Introduction...

[mdevour]

Greetings,

I’m building a small sailboat with my daughter and some of her friends from school. I’ve put together the web site in my signature to record our progress.

http://www.eskimo.com/~mdevour/conclusion.jpg

I’m a decent woodworker and all around handyman, but this is my first boat. Amazingly enough, I've been finding out there are a lot of things that aren’t the same when you’re building a boat as when you’re knocking together a coffee table or a patio deck. :D

I had the good fortune to have a long talk with a fellow who has many years of wooden boat experience to help me get started. One hour with him set me straight on enough stuff to get me well into the project. Unfortunately, he’s no longer available due to family circumstances, which leaves me still with a lot of questions that need answering before I can go much further.

I’ve been reading everything I can get my hands on about boat building, so my knowledge is the sort of hodge-podge you’d expect from somebody with more ‘book learnin’’ than experience.

I’ll have questions on stuff like bungs, sequence of operations, adhesives and bedding compounds, finishing and so on. There’s a lot of this I think I know, but will need to confirm with folks that know they know. I’ve read threads on this forum lately that have already given me some of my answers, so I’m pretty sure this is the right place to ask!

The designers gave only general suggestions on how to rig the boat, so I’m also working out the details of a slightly too ambitious sail plan – some of which I need to know to finish up the hull, naturally. I wonder if we can handle those questions here, or if I should put them on the Designs/Plans forum?

http://www.eskimo.com/~mdevour/mastup.jpg

Thank you all for the generous assistance I’ve already seen you give to others on this forum. I look forward to learning more from you, and most important, being able to go forward with this neat little project and getting these young'uns out on the water!

Be well,

Mike

[Nicholas Carey]

Welcome to the zoo, skipper :D

That looks like a fun project.

I'm pretty sure I speak for everybody here when I say we'll give you whatever support you need (sometimes more than you might like—we're kinda fond of diversity of opinion 'round these parts.)

Keep us updated.

Cheers,

Nicholas
--
BTW, check the project I've been working on for the last three years: we're restoring Pirate (http://www.r-boat.org/), a 1926 R-class sloop.

[ 03-09-2003, 01:05 AM: Message edited by: Nicholas Carey ]

[Concordia..41]

Congratulations and welcome aboard! A/k/a Ask and ye shall recieve. :D

Seriously, ask any question that arises, and there will be someone around here that's already "been there done that."

You'll also find the search feature in the upper right is a valuable resource. Sometimes you'll have to search a couple of sections, i.e. here and Resources and Products if you were looking for information on bung cutters.

Your website is amazing and shows a tremendous amount of time and dedication already. My prediction is that four lovely ladies (and some big guy with a beard) are going to construct a well-built boat to be proud of.

Enjoy!

- Margo
http://www.sailingwithsarah.com

[Roger Stouff]

Welcome aboard. Looks like a great project, particularly with kids.

[Paul Scheuer]

Welcome aboard, Mike et. al. Looks like you're going to need a bigger boat soon, or maybe a couple of what you've got. What is the design? Someone here has probably built one or something similar. Keep the pics comming, and, don't worry too much about appropriate forums, most of us read them all.

[mdevour]

Thank you, everyone. That's the kind of response I'd come to expect from reading past threads!

Paul, the boat is called a Weekend Skiff. The plans are from a book, Building the Weekend Skiff (http://www.tillerbooks.com/books/weekendskiff.html), from Tiller Books (http://www.tillerbooks.com/), by a couple of guys from the Baltimore area who designed it to be an easy building, reasonable cost project for kids and first-timers like me.

Yup, the boat'll barely be big enough for all four girls while they're still young. However, it'll be seldom enough they're all together in the years to come, it'll do, I think.

Thank you for the kind words on the web site, Margo. I've kept the digital camera handy all along, just so I could present a pictorial record of our work. There've been a few useful tricks and foibles we've worked out that I'd like others to have who want to give this boat a try.

I've searched the archives to good effect on a number of questions and will continue to do so. A lot of what remains ends up being specific to this boat, in the state it's in now, and hobbled by my ... ummm ... 'unique' stage of learning. ;)

http://www.eskimo.com/~mdevour/construction.jpg Joining the sides to the stem

Again, thank you all. I'll be posting more questions, with pictures, in the coming days.

Be well,

Mike

[Wild Dingo]

Gidday and welcome Mike and crew!!

There is a huge wealth of information on the archives of the woodenboat forum on just about any subject you or they can think of! and there is always the option of simply asking... someone will respond even if its just to bump it back up till someone with more knowledge turns up to answer! :D

Best of luck to both you and the girls mate

[ken mcclure]

Hi, Mike and crew, and welcome!

Love the project - love the site! And I'm willing to bet that this is only the beginning.

Don't forget to include the crew here - they may want to read the questions, answers and banter that goes on too! And I, for one, would love to "hear" their comments about the experience and the process.

[htom]

Welcome to the riot, Mike.

[Mr. Know It All]

Great project and with kids involved, of course we'll help if we can. smile.gif Good on ya Mike and welcome to the Forum.
Peace---> Kevin in Ohio

[NormMessinger]

Reseaching the forum is good but sometimes it is easier just do a new Q&A. Don't be bashful. It looks like you done well so far. Best wishes.

[ 03-09-2003, 01:53 PM: Message edited by: NormMessinger ]

[Bayboat]

Mike, it's a beautiful project. You made a good choice for your first boat. The Weekend Skiff is easy to build, but a real boat. You've certainly come to the right place for advice and a cheering section. You will get responses in either Building/Repair or Design; as said above, we read both of them. So ask away.

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

Some would call Wooden Boats a passion, others a sickness, and sometimes both in the same day :D
Welcome aboard... And I can tell you that the days I spent with my family boating as a kid were the best of my life..as they will for you and yours smile.gif

[Ian G Wright]

Welcome,,,,,,,
,,,,,and may I be the first to tell you that you are doing it all wrong.

IanW. ;)

[mdevour]

Ian wrote:
Welcome, and may I be the first to tell you that you are doing it all wrong.
;) :D Ohh boy, Ian! My wife was looking over my shoulder when I checked the thread and we *both* busted out laughing! About split a rib, err, frame! Thank you! :D

Peter, I am indeed really looking forward splashing this one and getting the kids and my bride out in her (one or two at a time!).

I'll be sending links for these threads to the families & kids as they develop, Ken.

Everyone, thank you for the welcome!

Be well,

Mike

[John Shin]

Looks like a great choice for a group of teen-agers. (outdated term?) Those are fortunate girls to have a father/friend to build them a boat.

[paul oman]

Great, you're off to a good start!

On my last kayak building project I had to tell the wife I was making bookcases just to get the wood into the garage. After starting to connect the pieces she saw what a oddly shaped bookcase it was. We still laugh about it - well, I do anyway....

paul oman