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Jim
Young's Wingbone Turkey Calls
 If
you were to take a look at Jim Young’s resume you would find
it quite impressive. Jim holds a variety of degrees, which include
Math, Science, Computers, Biology and even a minor in European History.
To top that off he holds certificates in Computer Technology and
has even passed Microsoft’s rigorous Client Server Developer
course, which is one of the most demanding in the field of computers
today. However, despite all of these technical skill sets Jim holds,
nothing can compare to his favorite job of callmaking and turkey
guiding.
 Jim
was born and raised in the Auburn New York, which is also known
as the Finger Lakes Region. A hunter since age 16, he has spent
many a day in the field hunting for squirrel, geese and deer. While
growing up, the region was never known for an abundance of turkeys.
However that has since changed, thanks to the Department of Environmental
Conservation (DEC) Bureau of Wildlife and it focus  on
New York State’s Wild Turkey Management Plan. In the early
90’s Jim started seeing wild turkeys in the area and thought
he would try to hunt them as well. To date his best turkey taken
weighed 20 pounds had a 10-inch beard and 1 inch spurs.
 His
interest to start making wingbone calls was sparked by a college
professor who stated with his background in biology he should attempt
to build one. Jim took his advice and soon mastered the skills of
cutting, cleaning and assembling both double and triple wingbone
calls. On average Jim finds himself building and selling around
1000 calls each year. Currently, he is the only wingbone callmaker
to carry the North American Hunting Clubs Seal of Approval. Jim
makes both field grade and collector grades calls. Collector/fancy
grade wingbone calls often reflect detailed artistic scenes making
them more of a showpiece for the wall or display case. All of Jim’s
calls are handmade from wild turkey wing bones but he is more than
willing to create a custom call for customers who provide their
own bones.
 When
Jim is not in the shop you can find him active in a variety of other
activities. He is a senior sponsor of the NWTF and vice-president
of his local chapter. He is also a life member of the NRA, NAHC,
NAFC, American Call Makers and a host of other clubs and non-profit
organizations. In the past, Jim has written articles for Turkey
Call Magazine and most recently Field and Stream (March 2004) detailing
the proper steps and procedures on how to make a wing bone call.
Other significant accomplishments included his appearance on the
television show “Cabin Country” which airs on PBS and
featured his wingbone callmaking.
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