If you're new to turkey hunting, we have everything you need to get you started in the turkey woods. If you're a seasoned pro, I think you'll find that these are among the finest calls you've ever touched.- Steven Rinella
Since our first podcast together over five years ago, Jason Phelps and the MeatEater team hit it off. Ever since then we’ve been talking to elk, turkeys, and ducks with Phelps calls and championing the company’s hard work and dedication to quality with those who love hunting as much as we do.
As we began to discuss and develop a collaborative MeatEater x Phelps product, our mutual respect strengthened into a partnership with even greater possibilities, and earlier this year Phelps Game Calls officially joined the MeatEater family.
Each cut, shape, and material has been meticulously selected to provide the best-damn-sounding calls on the market.
We’re stoked to share the turkey calls that kicked off this greater brand partnership just in time for the 2021 spring turkey season. These calls match the quality of other Phelps products while building off the MeateEater Crew’s lessons learned chasing gobblers around the country.
The MeatEater x Phelps diaphragm, pot, crow, and box calls are the result of many conversations and hours spent testing with Steve, Janis, and the Phelps team. Each cut, shape, and material has been meticulously selected to provide the best-damn-sounding calls on the market.
Box calls should look good and sound great. This box pairs a beautiful purpleheart lid with a solid walnut body designed for creating raspy old hen sounds that will pull a wily old tom right into your lap—no matter how far away he is. Best of all, even beginner turkey hunters will find it easy to use.
Designer | Jason Phelps |
Type | Traditional Old Hen Box Call |
Body Material | Clear Grain Walnut |
Lid Material | Purple Heart |
Length | 9" |
Width | 1.75" |
Depth | 1.70” |
Weight | 4.5oz |
Once the handcrafted Crystal/Slate pot call has been prepped and tuned, it will coax in the most call-shy turkeys in damn near any conditions. The walnut pot, crystal surface, slate soundboard, and hickory-tipped striker join to make realistic clucks, purrs, and high-pitched, two-tone yelps.
When it comes to versatile, out-of-the box performance, it’s hard to beat a good Slate/Glass call. Slate naturally produces subtle tones for soft, sweet purrs and clucks while the premium glass allows you to transition to sharp, double-note yelps. If you are looking for one turkey call that does it all, this is it!
Crystal/Slate | |
Designer | Jason Phelps |
Playing Surface | Crystal |
Sound Board | Slate |
Diameter | 3.25” Playing, 3.5” Body |
Depth | 0.78" |
Striker Length | 7.5" |
Slate/Glass | |
Designer | Jason Phelps |
Playing Surface | Slate |
Sound Board | Glass |
Diameter | 3.25” Playing, 3.5” Body |
Depth | 0.78" |
Striker Length | 7.5" |
Jake brake | |
Color | Fluorescent Yellow |
Signature | Steven Rinella |
Volume | Medium |
Latex Cut | “Combo Cut” |
Top | 1 layer .0035” light blue |
Bottom | 2 layers .0025” prophylactic |
Latvian Eagle | |
Color | Neon Orange |
Signature | Janis Putelis |
Volume | Medium to Loud |
Latex Cut | “Chunk Cut” |
Top | 1 layer .004” orange latex |
Bottom | 2 layers .004” natural latex |
Loud & Clear | |
Color | Royal Blue |
Volume | Medium |
Latex Cut | “Clipped BatWing” |
Top | 1 layer .003” green latex |
Bottom | 2 layers .0025” light blue prophylactic |
Easy Clucker | |
Color | Hot Pink |
Volume | Soft to Medium |
Latex Cut | “Ghost Cut” |
Top | 1 layer .004” red latex |
Bottom | 2 layers .0025” clear prophylactic |
Using a combo-cut reed, Steve's Jake Brake achieves the raspy sounds of an old hen while also retaining the ability to soft-talk. This call has been the easiest for Steve to master and has become his absolute go-to. It’s sure to give you more confidence with a mouth call as well. Volume level is medium.
For the Latvian Eagle, Janis’ friend and turkey whisperer, Guy Zuck, introduced him to the “chunk-cut reed.” It allows you to get loud and raspy with the overhanging reed but also make a very clean note with the opposite side of the call when you need it. Janis often uses this call as a locator to make extremely loud cuts and yelps. Thicker latex creates a longer lasting, sturdier call that stands up to many high volume calling sequences. Volume level is medium to loud.
The hybrid V-cut design of the Loud & Clear is very user friendly, producing medium-volume raspy sounds with ease. The perfect tone and note quality of this diaphragm rounds out the MeatEater collection, covering all the bases. Volume level is medium.
The Easy Clucker is the ticket for both beginners and those who have historically struggled with diaphragms. With a ghost cut out of the reed’s center, you can easily master great medium-range raspy tones and kee-kees. Volume level is soft to medium.
Sometimes damn near any loud noise will make a turkey shock-gobble. But when it comes to consistently locating old rope draggers, nothing seems to get them stirred up faster than a loud Crow Call. So, we made this one as loud as we could. Designed with an acrylic body and tone boards, this call will produce enough volume to get gobblers in the next county hammering back at you.
Designer | Jason Phelps |
Barrel | Black Acrylic |
Tone Board | Clear Acrylic |
Base Diameter | 1.4" |
Length | 4" |
Designing these calls was a blast, and they turned out fantastic. I couldn’t be happier with the way they sound.- Janis Putelis