August workbench

Knocked together a matainence stand for my bicycle. Made from reclaimed construction lumber.
The cleats grab the ladder while the main beam rests on either of two rungs.
The bike hangs off the main beam. 🙂
Got new shifters coming later this week, that will need installed. Now i can sit on a stool and have at it.
 

Attachments

  • 20250817_122132.jpg
    20250817_122132.jpg
    274.7 KB · Views: 7
  • 20250817_121201.jpg
    20250817_121201.jpg
    405.8 KB · Views: 7
  • 20250817_121926.jpg
    20250817_121926.jpg
    360.1 KB · Views: 7
Certainly not a partnership. It’s amazing how far I’ve come in almost two years on this journey of making decoys. Couldnt of done it without such a patient mentor and friend. If my parents weren’t like children this year, a few more should have been made before this next season. But what’s family without a little drama?

First layer of flocking on a dozen this morning. Love the way it all starts to come together.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_4473.jpeg
    IMG_4473.jpeg
    297.2 KB · Views: 14
I've gone through about 5 lbs of flocking since the first of the year. Flocking is about the only step in making decoys I don't really enjoy, but I wouldn't hunt a decoy that wasn't flocked. I'll be ordering another 5 lbs of grey this week.
 
I've carved quite a few fish over the years. When I started competing in the National Wood Carvers Assn and the International wood carvers congress, it was primarily in fish. The grayling is from my first competition in Tulsa, OK in the late 1980s. It was a reproduction of a grayling my dad caught when I lived in Alaska. It was also one of my first experiences with an airbrush. It was my first entry and my first blue ribbon. The salmon was a reproduction of a silver that my son caught on a fly rod when he worked for a helicopter fishing guide out of Anchorage. The smallmouth is just because I wanted to, it was probably nearly 30 years ago. All were carved from basswood. Most people don't associate me with wood carving.

333306474_1381653292570624_2014629669857377297_n.png53048582_1154756354697393_510414158269775872_n.png501046686_24247647398174530_7800112784376640204_n.jpg
 
Don Mintz said:
I've carved quite a few fish over the years. When I started competing in the National Wood Carvers Assn and the International wood carvers congress, it was primarily in fish. The grayling is from my first competition in Tulsa, OK in the late 1980s. It was a reproduction of a grayling my dad caught when I lived in Alaska. It was also one of my first experiences with an airbrush. It was my first entry and my first blue ribbon. The salmon was a reproduction of a silver that my son caught on a fly rod when he worked for a helicopter fishing guide out of Anchorage. The smallmouth is just because I wanted to, it was probably nearly 30 years ago. All were carved from basswood. Most people don't associate me with wood carving.

View attachment 67912View attachment 67913View attachment 67914
Click to expand...
Outstanding!! I caught (and released) a 14" male brookie way back in 1988 that I still wish today that i had gotten mounted.
Always thought about having a carved/formed reproduction of one made.
 
I have a vision of carving a 24 inch brown trout my son caught a few years ago when he was guiding on the Henry's Fork. We have good photos to work from. I want to put it leaping up the waterfall in our water feature. I had a pair of full body wood ducks out there for 6 months a year ago, but think a trout would be cool. I always worried a bit about someone stealing them from the water feature. I've never dealt with the reproduction fiberglass fish blanks even though I was a taxidermist for years. When it came to trout mounts, they looked better carved than mounted, I'm sure the trout we've released were happy about that. By the way, the 24" brown trout my son caught was caught again by another guide a couple weeks later and released. Caleb even caught the same 18 inch cutthroat twice over the course of a few weeks, I was with him both times.

The cutthroat on two trips, caught in the same 50 yards of water on the Teton River, the hole in the tail was an indicator that it was the same fish. A testament of the benefits of catch and release. The only fish I keep are catfish to eat, I don't much like eating trout.

71945111_2769307856435128_6085413984880558080_n.jpg

This is the brown trout I want to carve and put in the water feature.

24brown2020.jpeg
 
my son guided eastern idaho for 4 years, I bought the boat and he guided me any time I could fit in his schedule. I'm sure I went with him 100 times or more over that period of time. Clients would have to pay $600 a day to hire him, half went to the outfitter he worked for of course. It would have cost me $60k to pay for that many trips. It was the time of my life, heaven for a fly fisherman.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top