huh? I would have looked it up in your book but I was afraid that I might get finger prints on the pages. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif Hey, I got your Christmas card and the neat business cards the other day.
Thank you.
 
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