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Building the Mess About


DwightM

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I'm a newbee, first boat, I'm a woodworker, gardener and mess about...

I bought Jeff book 'More Fuselage Frame Boats and picked out the Mess About, I don't know why.

I have the frames cut out and the strongback is in our sun room. Worked on the stringers today, cutting the Scarf joints.

I will try and attached some pic

I'm new at this so I hope all goes well.

First pic is half way through a cut.

It's an eleven inch cut.

Second pic is pulling the sled back after the cut, I can leave the saw running with no kick back.

Third is the sled off the saw.

 

I may junk these stringers and cut some from different wood. These are simple pine.

 

Dwight from Northern Kentucky

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Glad you joined in. Love watching boats go together.  The Mess About is a good paddling boat.

 

One thing you will learn really quick about me. I harp on the subject of jigs for cutting the scarf joint and the reason is, I mangled a thumb with one very similar to  yours.  I learned the hard way that sleds are not a good idea. The link below is to a shot of my thumb taken in the ER. It's not a pretty site, but this is why I harp on scarf jigs. I don't want you to have to experience this.

 

WARNING: graphic image

http://www.kudzupatch.com/temp/mythumb1.jpg

http://www.kudzupatch.com/temp/mythumb2.jpg

 

The problem is that you cut off should fall off the sled and not say on it. You really should cut your sled off flush this blade. What will evetually happen is one of the cut-offs will vibrate over to the blade and it will pick it up and toss it at you with amazing speed. I was standing out of 'line of fire'. I reached across to turn off the saw and my hand just happened to be in line when it tossed the cut off at me. 

 

I going to create an FAQ entry about scarf jigs. Mean time here is a rather long article about my search for a safe scarf jig. 

http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/11/howto/scarfjig/index.htm

 

BTW, I don't for a minute think mind is not capable of a kickback! I do think the risk is about as low as I cam make it with what I know.

 

 

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About 16 years ago I cut my thumb ( my right thumb) on this table saw, the table tilts, not the blade, my thumb was hanging by the skin.

A great Dr. put it back together, it still looks funny.

I got a very smooth cut and they glued together very well.

Thanks for the information.

My Mess about well be put on hold for a few weeks, my wife said she wants to go to South Florida, so we may be leaving next week.

 

Jeff you book is just what I needed to get inspired.

 

Dwight

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Well, I sort of agree, but Fine Woodworking rates the radial arm saw as the most dangerous. And surprisingly, the machine that cuts the most people is the band saw, likely because it runs quietly, and people don't respect it as much.

 

I've been working wood, and building boats, since the late 60's, and I too still have all my digits :)  But I did get a finger tip into a router bit one time!!

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I know there are a lot radial arm saw haters but I couldn't work without one. I don't do rip cuts on it, but that is about it.  The table saw commands more respect from me. I wouldn't say I am scared of it, but I am a lot more cautious on it. I have never had even a close call on the RAS, can't remember all the times the table saw scared the crap out of me.

 

I hunted for a long time to find this saw. This is right after I restored it and put it into use.

 

after4.jpg

 

As for the bandsaw, it's a sleeping monster! It is the only machine I have ever gotten a finger in the blade on. I think it is a safer machine, but that lulls you into be careless. Then it bites you! 

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....but Fine Woodworking rates the radial arm saw as the most dangerous. 

 

Do they give any reasons why?  Just curious.

 

I know people are terrified and expect thing the to lunge out and rip out a lung or something. But if you have one hand on the handle. the other out of the line of the blade, there isn't much going to happen other then soiling your shorts if it lunges at you. While scarey, it's not going to  hurt you. But with a proper blade. which almost no one uses, it's very rare for one to lunge.

 

Not trying to talk anyone into one, but it and a bandsaw are just indispensable in my shop.

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I suspect it was due to the fact that radial arm saw accidents tend to be way more serious than other saws- like half a hand chopped off from being careless. The book is packed away under some crap out in the shop, so I can't look easily.

 

And that was exactly the point on the band saw- people tend to feel it's a safe tool, get careless and get a finger (or a thumb)into the blade. It just hums along quietly, but it'll sure bite.

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Couple of questions...In the Book 'More Fuselage Frame Boats', on page 62, I used the tables to cut the frames needed for the Mess About.

No problem, but what are the two tables  below giving X Z 'offsets' labeled stern and bow used for ??

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Ripping is problematic on a radial arm saw ... I had an piece I was ripping kick back and go through the drywall and out the stucco behind me. I guess that could happen with a table saw as well.

 

I hurt myself with chisels more than anything else. I follow extreme safety rules now ... I'm never in the shop, so nothing in there can cut me ....

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Couple of questions...In the Book 'More Fuselage Frame Boats', on page 62, I used the tables to cut the frames needed for the Mess About.

No problem, but what are the two tables  below giving X Z 'offsets' labeled stern and bow used for ??

Keep reading and look at the the assembled frame. The bow and stern pieces are pretty self explanatory  They are what shape the bow and stern.

 

Frank, that will work,  but a little extreme for me.  :D

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Ran into a problem when I was fitting the stringers to the first and last frames, if I twisted the stringer to  fit it would twist and not fit the other frames.

Everything else fits OK. So I will cut two more frames to get things lined up.

 

Humm can't find the load photo button

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Sounds like you should have started in the middle and then twisted the ends in place? Hard to know exactly what you are talking about without seeing it. But the ends often a have a pretty sever twist in them. One some boats I have to make the slots line up with the stringer and how it lays in the previous frame and not alight with the frame.

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  • 2 weeks later...

My 'Mess About is a little messed up.

I got it lashed together and turned it over to find frame 8'6" was too big at it's bottom. It is 1/2" lower than then the other frames.

I checked the offsets, the other stringers look great, just the one frame pushing the keel down.

 

Another question, should the bow and stern be made of plywood or would it be OK to use a solid wood ?

 

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