Common merganser size help &black duck advice needed

Not much help but would love to see him once he's finished. They and a red breasted have been on my hit list for years. I have raised them in the past. Very large , long and slender. Kinda unique in the duck world body wise. A large pintail form shaved down some might work. But I'll defer to the pros here.

 

FROM MCKENZIE CATALOG

 

If I had to go by the catalog for form sizes I would go nuts. If you can't keep several sizes on hand to get a good fit you might invest the time in learning how to wrap. It's quick and always fits. Just a suggestion. I keep 75-100 bodies in inventory so no need to guess , just take the Body out and pick one that matches or is a bit smaller.

 

I believe a hen mallard body would be too small for a black duck in my opinion.., they are drake mallard sized, if not larger in my experience...

 

I checked my notes and I only have a couple sets of measurements for a drake common merganser and the body length from the front of the breast to the base of the tail range from 8 7/8-9 1/2. The circumference around the breast ranged from 11 1/8-12 1/8.

I don't have any measurements for an immature drake Black duck but the measurements I have for adult drake Black ducks are about 7 5/8- 7 3/4 long and circumference is about 11 1/8.

Hope that helps.

 

Research mannikins sells one. But as been stated a few times it may not be perfect for the bird you have. With any commercial form you may have to alter it. But if you have the real body in front of you that is no problem. Start making tracings of the birds you do for later reference.