We’re sharing some of our favorite skin-on-frame photos from the last 15 years while we build the tiny house. (Check out @actuallytiny). When I first started building boats I went to visit a local cabinet maker named Robert who had built an entire sailboat in his backyard. I thought he would be a good...
"Sharing some of our favorite skin-on-frame photos: Bending ribs"Continue readingCategory: Materials
Almost ruined two brand new canoes today
Almost ruined two brand new canoes today by once again not taking my own advice. It seems like nearly every time I completely screw something up it’s because I’m trying to do something that I explicitly tell my students not to. In this case it was trying to use up some partially cured polyurethane...
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Le Tonkinois impressions
At the recommendation of someone on Instagram, I decided to try Le Tonkinois varnish on my last project and I wanted to take a moment to post my impressions. Cost: at 40 bucks a quart it costs about the same as any of the other medium grade varnishes. They sell a 2 1/2 quart...
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How a simple material change can tip the balance between skin and frame in a skin boat
Compared to other forms of boatbuilding skin-on-frame is significantly faster, easier, and less expensive, so much so that it can feel like cheating at times. The big caveat is that there are formidable design challenges owing to the unpredictability of the materials. Unless you simply overpower the problem with extensive bracing, lamination, or oversized...
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Day 11: Row/sail canoe, version 2
Day 11, Row/sail canoe, version 2. Build time: 4hrs. Coated the boat/boats today. The coating I use to waterproof and protect the raw nylon cloth is the 2 part polyurethane sold by skinboats.org. It’s not a perfect coating due to lack of UV resistance but it is damn tough, long lasting finish that’s a...
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Day 10: Row/sail canoe, version 2
Day 10, Row/sail canoe, version 2. Build time: 7hrs. Spent the morning making VHMW skid-strips which I’ll talk about and show in another post. After that I stripped the frame and took the opportunity to weigh all the components separately which much to my surprise came out lighter than my last boat despite using...
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“I should have just bought the ribs from you!”
One of the most common comments I get from people who have built one of my boats from plans is: “I should have just bought the ribs from you!”. First time builders, the ones who would benefit the most from perfect bending stock are usually the ones who get sticker shock and try to...
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Day 9: Row/sail canoe, version 2
Day 9, Row/sail canoe, version 2. Build time:4hrs. Put a coat of oil on the frame. I’m pretty sure the instructions don’t say “use at 36 degrees” but sometimes you have to bend the rules. I use Watco Danish Oil because it penetrates well, dries fast, and is reasonably inexpensive. The reality is that...
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Taking a trip to the sawmill to refocus
Ran into my first major hurdle on the new version of the row/sail canoe today so I thought I’d step away to refocus. I’ve been out of bending oak for a few weeks so I drove down to Zena Forest and bought some nice sticks from Ben and Paul. Zena Forest Products is a...
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Day 1, Row/sail canoe, version 2
Day 1, Row/sail canoe, version 2. Build time: 6hrs. 15’ LOA, 39” beam, 14.5” depth center, 21” height ends. Started the day by burning a $90 board that had hidden stress fractures. This is why I hate working with CVG fir. Heavy, splitty, and expensive. Unfortunately it’s literally the only thing I can get...
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Well today started out ok…
Well today started out ok. I went to my buddy’s garage to pick up all the shiny bits and was heading home to rig the canoe when I thought: ‘you know, my dinghy plans won’t be here for another week, I could build the rig in the meantime, I already have some decent fir...
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I was a salvage savage in the years before I got sick
I was a salvage savage in the years before I got sick. Winter storms on the bay, 50 mph winds, my kayak, 400 feet of old crabbing rope, a 20 oz framing hammer, and a PFD stuffed full of log dogs was my happy place. I’ve waged epic battles scratching furiously for the shore,...
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All the ribs that didn’t become boats last year…
All the ribs that didn’t become boats last year......
Building steam bent kayak cockpit coamings
We all have that one work thing we absolutely hate. You know what I mean, that thing that isn’t really that hard but for whatever reason you just dread. For me it’s making steam bent keyhole kayak cockpit coamings. One of the biggest challenges when I first started designing skin on frame kayaks was...
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Processing some of the nicest bending oak I’ve ever seen
The Beast with brand new carbide blades chowing down on some of the nicest bending oak I’ve ever seen. This latest batch of oak from Zena Forest Products is just unreal....