carving decoys

i wanna make goldeneys i love hunting whistlers up here in new brunswick after deer season good this wasnt to cold not much ice either
 
Welcome to carving. I don't carve golden eyes, but someone will speak up. Generally I use 5" for puddles and 4" for divers. Not alot of help, but my 2...
 
The first rig of birds I ever carved for my self were whistlers, and I have been hooked on those birds ever since. I use mostly 4 and 5 inch cedar and hollow all the blocks... Honestly I have been making lots of bob tails as of late with 4" stock just because they seem to float very well and are extremely durable. Please keep us updated with you progress.
Sincerely,

Zach Benson

View attachment kijik.jpg
 
Rick,
Unless you're going for something really oversized, 4" x 8" should be fine. However, if you're just starting out I suggest you get your hands on someone else's patterns. It will give you a good idea of what you'll need and what your patterns should look like.
Mike
 
The first rig of birds I ever carved for my self were whistlers, and I have been hooked on those birds ever since. I use mostly 4 and 5 inch cedar and hollow all the blocks... Honestly I have been making lots of bob tails as of late with 4" stock just because they seem to float very well and are extremely durable. Please keep us updated with you progress.
Sincerely,

Zach Benson
Click to expand...

Zach -
Those GE are really nice. Did you carve them?
 
The drake common goldeneye in Pat Godins diver book measures roughly 3.75" high, 12.375" long and just a hair over 6" wide. When I use his patterns to make gunners, I typically add 1/2" to the width, then scale up 15-20% which would make the block roughly 4.3" x 14.25" x 6.9". Hope this helps.
 
Correction, I didn't add the 1/2" to the width before I scaled it. It would be 4.3 x 14.25 x 7.475" (or a 5" x 8" x 15" rough block). If you wanted to use 4" stock only scale up by 6%.
 
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