New Blind Design! What Do You Guys Think? (with pics this time)

B

brian ziegler

Member
Hey fellow foulers,
My dad and I built an Arthur Armstrong Broadbill and after wayyyy too much consideration, i stuck with an idea. let me know what you guys think, ill answer any question or post more pics if neccessary. I wanted to get away from the full-lenghted, side-hinged blind system because it adds so much height it, in some cases, defeats the point of having a sneak boat. I used 1/2'' conduit and got fancy with the bender to make this blind, i think the pictures explain it better than i can describe it.
THe weeds are held in place by netting and i have a piece of rubber roofing covering the cockpit area, also covered in netting. So the cockpit should stay dry and maybe even warm

View attachment duckboat012.JPG
Side view. This is the position it will be in most of the time, while waiting for ducks

View attachment duckboat013.JPG
just a front view

View attachment duckboat014.JPG
Stern-side of the cock pit. you can see how i bent the pipe so when it is down you dont have any pipe laying on you

View attachment duckboat015.JPG[inline]
The heights look deceiving, but the only thing out of gun-range is the other hunter when both sides are up
 
Last edited:
Brian,

Not sure if I understand the setup.

So you're laying in the boat and then sitting up to shoot? Do you have to flip up the frame before shooting or can you just sit up? How is the other hunter laying? Facing you?

Thanks,
 
Brian,
I agree with you regarding the lower profile blind...but I'm not sure how your blind functions. Is it for one guy or two? How do you sit in it?

Can you take a picture with someone sitting in it and popping up to shoot? Maybe that will give a better illustration of how it functions.

Zane
 
OK,
so Ill ask,,,, only one shooter at a time? Guns loaded and facing each other?
I am just trying to see how the safety factor is worked out with the set up.
It sure meets the low profile, no problem. And the sky is covered in terms of looking both ways. Without seeing it, I am wondering about the close proximity of shooters facing each other.
 
The front flips up as well for another hunter?

The back flips up to the front and the front flips up to the back. I like the low profile but don't understand the layout yet becasue the front looks like it flips towards the back. I'd be nervous about banging barrels together.

Bob, you beat me to the punch and posted my thoughts as I was typing them
 
Last edited:
Brian,
Nice job on the blind, but I would nix the idea of two hunters facing each other. I think you are courting disaster. Just the idea of having a guy with a loaded gun pointed in my direction would scare the hell out of me.

What did you use for hinges? Bimini hardware or other? Your gonna kill some duck I'm sure....

Good luck & post up shots with some ducks.

Zane
 
Last edited:
i understand what you are all saying but its not really an issue. By laying down, you forfeit a certain amount of range (which is mostly behind you). ofcoasre there are times when we cant both shoot, and its obvious when that is the case. I'd hesitate to bring a beginner in this boat with me, but my dad and i both have enough sense not to shoot directly at each other so while i understand your concern, its having two guys in the boat that allows you to cover the entire sky. most shots are to the side anyways since we usually have the decoys on one of the broadsides of the boat. so most shots are either to the left or the right. I do think some care will have to be taken to avoid bangin barrels, but common sense should be enough to avoid an accident.
I havent used it yet though. I could be wrong and it could be worthless. (sure looks good though) I'll be sure to let you all know how it works.
 
to hinge it i just flatened the end of the pipe an ran a bolt through it and the conduit system that is rigidly mounted in the middle
 
You got the right idea. low profile' it is a sneak boat after all. we have bin using one like that for years.And guys' when hunting in this fashion' your guns are laying across the top of the boat ' so that your gun points left and his will face right . It is actually safer then the big blind boats where barrels are flying all over. Nice job Brian
 
I like your design, and the craftsmanship looks great. Like others, I'd be concerned about facing each other, and while common sense should avoid most issues, you can never be too careful. One thing that jumps at me, if you plan on doing most of your shooting to the sides of the boat, is that as a right handed shooter, you will want to shoot birds on the left of the boat, which would be across the other guy in the boat. If you can you might want to move the stern shooting port to the opposite side so that you have full range of motion to the left, and vice versa for the shooter in the bow.
 
Brian,

Far be it for me to redesign your boat, but... assuming you and your dad are both right-handed gunners, your 'sweet spots' will be forward and to your left, so shouldn't you be laying on the other side of the boat? Among other advantages it would be somewhat safer.
 
You're right Doug. I never gave that a thought when i was making it. Although you seemed a little smug in your reply, i appreciate the constructive criticism because i do believe ya caught something that'll make this blind system better. Thanks
 
Hi Brian,

Sorry, I didn't mean to express any attitude - just constructive criticism. I think it's my writing style, as I've had comments before. Just can't seem to get it right!

From how you described the construction, it should be easy to unbolt the hinge and flip it over to the other side. I'll be interested to hear how it works. My buddy and I tried something similar a few years ago and didn't like it. We couldn't see the birds early enough to get ready and ended up with a lot of quick shots.
 
I have a flip blind on my small boat as well. One thing I learned right away was to keep the gun outside of the the part of the blind that flips when yiou want to shoot a duck - nuch safer this way. I had the gun catch in the camo material more than once when trying to raise it after flipping the blind open.

Something to think about.

Mark W
 
thats gotta scare the hell out of you! I suppose its something to keep in mind though. ive been trying to think of a way to have it out of the blind but still concealed. the only thing i can come up with is putting it on the gunnel, but im not sure thatll be much safer if there's a guy on the other side of the blind. good tip though. thanks
 
WEll I've taken the boat out a few times now and its proven to be a one man boat. I havnt hunted with two guys but what i have been doing is putting the dog in the front on the cockpit. It's perfect! she is almost totaly concealed i have her laydown and all you have is her head poking out. I've done well hunting out of it too. I got a 8 day streak going where i come home with atleast one duck every time i go out. BUt the river is getting shallower and I'm losing spots almost daily. Its crazy seeing weeds popping up that were a foot underwater 2-3 days ago.
 
Glad to hear you are finding a bird or two. It looks like you made the right choice on the one hunter call.
Now you need another boat just like it for your dad.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top