I have started the Bayou Skiff....

[hairymick]

Chuck,

Do you mind a few questions mate.

Your skiff is driving me nuts! I very nearly bought the plans yesterday. LOL Trying to be strong here, but I think resistence is useless. LOL

With your other pirogues, you have glued the bottom on with the hull inverted. Why are you doing this one right way up?

I have some more very specific questions but need to think on them some more.

carry on


respectfully,

Mick

 

[oldsparkey]

Chuck,

Do you mind a few questions mate.

With your other pirogues, you have glued the bottom on with the hull inverted. Why are you doing this one right way up?

I have some more very specific questions but need to think on them some more.

carry on


respectfully,

Mick

Mick , Actually that is the way I have done several of them , some I inverted and screwed the bottom to the ribs , flipped it over and then glued (Epoxied) them down.
I am working in very limited space so I decided to do it this way.... Get the bottom attached , then do a small fillet along the sides and bottom and trim ( cut off) the bottom to be flush with the sides. Then go back in and do a larger fillet , plus glassing and finishing up the inside before tackling the outside.
The longer it is taking me to get those steps done ( Thanks to the cold weather) the more I have thought about what I want to do on the inside to make it my boat.... :wink:

As things progress and I can see the possibilities and this is going to be one great boat , both for fishing and camping or just to go out and have some fun with , even sailing it.

Chuck.
PS. John is at LA International and he said his next stop is Sydney AU.

 

[oldsparkey]

Thanks mate.

John and I have been exchanging emails. I really hope is able to travel this far north.

If he does , that would be a lot of fun for the two of you but almost 1,200 miles one way for him to get to your area .... No one knows with John. When he decides to do something ... You can bet he will do it.

He is his own .... INDEPENDENT ....person and goes where he want's to and does what he wants to do and makes all sorts of friends along the way , which normally side track him into having even more fun.

IE: Case in fact , How can a New Jersey person make friends with a southern ( air boat ) cracker called Chain Saw while the Yankee is paddling a little 14 foot canoe and sharing a campsite with the crackers.... They furnished the chow ( Pork over an open fire ) and the beverages for John.

John is someone that anyone would like to know and to be with or at lease say they have meet him ....... He is pure fun when it comes to what we like about the outdoors. I have never meet someone like him , he is a grand guy to know and the information he has about paddling and camping in the Americas and lots of other areas is priceless. Simply because he has done it..........

Yes... I know I got off subject on this post but I will tell you I have only said a slight part about John and his trips , much less knowing him...... He does things we only dream about...... Yes , I have had the pleasure of being with him on several camping trip and have learned a lot. Even this old camping dog can learn new things. :wink:

Back to the build on the Bayou Skiff.........

Chuck.
PS... I am sure I will be posting some of Johns stuff on here for his trip down under .... unless he does it since he has mastered posting the pictures on here.

 

[oldsparkey]

Back to the skiff......

The weather cleared up except for the 35 mph winds but it is around 75 today so I managed to get part of the front section attached...... One rib and section to go.
In the picture you will see the short amount I have to do in the morning ( It is where the sunlight is shinning threw)

Get the bow section attached , Do a small fillet at the side panels and the bottom.
( there is a gap between the side panels and the bottom on the inside , the outside of the panels fit snugly against the bottom section but the inside has a small gap which needs to be filled and secured. I should of cut the side panels [ the bottom of them ] to fit flush with the bottom section. This oak paneling is some tough stuff. )

Then trim off the excess wood on the bottom sticking out from the sides , add the gussets , fillet the inside , round off the ribs with the sander , epoxy saturate it and finally glass it on the inside. Then the fun , inside railing , the seats , some dog legs and corner braces on the transom to beef it up along with the sections I have made to add to it. "O" Almost forgot about the oar locks.
Going to get the inside completely done before flipping it and tackling the outside.

As I said , a long time to build it but I am not in a hurry on this one , have plenty of other boats to use while figuring/thinking and building this one .... it is going to be done the way I want it.

Chuck.
PS ... The boat is not twisted it is the photographers fault with the camera. :roll:

 

[Bellybuster]

lookin pretty slick

 

[oldsparkey]

Thought I better post this about the Oak Plywood.....

It is a lot tougher then the Luann and a lot less forgiving and willing to work with the builder. Here is what a cross sections looks like...... Again , if it is a little blurry , it's not the wood but the photographers ability. :lol:

Yep , that is the bow section I need to epoxy down in the morning in the background. Then saw off the excess and it takes a lot more strokes with the saw then the Luann does to saw the same distance. I'm sure with the 3.25 tight woven glass on both sides when the boat is made it will be really strong. Plus the darn stuff sure does weight a lot more then the Luann does.

Trust me I have said to myself I should of used the Luann more then a couple of dozen times. :wink: I intend to trailer this Skiff when done so the weight is not really a big deal except for me moving it around to work on it. :roll:

Chuck.

 

[oldsparkey]

It helps getting larger jobs done is you have larger clamps to help with the project. The front is epoxied and setting up.

While getting the front attached I went ahead and did a small fillet along the seams of the sides and the bottom. This way I know it is attached so I can get busy tomorrow and trim that bottom to fit the boat. As you might of noticed I tend to leave a lot of extra wood on the bottom piece when I attach it , it cuts down on a lot of cussing and fussing when attaching it.

There will be another fillet ( larger one to round out the seam so the glass will lay better ) before it is glassed on the inside , going to use Maple wood flour since it has a nice chocolate color to it.

Chuck.

 

[tx river rat]

Chuck
What color are you going to paint it :shock:
Ron

 

[oldsparkey]

Chuck
What color are you going to paint it :shock:
Ron

All I know is that I will not follow local tradition on this and paint it green. Not sure , probably in something that looks like natural wood. Might even get lazy and just stay with the natural wood. :roll:

It would not be the way I showed Matt ( using photo shop) that I wanted to do the Freedom when I made it and he suggested that I stay with the natural wood in place of this.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[oldsparkey]

Managed to get the skiff outside and on a couple of saw horses so I could trim the excess wood from the bottom.... That is what is on the ground.
Also was able to take the sander and smooth off the cut plus making it flush with the sides. Decided that was plenty to get done in one day , especially since all I use is a small , person powered , hand saw , the sander is electric , I'm no fool. Way more sanding on a boat then sawing.
Time for a cold beverage.

If you will notice it does have a good amount of rocker in it , it is not sway backed. :lol:

Tomorrow , with some luck , the gussets will be attached to the ribs and the inside permanent fillets. Shorts and "T" Shirts today but down to 46 in the morning. :?

Chuck.

 

[captaindoug]

Looks like it is coming together nicely. I am really glad I tried my hand at "sorta copying" that style for my Bayou Skiff "Lite" The more I get to use it the better I like it, and I'm sure you will too. It just seems so versatile. So...., my questions are; what are the final dimensions now that it is all glued up, and do you have any ideas yet on where you are going to get the oars and oarlocks? I an anxious to try rowing mine when out in places with enough room to swing the oars. I was thinking of just using some thole pins instead of oarlocks though. Any thoughts on that?

 

[oldsparkey]

Looks like it is coming together nicely. I am really glad I tried my hand at "sorta copying" that style for my Bayou Skiff "Lite" The more I get to use it the better I like it, and I'm sure you will too. It just seems so versatile. So...., my questions are; what are the final dimensions now that it is all glued up, and do you have any ideas yet on where you are going to get the oars and oarlocks? I an anxious to try rowing mine when out in places with enough room to swing the oars. I was thinking of just using some thole pins instead of oarlocks though. Any thoughts on that?

The further it is coming along the more I like it , it will be one good river and swamp , shallow water boat. Plus it looks like it will take all my camping gear and then some more if the need comes up.

I have it glued up with epoxy ( the only glue I trust) and what I have faith in. The final dimensions are what Uncle John has listed on his web site but the length is really 13 / 9 and 1/4 inches not the full 14 feet with a 32 1/2" bottom, 43" beam.

Been looking at this for the oar locks and the rest ..... http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/us ... &catId=405 Thinking about the clamp on oar lock for the oars and side mounted brackets for the oars since I want to have a double set.

Jamestown also has some good prices on the Bass Wood Oars , I like the 6 or 6 1/2 foot ones.

One in the back to row forward pushing on them or siting in the middle seat and pulling on them , one in front of the middle seat for rowing by pushing on them and looking forward while fishing or taking pictures. Sort of a double duty thing that offers three different ways of rowing.
If someone is with me , fishing , then I can sit in the back and row to keep the boat where we want it ..... If not then I have all of the above choices for my fun.

Chuck.

 

[oldsparkey]

A little each day and pretty soon it will really look like a boat. Today the gussets were installed.

Chuck.

 

[oldsparkey]

Managed to get the seam filleted this morning , pulled the tape and smoothed it down with some acetone and a brush. The Maple wood flour has a nice chocolate look to it when mixed up.

A closer look........

Have to let it sit the rest of the day then I can do across the skiff on the ribs and transom. After that .... epoxy saturate the inside and the next day .... one of my favorite jobs .. Glassing the inside UGHhhhhhhhhhh.

Chuck.

 

[oldsparkey]

Your eyes are really good ...... There is a lot more flare to the sides of the Skiff then the standard Pirogue. I can saw off the bottom on one of the Pirogues without a problem and on the Skiff I keep hitting my knuckles and actually sawed the bottom off at a decent angle. It will take a very little sanding to round off the bottom. That is a good thing as far as I am concerned , a lot less sanding.

Went out and took a look at one of my Pirogue's and the Skiff in the shop , I would say there is a decient difference between the side flare of the two of them..... Could be a 3/4 inch difference ( Or more ,just eye balling it ) with the increase of the side flare on the Skiff.

The exact difference is something John would have to tell you. The Skiff is 13 feet -9 and 1/4 inches while my Pirogues are the full 15 1/5 feet. The length might be what makes the difference . Plus the Skiff is wider then the Pirogues.

All I can tell you is what I told John , The more I get done on the Skiff the better I am liking it and I liked it from the begining. It would be nice if it was done so I could use it out camping and fishing but I will take my time on this one and have it the way I want it. Looking forward to when it is done and I can have some enjoyment from it.

Chuck.

 

[oldsparkey]

Let me add an after thought , the one I go by.... Preparation is the important part when making a boat , the more time spent in the preparation you do the less work that has to be done later to correct the mistakes and less mistakes will be made. ( Cheer up , some mistakes will be made , just less of them. )

Now the sad news......The preparation is only from understanding what has to be done and how to do it for that step including several steps further along in the building of the boat. The more you can figure out on what needs to be done and how to do it the less you waste in the build. Especially when using left over glass or epoxy , why toss it when it can be used for some part you will need later.

Read the instructions and think ahead as you do step one think of step twelve and what is needed between them. I have some parts that will not be attached till the boat is completed and they are ready for this slow poke to get to that part of the build. :wink:

Chuck.
Just an Southernpaddler thought , nothing more and nothing less , No matter what ........do it your way , it is your boat.

 

[tx river rat]

Chuck
I really like the looks of this boat.
Ron

 

[oldsparkey]

Managed to get back out there this morning and do some more fillets , have the ribs filleted in.

Overall picture.........

A closer look........

Chuck.

 

[oldsparkey]

This weather is letting me get ahead on what I want to do. The fillets set up so I decided to epoxy saturate the inside getting it ready for the glass.
In the morning is will be a light sanding , then rounding out the ribs and there tops.... Cleaned up with Sunday being the day to glass it.

A closer look.

When the glass is in there it will not change the look of the boat , just add a lot of protection. That epoxy coat sure changed the looks of the Skiff. When I glass it and epoxy saturate the ribs they will be darker. ( Have to get them rounded out 1st)
This is starting to look like something from the Bayou , where all good things come from.

Chuck.

 

[captaindoug]

Dad gum Chuck, that oak plywood is really coming "out". I am afraid you will have no choice but to Varnish. Check my post about the weight, but when looks that pretty, who cares about about a few pounds?