New Canvasback Decoy for this Year

T

Tom Rowe

Active member
I have the head mold built. I'm planning on building the body mold this weekend. With any luck I will have 30 or so cast and ready for our split.







 
Thanks All.

Steve, the body is about 13.5 inches long and 7.5 inches wide. Just slightly smaller than a Herters 72. I get my molding supplies from a few places. Auto Zone for Polyester resin and fiberglass cloth. Home Depot for Plexiglass and particle board. Smooth-on for the rubber and plastic. The HD polyurethane foam comes from US composites.

I've refined my molding process so I no longer use release agent of any kind. The blanks come out of the mold ready for paint which saves alot of time.
 
Thanks for the compliment. Carving and mold making is just a hobby for me. So to answer your question...I dont make decoys/molds with the intention of selling them. I try to make a new rig of about 120 decoys for my self every year. I do sell off the previous years rig, but all the money from that goes into the next years rig.

That being said I'm more than happy to help anyone interested in learning how to make molds. I've been refining my molding process for about 10 years now. Through much trial and even more error I've come up with a process that works pretty well for me. There is always more room for improvement, and like I said I'm happy to share with anyone interested...maybe I can save a few guys some time and money by helping them not make the mistakes I did while I was figuring things out.

Thanks again for the kind words.

Tom S, you're just a hop skip and a jump from me. You are welcome to stop over any time!
 
Wow!!! Very nice!

Tom, how long does it take to turn out 120 molded birds;molded starter to finished flocking and painting? I asume you kept your master birds over the years? That would be an interesting photo to show the progression in your process.

I made a sixty-two bird cork rig this year to replace my old stuff that is going to my nephew. It evolved into a nearly all-consuming process. Just getting the canvasback drakes (6) keeled to hunt this weekend after I get the turkey in.
 
Well, It takes about 20 minutes to cast 1 head and 1 body for a single decoy. I'd say 30 minutes to set eyes and attach the head to the body. I use apoxie sculpt to blend the joints and set the eyes. After that sets over night its ready for paint/flocking. Flocking takes a while because you have to wait 24 hrs between colors. I can make a dozen weighted keels in about 45 minutes. All totaled I'm estimating f between 2 and 2.5 hrs of actual hands on work time for each decoy X 120 = around 240 to to 250 hrs to make a full rig.

Now factor in Hockey practice, tumbling, gymnastics, karate, cheerleading, football and all the other family stuff....it takes pretty much the entire year to finish the rig.

Yes I have kept my originals. Looking back, what I thought looked good one year I think stinks the next. That's another reason I make a new rig every year.
 
You didn't include mold production time expenditure. Since you carve your own Masters, you likely know how much time it would take to carve and paint a new rig of that size each year!

I've always admired your progression of work. Take care!
 
Yes sir I will. I'm looking forward to seeing what they look like all painted up and more importantly, on the water.

Ernie great to hear from you. !!!!!!!!
 
Maybe instead of surfing the net and posting you should be working on that rig so we can see pictures.:)

See you in March. I will have the combo ready
 
I have been working a little bit. Here is where Im at now. Just need to attach the heads, set the eyes, paint, then hunt.

 
Thanks Mark. Where in the Finger Lakes are you? Mold making is alot of fun. If you decide to try it and need some help feel free to give me a shout. I'd be happy to give you a hand.
 
Hi Tom, Im in Auburn so not too far. Im a big diver guy and it looks like you are too. We molded 75 divers last feb using DU molds and that was alot of fun. Ended up fully flocking them and they held up good this season...Im working on a sea duck rig and i need some eider and scoter heads. Id like to make some molds from some of my carved heads. Looks like a fun winter project. Would love to see your operation sometime. Best, Mark
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top