The innovation of decoys starts with an idea. We all have ideas and often act on those ideas with designs of our own, but in this instance, Lifetime has moved to an outer orbit with their lineup of FlexFloat decoys. Unique to these are the hollow underside opening and EVA foam construction. Each of these decoys weighs in at 14.3 ounces and 1 lb 4.9 ounces with the keel weight installed so they are “ultralight, unsinkable and unbreakable.” The decoys I received come boxed with 2 drakes, 2 hens, and 2 resting drakes. More from Lifetime:
“Molded entirely from EVA foam, our FlexFloat line pulls double duty as both the LIGHTEST and most DURABLE decoy on the market. Think about a CrocTM that you can hunt over. You can shoot it, step on it, run it over with your truck, and our FlexFloat Decoys will NEVER SINK – because unlike other decoys, every decoy in the FlexFloat line is hollow and does NOT rely on an airtight seal to stay afloat. Walking into the hole, you might forget they are there as our EVA foam reduces noise in transportation to an almost eerie quiet.
Our Dual-Flow Swimkeel on the bottom of the decoy creates less resistance in the water for better decoy movement and allows our decoys to sit flat in a field application or on ice. Removing the self-righting keel weights transforms the decoy to an unprecedented level of “ultra-light.” New for 2020, front and rear stainless steel anchor connection points that will never fail with 135 pounds of static force security. Once you’ve killed your limit, the new and improved porthole at the rear of the decoy, (more than 8 times the size of its predecessor) allows water to drain from the decoy in less than 3 seconds as you pick up your spread.”
Here is a video produced by Lifetime that is worth the watch. The idea of unsinkable, unbreakable, and ultralight is certainly noteworthy, as we all tend to put our decoys into every conceivable extreme and want our investment to last. I have no reason to believe these decoys cannot last a lifetime as their namesake implies.
These decoys came out a couple of years back, and the overall season long use reports are positive with great paint adhesion, the EVA maintained is flex, and the keel weights provided positive upright placements when tossed. Paint for these decoys is applied during the manufacturing process to ensure long-lasting adhesion. These decoys presented here are flocked so with any flocked decoy, taking care in transporting can reduce wear and tear.
Among the many design features of the FlexFloat is the weighted keel option. Each set comes with keel inserts that slip into the keel and provide additional weight. They are secured with a cross-through bolt requiring a 3mm and 4mm Allen wrench to tighten.
I would guess if you were all about packing in, the weights would be easily removed. If added, they will increase the weight of the decoy by about 6.6 ounce and a half dozen by just about three pounds. My half dozen came with the keel weights in the hens and that ready helped me understand the process of changing out the weights.
Lifetime FlexFloat Decoys per 6 – MSRP $124.99
Pricey!