August "Whats on your workbench?"

John, Chris, Sean...all good stuff!

Sean, you nailed it. The Bluebills are Horner style. I'm no cheesehead though. I'm an honorary member of the "New Jersey Fraternity of Carvers and Painters". At least that's what a famous jersey carver told me once...

I didn't hear anything from the Bobfather or Capto Strunk. Perhaps it has our Cape May Family who made that call. I'll have to check on it. Of couse you not a full blood New Jerseain. So you could never be a made guy. Unless you moved here!
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This is another month of excellent work.
Chris, I would hunt that bird any day.
Sean, all I can say is TOP SHELF. I never get tired of looking at your work.
Geoff, I like your style. That is a good looking 'bill. My only suggestion would be to - hit that breast with some 120 or 140 then you're ready!(smile)
 
I have been very busy lately. A few weeks ago I started off getting every half finished decoy done that was on my bench. Each of those are primed and waiting for paint now. That allowed me to move onto new projects I have been wanting to get to.

The Bluebill rig was one of those projects. Two are already in paint and drying these four will be joining them soon. I plan to seal and prime them in the next couple days. This rig is kinda unique in that I cut them out of solid cedar. It was 6x6 material I have had for several years now and I used it here and there for heads and other items. It was fairly knotty but I decided to go ahead and make the 6 solid blocks out of it along with cedar heads. I purposly left some of the knots to show in the decoys through the paint since they are my personal rig and have a very old school look I thought it fitting.

I will get the other two posted up when they are dry enough to handle.

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These pintails and the teal are a result of the class I took recently with Jode Hillman at the famed Rutgers caving institute is SW Michigan. I want to be sure and repeat the painting lessons I learned while they are still fresh so I started working on the birds shortly after I returned from the class. The teal is important because it marks the last of the cedar from my old supplier. That wood was okay but had knots and was not as straight of grain as the new supply I have. The Pins are carved from the new supply and let me tell you its night and day. I will never carve marginal quality wood again if I can help it. The new stuff is like butter.

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Finally today I sat down and did this quick and dirty gunner paint job on this drake mallard. He will just need a little detail work tomorrow and he will be set aside to dry. After that some tack eyes. Then it off to the post office to be sent on his way where I am confident he will be hunted. This guy is one of the decoys that was sitting unfinished on my bench for almost a year. I am pleased with him but can certainly see the difference in my caving between him and the most recent decoys mostly in little detail items. Don't mind the shine he its painted in oils and was still wet.

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That was my day, detail carving and sanding for the morning and painting in the afternoon. It was a good day!
 
John, Chris, Sean...all good stuff!

Sean, you nailed it. The Bluebills are Horner style. I'm no cheesehead though. I'm an honorary member of the "New Jersey Fraternity of Carvers and Painters". At least that's what a famous jersey carver told me once...
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so you are a traitor to your state....very disappointing Geoff, very disappointing. I guess we will just have to suspend your HUNTING privledges this fall.

Sean, you have always managed to make the "toughest" woodies on the block. They always look like they are gonna kick some ass!! I remember some that you posted on the NJ page years ago that was down right pissed off. I like the style. keep it up.
 
Easy now Eric. Don't do anything too rash. Just because I won't wear a yellow triangular hat does not mean I'm not a Packer fan. I was born in Green Bay, have milked cows with my bare hands, eaten enough cheese to be due a heart attack any day, and know what Kingsbury beer is.

AND I predict that that Packers will win it all again this year!
 
Seeing Tom's project got me thinking and found a scrap piece of cork laying around along with an old cedar arrow shaft. Dug through the eye drawer and found some 8's and in a couple hours.
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A few i'm working on. pair of mallard's,and a pintail drake.hollow cedar.Pintail has a ash tail insert.

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Mark: The doves look cool!
Geoff: Always great to see anything you put a knife to!
John: I can count on a unique look when your decoys show up! Nice!
Sean: The Teal is to die for. Maybe the angle, but it it giving me the evil eye?
Chris: Nice Mallard!

Here are 3 Bluebills that I have been messing with for awhile. All hollow White cedar, Jansens acrylic. These will be in my rig this fall.

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