# mallard machine?



## bander_TC50 (Jul 29, 2014)

any thoughts on these things? thinking of making my own (I happen to have an old trolling motor laying around) and was wondering if any of you guys on here had used one or seen one used. im gonna try and make it regardless just wondering if anyone on here was familiar with how well they work or dont work.


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## GSURugger (Jul 29, 2014)

The hardwire/trolling battery can be aggravating.
We have 'em in Arkansas; They are excellent if everything starts to lock up and will keep just enough of a hole open.
Seem to draw birds fairly well.


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## godevilducker (Jul 29, 2014)

I have one that I made its set on a pole so I can slide it up and down lock in place with a pin to the right depth. I love mine. If you build your own make sure you seal everything really well then seal some more. Burnt the first one I built up. I used heat shrink used on power lines this last time to cover all my silicone. Haven't had any problems. A buddy I hunt with has a actual mallard machine. 3 major disadvantages I've seen using his....got to use bigger decoys to float the machine for it to really boil the water, slot of vegetation will clog it up so he now uses a metal basket over it, lately it doesn't seem to work as good in super shallow water like less than 2 ft. I don't how to post pics on here pm me I'll send you pics of mine if you are kinda wanting a starting point


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## bander_TC50 (Jul 29, 2014)

here are some pictures of what i have so far






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i heated up a pvc floor flange and pressed it down on the motor. when the pvc cooled it shrank down a bit and held onto the motor quite well.

i cut off the fins of the motor housing using a band saw and sanded them down smooth with a 4" angle grinder and a 60 grit sanding disk.






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you cant tell it in this photo but i sanded out the inside of a floor flange spacer so it would fit snuggly onto the floor flange but i still can remove it if necessary. i drilled holes in the floor flange spacer and bolted some small aluminum channel i got at lowes. will more than likely replace the channel with something more substantial before i'm done.

i don't have a picture but i used epoxy putty in the hole left by the trolling motor shaft and pressed it down past the lip of the threaded hole about 1/2" to use as a backer for the sealant. i had a tube of concrete sealant left over in the garage and used it (it said on the tube that it seals various items one of them being aluminum. go figure) ill take some more pictures when i have it wired up so you can see it before i paint it up. 

i also think it is going to be too heavy for regular decoys so i thought i might slide some pool noodles over the arms to help float the unit some assuming spray paint doesn't melt pool noodles. no self respecting duck is gonna land in a spread with purple and yellow pool noodle pieces floating just below the surface.......


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## The Flying Duckman (Jul 29, 2014)

I made one, it is heavy.  I use 4 large decoys on it, with a hot foot control and I can make them dance very nicely, stirring up a lot of water or I can just stand on it and make the water boil with their tails up in the air.  Going to make some mods to mine though, right now I need at least 4 ft of water for mine to function properly.


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## MudDucker (Jul 30, 2014)

No self respecting duck hunter should be without one of these.  They work very well to break up any ice that accumulates in the bottom of the boat.  Every time you drop it on the ice, the ice will break up. That is all.


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## bander_TC50 (Jul 30, 2014)

MudDucker said:


> No self respecting duck hunter should be without one of these.  They work very well to break up any ice that accumulates in the bottom of the boat.  Every time you drop it on the ice, the ice will break up. That is all.



well there you go, a new use for it that i never thought of.

i knew if i put it out there i would find constructive advice such as this.


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## godevilducker (Jul 30, 2014)

Bander could you use pipe insulation instead of pool noodles? Insulation is already black so no real need to paint


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## bander_TC50 (Jul 30, 2014)

hadn't thought of that, if pipe insulation is closed cell foam i dont see why not.


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## king killer delete (Jul 30, 2014)

Salt water dont freeze as fast as fresh


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## hollandae (Aug 1, 2014)

I made one myself out of an old trolling motor. I used 3/4" pvc for the arms. I cut 3/4" pvc t's to fit flush with the sides of the motor. The t's are held in place with two big hose clamps. One on the top and bottom sides of the t's. Using the pvc allows you to take it apart and put in a duffle bag. I suspend the whole rig below three oversized mallard decoys. I used and outdoor  80' drop cord. I cut one end off and hardwired it to the motor and sealed it up. The other end I cut off and attached my power source.  I made  a handle with some of the left over pvc. I put a cap on one end of the handle and installed a toggle switch in the cap. The cord from the rig runs up through the bottom of the handle to the toggle, back down and out the bottom to the battery. I use a 12v motor cycle/atv battery to power the rig, which weighs maybe 5lbs and will last all morning hunting. It works dang good, turned out real nice on the first try. The whole set up can be put in a duffle bag. And is light enough to carry into walk in areas.


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## rnelson5 (Aug 2, 2014)

I am very suprised that you are getting that kind of life out of a motorcycle battery. A motorcycle battery or car battery for that matter are made for short hard burst of power drawing (like when cranking a car) A deep cycle or even a Sealed Lead Acid battery would no doubt be a much better choice. They are made for that steady drain of energy and will take more discharge punishment than a cranking battery. Also a trolling motor is pulling a lot of amps to be supported by that small of a battery. It may work but the overall life will be severely shortened.


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## hollandae (Aug 7, 2014)

rnelson5 said:


> I am very suprised that you are getting that kind of life out of a motorcycle battery. A motorcycle battery or car battery for that matter are made for short hard burst of power drawing (like when cranking a car) A deep cycle or even a Sealed Lead Acid battery would no doubt be a much better choice. They are made for that steady drain of energy and will take more discharge punishment than a cranking battery. Also a trolling motor is pulling a lot of amps to be supported by that small of a battery. It may work but the overall life will be severely shortened.



My intention was for the lightest option. You'd be surprised how it lasts though. Plus you're not running it solid for hours. If you have birds in site  you just flip it on an off to churn up the water/make the decoys move.


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## hollandae (Aug 8, 2014)

I need to correct myself on the construction. I epoxied the t's to the motor. It's been a while since I used this thing, and I thought it was still on my "to do" list. Initially I did have them held in place with the hose clamps. The epoxy I used is from ACE Hardware. It's and ace branded product. It's called "marine epoxy." It's a two part epoxy that comes in a side by side syringe. It's good stuff. Total weight bagged up is 26.5 lbs.


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