2010 Tentative Program Schedule

The February meeting was called to or-

der by President Steve Stortz and a motion

was made and passed to accept the min-

utes of the January meeting. 19 members

in attendance. New visitors: Curt Busta,

Brian Moffett.

Treasurer’s Report: Balance of

$XXXX Pointed out that we need name

tags for new members.

Librarian’s Report: Please return what

you aren’t using.

Secretary/Editor: Handed out a

MDWCC 2011 membership list to collect

phone numbers so that members could

reach one another. Will continue at March

meeting.

Old Business– Minnesota Decoy Collec-

tors Show - MDWCC will have one table

at the cost of $75.00. Friday, Feb. 4th, the

table will be manned by Tom Flemming

and Donn Mattsson. Frank Beery and

Rich Bistodeau will be there on Saturday.

On Saturday the decoy carving contest

will be judged. The Canvasback is the

species this year.

Program: Steve Stortz will show us how

he makes turkey calls that are designed in

the form of turtle and/or tortoise. He will

also be the speaker at the March meeting

and finish his two-part program with a

painting display.

Steve Froelich has taken a new job in

Syracuse, New York. He has been a valu-

able addition to the MDWCC in the

few short years he spent with us.

We all benifited from his enthusias-

tic efforts to bring

interesting and informative programs

to our meetings each month. We all

wish him the best of luck. I’m sure

we will be hearing from him in the

future. Thanks Steve.

New Business: Game Fair 2011

Tom Flemming reported that we will

participate once again. Members are

encouraged to take part in this an-

nual August sporting show.

Craftsman Jig Saw - For Sale

$250.00. Contact Steve Stortz at

763.360.8123.

MDWCC Officers

2011

President

Steve Stortz 763.360.8123

Vice President

Frank Beery 612.724.4188

Treasurer/Membership

Bruce Bauer 952.471.9084

Secretary/Editor

Donn Mattsson 952.935.6910

Librarian

Todd Moucha 952.233.4038

Program Chairs

Tom Flemming 952.446.8226

Steve Froelich 612.859.8836

MDWCC website:

www.mdwcc-carving-

club.com

December Meeting Minutes

Next Meeting: 7:00 PM

March 1st

Program: Turkey Calls

Painting

Steve Stortz

Hope Lutheran Church

5728 Cedar Ave. So.

Mpls., MN

March 2011

Monthly Newsletter

Minnesota Decoy & Wildfowl Carving Club Volume 4, Issue 3

2010 Tentative Program Schedule

Show & Tell

February Show & Tell

Frank Beery-

L. Scaup drake, legs and feet carved in wood, tupelo, acrylics. Base made from ancient Kauri pine wood.

Dennis Finden

Canvasback– cork body. Ward 36 Canvasback style– unfinished.

Jupe Houman–

‘Restored’ Evans Decoy Co. mini Hooded Merganser

Rich Bistodeau

Canvasback drake working decoy, white cedar, hollowed, acrylics.

Donn Mattsson

Cinnamon Teal drake– smoothie, tupelo, acrylics Canvasback drake working decoy– white cedar, hollowed, acrylics

Page 2 Volume 4, Issue 3

2010 Tentative Program Schedule

Page 3 Volume 4, Issue 3

2010 Tentative Program Schedule

Volume 3 , Issue 8 Page 4

2010 Tentative Program Schedule

The February meeting was called to or-

der by President Steve Stortz and a motion

was made and passed to accept the min-

utes of the January meeting. 19 members

in attendance. New visitors: Curt Busta,

Brian Moffett.

Treasurer’s Report: Balance of

$5095.60. Pointed out that we need name

tags for new members.

Librarian’s Report: Please return what

you aren’t using.

Secretary/Editor: Donn handed out a

MDWCC 2011 membership list to collect

phone numbers so that members could

talk to one another. Will continue at

March meeting.

Old Business– Minnesota Decoy Collec-

tors Show - MDWCC will have one table

at the cost of $75.00. Friday, Feb. 4th,

the table will be manned by Tom Flem-

ming and Donn Mattsson. Frank Beery

and Rich Bistodeau will be there on Satur-

day. On Saturday the decoy carving con-

test will be judged. The Canvasback is the

species this year.

Program: Steve Stortz will show us how

he makes turkey calls that are designed in

the form of a turtle and/or tortoise. He will

also be the speaker at the March meeting

and finish his two-part program with a

painting display.

Steve Froelich has taken a new job in

Syracuse, New York. He has been a valu-

able addition to the MDWCC in the

few short years he spent with us.

We all benefited from his enthusias-

tic efforts to bring interesting and

informative programs to our meet-

ings each month. We all wish him

the best of luck. I’m sure we will be

hearing from him in the future.

Keep in touch. Thanks, Steve.

New Business: Game Fair 2011

Tom Flemming reported that we will

participate once again. Members are

encouraged to take part in this an-

nual August sporting show.

Craftsman Jig Saw - For Sale

$250.00. Contact Steve Stortz at

763.360.8123.

So much to do and oh

so little time !

MDWCC Officers

2011

President

Steve Stortz 763.360.8123

Vice President

Frank Beery 612.724.4188

Treasurer/Membership

Bruce Bauer 952.471.9084

Secretary/Editor

Donn Mattsson 952.935.6910

Librarian

Todd Moucha 952.233.4038

Program Chairs

Tom Flemming 952.446.8226

Steve Froelich 612.859.8836

MDWCC website:

www.mdwcc-carving-

club.com

February Meeting Minutes

Next Meeting: 7:00 PM

March 1st

Program: Turkey Calls

Painting

Steve Stortz

Hope Lutheran Church

5728 Cedar Ave. So.

Mpls., MN

March 2011

Monthly Newsletter

Minnesota Decoy & Wildfowl Carving Club Volume 4, Issue 3

2010 Tentative Program Schedule

Show & Tell

February Show & Tell

Frank Beery-

L. Scaup drake, legs and feet carved in wood, tupelo, acrylics. Base made from ancient Kauri pine wood.

Dennis Finden

Canvasback– cork body. Ward 36 Canvasback style– unfinished.

Jupe Houman–

‘Restored’ Evans Decoy Co. mini Hooded Merganser

Rich Bistodeau

Canvasback drake working decoy-white cedar, hollowed, acrylics.

Donn Mattsson

Cinnamon Teal drake– smoothie, tupelo, acrylics Canvasback drake working decoy– white cedar, hollowed, acrylics

Page 2 Volume 4, Issue 3

“Where are we,

Sesame Street?”

2010 Tentative Program Schedule

February Program 2011—Steve Stortz—Turkey Calls Like many of us, Steve Stortz is an avid hunter, especially waterfowl and upland birds. One of his favorite spe-cies is the wild turkey. One of, if not the most important, object in a turkey hunter’s arsenal is the call that is

used to entice the normally very wary and suspicious Tom turkey to approach the object of his desire-the hen.

There are many types of calls available, but Steve has taken the art of making a call in a different direction than most. The slate call he uses, and showed MDWCC members, resembles a turtle with a head and tail. This whimsical turtle decoy is a departure from the slate calls used for many years by other hunters. For one thing, it can be left on the shelf at home as an objet d’arte for 11 months of the year. Who doesn’t like to look

at cute turtles?

Steve showed us how he designs and roughs out his block of wood to resemble the carapace of a turtle. After cutting out the shape, he then must hollow out the interior, being careful not to go too thin and weaken the shell. The slate piece will be set into the belly at a later time, but the hole in the belly allows Steve to carve and sand the inside acoustical dome. The head and tail which make up the striker that creates the sound when rubbed on the slate are made of two pieces of wood glued together and then carved into a head on one end. The tail has to be a hardwood in order to create the friction on the slate that is needed to make the “yelp” call

of the hen. The sexier the better.

Once the carapace, head, and tail are completed the next step is to enhance the realism of the carving. Steve makes good use of his Optima wood burner to accentuate the symmetrical groove pattern on the back of the shell. The head also has a number of grooves and ridges that can be highly defined with the burner. Eyes made of round pin heads are carefully placed to enhance the realistic effect. At this point Steve is ready to

paint. Which is exactly what he will do at the March meeting. See you there.

Page 3 Volume 4, Issue 3

2010 Tentative Program Schedule

MDWCC members at the 2011 Minnesota Decoy Collector’s Show, February 4-6

Volume 3 , Issue 8 Page 4