Sunday, August 3, 2008

Curlew Update

this afternoon I predrilled the screw holes for the bench seating.  I can pull these planks out now and prime the transom (I never got around to doing it when the rest of the interior was primed).  Then I can stain and varnish the benches and get plenty of varnish in the screw holes so they are resistant to moisture.  I need to get some 1-1/4" brass woodscrews for the benches - thought I had some but I guess not...
 
A friend has given me an old wood 'Snipe' sailboat.  It sounds like the hull is not salvagable except with a tremendous amount of work but the spars and sails are in good shape so I am planning on salvaging the hardware, cleats, chocks, turnbuckles, etc., and am thinking of adapting the mast to the Curlew depending on dimensions and soundness.  Otherwise I will continue with building my own mast and using the mast hardware from the Snipe...

9 comments:

  1. Copy of post from "Paint" question...    Interior gets painted today - YEAH.  I ended up getting some exterior oil-based porch and floor paint from work at a good price.  I hope the color choice works out.  I wanted an off-white for the interior and so went with a very light creamy tan color and then the hull is being painted with a dark blue marine bottom paint from Valspar.  All of the benches, and surface wood trim are being stained medium brown and then varnished.  I will try and post pictures if I can borrow my daughter's camera.  Noone here has yet to locate the cable from my digital camera lol.   I haven't decided if I am going to paint the waterline a different color or just do an accent stripe below the gun'ls, hmmmmm.   Everyone take care and have a great day...   Andy

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  2. The paint came out beautifully.  The finish is a great color (looks light buff) and has cured to a very hard (but flexible) finish.  I have put one coat of stain on the bench seats and the second coat is going on today.    Has anyone used a polyurethane made by Minwax called Spar Urethane?  It is listed for both indoor and outdoor use.  Obviously I am interested in the outdoor use as it states that it is used for o.d. furniture, exterior doors, etc.  I may give this product a try as I am looking for something with the attributes of spar varnish but a much quicker drying time.  I have often used varnish and it can take several days to a couple of weeks to cure properly.  This Minwax product is UV stabilized and is listed to dry in 4 hours and be fully cured in 24.   I am going to roll the boat out of the shop today and snap some pictures.  Found the camera usb cable so should be able to post a couple of shots...

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  3. A few new pictures in my Curlew album http://groups.msn.com/WoodenBoatBuilder/16daysailer.msnw?albumlist=2 .  Stained the seats - pine planks stained with ACE Walnut stain.  I am definitely going to use the Minwax Spar Urethane.  I called the company help line and they assured me that it is perfectly compatible for marine use and will provide excellent UV protection.  I still love spar varnish but in this case I don't want to "yellow" the walnut stain.   The oars are made from 100 year old white pine harvested here in the northwoods of Wisconsin.  I will also stain them to match.  I plan to use traditional horned oarlocks with them...   Andy

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  4. Andy, nice pix. I am interested in your oars. Did you work from a plan. They look like they are gona do the job. I have been using a set of stock oars with my Flapjack this season. They have been OK but I am looking forward to rowing with a balanced set. I'm still exploring options. By the way, I am envious that you were distracted by fishing this year. I've managed to get the Flapjack on the water about once a week for a good row, but my distractions from completing the mast , rudder, etc.have been from building a new roof, studying for my boards, and several other projects that have not been nearly so much fun as messing with boats!

    Winks

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  5. These oars were patterned after an old set my neighbor has.  I trimmed them down more to make them a little more "elegant."  I could take the dimensions and post them here if you or anyone else is interested.   Oh yeah, when I say 100 yr old lumber, I mean that the trees that this wood came from was harvested over a 100 years ago.  The boards came out of my old greenhouse operation where they were part of the office structure - no I didn't go out and buzz down a hundred year old pine lol...  I believe in salvaging lumber where ever possible because it is less expensive, saves our timber resources, and more often than not it is better quality material...   Good to hear from you Winks and good luck with the exams and your house (and of course the Flapjack)   Andy

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  6. Continuing with the update.  I now have all of the deck framing done for the sides and aft deck and have all of the support backing plates in for the deck fittings.  I still need to paint the interior of the foredeck area but need to install the backing plates for the chainstays first.   Bench seats have been permanently screwed down and as my step-daughter puts it, "Oooohhhh, they're so shiney!!!"! (lol).  I varnished the bench planks top and bottom before installing them for extra waterproofing...  She is almost sixteen now and being the smart alec she is, likes to tease me about my "infatuation" with boatbuilding!   I am hoping to start cutting the materials up for the decking this weekend.  Depends on the weather because I will have to do it out in the driveway as the planks are 18 ft long.  A friend may come over to help me handle the long strips although I do have roller support stands and sawhorses to assist me but his extra hands will be welcome...   Hope I am not boring everyone with the blow-by-blow accounting but it helps me keep my ambition level up, especially as Ruffed grouse season has opened up here in Wisconsin and the woods keep calling me (lol)...

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  7. Hi Andy "infatuation" is a bit strong "Obsession" wood be a better word he!he! Bogs

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  8. You could be right.  My wife did one of those email questionaires (q) that friends send each other and she listed on one of them that MY favorite thing to do is mess around (work on) my sailboat project.   I am taking a short break from the boat while I build a workbench.  I am tired of not having a decent place to plane wood and store tools so I've downloaded some plans from the net and am going to build one.  I have all of these salvaged 3x5 white pine beams that I am going to use for the framework.  Last night I got out my "antique" No.7 Bailey Jointing plane (18" long) and took about 20 minutes to smooth down one of these beams.  Under all of the weathered patina and coarse-sawn edges and sides is some beautiful wood.  Only found one nail in this particular one.  I am going to go to one of my local lumbermills in the area and buy some seasoned maple for the top.  The bench screws will have to wait until I can afford to get them.  Even an economy set is going to run me around $125.    We have one of those retail stores here in town that buys out warehouse lots of merchandise and resells them at a cheap price.  You know, discontinued items, warehouse overstocks, going out of business merchandise, etc.  Well, the guy who owns this particular place has now opened up a lumberyard with odd lots and cut-offs from area sawmills.  I am going to go check him out - no telling what kind of bargains I can find :)!!!!   Andy   p.s.  Did you and your family go on your trip?  How did it go - hope you lots of fun...

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  9. Hi Andy triip not till 13th oct been digging worms when doing the garden at work talk about two birds with one stone, Will let you know how it goes Bogs

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