Here's a gunner mallard I finished up this past week. I put the same amount of detail into the paint in the end, but I really wanted to keep the carving basic. There are no carved feathers or raised primaries. This is how I basically do all my gunners these days. I just sweep the tertial and primary feathers back and into the tail. It's not really how puddle ducks carry themselves, but I really like the simple and relaxed look of the back.

This duck is made from balsa wood and has a tupelo head. The balsa was fun to carve and it's super light. There's no need to hollow it like with cedar or basswood.