April Workbench

Patrick~

Great bird - steaming into battle! All 4 will surely make for a fearsome flotilla.

(The first bird I ever shot - in 1965 - was a Hen Hoodie.)

All the best,

SJS
 
Thanks guys.



Patrick - I really like that Hooded Merg!

Very unique style, much more of a Old School decoy, than new age taxidermy plastic looking clone bird.

Two thumbs up.
 
SJS/Vince
Thanks for the kind words.
I'm having fun making this rig, I'm also learning a lot.
Being on the fresh water side of NYS there's not a lot of decoy carvers around to ask questions to.
Thanks again
Pat
 
Patrick
I like the style you did on the merg. I struggle with creating a style and tend to try and make things too realistic.

Darin
That is some pretty lumber, wish we had white pine here instead of this loblolly mess.
 

Whatz keeping me occupied until fly fishing gets a bit better.




View attachment Ready for paint 1.jpgView attachment Works in progress April 2018.jpgView attachment works April 2018.jpg


The GW is done. The card is in the mail.

Drake Wood Duck decoys done by the end of the month hopefully.

Preening, half mini Swan, for a sign, and the rusty nail bill shorebird, when I get around to it...

Gotta spend a day or two cutting out new stuff on the bandsaw, for Spring and Summer projects.

A man gotta stay busy.


Fishing is number one priority, as soon a Mother Nature pushes Old Man Winter the hell outta the way.
 
Good morning, Dax~

Great birds! I look forward to the finished works.

I just restored - returned to gunning condition - this Wildfowler Mallard. It is from the Old Saybrook, CT factory. I believe it is a Superior model, which means is was made anywhere from 1946 until the move to Quogue, LI in 1959.

This bird has an interesting back story. It probably began its working life at the Southside Sportsmens Club in Oakdale, LI.

It had been completely repainted - with some "interesting" ideas about Mallard plumage.

CLICK to enlarge any image.

View attachment sm WM 01.JPG

The stern reminds me of a GWT more than a Greenhead.

View attachment sm WM 02.JPG

Here's the Old Saybrook stamp. The keel had been removed - no doubt for life on a shelf.

View attachment sm WM 03.JPG

The new owner - who may very well have handled this very decoy in the mid-sixties when he was guiding at Southside - asked that it look like it did prior to getting its new plumage. So, after stripping all of the new paint, I tried to recreate the original with suitable "in use wear".

View attachment sm WM 04.JPG

Here he is rolled a bit....

View attachment sm WM 05.JPG

I added a new keel - so he can hunt once again.

View attachment sm WM 06.JPG

Most of the wing detail has been "worn" away.

View attachment sm WM 08.JPG

The head carving on Wildfowlers is always exquisite - to my eye. The head is mortised into the body - and fairs perfectly into the chest contours.

View attachment sm WM 07.JPG

All the best,

SJS







 
Dax, Those patos are going to scare the bejeepers out of the folks down there. Man, I await them in full dress. Going to be a classy group that you are making. Should be an interesting trip with five different versions of senuelos going with us. Unfortunately, my son does not do decoys![;)]
Steve, love to see the old Wildfowlers stool. One has a double stamp. Both from Quogue. They saw limited use with my rig, until I retired them-originally, part of a rig from a private club by Kitts Hummock, De., which is now the Ted Harvey wildlife area. That mallard restoration is aces, fella!
By "scare" I mean they will not want us to gun over them. R L. Five of the six of us that are going make stool. All will go wrapped in laundry, perhaps, with a bit of bubble wrap on the heads and bills. In the years that I have taken decoys down, I have not had any problems, except maybe being asked about the cylinders of lead(ballast) in the keels. Gives the folks at the x-ray time for thoughts!! Shipping may ensure that they never reach their destination.
ONLY A BIT OVER TWO MONTHS LEFT! [whistle][w00t]
 
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Dax, very nice contours! Easy to pick-up the species without paint. I wonder, will you ship them down prior, or include them in your luggage?
 
Steve -

The high head drake OS Wildfowler Mallard looks very good, and high heads are not that common. Appears to be hollow with flat bottom board. Your did a good job of restoration.


There is a low head OS drake Mallard in my care, and a high head OS Superior hollow Black Duck also. Both original paint. The high head Black took me awhile to find for my collection. Wildfowlers were some of the best factory decoys made, far as I'm concerned.
 
Thanks guys and good morning.
I'm going to trust the advice of Mr.Williams, and wrap them in lots of bubble wrap in my checked bag...I think if he knew how lucky I was he'd tell me to bring a metal case with extra padding [crazy]
 
Dax, we used to do hard cases when we brought our own escopetas. Just wrap stuff in your laundry. Stuff small ones in waders. My stuff goes underneath in a soft bag. Leaving the waders there. Bubble wrap is always fun to mess with while awaiting the patos![sly]
 
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