Making stuffed ducks from polyurethane foam. Making duck stuffed animals with your own hands

Waterfowl hunting is the most common type of hunting, which is available to many game lovers. There are many ways to shoot birds on water bodies, one of them is hunting ducks with stuffed animals. In such a hunt, duck decoys are used to attract birds flying past (another name is stuffed ducks).

To be fair, it should be noted that this type of hunting is not very popular due to the rather labor-intensive preparation process. The hunter must have good knowledge of the habits of ducks, their behavior and movements. In addition, it is necessary to choose the right stuffed ducks and place them correctly on the water.

Even experienced hunters do not always imagine the process of such a hunt. However, if you observe all the subtleties and features of this type of catching waterfowl, hunting using decoys can be very interesting and quite effective.

How to properly hunt ducks will be discussed below.

Features and rules of hunting with stuffed animals

The best time for successful hunting is early spring. At this time, drakes look for females for the purpose of mating. It’s also a good idea to use stuffed ducks in late autumn, when the birds form into fairly large flocks to fly to warmer climes for the winter.

Stuffed animals perform the main task of attracting a bird flying by. Under the influence of instinct, ducks descend when they see their relatives. And a well-camouflaged hunter fires a shot when the bird lands next to the dummy.

The productivity of hunting depends on compliance with several basic rules:

The decoy (stuffed bird) must be placed in an open place so that the stuffed animal can be clearly seen by flying ducks. Stuffed ducks should be placed on the water, there should be no thickets or “lush” vegetation nearby.
The dummies need to be placed in a place convenient for shelling.
The dummies must be divided according to the breed of bird: it is better to place river duck stuffed animals in shallow water (they feed on vegetation), and stuffed diving ducks should be placed in places with deeper water (their food is living creatures that live in the reservoir).
Stuffed ducks are located in small groups with a distance of about 3 meters.
To avoid wounded animals, it is best to install duck dummies close to the hut (hidden) to make it easier to shoot a duck that has eaten well over the summer (such birds accumulate fat and a large layer of fluff under their feathers over the summer).
It is very important to adjust the location of the scarves depending on the direction and strength of the wind. These parameters affect where the birds will land.

These simple rules will increase the efficiency of hunting.

There are several basic rules for shooting from cover:

Shooting directly from a boat is difficult and dangerous. When shooting from a boat, you need to be careful and maintain your balance.
Arriving birds must be shot as they approach. It often happens that a duck, having flown over the dummy, does not return back.
It is better to scare away a bird that lands on the water and shoot it in flight. Otherwise, there is a risk of damaging the stuffed bird.

It has been noticed that hunting ducks is becoming more and more difficult every year. Experienced hunters observe the effect of “smart” birds. Therefore, when catching waterfowl and black grouse, increased demands are placed on the hunter’s weapons and clothing. Outerwear should not differ from the general background of the surrounding landscape; camouflage coloring is recommended. Even the skin of your hands and face should be covered with a special tinting cream.

Selection and preparation of a site

The choice of hunting location must be approached with the utmost seriousness. It is necessary to carry out reconnaissance and establish the flight route of ducks to their overnight roosts and back, and their feeding. For this purpose, hunters inspect water bodies for several days in a row, morning and evening.

When the hunter has established the reservoirs where ducks fly most often, it is necessary to choose a place to build a hut. If dense bushes grow around a pond, then you can do without building a shelter and use thickets as camouflage. However, it is important to remember that a hunter can spend a lot of time near a reservoir while waiting for prey.

The place chosen for shelter must have good visibility, since for successful shooting of a duck in flight, it is important to notice the approaching bird as early as possible. For the same purpose, you need to get up in the morning facing the dawn, in the evening - facing the sunset. In addition, the hunter needs to think about the convenience of picking up a downed duck, optimally if the game falls in an open, clearly visible place.

Hide device

The best place to build a hut (skradka) is the border of water and coastal bushes, thickets or reeds.

Criteria for building a “correct” hide:

it should not stand out against the background of the surrounding area;
must not block the view;
it should be as convenient as possible to fire from;
The concealment should look as natural as possible and camouflage the hunter well.

Depending on the chosen location, hides can be permanent (stationary) or mobile (using a boat).

It is better to use natural building material, which can be found in the forest: branches, leaves, grass, reeds. If you want to spend time building a hideout, specialized stores sell camouflage capes, nets, tents and huts for this purpose.

There are seated and standing hides. It all depends on the place and time for the construction of such a building. Very often a shelter is made right on the water by building a small raft. For camouflage, they use tall reeds, weaving their tops together to form a canopy.

Correct placement

For duck hunting with decoys to be effective, you need to place them correctly. The duck flock must be natural, otherwise it will disturb the birds.

For correct placement, you need to know the behavioral characteristics of the birds that will be hunted.

If the duck decoys are placed too close together, they will resemble a flock of ducks huddled together when danger arises. This will, of course, cause excitement and caution in real birds.
Individual bird figures placed throughout the pond will also look unnatural, since ducks always swim in flocks.

The most optimal distance between the figures is three meters. It is better to arrange them in the form of letters of the English alphabet - J or V.

To make duck hunting more successful, hunters often use a good decoy. It must be remembered that its use requires special skills in order to attract the bird correctly.

Varieties

Stuffed ducks can be divided into types depending on:

the material from which they are made;
poses;
size range;
breeds

According to manufacturing materials

Typically, the following species are used for hunting:

Rubber stuffed animals ducks are the most popular species. They are considered the most convenient for transportation. A significant disadvantage is their lightness, and if there are waves on the pond, they will look unnatural. In addition, if it is hit with a gun, the rubber decoy is easily damaged and fails until the end of the hunt.
Inflatable stuffed animals ducks for hunting. They are made from thin PVC.
Wooden. Natural wood is the rarest and most expensive material for manufacturing. Stuffed animals made of wood often decorate the country houses of hunting enthusiasts.
Foam. Quite common material. When painted it looks very aesthetically pleasing and natural. Since the material is very light, a weight is attached to it.
Plastic. Very accessible, inexpensive and lightweight material.

It must be remembered that in itself, even a very good and expensive stuffed animal does not guarantee that the hunt will be successful. It is necessary to properly land them on the water. In addition, the effectiveness of hunting ducks with a decoy depends on the knowledge and skills of the hunter.

By size range

There are dummies:

ordinary;
large;
very big.

It is very good if the layouts are large. Experience shows that a larger size is very effective and increases the chances of catching the desired trophy.

Depending on the breed

Models copy breeds:

mallards;
teals;
diving;
river;
Gogoli.

Experienced hunters know that all types of waterfowl fly up to mallard dummies, while the mallard itself does not react to stuffed animals of other species.

By captured pose

It is customary to make figurines of birds in the following poses:

sleeping;
resting;
diving;
feeding.

Many years of accumulated experience suggests that stuffed animals should be light, made in the natural and calm pose of a feeding duck. Steady resistance to wind currents is a necessary quality.

Mechanical stuffed animals

In recent years, hunters have appreciated a new type of dummy. This is a mechanical stuffed duck with flapping wings.

What is the advantage of a mechanical model over others? Such dummies look very believable, creating the sensation of a moving or flying duck. As practice has shown, the use of mechanical models that flap their wings attracts wild birds much more effectively, and hunting becomes much more effective.

How to choose the right one

A successful and productive hunt is the main indicator of the right choice.

The choice of a decoy for waterfowl hunting is influenced by several factors:

seasonality (in spring it is better to use a stuffed female as bait);
types of ducks living or migrating in a given area (choose stuffed animals of these breeds in accordance with common breeds);
It is recommended to use layouts of different sizes and poses so as not to alarm the birds;
features of the local reservoir;
An important factor is transportation.

Currently, purchasing stuffed ducks does not cause any problems. Stores specializing in the sale of hunting goods offer a large assortment of duck dummies. The main thing is to make a choice and purchase a stuffed animal in a specialized store (or order from an online store).

Do it yourself

For hunting, as a rule, several dummies are used, and some use several dozen. Sometimes purchasing stuffed ducks can be quite expensive.

However, it is not necessary to buy dummies in a store. You can make a stuffed duck with your own hands. In this case, inexpensive and easy-to-work materials are used.

Below we will tell you how to make stuffed ducks with your own hands.

Made of wood

Hand-made wooden figurines are very beautiful dummies that amaze with their naturalness.

For production you will need wooden blocks. They should not be very large (diameter approximately 20 cm). The logs dry in their natural state (with bark). When the log dries, it will easily split into two halves. One half is used to make a stuffed animal.
The next step is to make a template. It can be made from thick cardboard. They trace the tree according to the template and remove the excess. The head is made from another piece of wood.
Holes are drilled to connect the head to the body. The head and body are connected to each other and fixed with a stick. The surface is polished with sandpaper, removing all irregularities and roughness.
The stage of exterior finishing has arrived. The tree is covered with drying oil and waited for complete drying. Check the coating on a smooth water surface (bath). Balancing is done using additional metal plates.
Finally, the figurine is coated with oil paint.

Now you will have a worthy stuffed animal in your arsenal for a successful hunt.

From polyurethane foam

A very economical and uncomplicated option for obtaining a dummy bird is making stuffed ducks for hunting from ordinary polyurethane foam.

You can make about five figures from one can of foam.

Let's make a shape: any plastic duck will do. We begin to paste over the form with pieces of paper (like papier-mâché). The first layer is toilet paper or soft napkins. The next layers can be made of thicker paper. At least ten layers must be glued on, then the homemade stuffed duck must be left to dry (about a week).
After a week, cut the paper dummy in half horizontally, you will get two blanks.
Lubricate the workpieces with rich cream (or paraffin). Place a weighting agent in the workpiece that will be the bottom (a regular nut or a pair of nails will do).
Let's start filling the blanks with polyurethane foam. Let the foam dry. Then we connect the two halves and fasten them.
All that's left is the finishing touches. Since foam is not very durable and can allow water to pass through, a moisture-resistant exterior finish is required. It can be oil paint, varnish, drying oil.

It is very important to follow the paint or varnish manufacturer's recommendations. Incorrect coloring can result in shine, and this will certainly scare away wild ducks. At the same time, a violation of the painting technology leads to the fact that the figures “peel off” instantly. The solution may be to add rubber glue to oil paint. After painting, be sure to wipe the entire surface with paraffin, this will help get rid of excess shine.

Video

You will learn how to make a stuffed duck from foam plastic from our video.

Despite the fact that today you can easily purchase any hunting goods in specialized stores, many craftsmen prefer to make stuffed animals for hunting with their own hands. This allows you not only to save money, but also to create exactly the kind of accessories that fully meet the requirements of an experienced hunter.

First, let's figure out why they are needed at all. It's actually quite simple. When a hunter sits in ambush, waiting for a duck or goose, he is usually tied to one place - for example, a small lake, where the bird flies to spend the night after feeding during the day. However, what if there are many such reservoirs in the area? After all, a duck can choose any of them to spend the night. It is the scarecrows that help the bird make the “right” choice. Having seen several of their relatives on the water, they understand that this body of water is completely safe and rush towards it.

Stuffed animals are especially useful during spring hunting. At this time, you can only hunt drakes. However, it is simply impossible to determine in flight, and even at dusk, whether a drake or a duck is flying towards the hunter. It’s a completely different matter when they land ten to fifteen meters away and begin to swim slowly. In addition, hitting an almost motionless bird sitting at such a short distance is much easier than hitting one flying in the sky at an altitude of 20-40 meters.

Therefore, any fan of this hobby should learn how to make a stuffed duck for hunting with their own hands - it will allow you to return home with rich trophies every time.

Requirements for manufacturing technology

What qualities should finished stuffed animals have? There are quite a lot of them. First of all, and this is quite understandable, they should look like ducks. Ideally, in the twilight, even the hunter himself should not be able to distinguish at first glance where his stuffed animal is swimming and where a live duck has stopped for a few seconds. If the imitation is not plausible enough, then there is always a risk that the duck will not believe that its brothers are resting on the water.

At the same time, they should also be light. Still, sometimes a hunter has to walk several kilograms from an abandoned car to the hunting site. Excess weight will cause serious discomfort and will cause fatigue to set in faster than it otherwise would.

Based on these requirements, it is worth choosing materials suitable for production so that the finished stuffed geese for DIY hunting are natural and light.

What materials are used in production

Experienced hunters use a variety of materials to create decoys that exactly match their ideas about the best option. We will list the most popular options, and also tell you about the technology for making duck scarecrows for hunting with your own hands.

From plywood

Perhaps, it is from plywood that making stuffed geese for hunting with your own hands takes the least amount of time. Even a teenager who knows how to work with the simplest tools can cope with this task.

However, they are also the least durable. Plywood, in contact with water, absorbs moisture, which is why after each hunt the stuffed animals must be thoroughly dried. But even then, they usually last only a few seasons. If you forget to dry them, the stuffed animals will quickly begin to rot and become covered with mold - you will have to make new ones.

So, to work you will need:

plywood;
a simple pencil or pen;
sandpaper;
hacksaw with fine teeth;
drying oil,
oil paints,
tassel,
several bars with a cross section of about 2 centimeters and a length of 20-25 cm,
petrol.

When all the materials and tools are at hand, you can start working:

To begin, draw several silhouettes of ducks on the plywood with a pencil. It is desirable that they be different - one has an elongated neck, the other, on the contrary, is ruffled, the third swims relaxedly in clear water in complete safety.
Using a hacksaw, carefully cut out the finished figures.
Sand the edges with sandpaper so that they are smooth and do not hurt your hand when working with them.
Cover the plywood with hot drying oil and let it dry.
Paint the stuffed animals with oil paints - try to give them the most realistic look.
The paint will have a noticeable shine after it dries. To remove shine, wipe the stuffed animals with a rag lightly moistened with gasoline.
Attach the prepared pegs to the stuffed animals. You can make them removable so that finished products take up less space during transportation.

OK it's all over Now. Now you know how to make stuffed ducks for hunting with your own hands, using only plywood and some other materials.

Volumetric stuffed animal made of foam plastic

These products can boast not only of surprisingly low weight (the finished stuffed animal weighs only a few tens of grams), but also of realism - after all, using polystyrene foam, you can make three-dimensional stuffed geese for hunting with your own hands. Therefore, they are often much more efficient than their plywood counterparts.

However, if possible, it is better to use polystyrene foam rather than polystyrene foam. It is a little heavier, but much stronger, and almost as easy to process. Consequently, stuffed animals can last for more than one year.

So, before you get started, stock up on the following tools and materials:

office cutter,
sandpaper,
pencil,
tassels,
polystyrene foam or polystyrene foam (the main thing is that it is strong enough and at least 2-3 cm thick),
putty,
acrylic paints,
glue.

Do not use nitro glue - if it gets on the foam, it will burn holes in it, ruining the appearance of the stuffed animals, as well as making work difficult.

Most of the list is in any apartment. Well, what is missing can always be purchased at any hardware store. After this, you can safely get to work.

Draw the silhouette of a duck onto the foam. It is better to do this first on cardboard, and then transfer it to foam plastic, making two identical blanks. Make sure the size and proportions are as close to the real duck as possible.
Draw separately the profiles for the wings - also two pieces.
Cut out the foam blanks. It is best to use a hacksaw, but you can also get by with a stationery cutter.
Glue all four pieces together.
Use fine sandpaper to remove any irregularities and give the stuffed animal more roundness and realism.
Putty the joints so that the surface is as smooth as possible, let the putty dry.
Using a brush and acrylic paints, paint the scarecrow in the appropriate colors.

OK it's all over Now. The stuffed animal is ready and can go hunting! You can attach some kind of weight to the bottom - for example, a massive bolt, so that the stuffed animal does not accidentally be knocked over by the wind.

Stuffed animal made of polyurethane foam

Preparation for production is quite complicated, but the process of creating stuffed animals is simple - this option is worth choosing for those who want to make a large number of imitations at once. For example, if you are interested in a stuffed crow for hunting with your own hands, this would be the best solution.

For work take:

alabaster,
polyurethane foam,
boards,
hammer,
nails,
hacksaw,
hard foam,
stationery knife,
sandpaper.

Now you can start making a stuffed drake duck for hunting with your own hands:

Make one stuffed animal from polystyrene foam - either from a single piece, or according to the instructions given above. Try especially hard when working - all subsequent stuffed animals will be an exact copy of the first.
Dilute plaster or alabaster in a suitable container. It should be quite liquid - about like sour cream. Press the foam piece into it, sideways, exactly halfway. Allow the plaster to harden - this usually takes overnight at most.
Lubricate the hardened surface with vegetable oil and pour another portion of plaster. When it hardens, you can carefully separate the two halves and remove the foam blank from them.
Fold two plaster halves and carefully make a small hole at the bottom - 2-3 centimeters.
Pour polyurethane foam into the mold through the resulting hole and let it harden.
Disassemble the form, remove the future stuffed animal and carefully paint it.

That's all. Now you have the opportunity to prepare any number of stuffed ducks, geese or crows from polyurethane foam. As with foam plastic, you can weight the bottom with some kind of weight to make the stuffed animal more stable.

Many experienced hunters prefer to use duck decoys to attract birds while hunting. However, you don’t have to buy them in a store. You can make a stuffed duck with your own hands using simple and inexpensive materials.

What are stuffed animals for?

Duck decoys are designed to attract the attention of a bird that flies by. It is best to use this method for successful hunting in early spring, when the drake is in search of a female for mating. You can also use stuffed animals in late autumn, when flocks form to fly to warmer climes.

To ensure a productive hunt, adhere to the following rules:

place the bait in an open area that is free of vegetation so that ducks can see it clearly;
when placing dummies, consider where it is best to fire;
place stuffed river ducks in shallow water, and diving ducks in deeper areas of the reservoir;
plant scarecrows in small groups. The optimal distance between them is 2-4 m;
adjust the landing of decoys in relation to the strength and direction of the wind, as this affects where the ducks land.

These simple rules will increase the likelihood of a successful hunt.

Stuffed animals made of polystyrene foam boards

What will you need for this? Making a stuffed duck out of foam plastic with your own hands is very simple. In this case, you will need inexpensive materials that can be found in almost any hardware store. Making such a dummy will take you several hours.

For a homemade scarecrow you will need the following materials:

a piece of foam plastic, which should have a thickness of at least 2 cm. Thin and fragile material will not work, since it may crumble or not have sufficient buoyant properties;
Super glue. Please note that nitro glue will not work, as it can damage the foam;
acrylic paints;
putty.

It is also important to stock up on tools - painting brushes, a stationery knife, pencil, sandpaper.

Step-by-step instruction:

Stuffed animal made of polyurethane foam (required materials and tools)

Making stuffed ducks from polyurethane foam with your own hands is very simple and anyone can do it. The layout is made using simple and inexpensive materials, but for everything to work out, you need to follow all the recommendations and use your imagination.

Rubber stuffed mallard duck

Homemade duck stuffed animals are created from the following materials:

large shoe box;
gypsum for construction work;
polyurethane foam;
the cheapest fatty cream;
sandpaper;
plasticine;
container for preparing gypsum dough. Please note that after this it will become unsuitable for further use;
copper wire;
acrylic primer and paint;
ready-made stuffed animal made of rubber.

Making a mold from plaster

To make your own duck stuffed animals from polyurethane foam for hunting, you need to use a spacious box made of any materials. If you place a rubber model in it, there should be at least 5 mm of free space on the sides. Then the resulting form will be strong and durable.

Dilute the gypsum in a prepared container to obtain the consistency of thick sour cream.
Place the rubber effigy in the box, and pour plaster into the free space. It's best to do this overnight as the mold needs to dry thoroughly.

Dear visitors, save this article on social networks. We publish very useful articles that will help you in your business. Share! Click!

When the plaster is hard enough, remove the rubber dummy from the box. Check for voids or other defects on the surface of the mold. Only a perfectly even and smooth plaster model is suitable for making duck stuffed animals for hunting with your own hands.
When one half of the mold is ready, put the rubber scarecrow back into it, while greasing its end with rich cream. In this form, install the layout in the box. It should protrude 5 mm beyond the edges of the plaster mold.
Pour plaster into the prepared box. We wait several hours for the material to become hard enough. After this, we take out the mold and, if necessary, eliminate all irregularities with sandpaper, and fill large voids with plasticine.
In the finished form, make several holes with a diameter of 8-10 mm so that you can control the quality of its filling.

Let's start making a stuffed animal from polyurethane foam

Grease the inner surface of the mold with cream. Do not skip any sections as this will prevent you from removing the finished product.
To ensure that the scarecrow holds its shape well and is stable, place copper wire inside the mold, which will act as stiffening ribs.
Connect the two halves of the mold, then fill them through the prepared holes with foam. Please note that this material increases in size during the hardening process. Therefore, fill out the form 80-90%. Also, do not forget to monitor the quality of work through the holes and do not allow voids to form.
When everything is ready, place a heavy weight on top of the form to prevent deformation of the layout.
When the foam hardens, carefully remove the homemade scarecrow from the mold using a wide screwdriver.
Insert a metal ring into the finished layout to fix it in the right place.
Apply acrylic primer to the entire surface, then begin painting. The more natural the stuffed animal looks, the more benefits it will bring you during the hunt.

Plywood stuffed animals

Homemade duck stuffed animals made from plywood are considered the easiest to make. But their main drawback is that they are short-lived, since constant exposure to water leads to their deterioration. When making decoys for hunting, create several profiles that will imitate different poses of the bird.

The most important points in this case are the realistic contour and natural coloring. This is the only way to attract a bird.

To make plywood profiles you will need the following materials:

cardboard;
a simple pencil;
plywood sheet;
fine-toothed hacksaw;
sandpaper;
drying oil;
tassels;
metal wire;
wooden peg;
gasoline or kerosene;
oil paints.

Step-by-step instructions for making a stuffed animal from plywood

Draw the required number of profiles of different shapes on cardboard, then cut them out. Use ready-made elements as templates.
Place the prepared templates on a sheet of plywood as tightly as possible. Cut the profile using a narrow, fine-toothed hacksaw. If you don't have one, use a chisel.
Carefully sand the edges of the parts using sandpaper.
Apply hot drying oil to the surface and let it dry.
Paint them as realistically as possible using oil paints. Apply it to all profiles at the same time so that they look the same.
To prevent the paint from shining, after it has dried, apply a little gasoline or kerosene to the surface with a dry cloth.
Attach a wooden peg 20-22 cm long and 2 cm thick to the profile or a short metal tube into which insert a sharp stick. They can also be made removable, making it easier to transport stuffed animals. Be sure to paint them the same color as the profiles.
To make the profile stable, drill a hole in it and in the peg, then connect them with a wire pin. Make a corresponding cutout on the stuffed animal's belly.

Making a stuffed duck for hunting yourself is not as difficult as it seems. Therefore, devote a few hours of your time to such an exciting activity. Each of the options will be effective if you follow all the recommendations when making bird models.

And a little about secrets...

Have you ever experienced unbearable joint pain? And you know firsthand what it is:

inability to move easily and comfortably;
discomfort when going up and down stairs;
unpleasant crunching, clicking not of your own accord;
pain during or after exercise;
inflammation in the joints and swelling;
causeless and sometimes unbearable aching pain in the joints...

Now answer the question: are you satisfied with this? Can such pain be tolerated? How much money have you already wasted on ineffective treatment? That's right - it's time to end this! Do you agree? That is why we decided to publish an exclusive interview with Professor Dikul, in which he revealed the secrets of getting rid of joint pain, arthritis and arthrosis.

Video: Imitation of a flock of ducks on the water

This spring we decided to hunt in the northern regions of TO; we don’t have a single stuffed black duck of our own, and the local ones are very old, wooden and heavy (access to the place by boat and weight matters). Having estimated the price in the store and the required quantity, we decided to try to make them ourselves (especially since we had little experience)...

First, we purchased a pair of red-headed pochards for a sample (as they say, these stuffed animals are universal and all northern ducks sit in them), but after consulting we decided that we would get tired of painting, the pattern and color were too complex. Traded for a couple of Tufted Ducks.

The main material used is Penoplex sheets with a thickness of 5 and 3 centimeters (5 for a duck, 5+3 for a drake). On a thick sheet of paper, we outline the standard stuffed animal’s head in the middle (it’s better to make a cardboard template in advance).

We cut out the head not along the contour, but in a common piece.

Then we glue a thin sheet of polystyrene foam onto the resulting base (we used titanium glue for the ceiling tiles). Next, use a knife to roughly cut out the stuffed animal in the image and likeness of the factory one (the head separately)

We finish it with coarse sandpaper, it selects the insulation very well, so you don’t have to be very zealous with a knife. After coarse sanding, we process it with fine sandpaper for painting.

To fasten the head, we take long self-tapping screws (it is necessary that there is a bracket without threads under the head). We cut off the caps and lightly process the cut area.

We select a plastic plug so that the self-tapping screw fits tightly into it with its upper end. We attach a wire loop to the bottom of the cork (we used paper clips).

We screw the self-tapping screw into the head just enough so that the rest fits into the plug, then unscrew it, lubricate it with glue and back again.

When it dries, we place the head on the body, push through the hole and remove it. And insert a plug coated with glue into the remaining hole, with the loop coming out from the bottom of the stuffed animal.

All that remains is to paint it (we used façade paint and colors) and equip it with weights.

So the three of us produced 14 drakes and 30 tufted ducks, spending 3 evenings and about 1,500 rubles.

Last fall, a stuffed quack made in a similar way passed the test of a “woe hunter,” who mistook it for a bird from 30 meters and shot at it twice. At the same time, the stuffed animal’s head was only removed, and numerous “wounds” immediately healed and are almost invisible (a foam plastic one would not have survived this).

Walking through hunting stores, I noticed the stuffed animals they sold. Immediately I was overcome by the desire to try to use these stuffed animals on a hunt, to check their effectiveness, but I no longer had the financial resource in my wallet that would allow me to purchase them, since the price of the stuffed animals was not the cheapest. My desire did not fade away, and I was confused by the idea of making a stuffed duck at home.

First of all, I took construction plaster, which you can buy at any hardware store. In addition to it, you will need to purchase a fatty cream, a container for diluting the plaster itself, a shoe box, a copper cable, mounting foam, and one rubber dummy for the model .Manufactured stuffed animals are not afraid of shot, unlike rubber ones.

First, you need to carry out the operation of making one half of the casting from plaster. Take a rubber stuffed animal and try it on the box. The distance between the walls and the stuffed animal itself should be a little more than 5 mm, but not less. Place the stuffed animal on its side.

The next stage of production is to prepare gypsum, which should be in the form of thick sour cream. Place the rubber stuffed duck in the box and start pouring from the sides to the middle. Please note that about 5 mm of gypsum is needed under the stuffed duck, so watch carefully the whole process. Now wait until the plaster hardens.

If the plaster has already hardened, then very carefully remove the stuffed animal and pay attention to the presence of voids. Everything was just perfect for me, there were no surprises or defects.

After everything has hardened, separate the two forms in half.

Possible defects in the form of bubbles or voids can be easily repaired with plasticine.

Then make the casting channels that are necessary to fill and control the foam. It is best to do them in the beak, on the back and in the abdomen. This can be done using a regular hacksaw with a slot diameter of about 7-10 mm.

So we come to the most important thing. The entire mold needs to be greased with cream and reinforcement should be laid from copper cable in the direction from beak to tail.

The next step is to fill the two connected halves of the mold with polyurethane foam. Control the required amount through the casting holes and do not forget that the foam expands several times. Place a jar with 3 liters of water on the mold and leave for about three hours.

Use a screwdriver to release the mold. The most fragile place in the stuffed animal is the beak, so watch it carefully while removing it. All unnecessary protrusions can be trimmed off.

You need to make a fastening ring from a copper cable to which the stuffed animal will be tied.

The stuffed animal must be thoroughly washed of the cream, otherwise the paint will not adhere very well. Apply an acrylic primer first. I recommend using matte acrylic paint. This way the stuffed animal will not give glare during the hunt.

You can find out what painting scheme to use in any hunting literature. Great accuracy in rendering colors is not required, so you should convey only the basic range of colors.

The process of making stuffed animals is simple, so almost every hunter can make stuffed ducks, and a trophy obtained using hand-made stuffed animals brings a lot of positivity and pleasure.