A Hairy Swamp Girl.

[hairymick]

Hi guys,

My ply finally arrives tomorrow (hopefully). the yak shed is clean and clear and the tools are ready.

I couldn't stand waiting anymore, so I went town to a fairly local hardware mob this morning and got a couple of sheets of 4mm bracing ply to make templates with. The very friendly store owner also threw in half a dozen sheets of 4mm packing ply - for nothing. I reckon there is enough ply without damage or voids in the packing stuff to make a second SG.

I'm off down the back now to get started. Can't wait any longer. Will post pics of progress as I go. I am that excited I feel like a 16 year old heading out on his first date.

regards,

Mick

 

[Bullhead]

Mick, I am glad for you, I wanted to build a boat for years and when I finally started it, I had a great time and am learning alot that will change they way I do the second boat. I make old style archery equipment and learned the same thing... it looks like too much until you start, then it is too much fun to quit.

 

[Kayak Jack]

"Lookee here! And ... I did it myself!"

The little kid in all of us still responds, ehh?

 

[BEARS BUDDY]

The smell of epoxy and sawdust can be quite compelling.

 

[mosportsmen]

You go Mick! Have fun. I wish I had one going all the time. Since I started it has been one per year. That has only lasted two years.....the boats are starting to stack up....don't know how I am going to convince the wife I need to build another one. I got to get rid of this first one I guess. I don't love it any more since I improved it with the second design.

I think there may be a place of honor I could store it, next to my friends pond out on his huning land.....yea that might be the perfect place for it to go....I guess I could give it to him for payment for hunting prevledges. not a bad deal....me thinks.

 

[hairymick]

My "good" ply arrived yesterday - 10 sheets at about AU$13.00 each. four had minor voids but nothing to worry about and it looking like good stuff. pretty light too. I was that excited I drove the 150 miles each way to the city to pick up the epoxy & glass yesterday.

Starting to cut proper patterns today butchered the practice ones yesterday on the packing ply.

Guys, my plan is this,
1.I will cut a pattern of each panel out of hardwood ply and finish the edges to the pencil lines and smoothe the edges out.

2. Use those patterns to mark out the panels on the boat sheets and cut them to about 3mm outside the pencil lines.

3. place all four panels on top of each other with the relevent pattern on top and screw them together.

4. Using a router and a flush trim bit, run around the pattern, trimming all four panels at the same time - making them all identical.

What do you think.

 

[Kayak Jack]

Sounds good to me. I cut to the outside of my pencil lines and stacked the panels four deep and took a Japanese block plane to them.

Remember, epoxy, wood flour, and fiberglass fix a lot of sins.

 

[hairymick]

Got the patterns cut and finished off today. All panels rough cut & ready to be trimmed tomorrow.

So far, it has been really easy. Matts plans are clear and simple to read and follow. I just love it when things go well.

 

[hairymick]

Had a few "technical" difficulties over the last couple of days. The " technical" part being that I didn't read the plans correctly and consequently made the temporary frames wrong.

I can't seem to get my old head round this new fangled method of building a multi-chine boat without at least a temporary frame and strong back.

My answer is that I have built a strong back and will lay the panels along the frames on it. At least I will be able to see instantly if the hull lines are true and fair. I have just spent 3 days trying to work out what I did wrong and broke a middle panel in he process.
All is good now. Should get all the panels stitched in place tomorrow

then its back to work for a few days before I can do any more.

 

[hairymick]

Hi guys,

Got the stronback finished today and the bottom and mid-panels are on. Things seem to be going pretty well now,

Chuck, If I email you a couple of piccies, would you post them for me. I have had a brain fart and forgotten how to do it..

 

[JEM]

May I?

 

[hairymick]

Hi Matt, Thanks mate

 

[JEM]

And how many boats do you have? I count 6 in those pictures.

 

[Kayak Jack]

Like the rest of us, Matt, he has enough for a small Inuit village.

 

[hairymick]

8 kayaks, 2 canadians and a swampgirl soon.

 

[mosportsmen]

You should be ashamed of yourself!

You know this project will put your total up to 11. Odd numbers are unlucky.......you will have to build another to even it up.

 

[hairymick]

My thoughts exactly.

 

[Kayak Jack]

Yeah - rationalization works for me too.

"Oh oh - chips are gone and I have a swallow of beer left. Better get more chips."

Oh oh, beer is gone, and I have a whole bowl of chips here. Better go get ...."

 

[hairymick]

Hey KJ, you sure you're not an Aussie ?:lol:
The tribe is growing.

i got a couple of days off now, Hopefulle will get the final panels on and start tacking up.

 

[Kayak Jack]

I had some accelerated OJT in Vung Tau from a few Aussies. They even had a VietNamese house boy that spoke 'strian.