Big wooden boat project [Splashed Sept 2017]

[Ned L]

[FONT=&quot]In order to continue moving on we have to do a bit of backtracking. The next step would be the curved handrails in he wheelhouse area that the side windows sit on.[/FONT]

As I mentioned somewhere above, the "eye" shaped panels are not original, and would have been canvas dodgers. I am starting out by going back to that .

So this is what it would have been

About 6 weeks before having the boat trucked 200 miles home I made a trip down and removed the windshield and these side rails. I got a head start back then and have had the side windows and rails finished and waiting for a year and a half now.

To make the rails I picked up some good size sticks of mahogany, 2 1/2" thick as I remember.

[FONT=&quot]Unfortunately the place I get my mahogany from doesn't carry it long enough for the rails. I had to start by scarfing (10/1) to make them long enough[/FONT]

 

[Ned L]

Once I had the 'blanks' long enough it was lots of back and forth between the band saw and the planer to make 1/4" laminations.

Which also creates a lot of mahogany wood chips

The curved rails are laminated out of five 1/4" laminations. I needed a form to bend the laminations over for gluing. Some 150 year old 2x10's worked just fine.

And then some resorcinol glue.

and LOTS of clamps.

The next day when it is cured there is some cleanup to do.

Then run them through the planer

and radius the corners with a router.

This process was repeated four times. Two side rails and two caps for the side windows (visible above).

 

[nurseman]

Nice to see someone else who appreciates the use of clamps...Ya can't really ever have too many. I am really liking what you are doing! Thanks for taking the time to walk us through the process!

 

[Ned L]

Yep, ... Can never have too many clamps!
I'm glad to share this with everyone. I certainly realize this kind of project isn't for the faint of heart so to speak, and not for someone who doesn't have a good bit of experience and understanding of wooden boats.

 

[Ned L]

also back when I was waiting for the boat to arrive home I built replacements for the two side windows in for the wheelhouse area.

Not much left here to start with. You can see what was left of the laminated 'cap' that finished of the curved top edge. These were built the same way as the rails above

As it came apart, it really sort of came apart....

the curved parts of the frame were sound in the middle and rotted on the ends. When looking them over I decided that they required such a wide plank to cut them out of to capture the curve that I would have had to glue them up. With the need to glue them up already a given I decided to salvage what I could of the original and properly scarph on new ends.

Here, down front, you can see the plywood pattern I made of the curve before I started cutting it up. Once I have the new section glued on I will be able to trace and cut the final shape.

Two new ends glued on here.

And trimmed to shape here

And some new windows, incorporating parts of he original curved outer frame.

 

[GA_Boater]

I like that you salvage as much of the original wood as possible, Ned. To me it's keeping her soul and spirit intact. :thumb:

 

[Ned L]

Thank you.
When you see the amount of wood I have replaced, it might not seem so but I do try to save as much original material (wood) as possible.

In wooden boat rebuilding and restoring I have seen over the years that there seem to be two differing philosophies between the U.S. and the UK and Europe. Here, people seem to be perfectly happy to replace everything (except maybe one small piece), and call it a restoration. This seems especially true with the 'mahogany speedboat crowd'. Often times wood is replaced for only cosmetic reasons and not because it is structurally not sound. In the UK and Europe there is more of an attempt to keep as much original material as possible, and accept the dings and blemishes that are part of the history of a boat.
I personally prefer and work to follow the 'European model' and accept that blemishes are part of the boat.

The foredeck being a pretty good example of this,... But that was tedious as anything!

 

[Woodonglass]

Thanks, That's what I have found so far. Slow, but doable.

Start looking for a Singer 15-91. They're a Home Style machine but..They will sew thru 8 layers of Sunbrella Fabric like butter!!! You can usually pick them up on ebay anywhere from $35 - 150. The1950 models are the best but even the1930's get the job done. Only issues are with the old ones you usually have to tear them down and re-wire and Re-Grease them.

http://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat...ine-reliant-barracuda?p=10105220#post10105220

 

[Ned L]

Thank you! I'm familiar with the Singer '201', but haven't heard of he 15-91. That looks maybe like a 201, except the motor is direct drive and not belt driven, which would explain the power. I will see about one of them.

 

[Jeep Man]

Tagging along Ned. You're living my dream. Love these old classics.

 

[Willyclay]

Always wanted to build a wooden boat. This is the next best thing. Great thread!

 

[Ned L]

Thanks!

I took a bit of time to put some more of the forepeak back together.

I completed the refinishing work on the two shelves that go off on the port side and put them back in. They were originally painted all white and I decided to add a bit more brightwork up there. I stained and varnished the face boards.
As they were originally painted it didn't really matter what woods they used, one is mahogany and one is oak. A little bit of a mismatch, but I figure if I don't like them I can always paint them out, back to the original white. --- This is about the only change from the original finish scheme on the whole boat.

Not much left to do up here but to put the locker doors back on and the water tank back in. -- Oh yes, and reinstall the foredeck hatch once I get it rebuilt.

 

[notlef]

Truly a labor of love. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Woodonglass]

Excellent Work Ned! I hope you get her done soon so we can see pics of her maiden voyage and you enjoying the fruits of your labors!!:thumb:

 

[laurentide]

This is amazing. It's a gorgeous boat and your work is first rate. This would also be insane if you didn't love the boat and the work.

I grew up on Long Island and worked in yards sanding and painting wood bottoms as a kid in the 80's, and I now realize that those boats I worked on were the last of their kind. They were almost all locally built for local bay conditions. And they were drop dead beautiful compared to the plastic hulls that replaced them.

My family had a 31' locally built bay boat with twin Palmer V8's and a bridge. It would be pretty uneconomical to run and maintain now, but it was a tank and a great family fishing/cruising boat. This one was built by Sam Jorgensen in Sayville in the mid 60's.

Keep up the excellent work! I'm envious of the time, resources, and energy you have to make this happen! Cheers.

 

[Ned L]

Thank you WOG! I have about 3 - 4 months of time before we can toss her in the water and see what happens. I think I can get things pretty well wrapped up ;by then. It might be a bit of a race to the finish line. ..... We'll see !

 

[Ned L]

Chemicalwire --- Very nice Long Island skiff your family had. I have seen you post pictures of here on at least one other site. What really got me into this project is my interest in the history of the Jersey sea skiffs and their builders. I have the Jersey shore pretty well covered, and have started collecting some information on the builders out on Long Island. I would love seeing some other shots of your families Jorgensen skiff if you have any.

 

[Ned L]

Getting back to the boat again, ............. Some of you may have caught the thread I had on building new windshield sections, so I won't repeat that here.

Hmmm, .... I tried to post a link to the thread, however it only takes you to the main page. If you do a search on "A bit of wood for a new windshield" it will come up, if there is any interest.

http://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat-...new-windshield

 

[Ned L]

Once the pieces were assembled it was time to do some more paint removal . The cockpit coamings had been painted out three years ago. I am returning them to brightwork.

With the paint gone it was time to start fitting the laminated rails

And then see about those side windows that have been waiting for a year too.

There was a lot of fidgety fitting to get these to fit right.

As a side note, .... As was common with a lot of local builders, there must have been separate building crews for each side of this boat (one works on the port side and one works on the starboard side) as a number of fitting details and the fastening details are different between the two sides; so I can't just make a part and fit it on one side then duplicate it for the other.

And finally,.....With the first fitting of all the windshield pieces things are starting to look like they should again.

there is still a lot of fitting to be done before they get fastened in place, and knees and braces added, but it's getting there.
Once I have everything final fitted I will take it back off and pre-finish the inside (stain & varnish) before the final assembly.

This is about where I am up to now, so things will be moving a bit slower from here forward. I think it's a pretty good bit of work for 18 months. Only about 4 to go (hopefully)

 

[Woodonglass]

What are you using to remove all the old paint? The wood really looks nice!!!