Jim Robinson

Thanks, thats really helpful. Jim

Hi, after a 6 month delay I'm read to finish my Birder 2. It's getting warm enough to get out again. I'm ready to do the deck and am puzzling over the best way to proceed. Any tips on getting a nice smooth cockpit cutout? The instructions seem to imply that the cockpit should be cut out prior to installing. I'll need to use 3 sections for the deck, I don't have any plywood long enough to use just 2. It seems it would be pretty hard cutting these sections out to final shape prior to installing. I assume the deck is reinforced underneath on the cockpit cutout edge. Is this done with plywood, or solid stock? Finally, any tips on installing the coming? Thanks for any tips. This is my first non-kit boat. Jim

Hey that looks great, and what a great work area. After installing the inwhales and temporary prop my hull popped into a decent shape. I didn't wrestle with it too much. I get obsessed and think I see a twist everywhere but this one looked pretty good without too much fussing. Are you doing a keel? I'm leaning towards it. I haven't quite figured out how to insure it goes on straight. I drew a centerline on the bottom for just that purpose but it ended up on the inside of the boat :shock: Jim

I finally made some real progress on the Birder 2. Thanks for all the tips from Charlie and others. I was concerned that I had missed some critical dimensions as it looked nothing like a birder before today. However, after inserting the temporary spreader and bulkheads it shaped up nicely. I did a a few things not mentioned in the plans but which I found helpful. First, the sides had to be pulled up to meet the temporary prop and also the bulkheads. I actually bolted the prop to the sides with a small crew. The hole is just below the inwales at the seem where the sides join. Its a small hole and that area will be fiberglass taped anyway. I used a single copper wire tie at the top of the bulkheads on each side to pull the sides up to them. I had to move them slightly from the plans to achieve both a good fit and a fair curve. The wires gave me very good control over the shape. The hull trued up very nicely. Currently the interior filet and taping is done. The boat might actually see the water before it gets too cold. Jim

Hi, thanks for the reply. Yes it does use the spreader/spacer, and no I do not have that in yet. I was following the order in the construction guide, the third step is "tie the hull and insert bulkheads", thats why I was puzzling over it. The next steps are to install the inwales and put in the temporary prop. I will wait till then and hope for the best. It doesn't say this anywhere, but I assume one function of the cockpit doubler is to help the bottom hold its curved shape after the tempoary prop is removed. Jim

OK, this is probably a dumb question, but what is the best way to attach the bulkheads to the hull? I have the hull tied up and sitting on a flat surface (the floor). Do I drill holes in the side of the hull and wire them in? I hesitate to make hulls in the hull but don't know how else to do this. The fit of the bulkheads is not great, especially the front one. There's a good 1/2" gap at the chines. Should I try to cinch the sides up to get as close as possible? I realize the boat has not formed its final shape, but as it sits there is a pronounced rocker in the bow, the bottom is 2" off the floor 10" back from the nose. Thanks for any advice. Jim

You are making rapid progress on those. I have the "butterfly" glued up both sides, tommorrow I will attempt to fold it into shape. I'll probably compromise and go with 4oz on the bottom and hull. On my clc kayaks I did 6 oz, at least it appeared to be that to me, on the hull and and 4 oz on the deck. After 2 seasons they are scratched but no scratch has penetrated to the plywood. In retrospect those kits are probably overkill, the inside of the cockpit is glassed as well!

You are making rapid progress on those. I have the "butterfly" glued up both sides, tommorrow I will attempt to fold it into shape. I'll probably compromise and go with 4oz on the bottom and hull. On my clc kayaks I did 6 oz, at least it appeared to be that to me, on the hull and and 4 oz on the deck. After 2 seasons they are scratched but no scratch has penetrated to the plywood. In retrospect those kits are probably overkill, the inside of the cockpit is glassed as well!

OK, thanks everyone, the polyester will stay in its can, probably forever. Its nasty stuff anyway. I did not realize B&B shipped epoxy, I will check that out. Jim

Has anyone used polyester resin instead of epoxy for coating there boats? I have a gallon of the stuff left over from earlier surboard building projects. I am not considering it for the seams, will use epoxy for that, but what is the downside to using it to coat the hull? My current boat project is a Birder 2, using Okoume plywood. I have enough epoxy for the seams but will need to order more to coat the hull, thus my question. Plus its not easy to find a use for a gallon of polyester resin. Thanks Jim