Name: Roger Decker
Address: R#1 B#1; Webster, KY 40176
Phone: 270-547-2634 Fax:
E-mail: roger@papawscustomcalls.com
Personal Website: www.papawscustomcalls.com

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 Papaws Custom Calls

Roger Decker was born and raised in the State of Kentucky and currently lives in the small rural community of Webster, which is located in Breckinridge County. Breckinridge was the 35th county to be established in Kentucky and is known by many for its abundance of wild game. Native Americans often frequented the area hunting for food, as this is evident by the numerous arrowheads, spears and other relics that have been found throughout the County. For Roger, this Native American tradition holds true, as his ancestors were part Cherokee Indian. When Roger first started hunting it was because he simply loved the outdoors, but overtime his ancestral ties have been the contributing factor that has kept him interested for more than 35 years now.

In the spring of 2003 Roger found himself recovering from heart bypass surgery and he needed to find something that could occupy his time. Something that would not be stressful, but something he could enjoy. Picking up a copy of Turkey Call Magazine he saw an ad for making your own turkey calls from kits. With nothing to lose he ordered the kit and quickly found it was the best therapy he could have ever gotten. He has been hooked ever since and now makes his calls from scratch.

Making the switch from kits to custom made calls is quite a difference and Roger has made his fair share of mistakes. Fortunately for him he had previously worked for a furniture mfg. and learned that different woods have different characteristics and each have to be handled accordingly. Another plus for Roger was he also plays the fiddle and guitar, something that has helped him become sensitive to the different sounds each wood makes. Roger's preference of woods to work with is hardwoods. Even though they are harder on equipment the sound that can be achieved is much closer to the sound of the wild turkey. However, don't be surprised to see Roger working with cedars and poplars two other types of woods he feels are hard to beat. Roger's list of woods include: walnut, mahogany, yellowheart, cedar, osageorange, purpleheart, popular, chestnut, persimmon, hardmaple, butternut, and catalpa.

Roger makes three different styles of calls which include: double-sided box calls, long boxes, and friction calls. Although he likes the double-sided box call and enjoys making them, his favorite call by far is the friction or pot slate call. It is an easy call to play and the sounds are as close to the real thing as you can get. Each of these call styles is available in field grade or collector grade or as Rogers's states, basically whatever the customer prefers.

Roger's calls go by the name Papaws Custom Calls. This unique name just seemed to fit since Roger is a grandfather of twin grandsons who are always asking Papaw this or Papaw that. Roger has produced approximately 50 calls this year and anticipates that number will grow. Even though he doesn't consider himself an expert in callmaking he feels for the money he makes a fine quality call.