Post by JerseyHunter on Mar 15, 2009 19:33:13 GMT -5
Double The Life Of Your Decoy's Paint
Nothing frustrated Jeff and I more than buying new decoys or repainting old decoys and having the paint chip or rub off. Using that frustration as motivation we looked into why we were getting paint chips and rubs and started experimenting with different products to use as a protective coating to save the paint job and we also started taking a look at the damage our decoy anchors we causing when it came to paint chips and rubs.
The first step we took was to try and find a product that would give the decoy paint a protective finish without a lot of glare. After spending a considerable amount of money and trying a lot of products, we found a product that has worked extremely well for us to provide a protective finish without a tremendous amount of shine or glare. (One thing to keep in mind about real ducks on the water, on sunny days they give off a natural sheen because of the water and feather oil, so don't be too concerned it you have some shine to your decoys. It will look natural on the water.) The product that we use is: Krylon 1311 Matt Finish that can be purchased at most Wal-Marts and home improvement stores.
Typically we will spray our decoys with 2 coats of the Matt-Finish but if these are decoys that will get a lot of abuse (i.e. carried in bags, tossed into boats) we'll give them up to 4 coats. Three years ago, Jeff M sprayed some new Avery life-size and over-sized mallard decoys with 4 coats and carried them in bags and threw them in boats and when we recently checked them they had only minimal chips and paint rub off. Once we have the original coat on we will then respray the decoys each year before then season begins.
The second step we took was to change the old decoy anchors we were using to Ace Anchors (Avery also has a new version of this anchor) which are L shaped decoy anchors with a bungee strap attached to the weight which allows the decoy anchor to stay firmly in place around keel. Because the weight stays firmly attached, you don't have anchors hitting and rubbing your other decoys which helps eliminate a lot of chips and paint rub offs.
There you have it. Two simple steps to help save your decoys paint job.
Nothing frustrated Jeff and I more than buying new decoys or repainting old decoys and having the paint chip or rub off. Using that frustration as motivation we looked into why we were getting paint chips and rubs and started experimenting with different products to use as a protective coating to save the paint job and we also started taking a look at the damage our decoy anchors we causing when it came to paint chips and rubs.
The first step we took was to try and find a product that would give the decoy paint a protective finish without a lot of glare. After spending a considerable amount of money and trying a lot of products, we found a product that has worked extremely well for us to provide a protective finish without a tremendous amount of shine or glare. (One thing to keep in mind about real ducks on the water, on sunny days they give off a natural sheen because of the water and feather oil, so don't be too concerned it you have some shine to your decoys. It will look natural on the water.) The product that we use is: Krylon 1311 Matt Finish that can be purchased at most Wal-Marts and home improvement stores.
Typically we will spray our decoys with 2 coats of the Matt-Finish but if these are decoys that will get a lot of abuse (i.e. carried in bags, tossed into boats) we'll give them up to 4 coats. Three years ago, Jeff M sprayed some new Avery life-size and over-sized mallard decoys with 4 coats and carried them in bags and threw them in boats and when we recently checked them they had only minimal chips and paint rub off. Once we have the original coat on we will then respray the decoys each year before then season begins.
The second step we took was to change the old decoy anchors we were using to Ace Anchors (Avery also has a new version of this anchor) which are L shaped decoy anchors with a bungee strap attached to the weight which allows the decoy anchor to stay firmly in place around keel. Because the weight stays firmly attached, you don't have anchors hitting and rubbing your other decoys which helps eliminate a lot of chips and paint rub offs.
There you have it. Two simple steps to help save your decoys paint job.
