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Is Haydel's DR-85 worth the $20? Since I am 15 I am a broke fool and can not afford much more than that. Are there any calls for that price that are any better?

YES.
Jarbo sounds really good on his. A lot of ducks have died from DR-85'a

Oops. I suppose I shoulda posted this in the duck call forum, but I was just skimming over what froums we had to put this in and didn't see it. Thanks for the feedback TK.

Thanks TK. The DR-85 is the best value in duck calls IMO. If I could only choose one call, that would be it.

ducks~n~bucks wrote:Oops. I suppose I shoulda posted this in the duck call forum, but I was just skimming over what froums we had to put this in and didn't see it. Thanks for the feedback TK.

No problem-

Jarbo and I met Rod Haydel, the owner of Haydels that makes the DR-85.

He was as nice as pie to us, and remembered meeting me another time. He tuned my DR-85. Definetly a guy I would take duck hunting.

I bet you have wasted $18 on worse stuff.
This one is a pretty safe purchase.

Tomkat wrote:

ducks~n~bucks wrote:Oops. I suppose I shoulda posted this in the duck call forum, but I was just skimming over what froums we had to put this in and didn't see it. Thanks for the feedback TK.

No problem-

Jarbo and I met Rod Haydel, the owner of Haydels that makes the DR-85.

He was as nice as pie to us, and remembered meeting me another time. He tuned my DR-85. Definetly a guy I would take duck hunting.

I bet you have wasted $18 on worse stuff.
This one is a pretty safe purchase.

My main concern now that I have been researching it is the cheep plastic that it is made of. Should I look at a different Haydel's call, maybe one with a little higher quality material, or is it safer just to go with what seems to work?

Totally worth it. One of the most popular calls ever made.

ducks~n~bucks wrote:

Tomkat wrote:

ducks~n~bucks wrote:Oops. I suppose I shoulda posted this in the duck call forum, but I was just skimming over what froums we had to put this in and didn't see it. Thanks for the feedback TK.

No problem-

Jarbo and I met Rod Haydel, the owner of Haydels that makes the DR-85.

He was as nice as pie to us, and remembered meeting me another time. He tuned my DR-85. Definetly a guy I would take duck hunting.

I bet you have wasted $18 on worse stuff.
This one is a pretty safe purchase.

My main concern now that I have been researching it is the cheep plastic that it is made of. Should I look at a different Haydel's call, maybe one with a little higher quality material, or is it safer just to go with what seems to work?

What I mean by that is, I could probably afford a $30 or $35 call, but is that extra $10 or $15 really going to make a difference? Or should I save my money and go with the dr85 still?

I would go with an Echo poly or Rnt quackhead single reed over it but the dr85 is a good call. Polycarbonate is generally the most durable material.

I put 3/4" shrink wrap over mine.

jarbo03 wrote:I put 3/4" shrink wrap over mine.

A lot of folks here put electrical tape on theirs

rebelp74 wrote:I would go with an Echo poly or Rnt quackhead single reed over it but the dr85 is a good call. Polycarbonate is generally the most durable material.

I was looking at those, too. And the zink ph-2 polycarbonate is on sale on the Cabela's website, for $24.99. The Buck Gardner Tall timber and double nast are also both on sale, for $19.99. So many decisions.

I might add, I can't call worth a shit as it is, so I need something easy to learn on.

DUCKS N BUCKS,

The DR-85 is a good call. Jarbo could afford many calls, but he used his DR-85 because it kills ducks.

I have an Echo cocobolo/poly double reed I will make you a deal on if you really want something "nicer".

Send me a PM if you like.

ducks~n~bucks wrote:I might add, I can't call worth a shit as it is, so I need something easy to learn on.

Then definitely the DR-85, it has more duck already built in.

My first call was the BG Double Nasty. Pretty good sounding call, but from what I've heard about the DR85, everyone should start with that one...And that isn't just from what I've heard here. That's a fairly universal opinion...

My first call was the BG Double Nasty. Pretty good sounding call, but from what I've heard about the DR85, everyone should start with that one...And that isn't just from what I've heard here. That's a fairly universal opinion...

jarbo03 wrote:

ducks~n~bucks wrote:I might add, I can't call worth a shit as it is, so I need something easy to learn on.

Then definitely the DR-85, it has more duck already built in.

Alright, I'll go with that then. I would do what you said you do and shrink wrap it, but I have no clue how to shrink wrap, so I will just put electrical tape on it like rebelp said.

I'm surprised Olly hasn't moved this to the duck call forum yet...

Have used tape also. Slide 3/4" shrink wrap to length, slide on to call and heat with a lighter.

Shrink wrap sounds like the better idea because I think tae might start peeling off if I got the call wet, and I will be duck hunting with it, so the call will get wet.

Here we go

Think it's a safe bet that the DR-85 has helped put more ducks on the strap than any other call, even the venerable Olt D-2 that's had a much longer run. And I may well be the only guide in Louisiana not carrying one (well wrapped in electrical tape, of course) and/or its hard-shelled internal twin Redleg. Never could sound good on one, but that just makes me an odd ball and isn't a knock on the Haydel. During my double reed period, I preferred the now defunct Duck Commander Cut-down Reacher that Robertson told me he even then was only making "...for me, thee, and what few others can run them." But later found I could do more with RNT's Quackhead J-frame set up as double, which they'll still do, and eventually moved on to more versatile single reeds.

If you're thinking about trying a single reed, RNT's Quackhead Timber, sometimes called "Quackpipe," is about as easy as any you'll find to learn on and sounds very good, but just won't get very loud. Much the same can be said of Echo's poly Timber, because they share little 1/4" bores and fine tone board designs that "fit" most folks. (Ronquest has told me the Timbre, from which theirs was molded, was the single reed of theirs that double-reed uses had the best luck with when trying singles at shows.) Chances are, that being relatively new to calling, it will be a while before you've the confidence to want to really jump on a call, anyway, so inherently lower volume is probably a good thing.

Does the shrink wrap or tape mess with the sound any.

Don't know about the shrink wrap, but some swear the tape improves the sound.

Rick wrote:Don't know about the shrink wrap, but some swear the tape improves the sound.

I would agree, if anything it helps with gettin soft on close birds that still don't want to finish.

rebelp74 wrote:I would go with an Echo poly or Rnt quackhead single reed over it but the dr85 is a good call. Polycarbonate is generally the most durable material.

I agree with this. But I also spent some time of a DR-85 cant go wrong with any of the three listed.

Oh an update on this, the dr85 ended up being a no go, because a friend gave me a call, so I had no need to by one. He gave me a Haydel timber cutter. I love the call and sound decent on it (because I am not an experienced caller)

That Timber Cutter would be my pick of the several Haydel's I've tried.