Name/Title
Fred Cox, Grand Slam Turkey CallsEntry/Object ID
CTC001B00030Description
Fred E. Cox, Jr. goes by “Mr. Fred” or “Professorwingbone” and is looking forward to his 75th birthday on September 8, 2026. After attending Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, he taught school for 37 years, though not consecutively. His first 12 years were spent teaching in middle school. After doing that for as long as he could survive it, he went to work on third shift for Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. Sixteen months into that employment, he was offered a job teaching and coaching in high school, which he accepted. Cox remained there for 25 years until retiring in 2011. He enjoys hunting, especially turkeys and deer, as well as playing golf as long as his body can tolerate it.
Cox’s callmaking company is called Grand Slam Turkey Calls. He began making calls in the early 1990s while living in Pelham, NC. He presently lives in Reidsville, NC. There, he has a modest workshop where he turns his strikers and builds wingbone calls.
Cox first became interested in turkey hunting when he was introduced to it by Douglas Harrelson, his high school Civics teacher. At that time, only a fall turkey season existed (1969). In 1973, he was first introduced to call making when he attended an outdoor show at Western Alamance High School, sponsored by the early North Carolina Wild Turkey Federation. Cox remembers entering the gymnasium and immediately hearing a sound that caught his attention. He followed the sound directly through the gym, even though the entire building was alive with turkey music. This particular sound had a dulcet tone that was quite different from all the others.
Standing behind a table, playing wingbone turkey calls that he had made, was Mike Jones. His calls were known as Nottaway Turkey Calls. From that day on, Cox never forgot that sound. For nearly 20 years, he continued to think about those calls until the early 1990s, when he began making his own. Through trial and error, he has always strived to build a better call.
Others who attended that gathering in 1973 included Lewis Stowe, Neil Cost, L.A. Dixon, Dr. Neal Weekly, Jim Beam, Wayne Bailey, and Dick Kirby, among others. In different ways, all of these individuals, along with many others including Parker Whedon, influenced Cox’s journey as a call maker.
Initially, Cox made only wingbone calls. Before long, he developed an interest in making strikers for friction calls. He experimented with many shapes and styles, often producing them for other call makers as well as for himself. Eventually, he settled on a small “baseball-shaped” striker, which he continues to make today.
As a teacher and coach, Cox had little time to expand his business or attend outdoor shows, so growth was minimal at first. After attempting to participate in a few weekend shows, he eventually gave up coaching in high school. In 2001, he officially established Grand Slam Turkey Calls as a business.
Although he carries a variety of calls, the wingbones, strikers, and a call he named “The Double Talker” are the only calls he personally makes today. Two specialty wingbone calls he produces are the “Widow Maker” and the “Widow Maker II.” These adjustable wingbone calls were inspired by Parker Whedon. Encouraged by Whedon, Cox began building the Widow Maker in 2009 and the Widow Maker II in 2010.
Through attending shows, Cox has come to know many outstanding call makers who have been willing to share their work with him, allowing him to bring their craftsmanship to a wider audience. As a result of their generosity, he has offered the public a wide variety of handpicked, quality calls for more than 25 years.
Cox has competed only in air-operated callmaking divisions. He won at the Georgia State Convention, his first competition, as well as at the Southeastern Call Makers Competitions in North Carolina. In 2012, he was awarded first place in the Wing Bone Division at the National Wild Turkey Federation Convention in Nashville, Tennessee. Since then, he has entered only one additional competition in Nashville, where he earned third place. In recent years, he has devoted his time primarily to fulfilling customer orders, leaving little opportunity to build competition calls.Create Date
July 24, 2026Update Date
July 24, 2026
