New Tool

Between boats I took time out to read the Gougeon Brothers on Boat Construction: Wood and West Systems Materials. The Gougeon Brothers are the guys who invented, market and continue to refine West System epoxy resin.

In the book they suggest splitting up a foam roller sleeve and attaching pieces to sticks with a slot cut in the end and using them as resin applicators. Well I tried, but obviously I had the wrong kind of foam roller, so I tried again with pieces of closed-cell foam from the end of a camping mat, and two pieces of 4mm play bound together with tape, and individually bound with plastic parcel tape at the foam end to allow re-use.
It works really well. I'm able to get a far more even spread of resin than when using a chip brush, and the cost is considerably less as well, not to mention the waste. I'm hoping that using better application methods, I'll make a much tidier job and therefore a faster, better build than with my first kayak.

If at first you don't succeed...

...Try, try, try again.

There's no hope of getting in the garden today, the wind is wild and the rain is lashing down. I got the side panels cut out and planed down during the week, so today was a scarfing day. I laid the bottom panels out on offcuts of exterior ply covered with polythene sheet and screwed down the new centre section. I then screwed each of the remaining parts of the original bottom panels to each end. I did the same with the side panels, but in this case there is only one join to make.

I also put the sheer clamps back in the scarfing jig I made. On each side there is a long piece of 2x1" (50x25mm) to act as a straight edge and these and the bottom are again covered in polythene. Down the centre is a strip of mdf about the same thickness as the sheer clamps. I use offcuts of the 4mm ply covered in plastic parcel tape to bridge from one sheer clamp piece to be held over to the centre piece of mdf scrap. A screw near the sheer clamp end provides the clamping pressure but still allows a slight amount of adjustment until I'm happy everything is properly aligned.

False Start

A couple of weeks after beginning the second kayak build, I undid all of the work and started again. We had a couple of fair weather days at the weekends so I took some time out to make walkways around the vegetable beds before Bridgit started planting up all of the seedlings. In the meantime, I tried to scarf all the kayak pieces up during the evenings.

I was not happy with the results, though. I was getting air locks in the hardener pump and once batch of epoxy just didn't go off, even after 72 hours. I'd used it to scarf the sheer clamps and also to repair a patch of the glass butt joint on the bottom panels that had air bubbles in it.

I decided to take drastic action. I cut out a section of the bottom panels 9" (225mm) either side of the 'bad' join and put a new 18" (450mm) section of ply in the gap. I also decided that supposed speed methods (applying glass to both sides of the join at one time) was actually sloppy, messy and would use more time in cleaning up and making good later.

Boat Building Again...

Well, the Mini has been turfed out of the garage and now sits at the top of the drive under a gazebo awaiting a paint job. I've readied the garden beds ready for the new season of vegetables and on Saturday I gave the garage a really good tidy up. In the week I managed to pick up some more epoxy resin and hardener, and tomorrow a work appointment takes me close to Glass Fibre Supplies so I can pick up more tape.

On Sunday I started the build of the Dart 16' two-man kayak by scarfing some pieces of softwood together that will become the hog, kind of a part-length keelson. On Tuesday I got home early and marked out the bottom pieces on a sheet of ply. On Wednesday I cut the pieces out with a jigsaw and this evening I jointed the pieces to make two full length bottom panels. The plan is I will be able to stitch and glue these together, with the hog, over the weekend.

It's great to be building again. I was a little bit cautious at first but after donning the gloves and suit again this evening while spreading the epoxy, I already feel back in the swing of things. I just need to be careful though, there are quite a few design differences between the two kayaks. I must keep checking the plans and reading those instructions.

North Shore Heritage Festival

The local council is throwing a Heritage Festival throughout October. A flyer in the free paper this evening includes details of an event to be hosted by the Devonport Yacht Club from the 4th to the 11th: Boat Designers of the North Shore. The club will be mounting a display of plans, models, photographs and half-hulls.

My only concern is that when I tried to find a link to the event, there was no mention of it in the online material on the council's web site. I'll call the number tomorrow, and if it's on, hopefully I'll be able to post a report on my blog.

UPDATE: I've just spoken to Colin Tubbs at the Devonport Yacht Club, and the exhibition is definitely on, featuring the work of Des Townsend, Bruce Farr and others. The club is located at 25 King Edward Parade in Devonport and the doors will be open daily from 10am to 4pm starting Sunday 4th October until Suntay 10th October; admission is free.

Hot News: The First Island Bay Dory is Built!

I've just logged into the blog for the first time in a little while to find a message from Rob Buchanan of
Greenport, Long Island, USA. He is the first to inform me that he and his family have built a version of my Island Bay Dory design. Hopefully he'll mail me some pictures soon, and with help from the comment he made on his build, I'll be building an Island Bay Dory with my son in the coming weeks.

Building on a small scale

While I get some other jobs out of the way (mainly restoring the Mini that is lurking in the background in all the garage shots of the kayak build) I am building on a smaller scale in the house during the dark winter evenings.

I'm trying out the Selway-Fisher Rhum plans at 1:10 scale before trying it for real. The reason for this is I want to change the internal layout, moving bulkheads and fitting permanent side seats, and I want to make sure it all fits. Even small boats are fairly complex 3D shapes an it helps to make sure the visualisation I have in my mind will actually work for real.

Last night I swapped around the bulkheads and made the forward one, the one the mast step and partner are against, full height. This will allow a small foredeck to be fitted, with storage underneath.

I think this will be a really usable little dinghy and I'm quite excited about the build. I just nee to keep the end in site and make sure I don't add so much unnecessary stuff that I can no longer walk the boat down to the ramp. Pictures will follow once I've got the deck fitted on the model.

Oh, and I've pretty much decided that the boat will be named Hope, after this amazing instrumental by Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson.