Rehabbing more LL Beans Coastals - Mallards & Blacks

Steve Sanford

Well-known member
All~

A duckboats member asked me to put 7 of his Bean's Coastals back into fighting trim. The 7 Mallards and Blacks were not in bad shape - just needed some TLC and some fresh paint - AND one new head.

I did not recap all of my painting methods - but the step-by-step instructions are available on my site at: http://stevenjaysanford.com/re-painting-l-l-bean-coastal-blacks-and-mallards/

Here is how they arrived:

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I got to work on the heads first. All were removed and cleaned of excess glue then given a light sanding.

This Drake needed some rhinoplasty. I began by grinding the break flat on my stationary disc sander - then glued (epoxy) on an oversize piece of pine - being careful to run the grain with the axis of the bill. Note that I also put in some new eyes - and dished out the area around the eye socket.

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The bill was ready to re-carve the next day.

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I tried to match the original lines and contours.

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I carved the new head in a Drinker posture. I did not try to replicate the Bean's (George Soule) head - more of a Sanford-Soule hybrid

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All the heads needed some attention. Maybe a third of the eyes were missing - or needed to be re-set.

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I next turned my attention the to bodies. Most needed some minor filling - with a slurry of cork dust + epoxy + microballoons.

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Most damage was along the chines. The fill was coarsely-sanded after curing.

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One body needed reconstructive surgery - I epoxied on an over-size piece of brown cork then faired it to the original contours.


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Tails were ground fair wherever they were broken or misshapen.

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Every tail was sealed with epoxy - to keep moisture out of the plywood.

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All heads were set in an acrylic/silicon caulk - less tenacious than 3M 5200 - so they could be removed if needed for future maintenance.

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Every head got new SS fasteners - screws longer than the originals plus a fender washer. These were set in the caulk so no voids could hold water.

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A couple of days later - with the caulk fully cured - all got a soaking coat of spar varnish. I push the varnish well into each nook and cranny.

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Hung up to dry.....

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Then the bottoms get an oil primer. I come up the chines a bit to give some added protection. I like to prime in tones close to the finish tones - so the inevitable wear does not reveal too much of a contrast. So the heads of the Black Ducks and the Hen Mallards and the mid-body of the Drake Mallard were primed with the same Grey.

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I had enough of Lou Tisch's Flat Marine Enamel on hand to do the Black Duck bodies - and the darker parts of the Hen Mallards and the Drake. Topcoats otherwise were latex house paints - with some tube acrylics (as for the speculums).

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Ready for lines and anchors - and the Fall!

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All the best,

SJS
 
Awesome work Steve. Always a pleasure seeing your pictures of the projects you are working on and your shop.
 
I'm jealous. The local market for cheap Bean's decoys has dried up. Apparently Steve has single-handedly created a market for high quality restorations, and all you folks from away have soaked up my local supply. LOL!
 
Rick, Tom, Dennis, George, Zane, Jeff & Dave~

Thanks very much for all the kind words.

Jeff~ I'm pretty sure there must be a few kicking around up in the Pine Tree State....you will be the first to know if I come across any more escapees.

Dave~ I really enjoy painting gunners because I can exercise the Impressionist lurking within my usual fussy OCD character....

All the best,

SJS
 
Nice job, I like the hen mallards. Very simple. Something I would like to incorporate into mine.


Tx, Phil
 
Good morning, Gary~

Actually, the final bottom is just they grey primer. Although primers are not typically rated for "final' coatings, I justify its use because 1) it's over a coat of spar varnish, 2) decoys do not live in the water as many boats do, and 3) I like the color.

If I wanted to add more protection, I would add a topcoat of latex. On many of my gunners, I do use a topcoat of semi-gloss latex in a color Valspar calls "wetland". I like greys because I can use a marker on it if needed.

Hope this helps,

SJS
 
Steve--are you marking up the heads with a marker, or brush and paint?

As a clumsy oaf who pretty much failed even middle school art class, I have a very hard time getting nice fine lines like you have with a brush, and have wondered about using marker instead for the detail work. (I know you suffer no such handicaps . . . )

And I still blame you for killing my local market. Beans corks were readily available on Craigs List until your gorgeous repaints started showing up here.
 
Hi, Jeff~

I use a round brush - usually a #4 or #6 - for the streaking, flecking on the face. I thin the paint just enough to get the flow I want without losing the opacity. I have never tried a marker but imagine one with waterproof ink would last for a few seasons.

...gotta go now...another van full of old Beans corkers has slipped past Maine Border Patrol and is backing up to my shop.....

All the best,

SJS
 
Re: bottom color


I read something once that recommended black for a bottom color. Then if you throw out a decoy at zero dark thirty that ends up bottom up it isn't a big deal.
I fantasize about rigging the decoys I use in my boat (where weight less of a factor) with enough weight that they'll right themselves no matter how they land and but it never gets done.
 
Last edited:
Steve - Great job! You've inspired me to break out my old Black Beaners and change them over to Mallards. (No Black Ducks in Montana!)
Keep it up!
-
 
Steve-

Great job in the mallard refurb. Iran like the paint scheme and especially like the way you carve your heads.

A quick question about your shop. . .what is the height of your ceiling? What would you consider the minimum working height for a ceiling that you want to comfortably flip a piece of 4x8 sheet good end for end?

Chad A
 
Good morning, Chad~

Thanks for the kind words.

Regarding the ceiling height in my shop, I built it relatively low - to suit the way I work. It is 7'6" - ignoring the conventional wisdom of needing to flip a sheet of plywood the long way. I built it low because I like to hang lots of stuff over my head where it is handy to me as I work. I just took a quick look - I have 26 hooks installed in the ceiling - plus the long wooden racks for my spring clamps, decoys and clamp lights. I also have 4 electrical outlets in the ceiling - over my benches - and a row of eye nuts down the middle of the "bay" for lifting boats. The eye nuts are on 1/2" carriage bolts that run between my paired joists so they can lift significant weights. I also hang my long bar clamps, pushpoles, hearing protectors, chain hoists, coils of rope, etc. During the gunning season, my wet waders and clothes hang around the wood stove. I am 5'10 - so the 7'6" ceilings allow me to reach any of these hooks with my feet on the floor.

The tall doors on the west wall of my shop are virtually at ceiling height. As needed, I can put my Honda Element in there - or my 40-horse tractor with its roll bar up.

When I do use plywood or other sheet materials, it just requires a bit more planning - as does any board longer than 8'. It has been very manageable.

Hope this helps,

SJS
 
Steve you do nice work. I like the way you repaired the beak. I always use plastic wood filler and a nail.
You way looks a lot better.
 
re: beak repair with pine (I think you said)
Why didn't you use something like bass? Were (are) Bean decoy heads made with pine?
 
Gary~

I could have gone with either White Pine or Bass - but the scrap of Pine was handy and the grain was a close match.

Not sure of the wood used for the head - I could believe either White Pine or White Cedar.

SJS
 
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