DECEMBER - What's on your Workbench ?

[MLBob Furia]

Finished spatter-painted hen lesser:

View attachment LessHen11.jpg

View attachment LessHen12.jpg

View attachment LessHen9.jpg

 

[Bill Embacher]

King Eider, cork with white cedar head, painted (mostly) in traditions. Of note on this one I used leather to make the thorn feathers.

 

[Steve Sanford]

Bill~

As always, I love the style in your birds.

Great to learn of the "thorn feather" term. I would have guessed "mizzens"....

All the best,

SJS

 

[Dave Speer]

very nice king, Bill!

 

[Phil Eager]

Nice work all around.

Phil

 

[Steve Sanford]

All~

I have been delinquent in posting these for George Williams. He sent me "Mallard Mayhem" last month.

(To remedy my lapse into delinquency, I finally cleaned my e-mail in-box - deleted over 350 files during football games on Sunday.)

Meanwhile - back in the shop - I am working on a small herd of Christmas orders - including pairs of the 3 Teal.....

All the best,

SJS

 

[Steve Sanford]

In the spirit of the season, I have to call these We Three Teal....

A pair each of our 3 Teal species will be headed west in time for Christmas. They are all in various stages of completion but will commence their migration on Saturday.

These gunners are all Basswood. Bodies are hollow with half-inch Pine bottom boards and Mahogany Keels.

I will post "portraits" of the finished birds AFTER Christmas morning.

All the best,

SJS

 

[Paul Dobrosky]

Steve, As always very nice Birds

 

[Steve Sanford]

Good morning, Paul~

I just discovered how easy you Jersey guys have had it for all these years! These Mallard gunners are my first-ever Atlantic White Cedar birds. I bought a nice big slab (4x17x48) at the Tuckerton Show this year. The wood is virtually knot-free and is not a lot stronger than butter. My draw knife made quick work of the bodies.

And, since it was so thick, I did not use separate bottom boards. I just sliced through the body about 1-3/8 inches above the bottom. (Actually, I cut about 95% of this seam on the band saw while the wood was still a squared block - so I only had to saw through an inch or so AFTER the body was all shaped and sanded to free the top from the bottom.) Both halves got hollowed out on the drill press then epoxied back together.

Another thing I like to do on gunners is to underpaint them BEFORE I seal the wood. This is to allow the "correct" colors to show through even after the topcoat undergoes the inevitable wear. So, I blocked in the main areas of color (with my usual Behr latex). I let it dry overnight then sealed it with a heavy coat of spar varnish. Another night near the wood stove and the varnish is ready for a light sanding before the final paint.

When all of the finish paint is done, I have begun to topcoat the bills with a satin varnish - for both added protection and a bit of visual "pop".

Finally, although my gunner paint schemes adhere to the "half-a gunshot away" approach, I also like to add a few details that catch the eye when setting or picking up the rig. Each detail usually takes just a minute or 2 per bird.

The stippling is intended to suggest the Drake's silvery appearance on his back and sides.

On my puddler hens, I try to get that streaked appearance shared by most birds that nest in grasslands - with just a few brush strokes.

Now to saw some more of that sweet Cedar (sure makes the shop smell great) for a pair of Pintails.....

All the best,

SJS

 

[Paul Dobrosky]

Steve, Beautiful Birds, Fine Job All Around. Glad you like that good jersey Cedar . Should Draw some nice birds in. I wish I was in better health to do as many as I use to . Still enjoy dabbling in my shop working on an Eider right now with a mussel in its mouth will send photos when done .
Wish you & the family the best of the Holiday season & duck season as well. PAUL