Duck boat blind build
- Thread starter Huntndogs
- Start date
First you need to decide how long the blind will be and how tall the blind will be. (Height will be limited to the length of the grass you purchase) I bought "Fastgrass" and it is about four feet tall. The material for the blind frame is 1" conduit and 1/2" PVC. You will also need a short section of 3/4" conduit to connect the frame sections. To bend the conduit, I bought a bender an the local home improvement store, used it on a piece of scrap carpetr so it did'nt get scratched and returned it to the store the same day...I know what your thinking, Cheap Bastage!
Once you have decided on length and height, you can bend the tubes. Depending on the height of your front/rear decks, you may have to make them un-equal lengths to have the blind somewhat level in the water. The corners are made with the 1" conduit and attached to the long straight 1"conduit by inserting a length of 3/4" conduit inside and through bolting them together. I used stainless bolts throught the build. It will look something like this.
Once you have decided on length and height, you can bend the tubes. Depending on the height of your front/rear decks, you may have to make them un-equal lengths to have the blind somewhat level in the water. The corners are made with the 1" conduit and attached to the long straight 1"conduit by inserting a length of 3/4" conduit inside and through bolting them together. I used stainless bolts throught the build. It will look something like this.
Attachments
I suppose you could use one long piece of conduit to make the hoop, but I felt this way I did not have to be exact on the location of the bends because I could cut the bent tubes or the center sections shorter if needed. Your finished hoops will look something like this.
Attachments
The channel is mounted to the deck either by through bolting if you can get to the underside of the deck or with sheet metal screws. Again, all stainless fasteners here, especially when going into aluminum. This channel will support the ends of your hoops like this. *note: I placed a bolt with "jam" nuts (see pic) in between the channells to give it strength and make them more rigid since there will be a fair amount of stress here.
Attachments
At this point, you will want to paint your hoops and channels the color of your choice.
With the hoops mounted on the boat, now you can attach the PVC sections onto the inside edge of the gunnels. I used stainless sheet metal screws. These plastic pipes will hold the bottom of the plastic garden netting that you attach the grass to. The other end of the netting will be attached to the top of the hoops with zip ties. Before you screw the pvc down, weave it through the bottom edge of the netting. (I bought the 1" square plastic netting at Lowe's, It comes in a 25' roll and was 4' wide.) You may also add zip ties around the pvc and netting for more strength. *note: The pvc should extend the length of your boat.
With the hoops mounted on the boat, now you can attach the PVC sections onto the inside edge of the gunnels. I used stainless sheet metal screws. These plastic pipes will hold the bottom of the plastic garden netting that you attach the grass to. The other end of the netting will be attached to the top of the hoops with zip ties. Before you screw the pvc down, weave it through the bottom edge of the netting. (I bought the 1" square plastic netting at Lowe's, It comes in a 25' roll and was 4' wide.) You may also add zip ties around the pvc and netting for more strength. *note: The pvc should extend the length of your boat.
Attachments
In order for the blind to stay in the "UP" position, you will need to attach sections of rope to the pvc below up to the straight sections of the hoops and then reaching to the middle of the boat. There will be four of these, two on each side fron and back. They attach over the middle of the boat using a metal ring and snap hook. It should look like this. *note: Leave a little extra on the hook and ring ends, as this will provide you with a way to adjust how much space there is in the blind opening. Some of us need a wider opening.
Attachments
When your happy with the above steps, you can attach your grass. I hung my "Fastgrass" with the blades hanging downward and overlapped each section a few inches. It is attached to the netting with zip ties every foot or so. You dont need to go overboard here. On the top hoops, I wrapped the grass mats over the hoops. This causes the grass blades to stand up a little, making the top edges of the blind appear more natural.
Attachments
I hope someone finds this post useful. If you have any other questions PM or E-mail and I'll see what I can do. Sorry I could not figure out how to insert pics in a single post....Maybe the MOD can fix that and consolidate.
Happy Hunting
Happy Hunting
Awesome post Mike. It is fine the way you have it stepped out by post. Thanks for taking the time! I am sure many a waterfowl have been very surprised to see you and Rona's head pop out of that well constructed blind!
