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Thread: I'm finally building my boat.

  1. #106
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    Oops. Set them up wrong. Center case goes more forward.
    AE109BDD-C617-4C3D-93B0-09E885FB918B.jpg

  2. #107
    What are the odd-looking forms in the pics? They look almost like ....chairs?? Pre-installed furniture...?? (I've never built a boat)

    On a slightly more serious note, it looks like it will be a large and significant challenge, and I'm fascinated. To steal James' signature line, fair winds and following seas on you build. I'll be watching.

  3. #108
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    Quote Originally Posted by Malcolm McLeod View Post
    What are the odd-looking forms in the pics? They look almost like ....chairs?? Pre-installed furniture...?? (I've never built a boat)

    On a slightly more serious note, it looks like it will be a large and significant challenge, and I'm fascinated. To steal James' signature line, fair winds and following seas on you build. I'll be watching.
    Thank you very much. May your sails and your belly always be full. :-)

    Tje chairs were for a reason- figuring out the space for butts as I try to determine where to terminate the cabin roof. Also I wanted to see about my raised cockpit coming and how high to make the cabin roof.

    The rest of today involved sawing and chopping all the notches for stringers. Here are the tools used to true the forms and saw and chop the mortises, minus the spokeshave used for inside curves. Note: the dovetail saw made quick work of the notches. Also the pattern maker’s vise, which I thought would be the least used vise on my bench, is now the most used by far. It was so easy to rotate these forms as I planed/sawed.

    F09E4AF4-2440-4B68-A4B2-CB12D8FBB6B2.jpg

  4. #109
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    I’m in the states this week. I stopped by Highland Woodworking and picked up a Rikon 14” bandsaw. FYI- it does not fit in a 15’ UHaul upright. It had to be laid down on the back, which is the only side you can lay it down on without damaging it. I also went to Woodcraft in Birmingham and got a Rikon 17” variable speed drill press. (That was the only one who had it in stock and I was passing through.) I was taking some furniture my grandfather built (recently inherited) to Jacksonville to ship by boat. I decided to road trip it myself and pick up some tools. I also got a nice Barr slick and some other hand tools. My bags are maxed out for the 50 pound checked bag limit.

    So so this morning at 1:30 AM I’m in my hotel and get a message from my wife: “there’s a fire downtown and it looks like it’s close to your shop. She sent a picture and it is the building adjacent to mine. Very sleepless night, but my buddy went and checked on it and the fire was contained to just the top floor of the adjacent building. All my spruce, the brand new outboard, solar panels, and plywood are all in that shop. Had it burned, that would have been horrific. Fortunately for me, all is well. Also, thankfully, the building that burned was vacant.

    I return tomorrow and will start cutting out all the plywood doublers for the ribs. After that, the jig gets built and the masts get built on the jig first, then the ribs go on the jig. I can’t wait.

    E680C071-73F4-478B-B9E4-69FDA8EBBEA1.jpgA7D13527-094A-4465-B472-7F1567D12B3F.jpg35EE5A55-4809-4986-8BEA-79BB647F601E.jpg

  5. #110
    Did you run away to sea? Get shanghaied in Jacksonville? Singing the Blues in the Birmingham jail?

    When do we get some progress?

    (Looking forward to it!)
    Fair winds and following seas,
    Jim Waldron

  6. #111
    Or at least some credible excuse!
    Fair winds and following seas,
    Jim Waldron

  7. #112
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    I have been quite busy lately. Between my trip, and then all the stuff getting here, I haven't had time to work on the boat. I brought back grandad's architect's model of "Hornet II" that he helped repair when it was stranded in Greenville, MS, and the owner gave him the model as a thank you gift. Also I brought back one of grandad's trophies from the 1927 boat races where he always won first place.

    image.jpg

    One day I would like to build a replica of Hornet II, but she is a river boat with a fairly flat keel and shallow draft. She wouldn't do well in these seas.

    Boat progress soon come, but I'm checking off the honey-do list at the moment.

  8. #113
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    If you can do it for $12,000 US you will indeed be happy. Are you logging your hours to build?
    I would like to build a small 12’ fishing boat by traditional methods to join the other 30 at the very bottom of Lake Huron.
    Your build may encourage me.....
    ​You can do a lot with very little! You can do a little more with a lot!

  9. #114
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    I'm not a boat builder myself and I have to say following this thread has been incredible; the range of knowledge/expertise needed to build curving, three-dimensional shapes, the mechanical/electronics involved with the engine/solar/radio communication and all the exotic glue/material needed for the waterproof hull etc. seem incredibly daunting and far beyond the ability of a single person to understand and execute.

    Malcolm, I couldn't be more impressed with what you've accomplished! Forgive my naïve question but, how did you and other boatbuilders acquire all this knowledge? Boatbuilding seems like a craft where the required knowledge/skills/expertise can only be acquired over a lifetime, and likely must be built on the foundation of previous generations?

    Thanks so much for sharing your experience/pics. I could not be more invested in following the rest of your progress. What I've seen you accomplish is both an inspiration and revelation on all that is involved in building a boat – seems like a great subject for a documentary film I would enjoy immensely and study in great detail.

    All the best, Mike

  10. #115
    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Allen1010 View Post
    I'm not a boat builder myself and I have to say following this thread has been incredible; the range of knowledge/expertise needed to build curving, three-dimensional shapes, the mechanical/electronics involved with the engine/solar/radio communication and all the exotic glue/material needed for the waterproof hull etc. seem incredibly daunting and far beyond the ability of a single person to understand and execute.

    Malcolm, I couldn't be more impressed with what you've accomplished! Forgive my naïve question but, how did you and other boatbuilders acquire all this knowledge? Boatbuilding seems like a craft where the required knowledge/skills/expertise can only be acquired over a lifetime, and likely must be built on the foundation of previous generations?

    Thanks so much for sharing your experience/pics. I could not be more invested in following the rest of your progress. What I've seen you accomplish is both an inspiration and revelation on all that is involved in building a boat – seems like a great subject for a documentary film I would enjoy immensely and study in great detail.

    All the best, Mike
    We all stand on the shoulders of giants. As we get into things, it reduces to a large collection of pretty small and manageable steps.

    For a good video look at boat building, you might enjoy Lou Sauzade, building a simple workboat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C22Crc7XHoI (Episode 1 is followed by about 30 more; it takes time to learn all that Lou has to offer.)
    nb: safety is not one of Lou's strong points. Many of the tool uses he makes are not the safest way to do things. Some are breath-taking adventures.
    Fair winds and following seas,
    Jim Waldron

  11. #116
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    Quote Originally Posted by James Waldron View Post
    ...you might enjoy Lou Sauzade, building a simple workboat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C22Crc7XHoI ...
    Enjoyed watching this.
    "Anything seems possible when you don't know what you're doing."

  12. #117
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Allen1010 View Post
    I'm not a boat builder myself and I have to say following this thread has been incredible; the range of knowledge/expertise needed to build curving, three-dimensional shapes, the mechanical/electronics involved with the engine/solar/radio communication and all the exotic glue/material needed for the waterproof hull etc. seem incredibly daunting and far beyond the ability of a single person to understand and execute.

    Malcolm, I couldn't be more impressed with what you've accomplished! Forgive my naïve question but, how did you and other boatbuilders acquire all this knowledge? Boatbuilding seems like a craft where the required knowledge/skills/expertise can only be acquired over a lifetime, and likely must be built on the foundation of previous generations?

    Thanks so much for sharing your experience/pics. I could not be more invested in following the rest of your progress. What I've seen you accomplish is both an inspiration and revelation on all that is involved in building a boat – seems like a great subject for a documentary film I would enjoy immensely and study in great detail.

    All the best, Mike
    Thank you for the kind words. I am the grandson of a boatbuilder, but he passed away before I got to build a boat with him. He did teach me basics and I inherited his shop tools when I was a teenager but my dad sold much of the good stuff to my great dismay when I moved. I believe a certain level of knowledge is stored in our genes. I started out building wood kayaks and canoes- a MacGregor by Oughtred, and strip-built kayaks, and then I started designing wood kayaks and surfboards. The surfboards took off but it’s not something to pay all the bills. I live in a sailing Mecca, so the opportunity to work on other people’s boats is always there, and on a small island word gets around when you are good at something, so there is always someone needing something. That said, most of my knowledge comes from reading, discussing with other builders, and experimenting. There is no better teacher than trial and error!!!

  13. A little prayer for you last night. Hope all is well. Please report in (when you can).

    Thanks,
    Fair winds and following seas,
    Jim Waldron

  14. #119
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    Quote Originally Posted by James Waldron View Post
    A little prayer for you last night. Hope all is well. Please report in (when you can).

    Thanks,
    Thank you, sir- it was a very unexpected turn and direct hit. After Irmaria, it felt like a light breeze. :-) I think this video is public- posted it to a public page- that I took of a sailboat dragging anchor and almost hitting a Marlin boat.
    https://m.facebook.com/groups/241455...65&ref=m_notif

    It was a scary moment right in the midst of things. A few boats went aground, because this thing was supposed to miss us by 100 miles and only be a tropical storm, but instead we had 111 mph winds and the eye wall passed over us.

    Pray for my friends in Freeport, Grand Bahama, as they are going to get a direct hit, and they never really recovered fully from the last major storm.

    What waters are you in? Hope you’re safe as well.

  15. #120
    Quote Originally Posted by Malcolm Schweizer View Post
    Thank you, sir- it was a very unexpected turn and direct hit. After Irmaria, it felt like a light breeze. :-) I think this video is public- posted it to a public page- that I took of a sailboat dragging anchor and almost hitting a Marlin boat.
    https://m.facebook.com/groups/241455...65&ref=m_notif

    It was a scary moment right in the midst of things. A few boats went aground, because this thing was supposed to miss us by 100 miles and only be a tropical storm, but instead we had 111 mph winds and the eye wall passed over us.

    Pray for my friends in Freeport, Grand Bahama, as they are going to get a direct hit, and they never really recovered fully from the last major storm.

    What waters are you in? Hope you’re safe as well.
    Glad this one was not as bad for you guys!

    We're on the St. Johns River near Jacksonville these days. Current forecast guesses Dorian will pass just offshore of us as a Cat3 on Wednesday. That should give us a good wash-down and blow dry. Maybe things will keep changing and move the beast farther offshore. Some of the models do show the eye passing us maybe 60-70 miles off. That would be good for us, but not so much for Savannah and Charleston and points beyond.

    Watched video on tip-toe; didn't like it a bit. Relieved when power boat moved; more relieved when sailboat's anchor caught. Near thing!

    Take care.
    Fair winds and following seas,
    Jim Waldron

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