The canvas goose (lots of pics)

Chuck J

Chuck J

Well-known member
Got these plans from Yukon Mike a while back.

woodandcanvasplan.jpg


Traced the original, glued them to luan.

canvasgoose002.jpg


Cut out

canvasgoose003.jpg


Mike thought his head looked a bit large, so I trimed it down to 80% of the original. Didn't have a copier handy, so I did it the old fashion way.

canvasgoose004.jpg


All the pieces cut out

canvasgoose005.jpg


Back and Breast glued in.

canvasgoose006.jpg


Notched back to accept the wire

canvasgoose008.jpg


Head and neck roughed out and epoxied together

canvasgoose007.jpg


Wires

canvasgoose009.jpg


canvasgoose012.jpg


Put on the canvas last night

canvasgoose013.jpg


I'm no expert, this is my first canvas bird. There seems to be a lack of info on the net as to how to do these, so I though I'd post what I had done and hopefully anyone with additional info will pipe up.

Thanks to Yukon Mike for the plans and the advise, and Dave Sikorski for lots of encouragement and advise as well.

Chuck
 
Wow, I love it. Did you get some stainless staples? Wonder if wetting the canvas first would help make it tight when it dried and shrunk? Can't wait to see it all painted up.
 
Dear Chuck,

Awesome work! I started a few 20 years ago. Never got them finished.

Like Lee, I am anxious to see the finished work. Any chance you'll do Swans?

God Bless,

Mark
 
Wonder if wetting the canvas first would help make it tight when it dried and shrunk?
Click to expand...
If you wet the canvas on the decoy it will tighten up quite a bit. Don't know if you are planning on it or not but I'd recommend stitching up the pleats. I've seen them left but I think it looks better with them stitched up, easier to paint too. About the only tip I know about finishing them, when you think you have the canvas sealed up put on another coat. Really nice pictures. If you ever want to try some canvas dove decoys I have some pictures of how I make them. Tim
 
Chuck, For the base for painting you can paint it with gesso. Found in any art supply store. Artist have been doing for 500 600 hundred years. Good base for oil paints.

Another way paint with varnish and colors over. Could add a little bit of that fungus or mold retarder to the varnish to protect the canvas. Either way it will stiffen the canvas and preserve it.

That a real neat project and looks nice.
 
Hey that is looking good Chuck! Nice of you to take all those pictures to help other guys out too.

Mike
 
Ryan, I plan on sealing it with Jansens Multi Surface Sealer, but I have read of using thinned house paint as well.

Tim S, If Mike doesn't mind sharing, I can send you the plans he sent me, I have the plywood cutouts so I am really set.

Lee, I didn't even think about the staples, but as an afterthought I could smear a little epoxy over them when I epoxy the edge down. My wife came out in the garage while I was working last night and suggested what Tim said, shrinking it on the frame, I will probably give that a try as there is a little slack the is hard to work out.

Mark, 20 years ago (January '87 issue) I read a DU article on doing canvas geese. Last week KirkP on the DCF emailed me a copy of that which he had saved. I was only 14 at the time, but I remember reading it and saying to myself "I could do that." It took me 10 years from inspiration to completion to make my strip canoe, 20 years to make a goose, so hopefully it won't take me 30 years to make a true duckboat... I have not thought about swans, but I plan 2 more geese for this fall, and maybe 10 or so this winter.

Tim J, I was thinking of a little epoxy in a syringe to tack down the pleats, really don't want to break out a needle and thread.

Also, I forgot to thank Mark Vanderhoof, he had a lot of good tips on doing this.

Thanks to all for all the positive feedback

Chuck
 
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the epoxy won't be flexible and will crack at the edges of the canvas over time which will tear the canvas...Derek Z and I made a couple two summers ago and I filled took care of that seam issues with Aqua Seal.....I used that on all of the places where the material overlapped or where there was a seam....its flexible AND you can paint it.....I also used it over the staples.

We "boiled" the canvas prior to stretching.....you could bounce a coin off of it after it dried.....I'm not sure if it made any difference but after it dried the first time I resoaked it with boiling water a second time....ended up with it being tighter than a bulls butt in flytime.......

Steve
 
Steve Sutton, Thanks for the tip, would Aqua Seal be available at a marine store?

Steve Postma, I used 12 gauge galvanized wire from the hardware store, picked up a cotton canvas drop cloth while I was there as well.

Chuck
 
if not then I'd go with the SCM 4200 caulk...you can get it in small tubes now, it dries fast, is flexible and can be painted.......good stuff.....

Steve
 
Looks great Chuck.

I was just out stretching an old sheet over my frame to get an idea of it's shape. I'm gonna hack away on the breast block and add some wire where I take the cork away. I'm also going to add a rigid tail from 1x or 5/4.

I talked to a guy who has made hundreds of these. He said they make them self bailing for when folks shoot them and they get water in them.

-D
 
Steve,

I did a quick search on Aqua Seal, and the first three products were a boot waterproofer, a foundation waterproofer and a dive accessory type stuff, including an adhesive for neoprene. Are any of these the product you are talking about, otherwise I will look for the SCM 4200

Chuck
 
I talked to a guy who has made hundreds of these. He said they make them self bailing for when folks shoot them and they get water in them.

-D
Click to expand...

I took a couple of my ducks to show my dad a few weeks ago when I saw him, he said they were too nice to hunt with, because they might get shot. I told him not to shoot the decoys.

I thought your swan looked good with that big breast block. I added the extra two half wires to my goose because I though the block was too narrow, but figured I would make the next one with a bigger breast block and try to avoid the wire.

Chuck
 
its the greatest stuff in the World for fixing waders and it works for a plethora of other things as well.....

Steve
 
chuck, great job! your post gave me some motivation! just a few thoughts that you might consider for your next bird. go with 9 guage wire. its tougher to work with but its worth the extra effort. also, bevel the bottom board so you dont have a hard chine that the canvas has to pull over. you obviously did a great job stretching the canvas. i dont do anything to the canvas prior to stetching. i kind of like a little flexibility to the canvas in between the wires. i just start the sealing process with exterior house paint. usually 3-4 complete base coats before i start with my colors. usually end up with 6-8 coats of paint total, at least on the body. havent had any problem thus far with water intrusion aside from the day a couple birds took a direct hit from someone using a skeet choke! keep them coming. looks great... mark
 
Mark,

They actually had 9 gauge right next to the 12 gauge at ACE when I got it, I noticed when stretching that it was easy to get it out of shape. Worked okay with 12, but I could see the advantage to something more rigid. I cut the bottom board square, but rounded the edge with a rasp.

Thanks for all the help
Chuck
 
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