mold making / mold makers

[aranka]

i am really interested in making a production mold for a duck decoy design i have been playing with. I know nothing about making molds and this one may be a little tricky. i am thinking of having one or two made for me but may want to do it myself.

question: anyone know where i can get a mold made (in or near MI) or does anyone know if its something i can do myself. the mold would be filled with two part foam and will have a wood keel built in. I will have pics up of the item tomorrow but really want to get moving on it soon. thanks

 

[sflsurfrider]

a wood keel? on a duck?

 

[snowxr]

So the body of the duck will be just foam??

 

[aranka]

the body will be foam and the keel will be a wood insert.

 

[aranka]

a wood keel? on a duck?

yep, need something hard to screw in an eyelet for the cord and anchor.

 

[aranka]

a few pics

 

[superjet0587]

is the keel weighted at all, or is it a suction thing?
let me know when you get these made i may make an order,

 

[GDFL]

I've got an honest question. I've never duck hunted so I don't have a clue. What is different about your idea/desgn from normal decoys? I've got quite a bit of experience with making molds for what you're trying to do. It'll probably be best to be molded from high quality silicon rubber with a very thick plywood shell. We normally use 3 layers of 3/4" hardwood plywood.

 

[monsterSJ]

how have you done this year on the hunting aranka

 

[snowxr]

Hmm, pretty neat idea. The silicone mold may be the easiest way to do it. I'd call Tool Chemical on Stephenson Hwy. in Troy. They sell the materials you should need to do the silicone mold. Sorry I don't remember their phone number.

 

[aranka]

is the keel weighted at all, or is it a suction thing?
let me know when you get these made i may make an order,

no, the keel is only for attaching the anchor. this block has an extended keel (below water line) and my other one does not.

I've got an honest question. I've never duck hunted so I don't have a clue. What is different about your idea/design from normal decoys? I've got quite a bit of experience with making molds for what you're trying to do. It'll probably be best to be molded from high quality silicon rubber with a very thick plywood shell. We normally use 3 layers of 3/4" hardwood plywood.

these decoys will be used for diver hunting where conditions are much rougher than for puddler ducks (divers are usually out in the lake or in deeper water while puddlers (mallards etc) are mostly back in marsh’s). The conditions where i hunt are never calm and its usually windy as heck. these decoys are based on a suction method and work really well.

how have you done this year on the hunting aranka

really well. i had a great shoot in Walkerton Ontario (up by Georgian Bay) for ducks and geese. this weekend i was over in the Amherstberg area marsh hunting. limited out by 7:45 on fatty mallards and a few teal.

Divers are not down yet, which sucks because that’s what i usually chase. i am bid into layout shooting out in the mouth of lake Erie. you get out much?

 

[aranka]

if anyone cares....i am going to use a silicone based molding compound for both the head and the body.
the decoy body's will be made from 10lb rigid foam and will be pressure cured for an extra hard shell (good for kicking around on the rough days). the heads will be a combo of urethane rubber for the bills (making them un-breakable) and the rigid foam for the head. the urethane rubber will bond chemically to the urethane rubber very well post pot life but pre-full cure.

 

[monsterSJ]

we did very well on geese last weekend limited out within an hour and got a bunch of fat mallards i know i love to hunt the divers it sucks they arent down yet but i hunt every weekend when i go home to mi the missouri season has yet to start so i get like 2 seasons worth of hunting it works out nice

 

[aranka]

progress report:
just finished the mold and making my first cast part. i think it came out ok but the mold is not strong enough. i am going to re-make at least the bottom half.
for the record, gel coat is smelly as heck.