Hi Ya'll,
I recently joined the group to get a little practical knowledge from those that have gone before me in this endeavor. I've been woodworking for more than twenty years, mainly cabinetry, furniture, and projects around the home but have always wanted to build a boat. I realized early on that my experience with other woodworking venues would be helpfull but not a guarantee of success and that advice from experienced builders would be invaluable.
I live in Louisiana, about 5 minutes from the Red River and less than a half hour from 6 different lakes. Guess its time to get this project underway, I'm not getting any younger. I am going to start with a simple project and if it turns out to be my bailiwick, I plan to build a houseboat to put on the River and use on weekends.
I look forward to participating in this group and contibuting what I can, as well as picking your brains when it all goes horribly wrong (Murphy is not unknown to me). Good luck in your projects, we'll be talking, I'm sure.
Gary.
Hey there Woodwright, You say you are starting out with a simple project "a Housboat". How about getting your feet wet with something a little smaller like a skiff, tender, or pirouge. After all you are going to want a dinghy for that house boat and it will give you something to toodle around in while taking breaks on that houseboat project. Not to mention some imediate success. Just a thought, Kruez
ReplyDeleteHey, Kruez For my first project, I have settled on building a pirogue (actually pronounced pee-row, little bit af a roll on the "r" ); living in Louisiana what else could it be? If I decide this is to my liking, then I intend to build a houseboat. I have looked into a boatload (no pun intended) of pirogue plans from a variety of sources and didn't find any to my liking so I have been sketching a few ideas of my own. I checked out Will's Cosine Wherry and the strip construction method he used to build it. The work is beautiful and the finished boat is unique and gorgeous. I have been leaning toward a strip-built pirogue using native Louisiana cypress and other hardwoods, designing in watertight compartments for storage fore and aft, provision to mount a trolling motor, and removable padded seats. When I get my ideas down on paper, I'll scan 'em into the site and let you guys check 'em out and see if I'm just whizzin into the fan. Lessez le bon temp roule, Gary.
ReplyDeleteGary, A strip-built pirogue would be a sight to see and a pleasure to row. Sounds cool. I don't belive I have run accross one yet. It will certainly be unique and something to be proud of. Document your progress and we'll add it to the follow-the-build page. Did you see our pirogue page yet? If you know of a link I should add let me know and we'll get-r-done. -Kruez-
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