# The owner of G&H Decoys wants our input.



## cheeseandquackers (Jun 20, 2007)

I talked with the owner of G&H Decoys today. Got a flyer from them when i got some dekes last week. Seems he's very interested in Duck hunting in our area. He would like to get all the input he can on his Decoys any suggestions would be great. He wanted to know if we had mostly divers or puddlers. I had to laugh. He seemed like a real stand up guy and his stuff is american made. Im going to be posting this thread in an email im sending him about the waterfowl festivals in our area, Saginaw bay waterfowl festival and Pointe Mouillee waterfowl festival. Hes interested in the Geography and the techniques and what ever else we can let him know to bring us a better product. I know that his decoys are already revered by alot of guys on this site including myself. I know that i bought a set of mallards last year and the paint slightly chipped off. He explained to me that when they changed the heads to molded green heads,(bettering the durability of the product) they didnt get the paint mixture quite right and some chipped off. He promptly told me to remove the heads and send them to him so they can test them and they will send brand new updated heads. So any of you that bought the dekes new after they changed to molded green heads, email him and he'll give you the directive. There has got to be some input we can give this guy to help bring us a better product. Heres the email address. [email protected]


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## Ieatantlers (Oct 7, 2008)

The million dollar idea- make a floater with a depression in the bottom of the keel. Sell them with stakes. A floater/field mallard combo. There are a milllion guys asking how to convert floaters into field decoys, make it easy on them. 

(Patent pending.)


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## Quakstakr (Nov 3, 2009)

I've got a dozen super mag geese that I mix in with the rest of my spread.

Had them for years. They're great. We hide stuff under them. Including our selves when we dig coffin blinds. Would add more if they weren't so costly (hint-hint).

Seriously I leave those at a farm I hunt and all but have to pry them from the landowners fingers every year. :lol:

I just tell him I need to clean them :evil:


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## limige (Sep 2, 2005)

i second multipurpose dekes, field/floater dekes at a reasonable price with molded colors.

stackable floater shells or something with a hole for a stand, i like the stands that don't go in the ground, rocky areas and frozen ground makes stakes a pain.

silos have a following, how about some affordable ones with standing bases. i've gotta believe they can be made and sold way cheaper than the real geese dekes, not nearly the tooling involved.


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## bombcast (Sep 16, 2003)

I love their dekes. They hold paint well, and only after 10-12 years of regular use did they need to be touched up. 

Yeah- full bodies are the key. And a fullbody/floater is a brilliant idea.


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## Shiawassee_Kid (Nov 28, 2000)

i think their decoys are outdated. time to update the molds. sure their paint lasts better than most..give credit there...but their molds are the most unrealistic outside of carry-lite.


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## lastflight (Aug 16, 2005)

Shiawassee_Kid said:


> i think their decoys are outdated. time to update the molds. sure their paint lasts better than most..give credit there...but their molds are the most unrealistic outside of carry-lite.


I agree 100%. Their paint seems to be some of the best on the market. However, the body profiles could use some updating. Greenhead gear decoys are so popular because the body profiles are anatomically correct (but their paint is inferior).


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

Shiawassee_Kid said:


> i think their decoys are outdated. time to update the molds. sure their paint lasts better than most..give credit there...but their molds are the most unrealistic outside of carry-lite.


 And the super mag mallards my buddy bought like 8 years ago have heads that constantly fell off, and we kept losing them. So we finally glued them in place permanently.

Regarding the multi-purpose deke, I suspect the manufacturers want hunters to buy two kinds of dekes (i.e. more profit for them). Heck if you made a one-size fits all decoy, probably a few manufacturers would go under tomorrow :evilsmile


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## Bill Collector Bob (Sep 9, 2007)

lastflight said:


> I agree 100%. Their paint seems to be some of the best on the market. However, the body profiles could use some updating. Greenhead gear decoys are so popular because the body profiles are anatomically correct (but their paint is inferior).


 
How about some field and water non-icing decoys with self reeling anchor lines! :lol::lol:


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## ShootSkybusters (Jan 7, 2005)

With GHG's dekes going like gangbusters a lot of the guys' (that buy tons of decoys like me) spreads are getting saturated...so it may take something 'special' or 'different' to get them to pull the trigger. In the future I see: 

- more body positions for puddlers: agressive stretched neck feeders, preeners, callers, etc

- super magnum mallards/blacks/pintails, also available with the above poses. Can't believe GHG hasn't done this yet.

- anti-glare textured full body geese: more permanent than FFD's, and should be doable from the molding surface, and by adding inorganic fillers to the surface of the plastic prior to painting.

G&H has the paint durability whipped...a lot like Flambeau in the 1980's, but a serious mold overhauling is what they need to stay competitive!


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

ShootSkybusters said:


> With GHG's dekes going like gangbusters a lot of the guys' (that buy tons of decoys like me) spreads are getting saturated...so it may take something 'special' or 'different' to get them to pull the trigger. In the future I see:
> 
> - more body positions for puddlers: agressive stretched neck feeders, preeners, callers, etc
> 
> ...


Sorry for the minor rant guys, but as I stated in some previous posts, I have a fundamental problem with the ever-increasing need for change in gear and technology, when what we have seems to work fine. From calls, to dekes, to camo patterns, yada, yada.

Not disagreeing with what you said...in order for them to stay competitive (i.e. keep making money :evilsmile). But how many more positions are really necessary? I'm old school...my dekes are from 20 years ago, in the standard old single position that was available then. And you know what? I shoot ducks with them. So really what G & H is asking is what would you buy? Not what would help you get more ducks.


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## Shiawassee_Kid (Nov 28, 2000)

i think they are gonna get creamed in the market share department over the next 10 years unless they adapt to the market. They might want to look to update their line as they seem to be comfortable riding the "american made" chuck wagon much like GM did.

most of their popularity is in their longevity (hello arkansas hunter who leaves his decoys out for 100 days straight)...unfortunately thats good and bad as once market is saturated with your long lasting product, theres no way to go except down. You must be creative and try to upgrade your product to keep competitive so the hunter is buying the next best thing. Don't really see that from G&H.


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## TSS Caddis (Mar 15, 2002)

1) Create a realistic goldeneye decoy.
2) Get rid of the pivoting heads on divers. They are a PITA and provide no value to diver hunting.
3) On diver decoys, remove that hook on the front of the keel. The last think someone running long lines want's is one more thing to catch on lines.
4) Give me decoys to field test 


Pro's:
1) They are superior in durability to anything on the market. I gladly pay the price for a decoy that lasts.

Not to knock the competition, but although GHG are more realistic, they don't hold up. I know hunters can be monitarily strapped and have sometimes have to settle for GHG decoys because of funds, but I choose to believe that if G&H came up with more realistic poses, even at the higher price point, they would crush GHG. Unfortunately, if you want GE decoys you are forced into a GHG purchase right now.

We have G&H super mag bills that have seen 240+ days of use that look better than GHG's that have seen the water 10 times.

In today's market where everything is a status symbol and all hunters want the latest/greatest to prove they are the man(Orvis syndrome), if you do not innovate, you will be left behind.


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## SuperBlackEagle2 (Nov 4, 2005)

Shiawassee_Kid said:


> i think they are gonna get creamed in the market share department over the next 10 years unless they adapt to the market. They might want to look to update their line as they seem to be comfortable riding the "american made" chuck wagon much like GM did.
> 
> most of their popularity is in their longevity (hello arkansas hunter who leaves his decoys out for 100 days straight)...unfortunately thats good and bad as once market is saturated with your long lasting product, theres no way to go except down. You must be creative and try to upgrade your product to keep competitive so the hunter is buying the next best thing. Don't really see that from G&H.


I would agree with this. The only reason at all for them to change anything, is to sell more decoys. It's certainly not because something is wrong with their product. What they have now, works. Plain and simple. And they work for a LONG time. Much like those giant Plasti-Duk decoys. (Pretty sure S-Kid has some of those) I pretty much exclusively use G&H. (for puddlers) My decoys have been beaten around pretty bad, and still look like new. (Other than the few that I've destroyed because they got in the way of a good quality waterswat)


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## pikenetter (Mar 28, 2009)

they could offer me a job, after that i can implement some good ideas!


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## limige (Sep 2, 2005)

yes, good point, removable heads are a pita on floaters, i really could do without, offer models with molded heads.

i really like the molded colors bigfoot does, might not be the most realistic but its gonna look pretty much the same 10 yrs from now even after being banged around the boat year after year, ice being knocked off them ect.

i really can't see spending $30 a piece on a field deke if you don't have a trailer to haul them around in with slot bags for each. sure they look awesome from the start but if your like most real people you toss them into a sled, or handcart or something to haul into your fields. most farmers don't want people driving in their fields, GMUs won't allow it. 
i want best realism and durability at a fair cost. i want to spend the money and use them for 10-15 yrs without having to worrry about paint changing color or falling off, watch for thin spots in the plastic, brittleniss in the cold ect. a decoy that last is the one i'll spend more money on. and oversized dekes are great i wouldn't even offer a standard.. you want visability.


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## waxico (Jan 21, 2008)

Hi Everybody! 
I hope all of you got your kill on. 
My friends did not do well, 1 0fer'ed a field, 1 0'fer'ed in the city, another got 17 sat(inc. 8 Ruddies) near Metro.

I like G&H Magnums the best, the standards seem too small.
Great puddle duck decoys

I would like to see Supermags with better head shapes. They could keep the swivel head bodies and update the head shape molds.
The 'bills look especially ridiculous, although by the time a duck could see this, they would be in the next world.
And why the bag busting sprig tails on the Pintails? It would save me hack sawing and filling the hole when I cut them off.

Great products, durability is key in Waxico's world...


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

Open an oulet store @ Birch Run!


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## anon2192012 (Jul 27, 2008)

I bought 3 dozen G&H mallard shells this fall and the paint is chipping off on the breast and tail already. I am not hard on equipment and because of this I may lean away from G&H in the future.


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## cheeseandquackers (Jun 20, 2007)

Huntermax-4 said:


> I bought 3 dozen G&H mallard shells this fall and the paint is chipping off on the breast and tail already. I am not hard on equipment and because of this I may lean away from G&H in the future.


Email them and explain exactly what you just said, they may have some good info for you. THey are looking for feedback just like that.


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