Your design Steve using the conduit is proven and I built two exactly from the plans you drew up . I still have one that gets regular use. I thought maybe Dave Clark used a cable similar to to what was used on the South Bay boats.
The bluewing was made from cypress root that a collector gave me at the Chicago decoy show. It is so light and easy to carve. The style is a blend of decoys by La France and Campo. the decoys from that state are wonderful and folky. Thanks for the comments.