Silhouette stakes

[Garrett Trentham]

First post over here... didn't know where else to put it.

I have a sheet of super thin plywood that I was going to make scoter sleds out of, but that went down the drain (way beyond my engineering abilities), and I now would like to make some silhouette decoys to use in shallow water and on the shore. The problem is, I don't know what to use for a stake. I want them to be as light weight as possible because they will have to be hiked in a good ways on some occasions, but they also need to be durable and will be used in salt/brackish water environments. I know this is a thoughy, but if anyone has done it, please fill me in on how.

P.S. I've enjoyed lurking around the site for the past month or so. This site weems to be much more oriented towards my style of decoy making.


Thanks,

[Scott Klecka]

Glad to have you here Garrett.  I have not made any silhouettes but my first thought was the fiberglass poles they made for bike flags.  I think you can find something like them at Lowes or HD. 

[Garrett Trentham]

great idea, what would be the best way to attach them to the decoy?

thanks

[Scott Klecka]

if you don't mind them turning in the wind a little, you could attach a piece of PVC to the side of the Silhouette.  Or you could just attach a piece of 2X2 to the side and drill a hole to fit the stake.

[Garrett Trentham]

Thanks for the tips Scott! Here's where I am...

Started the silhouettes today. Chose to do a couple of widgeon to start of with. I will use these in shallow water impoundments and on the shore. To attach the stake I took some scrap treated wood that was in a triangular shape and drilled out a hole for a stake. I then squeezed some gorilla glue on it and nailed it to the side of the decoy. That was much more of a production than I thought it would be. I had to do it a couple of times to get it right on the first one. Their first coat of spar varnish is drying right now.

Here’s the patterns



Here’s the cutouts.



This shows the stake attachment a little better.





It’s kind of a learning experience for me. Once I get them done, I’ll post a tutorial for others to see, use and help refine the process even more.

Enjoy!

[Scott Klecka]

Glad I could help.  A tutorial would be great.   

[Garrett Trentham]

Got them both painted up last night. I think they turned out pretty good!

[Scott Klecka]

Very cool.  tutorial?   

You must paint some other flat work because you shading really adds some depth to them.

[DANK]

Cheap wally world carbon fiber arrows work well for stakes.