Best Goose Calls of 2020

Bill Saunders Big Spin

Every goose guide from the Front Range to Moses Lake has probably had the Traffic call on his band-studded lanyard at some point. The Big Spin is going to be the call you see dangling around their necks of the next generation of western killers. It was built for lessers, but you can slow it down for big honks. The mouthpiece is flared so you don’t lose any air pressure, and if you think that doesn’t make a difference, blow the call. It makes ALL the difference. It’s the easiest call of the bunch to get running fast and sounding good, but it doesn’t like “dirty” air, so if you’re one of those folks who likes to growl into the call, stick with that Big River Long Honker. $150 | billsaunderscalls.com

Molt Gear EX3 Delrin

It’s tough not to listen to Scott Threinen or not blow his calls if you aspire to be an accomplished big honker hunter. He hunts interior Canadas hard in Rochester, and if the University of Minnesota ever decided to create a class on killing geese, he’d be a tenured professor. He built this call—and many others—so you can get realistic sounds out of it, get power out of it, but also finesse. The key to consistently killing honkers is making the right sequence of calls at the right time, and Scott gives you the tool to do that. It’s on you to master it. $TBD | moltgear.com

Riceland ¾ Gut Speck

White fronts are a new-ish target in many places, and plenty of us are just vernturing into speck-calling. Riceland is considered one of the best (they specialize in speck calls), though your air flow and back pressure need to be on point to get the best sounds out of this call. Whichever hand you hold the call with needs to have the correct amount of “choke,” which is how open or closed you hold that hand. It took me awhile to find the proper mix of air and back pressure, but once that’s done, this is as deadly a speck call as there is. $195 |  ricelandcustomcalls.com

GK Overture

Typically, the shorter the honker call, the tougher it is to blow, but the Overture goes against that notion and is surprisingly easy on the lungs—though you can push as much air as you want through it. I blew the guts out of it (literally, the guts fell on the parking lot pavement), put them back in and haven’t had that issue since. You can opt for two reed styles, one of which is strictly for the high pitches lessers make or the “Total Control” tune, which is what I selected. It’s full of power and you can go low if you really want to on calm or foggy days.$120 | gkcalls.com

Pacific 530 Speck

This call is easier to blow than the Riceland, but the sound you get from it isn’t the same. That’s not saying it’s bad, because some of us aren’t ready to make a more advanced call sing, and the 530 will kill specks. It’s also the second-best bar-belly call I have ever blown. You don’t need much back pressure, and it’s more forgiving, so you sound better even though you might not be a bad ass...yet. Best feature is you can switch from fast to slow with those clucks specks make when they are on the ground. That’s one of the tougher strings of notes to control for beginners. $150 | pacificcustomcalls.com

Bay Country Shore Thing

East Coast short-reeds always blow and sound a little bit different than most others—more like a flute, which makes sense since the Eastern Shore has a long, storied history with that style call. Shorter, more controlled “pops” of air are best for the Shore Thing. If you’re used to hammering a call, owner John Taylor might recommend another one of his calls or tune the ST. Beginners will love the call, because you don’t have to pull as much air from your diaphragm to get it running. And if you like to grunt those big geese in—this is the call. $150 |baycountrycalls.com

Field Proven Call With No Name

Every once in awhile a call will just fit you from the jump, and that’s particularly true with this new short-reed from the Hudnall brothers. It has the famous Mark III World Championship gut system, and when you blow into it, the air feels like it’s pushing back against you or at least slowing down. It’s like having built-in back pressure. You can get some very goose-y sounds from it without even cupping your off hand around the insert. The only reason it didn’t go on the lanyard this year was a buddy swiped it from my truck! $160 | fieldprovencalls.com