The post with the decoy weight earlier today got me wondering if anyone on here is a Victor trap company duck decoy collector or connoisseur? I have a couple dozen several have those oval weights similar to the one posted earlier. Do they have any or much value. They are all mallards some D9 and possibly another size.

I have one. I was given it with a load of herters foamers.
I'll see if I can get a picture shortly.
My research tells me there is not much value to them but they are a nice decoy.

Here you go...

Good looking duck. The ones I have definitely had seen some use. Thanks for sharing

I've got a few wooden decoy

Good post Until right now I did not know that Victor ever made duck decoys, When The Victor "Animal Trap Co.was located in Lititz it was within about 50 miles from my house . I have a few decoys I have collected over the years .Some where the hand carved wooden decoys used by hunters that hunted the lower part of the Susquehanna River in the 1940's and 50's . The one pictured by Slydog looks like it is in very nice condition.

I have a couple. A hen mallard and a black duck

It is in excellent condition. Especially considering that it probably saw 15 or 20 seasons as part of a diver rig on Lake St Clair.... I think we all know how prone diver rigs are to being shot LOL. I've sacrificed my share of carrylite magnum bluebill decoys just to shoot a goldeneye or bufflehead LOL.

Slydogs-

That decoy is in nice shape. The Victor plastics have been going up and down in value much like all antique decoys. Some of the fairly scarce models have value, but only if they are in great shape. Most of them I have seen are pretty worn and not worth much at all. I picked up a couple really nice drake Ringnecks and have one of them in my collection.

I have a 5 decoy "rig" of wooden Victors held in an old wooden orange crate painted with duck boat paint. It came from an old guy who used to carry them in to hunt on the Mississippi.

If somebody could repost the "oval decoy weight" thread I would appreciate it. I have been collecting decoy weights and would like to see what folks are talking about.

Thanks!

Moosetrot

I’ve got several. Picked up in a pile of decoys at an auction

Foam Herter's can take those low diver over the decoys shots...a little exopy fill on the heads, and a swipe of black or brown paint and they're good to go!! Their only kryptonite is gas. Lol

Slydogx I worked with a guy and duck hunted with him for a number of years His grandfather and father had maybe a hundred or more hand carver wooden decoys and they would put them on the river and they hunted from a sneak boat . They would set up and wait til ducks landed in the decoys and then run the boat into the decoys flush the ducks and shoot them .I had the chance to hunt with him one time that we used the sneak boat It was a great hunt and we killed a near limit on ducks even though it was a bluebird day Many of their decoys show signs of pellet damage . Of course all that was before the ban on lead shot .My friend would often talk about butter balls ,bluebills and cans that would be prized ducks taken on any hunt during the season. Thanks for posting the pic

oval decoy weight
Here you go Moosetrot. The original thread is linked.

Thanks! With all I have seen, I never ran into one like that! That is really a nice one.

When I was very young my brothers bought a decoy rig from the estate of an old market hunter who died. They were all wood. Those are the decoys I learned to duck hunt over. And yes, I still have some and they are part of a pretty extensive collection.

Along with the decoys was an original Mason Decoy "Weedless Anchor Mold" for casting anchors. I still use it for making anchors. You can cast weights that are up to 12 oz. which work very well holding decoys here on the Mississippi.

I also still have one of the "necker" live decoy harnesses they would use with the live caller ducks they'd take out and place in the other decoys. I also have one of the crates that was used for that.

I don't buy the high end decoys and prefer the ones that have been hunted over. A little wear and tear means they carry some good sgtories.

Moosetrot

I have a good collection of the Victor decoys. Some of the 1st decoys an elderly gentleman passed on to me when I was a kid. I was also at a good decoy auction once. I have both fixed head and swivel head mallard pairs as well as bluebills. I have a quality control mallard as well. It doesnt have the seams ground down, is unpainted, and has several holes drilled in it. I assume to measure the plastic thickness. Used to have a couple original boxes as well. Straw stuffed canvas decoys are my true favorite though, I have a few Canada goose ones and a drake mallard. They are all currently in storage until we get the new house built.

I started collecting ATCO and Victor decoys about a year ago when I started having a hard time completing one of my trap collections and needed something else to chase. Lots of diversity and research collecting them which helps scratch the itch of hunting for traps I still need to add to my collection.