Repaint Plastic Decoys with Acrylic Paint?

D

David Clites

Active member
Hi All,

I want to repaint 3 Flambeau Magnum mallard hens into Black Ducks. My wife has a fine collection of Acrylic paints with all the colors that I need to do the repaint. I am repainting only 3 decoys to simulate the small groups I see in a particular area. I can handle the repainted decoys with TLC in compartmented bags. I won't be tossing the dekes with anchor lines etc...just 3 dekes deployed carefully on a jerk line in a foot (or less) of water each hunt. Of course I can't control the rain gods--these dekes will get rained on. Otherwise wear and tear on these decoys should be minimal.

Will I get reasonable life out of the repaint job with Acrylic? Should I spray with clear Krylon etc after I repaint? I have so much junk laying around from all my hobbies thus far, a couple additional cans of oil based paint will not be appreciated by my better half!

BTW any other tips on hunting Black ducks? This will be my 2nd hunt specifically targeting them. I know they are especially wary. I understand Hide, hide, hide...be paranoid about that.

Thanks for any input.
 
I would make sure you get all the old paint off. Use paint stripper, then wash really good with detergent or some other degreaser, then rub the decoy down with a green scubby pad of fine sand paper. I would then give them a primer coat of the rustoleum primer that adheres to plastic or one of the rustoleum plastic paints in flat.
I'm not to too sure the artist acrylics will hold up on the plastic, but you could buy a sample jar of Berh exterior at Home depot in flat. Or any other exterior house paint. They are only a few dollars for the sample jars and there would be more than enough to do 3 decoys out of one sample jar. Make sure you stir/mix the paint really good before painting. After the paint drys, see how it looks. If it is shiny then you could hit it with a clear flat. Most of the time just the flat exterior will do fine


We get a lot of Black ducks here. The best I can say is move as little as possible, be well camouflaged and don't do any calling or very little, like maybe a quack or two. No hail calls or come back calls. I almost never use the duck call. Instead, I try to put out a realistic spread. If I see large flocks then I put out more decoys. If I see birds in small groups or pairs then that is what I put out.

Good luck. Let us know how you make out. Post pictures....:)

Zane
 
After cleaning thoroughly, spray with KRYLON Fusion. It bonds to those Chinese gems, and acrylic will bond to it. If you use Golden Matte, you will need no sealers
 
Dave Clites

IMHO acrylic paint itself is just fine and will hold up well to the elements. The key is getting good adhesion to the plastic surface.

Sandpaper works well for prep except it may not be the best choice when dealing with a textured surface such as these plastic decoys. I have found that a wipe with acetone is a better "tool", to get into all the nooks and crannies. The amount of acetone used and how long it is contact with the surface, will determine the amount of "etching", to the plastic surface occurs. It does not take a lot of etching, to provide the needed "tooth", for a good bond with the acrylic paint.
 
Good morning, David~


Nice job - good-looking birds!


And, I concur with the consensus here. Wash with acetone or lacquer thinner, prime with a Fusion spray, then topcoat with latex house paints.


All the best,


SJS

 
I was under time pressure to get these painted in time for hunt yesterday and day before. Although I didn't have time to apply a base coat, I did apply a matte finish overcoat of Rust-Oleum American Accents Ultra Cover which advertises that it "bonds to plastics" (would be most relevant as a base coat). Paint held up well for this 3 day trial. Unfortunately the black ducks had disappeared. In 2 days I didn't see even 1 black duck compared to 2 weeks ago I saw 12 or 15. But I learned some repainting tips I can use for repainting some mallards to redheads. Thanks all...
 
Another approach is to restle coat them. Tried it on some marsh finds a couple of summers ago ( faded out flocked head mallards). Was coating a few foam bodies And decided to try it out on them and finish came out great . Just have to prep them the same as anything else for good adhesion. End product really gives paint something to really bond to.
 
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