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SO my buddy and I are start to build a duck boat and we're to the point of painting. the boat is a green fiber glass now but we're thinking a brown base coat then covering that off with an olive green. My main question is what have you guys used for stencils or things along the lines of that. We hunt in cattails mainly. So reeds are going to be what we want in our design? anyone have any pics or stencils they could share? or advice? Not sure how I feel about just using reel reeds to pant the outline of. Want it to look nice.

Oh also, off topic, but should we use 1/2 or 3/4 EMT conduit for the blind?

Thanks, Matt

Cardboard cut out stencils. I've never used them on a boat, but that how we do our deer blinds.

And use 3/4. Half is too flimsy unless your building a really little blind.

Woody has a thread going for his tender boat about paint where you will probably find answers to most of your paint questions. Also I have a thread with some pics of my blind on here as well, its all 3/4" emt. Pretty simple in design but works very well for me.

thierracing wrote:SO my buddy and I are start to build a duck boat and we're to the point of painting. the boat is a green fiber glass now but we're thinking a brown base coat then covering that off with an olive green. My main question is what have you guys used for stencils or things along the lines of that. We hunt in cattails mainly. So reeds are going to be what we want in our design? anyone have any pics or stencils they could share? or advice? Not sure how I feel about just using reel reeds to pant the outline of. Want it to look nice.

Oh also, off topic, but should we use 1/2 or 3/4 EMT conduit for the blind?

Thanks, Matt

Don't use brown for a base coat, use tan. Then grab handfuls of whatever, I used hacks of baling twine, twigs from a maple tree, some crepe myrtle branches, and I think some old dead cattails. Then lightly overspray them with the greens and browns. LIGHTLY. And mix it up some. Then you're pretty much done. You can slap some handpainted reeds on if you want, but it's probably not necessary. But use tan for the base coat, and leave plenty of it showing. Please. Otherwise, it will be a big dark blob from more than 20 feet away.

I used 1/2" conduit to build my pop up boat blind and it worked well.

Welcome to the forum. Where do you duck hunt?

assateague wrote:

thierracing wrote:SO my buddy and I are start to build a duck boat and we're to the point of painting. the boat is a green fiber glass now but we're thinking a brown base coat then covering that off with an olive green. My main question is what have you guys used for stencils or things along the lines of that. We hunt in cattails mainly. So reeds are going to be what we want in our design? anyone have any pics or stencils they could share? or advice? Not sure how I feel about just using reel reeds to pant the outline of. Want it to look nice.

Oh also, off topic, but should we use 1/2 or 3/4 EMT conduit for the blind?

Thanks, Matt

Don't use brown for a base coat, use tan. Then grab handfuls of whatever, I used hacks of baling twine, twigs from a maple tree, some crepe myrtle branches, and I think some old dead cattails. Then lightly overspray them with the greens and browns. LIGHTLY. And mix it up some. Then you're pretty much done. You can slap some handpainted reeds on if you want, but it's probably not necessary. But use tan for the base coat, and leave plenty of it showing. Please. Otherwise, it will be a big dark blob from more than 20 feet away.

hybrid test 6.jpg

hybrid test 4.jpg

Thanks for the info! The boat is green now, should we just paint the tan right over top of the green fiberglass or will we have to do other base coats before the tan to get the right color?

NuffDaddy wrote:Cardboard cut out stencils. I've never used them on a boat, but that how we do our deer blinds.

And use 3/4. Half is too flimsy unless your building a really little blind.

Thanks ours is a 16' boat so we will use the 3/4

thierracing wrote:

assateague wrote:

thierracing wrote:SO my buddy and I are start to build a duck boat and we're to the point of painting. the boat is a green fiber glass now but we're thinking a brown base coat then covering that off with an olive green. My main question is what have you guys used for stencils or things along the lines of that. We hunt in cattails mainly. So reeds are going to be what we want in our design? anyone have any pics or stencils they could share? or advice? Not sure how I feel about just using reel reeds to pant the outline of. Want it to look nice.

Oh also, off topic, but should we use 1/2 or 3/4 EMT conduit for the blind?

Thanks, Matt

Don't use brown for a base coat, use tan. Then grab handfuls of whatever, I used hacks of baling twine, twigs from a maple tree, some crepe myrtle branches, and I think some old dead cattails. Then lightly overspray them with the greens and browns. LIGHTLY. And mix it up some. Then you're pretty much done. You can slap some handpainted reeds on if you want, but it's probably not necessary. But use tan for the base coat, and leave plenty of it showing. Please. Otherwise, it will be a big dark blob from more than 20 feet away.

hybrid test 6.jpg

hybrid test 4.jpg

Thanks for the info! The boat is green now, should we just paint the tan right over top of the green fiberglass or will we have to do other base coats before the tan to get the right color?

Do the tan as the base. You have to work backwards kinda because you will use sticks/grass/reeds to cover it to spray the other colors, so what color is on the bottom once done will be your "top" color
(as long as you start light, then mist over it with greens and browns)

This is my boat. I used cardboard stencils I made in my own to paint it.

What about painting an olive green for a base then going over with reed cut out stencils for the tan to spray the reeds on top? Will that work? that was our original plan, but curious as to what you guys would do. I just want to do what works best.

thierracing wrote:What about painting an olive green for a base then going over with reed cut out stencils for the tan to spray the reeds on top? Will that work? that was our original plan, but curious as to what you guys would do. I just want to do what works best.

It would be pretty dark looking. Best IMO is tan base. Dark brushy camo. Then tan reeds over the top.

Yes, that's how I've done camo paint in the past(never on anything as big as a boat). You also don't even need stencils, you can just use reeds, leaves, sticks, whatever and use that as a natural stencil.

In my opinion, stencils make a pattern which is too dense. I've never liked the stencil thing. Looks good on the trailer, but when backed into the reeds, looks like a big dark blob. I used tan as a base, and only covered it lightly and sparingly. By all means, do whatever you want and what you think looks good. This is just my opinion.

AT and Nuff are on track.

On this one, I grabbed some weeds and sprayed krylon at will.

Tomkat wrote:AT and Nuff are on track.

On this one, I grabbed some weeds and sprayed krylon at will.

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1397075453.976616.jpg

That kinda shadow camo from over spraying brush is my favorite type of camo.

By doing that you are essentially painting the foreground as the base coat then spraying on the background. But it leaves dark and light spots.

And works like a motherfuckin' champ.

The detail is really cool. The trick is to use random coats and patterns. I use tall grass, tree branches ect. What ever is handy.

This is what it looks like with a dark base and trying to go light over top, and then tying to get your pattern on top of it:



The boat was already black, so I didn't bother trying to paint the base tan, but you can see how dark it turns out.

so I should paint the boat tan and then just use my greens and browns to blow over my reeds to make my camo? Sounds pretty easy. Just want a good ending product. Thanks for all the input guys!!

Yes, that's what I'd recommend. And be careful with overspraying the reeds and such- you want it to stay open and irregular, and it's easy to get carried away, and end up cluttering it up too much. Less is more when it comes to this.

assateague wrote:In my opinion, stencils make a pattern which is too dense. I've never liked the stencil thing. Looks good on the trailer, but when backed into the reeds, looks like a big dark blob. I used tan as a base, and only covered it lightly and sparingly. By all means, do whatever you want and what you think looks good. This is just my opinion.

AT has a ton of experience and he figures stuff out the hard way. Trial and error.
Me too.

Painted my boat with dark brown and then made stripes with a spray can in light colors. Its quick, easy, and cheap. Touch-up is easy too. Carry cans of flat camo paint in the boat because it wears off on the top edges from climbing in and out. I touch up once or twice a season.

If you want to impress people do it the hard way with stencils. If you just want to kill ducks...flat paint will do. Have killed hundreds of ducks out of an olive green boat. Mine still says on the title it's OD.
The bottom is OD.

My blind is old school camo and don't match the boat. (Gasp)

Here's what the side looks like. MUD.
[attachment=-1]uploadfromtaptalk1397569906489.jpg[/attachment]

this is what my tub looks like with pop off .if your putting blind on I think it will be more important than boatpaint if blind hangs over sides of boat some paint at water line is what you see,pant on the inside so you don't get busted by fly overs

Always do your lightest colors first if a dark scale is what you want and dark colors first if you want a light scale. Camo 101.

Went to the dark side of the force. Timber hunters are like Darth Vader.

Olly wrote:Always do your lightest colors first if a dark scale is what you want and dark colors first if you want a light scale. Camo 101.

Opposite of what I've found.

NuffDaddy wrote:

Olly wrote:Always do your lightest colors first if a dark scale is what you want and dark colors first if you want a light scale. Camo 101.

Opposite of what I've found.

I have no idea what he's trying to say there

aunt betty wrote:Went to the dark side of the force. Timber hunters are like Darth Vader.

What do you know about Darth Vapor?