How to Perfectly Cut on a Turkey Call to Bring in Toms

Turkey calling is an art. Unlike deer hunting where you can set up a tree stand and wait for bucks to wander by turkey hunting requires skill patience, and practice. One of the most important skills is cutting, which is making sharp, loud clucks on your call to mimic an excited hen. If you can master cutting on your turkey call, you’ll have no problem convincing lovesick gobblers to come running.

Why Cutting is Critical for Calling in Toms

A cut on a turkey call imitates an excited hen clucking loudly to let toms know she’s ready to breed Since a tom’s main focus during spring turkey season is mating, this triggers a biological response that is hard for them to resist While other calls like yelps, purrs, and cackles have their place, cutting is the best way to reach out and grab a gobbler’s attention.

Cutting serves several purposes:

• Piques a tom’s interest from long distance so he starts moving your way
• Communicates that hens are excited, which makes the tom excited too
• Provides an audible beacon for a tom to home in on as he approaches
• Sparks competition if multiple toms can hear it, making them run in

Bottom line, you want to sound like the hottest hen in town, and nothing transmits that message better than sharp, loud cuts on your favorite turkey call.

Choosing the Right Call for Cutting

You can cut on most types of turkey calls, but some work better than others for achieving a crisp, attention-grabbing sound.

Friction calls are very easy for beginners to use and allow precise control over cadence and volume. This category includes pot and peg, box, and slate calls.

Mouth diaphragms take more practice to master but produce incredibly realistic cuts when used by a skilled caller

Box calls are foolproof to use. Just drag the paddle against the angled side while applying pressure to make the box resonate. However, they are less portable and challenging to vary cadence.

For beginners, a pot and peg friction call is ideal to start practicing cuts. As your skills improve, try adding a mouth diaphragm to broaden your range of sounds.

Proper Cutting Technique Step-By-Step

Cutting requires some finesse to master. Follow these steps when starting out:

1. Lightly scrape the call striker/peg against the surface instead of swiping forcefully. Let the friction do the work.

2. Keep strokes very short – 1/2 inch or less. This produces crisp separation between notes.

3. Maintain consistent pressure – don’t let up between strokes. Keep tension firm.

4. Find a fast, steady cadence, about 2-3 strokes per second. Imagine a ticking clock.

5. Gradually increase volume as you cut. Loud, excited cuts carry farther in the woods.

6. Change cadence occasionally to sound like a real hen. Pause briefly or cut rapidly in bursts.

7. For slate and box calls, apply chalk frequently to improve friction and prevent squeaking.

With practice, you’ll be able to adjust your speed, intensity, and duration to create believable cuts tailored to any hunting scenario.

Advanced Cutting Techniques

Once you have the fundamentals down, try incorporating these advanced tactics:

• Double cutting: Strike the call twice in rapid succession on each stroke. Makes an urgent “tick-tick” sound.

• Triple cutting: Just like it sounds – three scratches per stroke in fast succession. Ultra-excited hen!

• Cackle cutting: Insert some loud cackles in your cutting sequence. This implies she’s about to lay an egg for a lucky tom.

• Rollercoaster cutting: Speed up and slow down your cadence like a rollercoaster. Toms often respond well to this rising/falling action.

• Frenzied cutting: Scratch out a series of short, super-fast cuts. Conveys a hen in a mating frenzy.

Don’t over-call though. Mix in some plain yelps, clucks, and purrs between short bursts of cutting to sound more realistic.

Pro Hunting Tips for Cutting

Here are some proven tips from expert turkey hunters on using cuts effectively in the field:

• Start cutting softly when roosted birds first hit the ground, then get progressively louder.

• Face the cut call into the wind so the sound projects farther through the woods.

• Use cutting early in the morning when toms are fired up and eager to find hens.

• When a tom gobbles in response, cut excitedly like a hen that spotted her date arriving.

• To pull in a hung-up tom, make some very loud cuts followed by silence to pique his curiosity.

• Avoid continuous loud cutting for more than 15-20 seconds or it will sound unnatural.

• Practice cutting on actual turkeys or recordings so you learn how to sound authentic.

Master these expert cutting techniques, and you’ll have spring gobblers sprinting to your setup ready for their prom date. Sharpen your cutting skills and fill your tag with a lovesick tom this season.

Frequency of Entities:
YouTube – 3
turkey – 27
call – 15
cutting – 36
tom – 16
hen – 9