Kris' Self Contained* Floating Apparatus Page
UPDATED: Monday, January 05, 2004
Click there to go there...
Our story starts in the spring of 2003. I was bored to death at work and decided to Google "model paper boat", thinking that I could make a little hat shaped paper boat for my desk to ease my pain. What I ended up with was a link to make a paper "Weekender" from Stevenson's Projects where I found tons of pictures of people who built their own boats. I built the model and put it on my desk. Many requested a ride but I was not forthcoming. A spark had lit a flame.
I Googled some more, searching for plans and sponging up boat-building information. For a first time project I figured that Herb McLeod's OSS (One Sheet Skiff) was the way to go. Really dead simple design and maybe with some Christmas tools I could do it.
People said I was crazy. Actually, they didn't say it, but whenever I'd say "I'm going to build a boat" the room seemed to go silent, eyebrows raised all around and I longed for the solitude of a workshop. A crowd can gather when I'm done ;-)
I'd like to thank my wife for her support and answering my call for a "tools only" Christmas and my mom and brothers (blood & legal) for their Canadian Tire contributions.
| *Self Contained adj to be lazy and make one Webpage with all text and info instead of linking to multiple pages. Saves time better spent building boats... |
The Epic Begins
| December 20, 2003
I took a trip to the Rona/Lansing store. Home Depot was useless, their plywood was beyond horrible. I picked up a 4'x8' Luan plywood sheet, a 2x4, two 2x6s and some brass screws, glue, a rip fence. All total about $65, not too shabby. I got a lot of raised eyebrows while securing the plywood to the roof... I'd like to say to the guy in the shiny F250 "#%!&@!$# you, I got it home and didn't have to buy a $40,000 truck" Drove home in a headwind, I was not the guy with the vertical plywood sheet on his roof, but I think the front wheels left the ground a few times... |
Imagine a car covered in wood here. Well, on top anyway... |
| December 27, 2003 (3hrs)
Got the plywood laid out and drawing the lines, I have about 2" of room on each side of the board to work. I figure that as I cut off material I'll get more room right? Right. |
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| After staring at the plywood, saw in hand for 1/2 hour, I get over my first instance of 'cut fear' and make some room on the floor. I have the sides of the hull in my new folding workbench. (thanks Santa!) My new pullsaw (also from Santa) makes cutting the angles for the bow/stern a breeze. |  |
| I cut one side and then clamped them together to make sure that each side is exactly the same. After I cut them I clamped them again and planed them fair. Planing has got to be the coolest, all those curly wood shavings. |  |
| December 28, 2003 (2hrs)
Framing the stern completely wrong took a few hours. I had to work really hard to leave big gaps in all the joints, and you wouldn't believe how hard it was to get the bevels wrong! but, luckily I did all of it backwards so I will just turn it around and it'll still work. |
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| December 29, 2003 (3hrs)
After reading and rereading the plans a billion times (no lie, ask my wife) the only thing I couldn't figure out was how to cut a long triangle out of a 2x4 to make the stem. Well, once you get some curly wood shavings underfoot, these things just work themselves out. I clamped the 2x4 on its end, and clamped a block to my rip fence so I could cut that close. Voila! A triangle. Now, a long 3d circle is called a cylinder, so is a long triangle called a trylinder? |
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| This is the "Wow, it is
starting to look like a boat" part. My shiny (shiny?) new stem is
working just great. Did I mention that there is hardly any room in here?
Wow, it is starting to look like a boat! |
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| Now that looks like a boat. Stern
and stem attached and bam! Boatshape. Right now it might make a good
playpen for a 6month old, or maybe a sandbox...
Note the 1x2 on the right, I kinda forgot to mark where the midframe goes, so I marked the measurement on there and scribed it before I bent the sides, tee hee. Just a warning to anyone who thinks that getting polyurethane glue on their hands is no big deal and if you wipe your hand on a rag it's clean... IT'S NOT! I now have an extra layer of 'skin' that looks like dirt on my hands... Grrrr... |
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| I just can't get enough of that stem. I cut it flush with the sides of the hull. Probably not supposed to but who's gonna stop me? Or reattach it? |  |
| I missed an hour here, I was
running out of time and.. well.. I had PL Premium (glue) all over my hands
and sawdust and screws were sticking to my hands... I was the three
stooges only I was alone....
Anyway, this is the port side midframe piece, I cut it all wrong about 4 times but in the end it worked. It's even straight! |
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| What would a port frame be without a starboard frame? I donno. |  |
| Here is the sandbox, in all its
glory. The time to give up and make it a sandbox/planter/bookshelf is now,
but I'm outta time, don't have sand, don't have a garden and already have
a bookshelf. So I'll finish it another day. Maybe Saturday :-)
Speaking of sanding, maybe I need a new sander... or any sander... |
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| January 1, 2004 (Happy
New Boat Year!)
I made a lot of curly wood bits today, having planed the bottom of the hull fair. I'll get a pic of that up later, I forgot to take any pictures but it's not too late. I also put a bevel on each of the chine logs with my trust circular saw. I'm really beginning to like that thing ($10 at a garage sale). Oh, and my hands are almost clean... it's been a week... stupid polyurethane. Say that three times fast! "Stupid polyurethane, stpuod pulyuretane, upid olyuretane..." |
Imagine the edge of the bottom of the hull is nice and fair. |
| Ok ok, I caved, I made a page 2. I even called it page2.... |