A tertiary major producer of paper mache decoys began product afterward Globe War 2 in 1949. Their decoys were sold under the trade name of

Vintage Airduk Duck Decoy

Ariduk. Full general Fibre Co. also produced decoys for Sears Roebuck and JC Higgins! They produced their model 200 series of decoys in mallard, bluebill, pintail, canvasback and blackness duck species. They produced Canada geese, crow and owl decoys in the 1950'due south. General Fibre's factory was located on Locust street in St.Lois Mo. and remained in that location until 1959.

Duck and goose decoys can exist hands identified by the round plug on the back of the decoy. This plug was the manufacturing entry point that allowed the head and body to be made in one piece. The plug completed the watertight seal. General Fibre Co. was a vehement competitor of the Carrylite Decoy Co. which was located in Wisconsin (see previous Decoy Corner article).

Airduk hen & drake mallard fibermache decoys

General Fibre utilized glass optics initially but eventually used plastic optics moulded into the head to compete with other cobweb moulded decoys. A number of models were produced including 600 series with a direct neck or feeder version, model 700 serial were oversized and model 800 decoys were produced as shells and the heads were detachable.

In 1954 a plastic resin was added to the fiber to enhance it's waterproofing properties. Model 300 (Executive series) was added in the late 1950'south which had sculpted side pocket feathers.

In 1959 the company moved to Cedar St. in St. Louis and remained there until 1970. Their last move was in 1970 when they moved to Cherokee St. in St. Louis and changed their name to General Moulding Corporation. They introduced their commencement plastic decoy in 1970, the model A-20 and stayed in business until 1975.

Hundreds of thousands of decoys were produced by General Fibre Co. and Airduk Pintail Decoys distributed throughout the Midwest. The

Airduk Pintail Decoy

vast bulk were mallards. Ariduk decoys are quite collectible, peculiarly species similar pintail, Blackduck and bluebill.

Warman's "Duck Decoys" has a value range of Ariduk decoys of $75-250. Cobweb decoys produced for Sears Roebuck and JC Higgins are valued up to $175 if in good status. Ariduk'south are easily identified by their name moulded in the bottom of the decoy. Ariduk geese and swans are particularly collectible and are valued in the $200 range.

As always, you should consult a reputable decoy collector or dealer for bodily values in your area.

While Fiber decoys began to supercede wood decoys, their collectibility has recently increased. Many antique dealers have Ariduk decoys and you can still discover practiced examples at flea markets, auctions and garage sales.

If y'all have an Ariduk Decoy, they certainly would exist considered every bit a mantel bird but many hunters are still using them in their everyday rigs!

General Fibre Goose Decoy