How To: Repainting mallard drake decoys

[livnlrn]

Here's my process for repainting mallard drake decoys. After some trial and error I've found a method that is easy, cheap, and durable. All the paints can be bought at most hobby stores. I'll also show you some paints that you can mail order that are even better.

I'll be honest and tell you right now I'm not sure how long this will take to put together. So be patient. Once I'm done with the drake I'll start on a hen "How To".

Here's the two decoys I'll be using. These two decoys were left in the pitblind which flooded last spring. They floated all spring and summer in some nasty water. I had already started cleaning the floater but it looked just like the FB.

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Prepping

This is the most important step in the whole process.
In order to get any paint to stick... the decoy has to be super clean. From what I've read the main culprit of peeling paint on decoys is release agents. The release agents are used to allow the decoys to be popped out of the mold. When you get a brand new decoy with peeling paint release agents are probably the cause.

If the decoy is real dirty I'll wash it first with plain water. Next I'll take a wirewheel attached to a drill and go over the whole decoy. WARNING do not leave the wheel in one spot trying to remove paint. You will wear a hole in the decoy fast. I don't put any pressure on the wheel. The weight of the drill is plenty. After I wire brush the whole decoy I then take sandpaper and rough up any part the wirebrush can't reach. I use 120 grit.

You can also use handheld brushes like the ones pictured. They don't do near as good a job and your arm gets tired quickly. The small brush is handy for getting into those hard to reach areas though.

The goal here is to remove any loose paint and create tiny scratches. All those scratches are going to make the primer adhere better on the decoy. The more scratches you have the better especially on the smooth areas like the bill.



Now it's time to clean the decoy. I use TSP 90 Heavy Duty Cleaner. Mix the TSP 90 according to the directions and scrub the decoy with a scotchbrite pad. Make sure you get into all the nooks and crannies. An old toothbrush works good for that.

Once the decoy is cleaned I try not to touch the decoy with my bare hands. Handle the decoy by the keel or put on a pair of those cheap latex gloves. You don't want the oils from your hands getting on the decoy.

Take a torch and flame the decoy. Very quickly move the flame all over. This will burn off any remaining release agents.

WARNING do not leave the flame in one spot or you will melt the decoy. Also, do not do this for a long period of time. You will end up heating the air inside the decoy causing it to expand. Not sure if you could expand the decoy enough to make it explode but it might pop a seam.

Finally, just for good measure I wipe the decoy down with Acetone.

The decoy is now ready for primer.

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Priming

For the primer this is what I use. This product here is the secret to getting paint to stick. We'll also be mixing this with the paint for basecoating. I've only found this in Michael's. Hobby Lobby does not carry it. It's about a $1.80 a bottle. One bottle should do 3 or more decoys depending on what your painting.

Coat the decoy and let dry overnight before painting.

DecoArt - Product Information

Paints

There's two kinds of paints I have used. These are the paints available in most hobby stores. I'll be using these paints in the tutorial.

DecoArt - Product Information

They are probably not as good as the ones below but work just fine. These are the paints I use on the foam decoys I make for myself and repainting my own plastics.

The traveling decoy was painted with these paints for those of you that hunted over Wilbur. From what I've heard he still looks great.

These paints are better than the paints mentioned above. Only drawback with these is I can't find them locally. Mail order only. Mangleson's on 84th used to carry these but not anymore.

DecoArt - Product Information

They have better pigments and binders in them. I use these paints on decoys I make and paint for other people. I just don't want someone coming back to me complaining the paint fell off. It's a piece of mind thing is all... the americana's work just fine.

Somebody better sticky this post!!

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Here's the decoy primed and ready for paint.



The paints used are acrylic paints. Acrylics dry fast to the touch but that does not mean they are completely cured. It takes a good month or more for the paint to completely cure. Resist the urge to test the paint... DON'T SCRATCH IT testing for toughness!

Back, sides and flanks

Step 1

The colors I use are Grey Sky and Slate Grey.

Mix the Grey Sky 50/50 with the multipurpose sealer. I squirt out a quarter sized blob of each on a paper plate and mix well. Paint up to the chest and to the white line on the rump.

If you want you can take a hairdryer and heatset the paint. Hold the hairdryer about 12 inches away on high. Don't hold it in one spot... keep it moving. Do this for a few minutes till the paint is dry to the touch.

If you don't heatset let the decoy dry for an hour before going to the next step.

Step 2

I take a 1" brush and dab Slate grey over the Sky grey. "Dabbing" I mean a stabbing type motion. Old brushes work better than new brushes for this.

Squirt a small blob of Slate grey on a paper plate. Dab the tips of the bristles in the paint. Then dab the brush on a paper towel till you get 99% of the paint off it. Now go ahead and lightly dab the decoy. Go fast and keep the brush moving. I start from the back and go towards the chest moving the brush from the bottom of the decoy to the top and them back down again.

In these pics I did one side of the decoy so you can see the difference.





This side is Grey sky only.

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Brushes

The brushes I use are Softgrip brushes by Royal. They're usually about 3 bucks a piece. The other brush is the brush I use for dabbing and drybrushing.

You use whatever brushes that work best for you.



Vermiculation

The small wavy ridges on the back, sides, and flanks are called vermiculation. I take raw umber and drybrush these with the 1' brush. Put a small amount of raw umber on a paper plate and dip the tip of the bristles in the paint. Remove most of the paint by wiping the bristles on a paper towel. You want to get 99% of the paint off.

Going perpendicular to the ridges start brushing. Keep doing this process until you get the look you want. You can make it as dark or as light as you want. I leave the flanks lighter than the sides and back.

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Rump

Mix Lamp (ebony) Black 50/50 with the mutlitpurpose sealer. Even though it's not the correct color for the primaries go ahead and paint them black. Paint the head black also. It will serve as a good basecoat...trust me.

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Chest

I haven't found a color straight out of the bottle for the chest that I like so I do it the hard way. I use 4 colors burnt sienna, primary blue, dioxazine purple, and lamp (ebony) black. It might take you a couple tries before you get the color you want. Once you get the mixing figured out it's easy.

Mix burnt sienna 50/50 with the multipurpose sealer. A quarter size blob of both will do. I have a small amount (dime size) of the primary blue, dioxazine purple, and lamp (ebony) black on my plate also...all seperate.

I then start adding tiny amounts of the primary blue to the burnt sienna. I do this by dipping a corner of the brush into the blu then mixing. By tiny I mean about a drop. It's going to start turning brown. I keep adding tiny amounts till I'm close to the color I want. You can add too much blue and you'll know it when you do.

I then darken it up to get the shade I want by adding tiny amounts of black. Once I get that color I'll add tiny amounts of the purple. This will give it kind of a purplish/dark brown tint. I paint the whole chest this color then heatset with a blowdryer.

This next step is optional.

I take that same color and add burnt sienna to lighten it up a bit. Dip your brush into the paint and wipe some of it off by dragging it on the edge of the plate. Lay the brush flat. Starting at the head drag the brush down to the bottom of the decoy letting the brush only hit the high spots on the feather detail.

In my pic I didn't do that I just dabbed it on here and there. Either way will give you the same effect.

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Back

Mix equal amounts of burnt umber and raw sienna and paint the triangular area behind the head. While the paint is still wet take burnt umber and dab it into the area you just painted. This will give it some depth.

You can see the lighter brown which is the burnt umber/raw sienna mix. The dark blotches is the burnt umber.

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head

I use these 3 colors for the head. Lamp black, Festive green, and primary yellow.

Squirt out a quarter size blob of the Festive green and a small amount of black on your plate. Add tiny amounts of black with your brush to darken the green to your liking. Paint the whole head this color except for the top or crown of the head. Heatset with hairdryer of let dry before going to the next step.



Squirt out a quarter size blob of the Festive green and a small amount of primary yellow. Keep adding primary yellow till you get a real bright green. Paint the cheeks and top of the head between the eye and crown. This color gives you that iridescent look. If you can add more or less till you get the look you want.

After this I also go over the top of the head by drybrushing black.

For the eye I use black fingernail polish. Works Great.

I took this pic outside to give you a better idea of what it looks like in the sun.

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bill

Mix cadmium yellow 50/50 with multipurpose sealer. This is going to be the basecoat. It might take 3 or 4 coats to get a fairly even coverage. You can speed up the process by heatsetting with the hairdryer.

Put a dime size blob of cadmium yellow and a couple drops of burnt umber on your plate. Add a tiny amount of the burnt umber to the yellow. You just want enough to darken it a bit. Dip your paint into this and scrape most of the paint off by dragging on the edge of the plate.

Lightly drag the brush down the bill towards the tip. It's going to make the bill darker but still some of the cadmium yellow is going to show through. It's a nice effect. If you look closely at the pick you can see the top of the bill is lighter than the sides.

Once that is dry take some black and paint the nostrils and tip (also called the nail).

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Tail, rump, and neck

Mix titanium white 50/50 with the multipurpose sealer. Paint the tail, the stripe on the rump and the neck ring. It will take 3 or 4 coats to get even coverage. Use the hairdryer to speed up the process.

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sidebars

Using burnt umber I paint in the sidebars on both sides of the decoy.



After painting the second sidebar I go back to the opposite side of the decoy. I then add and equal amount of black to the burnt umber and go along the bottom edge of where I painted. I don't have alot of paint loaded on the brush when I do this. I work the brush back and forth blending it in to the burnt umber I painted on before. Do the opposite side.

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Instead of the racing stripe you see going down the back I like to paint something like this. I kind of rushed it so it doesn't look that good but you get the idea.

I paint a wide black stripe from the tail to the back. I then take burnt umber and paint in the feathers on both sides. I'll go back with a touch of black to darken them up.

You could paint the black in when you paint the head and rump. Also when highlighting the head with the bright green you can drybrush that on the rump and back.



Here's a reference pic to give you an idea.

http://jackmaryetc.com/Travel/Europe...llardGreat.jpg


The painting is done all that's left is sealing.

[livnlrn]

sealer

This is what I use for sealer. It says matte but I don't believe there's a product out there that is perfectly matte. It will have a slight sheen. A duck will give off a slight sheen anyway. If you think it has too much shine take a scotchbrite pad and very lightly scuff the surface.



Finished decoy with sealer. In the lower pic the decoy has no sealer yet. It will give you and idea on how much sheen is on the decoy after sealing.




Pic from 20 feet away.



If you have any questions ask.