September, 2009 Update (Please go to the bottom of the blog for most recent update)
March 15, 2009
One of our illustrious colleagues on WBB (Wooden Boat Builder) asked me recently how I came about choosing the Curlew as my next project to build and so I am adding this little memoir to my notes here...
It started many years ago (around 1977) because when I was around 16 years old I had a paper route and worked at a Boy Scout camp and had earned a fair amount of money. During this time I had become, through the Boy Scouts, initiated to water sports like canoeing (heavy, almost indestructible Grumman's) and sailing (we played "pirates" on a small impound lake on Sailfish boats). I became enamored with sailing and the concept that I could harness the wind to take me places. So, with my hard-earned paper route money I bought a used 10' sailing dinghy built of oak ribs and mahogany plywood. The mast was footed in aircraft aluminum and the top third of the spar was made of spruce, I think. The boom was spruce, the mainsail was of saggy nylon, there was no jib and half of the chromed fittings were chromed no more and brass was showing through. All of this for $100. My Dad drove me in our F100 pickup to fetch her home. I spent hours cleaning her up, hand-scrubbing the sail and finished by painting the hull with some aqua-blue marine paint I got at the local hardware store (I think it was Petit's).
She was taken out to my Grandparent's summer house on Big Cedar Lake near Slinger, WI. There I spent many happy hours on the water. Late that fall I was up to the lake with my mom - I think she was closing up the house for the winter and helping my elderly grandparents get ready for the move back to Milwaukee. I took the boat out for one last time. It was a cold, grey day with steady winds. As it was the last sail of my first season I ventured way over to the big east end of the lake where the sailing regattas were always held (I think that I was drawn there by the thought of maybe competing in some of the beginner classes) I was on a running reach and some how got knocked down by a strong gust. I went over and started to turn turtle. The boat had no additional buoyancy other than it was made of wood and ply. The mast had no running rigging and so became un-stepped. So here I am with no life jacket on, I am trying to hang on to the boat to keep from drowning and the mast because I was afraid it would sink and somehow I was trying to use my third hand to wave a red boat cushion over my head to signal anyone for help.
I was extremely fortunate that I am here today to tell this tale as a man had seen me from shore (he was probably admiring my fine little craft and my expert seamanship) as I flipped over. He quickly jumped into his fishing boat and raced out to rescue me... I was towed back to shore shivering and freezing... I only sailed her that one summer - she was stored first in my grandpa's garage at the lake and then got transferred to a neighbor's boathouse the following year. I was busy doing other things and lost track of her. I think that I eventually gave her to that gentleman's grand kids - I never saw her again...
I have decided to go with plywood and cover it with painted canvas as this is more in keeping with the original design and it is much less expensive and much faster to do...
I am having to correct a minor error I made in the original beams... where they butt into the sides of the hull they ended being slightly higher and at a different top angle so now as I lay the plywood down, I have a big gap all along the underside of the deck edge.
I am now using my power planer and hand plane to "shave" down the top edge of the beams and ribs so that the plywood lies flat along the hull edge...
July 6, 2009
All of the decking is roughed in. I need to now prime and paint the undersides and then plan to attach the decking with screws and 3M 5200 sealant/adhesive. I will post pictures tomorrow here on my blog...
July 20, 2009
The priming is done finally, now I need to move on to painting the undersides with the interior finish coat.
I have been very pleased using the Porch Paint from ACE. It has performed beautifully and has developed a very tough film that I can attest to as I have bounced a few tools off of the interior bottom and floors and haven't done any real damage to the finish
July 25, 2009
Decking is now roughed in and I am getting ready to paint the deck framing and underside of the plywood before I screw and glue it all down.
I got a great bargain through work the other day. I picked up 25 6" clamps like you see here for $1.00 apiece. The new ones I just got actually have a bolt with nut through them instead of just a pin (which occasionally slips out). These new clamps have about a 3" capacity and will work just fine...
You will see that I have some paper laid out on the starboard bench. This is "green-line" computer paper I get as scrap from work. It works beautifully for so many things like scratch notes, basic layout and plans, pattern making, paint catching, etc.
Here is a shot of me trimming the edges of the plywood. I am using a Stanley Low-angle block plane (I have two of them) which is just about my favorite hand tool. I use it for so many things and not just for difficult wood grain although it excels at that. I like it for standard edge planing too as it has a nice heft and fits comfortably in my hand. The whole key to using planes is to keep those blades SHARP!
I hand hone all of my blades. I use a diamond stone (mine a DMT brand) for basic grinding of the blade and then switch to Arkansas soft and hard stones respectively. I finish up by stropping the blades on an old leather harness strap. I do not use a honing guide as I have had lots of practice at this. I imagine as I get older and a little less steady that I might go to a guide...
Well, the bow section is calling my name as I need to put the final paint coat in the interior and paint the underside of the bow decking so I can get the hull closed up.
From this point I will finish sanding, staining, and varnishing the centerboard box. I sealed and varnished the inside of the box (the board slot) when I put it together but I think that I am going to apply several additional diluted sprays of varnish using a tank sprayer and wand to insure as much protection as possible to a rather inaccessible area. I will use a long bottle brush-type tool to put a final full strength coat on. A friend put me onto the idea of using a long cotton wool swab that is used for cleaning shotgun barrels. They hold alot of material and should work great for this application. I will let you know after I have experimented with this idea.
September 14, 2009
The deck is on now. I have placed a bead of PL Adhesive on all of the tops of the beams, breasthook, etc and placed heavily galvanized screws every 4 - 5 inches. This deck is not going to move except with a fair wind following... lol. All of the screw holes were filled with wood putty and I am ready to turn the hull so I can touch up the priming and paint. I had primed the hull several years ago but because it spent a winter outside under a leaky tarp in northern Wisconsin it has come off in a few spots and I need to touch up/repair one of the plywood scarfs.
I have chosen a deep blue color as the main color with the buff (light tan) interior paint as the accent stripe and topside color. I am going to need to recruite a few friends to assist with getting the hull over and on its sawhorses. I figure on allowing the paint to cure about 1 - 2 weeks before righting the hull again. I should be able to get the iron swing-keel epoxied and installed by that point and then I would like to do a trial launch to make sure the damn thing doesn't sink (otherwise its going to end up being a very expensive lawn ornament!).
I am very excited to get her afloat with an official launching in the spring under full sail. This brings up a question I have - has anyone in the group had experience using the "navy" style anchors. How well do they work? Problems or issues? I figure that I will need at least two anchors and with a 16' boat each one should be about 18-22 lbs.? This is assuming that I will be doing occasional sailing on Lake Superior with stronger water movement, winds. I have also considered the "danforth" style... Any suggestions.
The failing economy (and my business) forced me to stop most of the work on Curlew. I was having to sell the greenhouse property and try to reestablish my flower shop in a new location, move to a new home, and struggle to make a living. At no time did the boat itself really cost me that much to build. I had the tools, I had most of the materials other than the plywood, and I rarely spent more than an hour or two at any given time working on her. She now sits as you know in my shop (converted garage). We have moved to a rental place on another lake north of town where I hope to launch her this summer once I finish the deck, build the spars and rig her. We shall see lol....
