Paul Kingyon Calls

Tim Doran

Tim Doran

New member
Anyone out there using a Paul Kingyon call? My middle son Ryan and I have been making duck calls for a while now. Mostly a hobby. We make them for friends and family as well as a few of the local duck hunters. Recently a friend asked me to copy a Paul Kingyon. It seems that he had been using them for years and had one or two that didn't work well any longer. I repaired all of his old ones and made him a copy. Since then I have become very interested in Pauls work. His calls sound great and are a very unique design.

If you have one, could you send me a picture and maybe give me a bit of the history. How did you learn about Paul, what do you think of the call, etc. I plan on making Paul Kingyon tribute calls and I think that the history is far more important than my work.
 
I have his duck and goose call. Send me your e mail and I will send you a photo.
I heard about Pauls calls several years ago through a friend. Then I called him and talked to him about his calls.
What was interesting he was one of a few people that was still making everything. A lot of calls makers are only making the barrels. He made the barrel, insert, stopper and cut the reed.When talking to him he asked how I wanted it tuned.
I said I was not sure. Then over the phone he blew call after call which was tuned different. I picked the sound I liked.
I recieved the calls and did not like the way the goose call sounded so I called him back.
He spent about an hour or more on the phone teaching me how to blow his call. After the phone call I was a happy camper.
Several years latter I got something stuck in the reed and tried to get it out. I bent the reed. I called Paul and got yelled out for messing with the call but he did fix the call for me. He was proud of the fact that he made everything also that barrel and the insert was made without using a O ring to keep them together. He was also pround that you could not overblow the call and that you could also blow the call soft. You did not need two 2 diffent calls. One thing that I did not like is that he glued then pinned his gut together. When I asked him why he did that his answer was that I did not need to mess with the call. He had nothing but problems with people taking the calls apart then saying there were not tuned right.
 
I am with Paul on the totally hand made part. I am not knocking anyone that uses store bought inserts or tone assemblies but I really like to make everything myself. The fun of it is in mastering the art form. I build my calls from the ground up but do not glue the guts. This way I can usually talk people through the adjustments rather than having them bring it back. My email is timdor@taco-hvac.com. Looking forward to seeing your calls.
 
I'm not familiar with Mr. Kingyons calls, but just wanted to throw my own 2 cents in on making calls. Some of my calls I make completely from scratch, some of the calls I use Echo inserts. I also make turkey calls and predator calls. I used to fall into the same category of I want to make everything from scratch myself, but then I started thinking. I'm not making the slate for turkey calls...and I'm not making the reeds for my predator calls. Why make the duck calls any different? I obviously had to charge more for my calls when I made the toneboards. Most of the guys going to duck shows today are looking for acrylics or want something with some big time callmakers name on it that drains their bank account. I decided to just make the calls the way I liked and I quit worrying about trying to compete with the big names in the industry. If somebody wants to buy a call then great, if not it's no big deal to me. I have no desire to make a competition call, I simply enjoy making calls from wood. and every once and a while I'll still make a toneboard from scratch. My box calls are all made from a block of wood, as are my duck whistles.

I suppose this is getting a little off topic so I'll stop now. Back to the Paul Kingyon question at hand...anybody else have any info on Mr. Kingyon?

Steve
 
Steve you are not getting off subject at all. Paul told me just about the same he could use a bought insert and sell them for less. But he made calls because he enjoyed making calls and making the toneboard was part of making the call.
Tim I sent the e mail. I tried posting the calls but I can't figure out how.
 
Although I never had the opportunity to meet Paul, I spent hours on the phone with him. I was a dealer for his calls after Tom Kondrick passed. He would spend hours playing each call for me before he would make the shipment. He wanted to make sure that every call was to my liking. I was very sad to hear that he had passed. I had pretty much sold out of all his calls except for my own. I was able to obtain a few calls after his passing for old times sake. I do have one of my favorites that he signed to me. That one will never see the marsh!

Regards,

Todd

Some of Pauls calls:

K1_zps3ad2c646.jpg


K2_zps8dc95082.jpg

 
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I am proud to own two of Paul's duck calls. Bought my first one in 1986 from Tom Kondrick at Westlake. Years later, I met up with Tom at his home and purchased another one, and then we went to Westlake and had dinner. Unfortunately, he passed shortly after that.

Paul's calls, IMO, are some of the best duck calls ever made. In hindsight, I wish I would have bought everyone I came across.... Back in the 80's when I was learning to blow a duck call, Paul made a cassette tape and I about wore it out practicing to that tape. I still blow the cadence of his "hen on the water" {Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey}. I don't know how my parents didn't throw me out of the house.... I spoke to him by phone some years ago, and he was a very kind man. What made his calls so unique is that fact he put the tiny metal spacer inbetween the reeds. That is one of the reasons that you couldn't overblow his calls along with the large exhaust and no back pressure.

If you carefully look at the popular Haydel DR-85, he copied the reed and insert design BUT there is no spacer due to this call being mass produced.

If you get into making his calls, I would definitely be interested in one.

Best,
Steve
 
Steve, I wasn't knocking anyone that uses store bought parts. I appologize if it came off that way. We have used echo inserts as well and my son still does from time to time. Some of the local boys really like the acrylic products and sounds. I have become a bit of a purist, not because I think it is better or that I am better, just because I really enjoy the challenge. I actually enjoy making the jigs and tooling as much as the calls themselves. Working out the reed thickness, tone board dimensions, tone channel depths, barrel dimensions, and experimenting with different types of wood to see what kind of different sounds I get are what I enjoy the most. I am a plumber and HVAC technician by trade but have been involved in the engineering side of the industry for the last twelve years so you can understand why the science side of this tickles my brain. I don't have an artistic cell in my body so that side of it comes hard for me.

Your calls look great, particularly the burls! And your finishes are awesome. Keep up the good work and most importantly, enjoy yourself while doing it.
 
Tim,

I wasn't taking any offense to your post at all. Just wanted to explain why I went to using the Echo inserts for most of my calls. I am in the engineering field by trade, so I enjoy the tinkering as well. Unfortunately, I really like making my calls out of some really cool looking wood even more. I love hand selecting each piece then putting it on the lathe and wondering what it will look like in the end. I often find myself stopping the lathe half way through the turning process to take a quick peek and thinking "yeah, that's gonna be a dandy when I get a finish on it". With the toneboards most of the "cool" wood is turned off and it tends be less interesting than the main body of the call. I suppose you could say I get bored easily while making my own toneboards.

I appreciate the kind words regarding my calls too. That's the bottom line..."enjoy doing it" or why bother?

Take care,
Steve
 
I have made a few, spacer and all. I have never seen one with a metal spacer, only a piece of mylar. I agree that when done right these calls are almost impossible to over blow and they don't stick because of the very small surface contact area. The moisture can't create any surface tension. If you email me at timdor@taco-hvac.com I can send you some pics of the ones that I have done recently.
 
Beautiful collection! I didn't realize that Paul had "dealers". I always wondered how his work got so spread out, even before the world wide web. Thanks for showing that great picture!
 
I bought a Kingyon duck and wish I had gotten a goose call too. I still listen to the cassette tape that came with the call. It has Paul teaching you how to call. and, some audio from the duck blind, including shots.

Tom
 
I was the same way as a kid, hey wait a minute, I am still that way. Drives my wife nuts some times. Particularly if all three of our sons are home. Four duck calls in on house! I would love to hear Pauls tape. I have been looking to buy one for some time now. They are hard to find. If you ever need service on those calls I am glad to take care of them.
 
A hunting buddy of mine makes calls based on Paul's designs. He has been to his home many times over the last 30+ years. Even hunted in his river blind and got to pick his brain between volleys. I have a duck and goose call made Paul (80'S). They don't see much action anymore, Tom's are just as good and can be repaired/replaced easily. Paul's are not easily replaced.. We mainly hunt big water and really get on them but they can be soften and smoothed for backwater use.

Mike
 
I have several of Paul's calls. 2 that are still in the original unopened box that Paul sent me years ago. I still blow the same 2 that I got from Tom Kondrick when I bought my tdb from him. 2 great water fowling men were lost when they passed. There is a guy in California who is making calls with some of Paul's reeds. His name is Matt Pierce, and I have 2 of his calls too. He put an o ring on the insert. I won't blow anything else but the first Kingyons that I have.
 
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Met you and the Long Island show last Saturday. Thoroughly enjoyed talking with you. You have a genuine interest in excelling at making great sounding calls. I bought one of your calls. It sounds terrific. I love it and recommend others try out your work.
 
Paul Kingyon calls are the absolute purest sounding calls I have ever heard. I have the privlege of owning two they have an unbelievable sound on the open water. I believe if you own a piece of waterfowling history if you own one of Pauls calls
 
It was good to meet you. If I can be of any help let me know. I am glad that you like the calll and thanks for the kind words.
 
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