What's on your WORK BENCH ? - MARCH 2001

Good morning, All~

Lots of Spring chores - especially firewood and birdhouses - have kept me out of the shop. Nevertheless, I have been working through the batch of Chesapeake Decoy Co. Black Ducks.


There are 2 sizes - one oversize, the other truly magnum. Does anyone here know the correct designations? I have heard Superduck associated with Chesapeake Decoys - but do not know if it applies to one or both sizes. I've never seen a catalog, brochure or website. Nice gunners, though!


The smaller of the 2 sizes have flat bottoms with deep keels - all dense urethane foam. This customer prefers the Al McCormick-style flat keels for when the tide runs out. So, I saw off the original keels with my multi-tool.



View attachment Ches 01 - removing keels.JPG



Happily, there is no embedded hardware so it takes just a minute to saw off (mostly) flush.


View attachment Ches 02 - multitool blade.JPG



Here are 4 de-keeled. I found a 5th the next day....



Note that I have coated 3 of these bodies - with epoxy + Homer Coat.





View attachment Ches 03 - dekeeled foursome.JPG



The new keels are made from dense 5/4 Mahogany. I expect they will not need additional ballast to float properly. They are attached with thickened epoxy. The 2 s/s screws serve as clamps during the cure.



View attachment Ches 04 - new keels installed.JPG



The one of the right has been sealed with Spar Varnish then top-coated with duckboat paint. The one of the left shows the hollowed body of the larger decoys. A couple needed new s/s screw eyes.



View attachment Macioch Chesapeakes - 2 bottom types.JPG



Most of the birds are all painted. A few still need details on bills and faces.


View attachment Macioch Chesapeakes - ALL in process.JPG



Here are the usual Behr paints I use on Black Ducks - in this case a Wildfowler Superior Model.



View attachment BEHR Paints Black Ducks B.JPG



I took some time to work on 3 Homer Mallards - that were just kicking around in the loft. I coated the bodies with epoxy + Homer Coat, and the heads with epoxy + fine sawdust. I am waiting for some s/s screw eyes and one more head from Homer Decoys.


View attachment Homer Mallards - 3 in process.JPG



These Wildfowler Mallards are just serving as models as I paint.


View attachment Wildfowler Mallards - examples for paint.JPG





All the best,


SJS



 
Steve, you guys on the east coast sure love your Black Ducks. When you speak of coating with epoxy, what exactly is that product?

RVZ
 
Rod and Rich~


The epoxy I use is from U S Composites, their 635 Thin Resin with Medium Hardener.


http://www.uscomposites.com/epoxy.html


I imagine many other epoxies are comparable. I have been using this product - on decoys and boats - for several years now.


I do the bodies in 2 steps. First I do the bottoms and keels - and often include the undersides of the tail section. I brush the straight resin on with a 1.5 inch chip (throwaway) brush. I work over a plastic tray that has a bunch of "coating" in it. I use Homer Coat for the bodies, but sometimes use fine sawdust (from my bandsaw) for the bottoms. I have the coating in a quart cup and sprinkle it over the entire body, tilting the body as needed to cover every area. I then rap some dry part of the body to shake off any loosely-attached particles. I set the coated bodies on plastic - or hang them by wires - to cure. I coat the topsides of each body the next day.



After the epoxy has cured - usually the next day. - I brush on a flat oil as an undercoat. I approximate the tones of the topcoat so that any future wear will not reveal a strongly-contrasting tone. The topcoats re latex.


The process for the heads is the same - except I have a separate tray filled with fine sawdust from my bandsaw. I do not coat the bills and try not to coat the eyes,



BTW: I have never used ground corncobs (like the original Restle Coat) because I could not find it around here. Homer Coat is finely ground walnuts shells. I like it much better than the blasting medium (coarser ground walnut shells) from Harbor Freight. I have not tried the stuff used in lizard cages.


Also, please not that such coating is great fir protecting foam bodies. It is not as strong as burlap+mastic, but it weighs much less. It certainly prevents shining BUT it is a very rough surface and so can be stained by fine muds in use.


I will take some photos next time I coat some birds (within the next few days).


All the best,


SJS





 
Been working with Adriano Manocchia on a series of etchings (each edition size=20). Here's the latest which I framed and tied the flies for (he used my flies as models for the etchings); they are hand colored by Adriano. Never imagined I'd be framing sporting art in a blue-ish frame, but it was all I could find among the zillion cans of stain I have that worked.
Gary


View attachment Within Reach #1.jpeg
 
Steve Sanford said:
Good morning, All~

Lots of Spring chores - especially firewood and birdhouses - have kept me out of the shop. Nevertheless, I have been working through the batch of Chesapeake Decoy Co. Black Ducks.


There are 2 sizes - one oversize, the other truly magnum. Does anyone here know the correct designations? I have heard Superduck associated with Chesapeake Decoys - but do not know if it applies to one or both sizes. I've never seen a catalog, brochure or website. Nice gunners, though!


The smaller of the 2 sizes have flat bottoms with deep keels - all dense urethane foam. This customer prefers the Al McCormick-style flat keels for when the tide runs out. So, I saw off the original keels with my multi-tool.







Happily, there is no embedded hardware so it takes just a minute to saw off (mostly) flush.






Here are 4 de-keeled. I found a 5th the next day....



Note that I have coated 3 of these bodies - with epoxy + Homer Coat.









The new keels are made from dense 5/4 Mahogany. I expect they will not need additional ballast to float properly. They are attached with thickened epoxy. The 2 s/s screws serve as clamps during the cure.







The one of the right has been sealed with Spar Varnish then top-coated with duckboat paint. The one of the left shows the hollowed body of the larger decoys. A couple needed new s/s screw eyes.







Most of the birds are all painted. A few still need details on bills and faces.






Here are the usual Behr paints I use on Black Ducks - in this case a Wildfowler Superior Model.







I took some time to work on 3 Homer Mallards - that were just kicking around in the loft. I coated the bodies with epoxy + Homer Coat, and the heads with epoxy + fine sawdust. I am waiting for some s/s screw eyes and one more head from Homer Decoys.






These Wildfowler Mallards are just serving as models as I paint.








All the best,


SJS


Click to expand...
The name Superduck was what they were advertised as when Mike Gardenia was making them. Part of his ad was driving over top of one in driveway without damaging it. I have a few of the closed bottom type but had never seen the open bottom style.
 
Good morning, Roy~


Thanks very much! I'm putting together a document for my files with everythimng I can find about Chesapeake Decoy Company. I just completed rehabbing 16 of them - and another dozen are waiting in the queue.


Stay tuned,,


SJS

 
I do recall them advertising quite a bit in wildfowl magazine years ago. That would have been about same time Arthur Armstrong was first producing Blackjack & Broadbills Duck boats. Might find some info there if you have access to any of their old magazines. Thats where I first heard of them . Ad in back of mag for a company selling them in California. Orderd 3 and found out they were shipped from 16 miles from my house. Berlin, Md. Up to that point i,d never heard of them in my area. They would ride water similar to corks . Much better than weighted plastics of that era.Boats
Steve Sanford said:
Good morning, Roy~


Thanks very much! I'm putting together a document for my files with everythimng I can find about Chesapeake Decoy Company. I just completed rehabbing 16 of them - and another dozen are waiting in the queue.


Stay tuned,,


SJS
Click to expand...
 
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