Steve Sanford
Well-known member
Good morning, All~
Lots of different projects on the bench in recent weeks. This one was spurred by an impending visit from my daughter - who is struggling with serious hip/leg pain.
This is an E Allen bird - but not the Keith Mueller style that is more common. I'm pretty sure the master was carved by Fred Muhs. Fred was a World Class carver from eastern Long Island - who died many years ago. He was best known for his spectacular Red-breasted Mergansers - but his Black Ducks were as fine as any. This one came to me in 3 parts - and as a Drake Mallard.
I have this batch of broken-billed Al McCormick decoys from another friend. I hope to get most restored in time for the LI Decoy Collectors Show in early March. As durable as Al's decoys were/are, he made the common error of laying out the heads without consideration of bill strength and the grain of the Redcedar he used. For most patterns, the bill is tipped downward. When the grain runs parallel to the base of the head it will almost always run at an angle through the bill. Breakages ensue - and can be challenging to repair.
This Broadie-Beak came with its "lost" bill - and needed only a bit of thickened epoxy and careful clamping. The decoy had never been finished, so I shaped, sanded, sealed and primed. I need to ask the owner whether he wants the standard painted eyes - or a glass upgrade - or none at all.
This dozen LL Bean puddlers have been fully restored and will be shipped South later today. They include 11 Coastals and one Deluxe Oversize.
Three are Blacks. I regret adding the edging along the top of the side pockets - which I typically do not add on gunners. of this species.
Three are Mallards.
I will always enjoy painting the face of a Hen Mallard. I'm glad, though, she's a one-off - and not one of many....
This lone Deluxe Oversize Pintail belongs to the customer's friend. I wish I could have removed the head and re-mounted it with it tipped just a bit lower. I usually remove heads when I can - but discretion in this case told me I would do more harm than good. I did reinforce it, though, to remove a slight wiggle. (Sorry for the blurry photo. The auto-focus on my older Canon is giving me trouble....)
I really like these quintuplets. The two Hens had come to me as Mallards - but their delicate shapes spoke "Pintail" to my eye. The customer concurred and gave consent for the conversion.
All of these Beans were sealed with spar varnish, primed with flat oils, then top-coated with Behr latex. The bottoms are Parkers Marsh Grass (duckboat paint) and the new fasteners are all s/s.
All the best,
SJS
Lots of different projects on the bench in recent weeks. This one was spurred by an impending visit from my daughter - who is struggling with serious hip/leg pain.
This is an E Allen bird - but not the Keith Mueller style that is more common. I'm pretty sure the master was carved by Fred Muhs. Fred was a World Class carver from eastern Long Island - who died many years ago. He was best known for his spectacular Red-breasted Mergansers - but his Black Ducks were as fine as any. This one came to me in 3 parts - and as a Drake Mallard.
I have this batch of broken-billed Al McCormick decoys from another friend. I hope to get most restored in time for the LI Decoy Collectors Show in early March. As durable as Al's decoys were/are, he made the common error of laying out the heads without consideration of bill strength and the grain of the Redcedar he used. For most patterns, the bill is tipped downward. When the grain runs parallel to the base of the head it will almost always run at an angle through the bill. Breakages ensue - and can be challenging to repair.
This Broadie-Beak came with its "lost" bill - and needed only a bit of thickened epoxy and careful clamping. The decoy had never been finished, so I shaped, sanded, sealed and primed. I need to ask the owner whether he wants the standard painted eyes - or a glass upgrade - or none at all.
This dozen LL Bean puddlers have been fully restored and will be shipped South later today. They include 11 Coastals and one Deluxe Oversize.
Three are Blacks. I regret adding the edging along the top of the side pockets - which I typically do not add on gunners. of this species.
Three are Mallards.
I will always enjoy painting the face of a Hen Mallard. I'm glad, though, she's a one-off - and not one of many....
This lone Deluxe Oversize Pintail belongs to the customer's friend. I wish I could have removed the head and re-mounted it with it tipped just a bit lower. I usually remove heads when I can - but discretion in this case told me I would do more harm than good. I did reinforce it, though, to remove a slight wiggle. (Sorry for the blurry photo. The auto-focus on my older Canon is giving me trouble....)
I really like these quintuplets. The two Hens had come to me as Mallards - but their delicate shapes spoke "Pintail" to my eye. The customer concurred and gave consent for the conversion.
All of these Beans were sealed with spar varnish, primed with flat oils, then top-coated with Behr latex. The bottoms are Parkers Marsh Grass (duckboat paint) and the new fasteners are all s/s.
All the best,
SJS
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