Arnie Eaton

I have heard on this forum that Glidden Porch and Floor Poly is very good for boats. Home Depot has it for 18 bucks a gal. I have one of the HVLP guns from Harbour Freight and used it on a dink that I made a few years back. Paint looks good after many fishing trips. I also have a small Campbell Hausfeld HVLP setup with gun, pump, and hose which I have yet to use. Plan on using it for the Vacationer soon with the Glidden.

You need to post a better picture. All I got by clicking the above was a picture of a bed. I really thought you were talking about a boat.

Ash is pretty strong stuff. I suggest that you plane it down to 1.5 X .75 and then soak it in water if you need to. Try to bend it before the water treatment and if that don't work soak and then bend it and let dry in place prior to gluing and screwing. The glue will work better if the wood is dry. Epoxy type glue won't work at all if the wood is wet.

Looks like a lot of hard work, where's the sail?

As for a traveller, I found a safety hand rail at a hardware store which was going out of business. Paid 15 bucks for it. It is 42 inches long made of 1.25" stainless and has about 2 inches of space under it, might be enough room for a skinney tiller. I have wheel steering so I don't have a problem that tiller people have. I had it bent to follow the deck curve at a muffler shop where bending pipe of that size is not a problem. It has 3" mounting disks on each end and I used a 3" stainless ring for a slide. Fastened the lower block to it with cord. You can find the rings in a lot of sizes at stores where they sell horse supplies. With a traveller, you can get much better sail control and shape.

Dave check your private messages

Location!, Location!,Location! Sounds like a good deal for someone.

I should have mentioned that this wheel will be only for show, hanging in my shop. I have a 26" pro wheel for my vacationer.

I have a copy of the plan for the neat boat wheel that Kevin Green designed. It calls for 18 small pcs of oak about 3.5" by 9", all 1" stuff. I was about to buy some at the local lumber yard when I had a better idea. We have three cabinet shops in the area so off I go to each of them. Sure enough between the 3 I found enough scrap pcs in their burn piles to get all I need and then some. Saved about $20 bucks. One place had 1X2 pieces over 12 feet long. must of been 10, 12 of them. Food for thought.

Being retired Air Force, Officer and Pilot, after 23 years, I'm not sure if I really like the reference to being a golfer. Only played one game and beat the instructor, and never played again. And yes, the AF had the best of everything, as it should be. Glad our castoffs pleased you all. I also served in the Naval Reserve for 3 years prior to the AF hitch, so I still have a tender heart for Naval personnel. Now the Army is a different story.

I too am making a Vac. I ran the seat backs up and over the deck about 1.5 inches so they are the same angle. A 1/2" half round along the top outside egde finishes the coming right nice. Where the coming meets the cabin side and back, a small wedge of ply fills in nicely.

Greg, The pic of your Craftman router looks just like mine. I could not get the router table to come up the level of the table saw. There is about 3/16" differance between the two. I even redrilled the mounting holes but still could not fit them together so both were even with each other. I like the one I got for Christmas much better as I can remove the router along with the plate to change bits so much easier and can leave it setup and still use my saw. The switch that came with the Craftsman is great so I used it on my good unit. I'm glad yours worked out OK.

I have three router tables, one just like Greg's, a homemade one attached to a work bench, and a really good one which I got for Christmas. The sears one on my table saw is terrible, the fence dosen't line up and the level of the router table will not line up even with the table saw's table. The one I made years ago is normally cover up with junk and too much trouble to clean off. The good one has a great fence, easy to change bits and folds for storage. I took the great switch from the Sears unit and mounted it to this table. Also the Sears unit's fence, had to be taken off each time I used the saw. All in all I'm now happy with my router setup.

On the other side, I would put a layer of epoxy down first and then lay the cloth over it. Use a squeege to smooth out the cloth. Use more epoxy over the cloth if needed.Let this set up and then apply as many coats as needed to fill the weave, letting the epoxy set between coats. Be sure to cut the cloth to fit before applying the epoxy, makes for better work. Should you have bubbles (after the epoxy sets up) cut the glass bubble out and then fit a new pc of glass and epoxy it in place. Good luck and be sure to ask if you get confused. No such thing as a foolist question.

Hi Mike. I just finished the birdsmouth mast. All the construction is basically finished. I just need to glass the hull and assemble all the different parts. I am finding that I don't seem to have the energy to work in the shop very long. Nearly 74 years of age and I am feeling every year. I do have all of every thing needed to finish and I'm sure it will see water this spring come hell or high water, perferably the later. Going on 6 years and that is long enough. Period. Arnie

I just found out that my Father was an inventor. While working for a plywood Mfr many years ago , he invented the boat sharped plugs you see on plywood, where a knot was removed and a canoue shaped plug is inserted. He was a millwright for Walton Plywood in Lowell, Washington for most of his adult life. It's too bad he couldn't patent his work. Working for wages, the Company got the patent instead of my Dad. This happened sometime in the 1920's or 30's.

I really wouldn't worry about the port rails. They should be just fine. They don't add much strenght and should they fail, won't effect much. They are there to keep the paint on the hull from being rubbed off. Just as the name intails.

As it just so happens, I am in the middle of making my "birdsmouth" mast right now. I used a special router bit for mine but the table saw works very good also. Get the copy of "Wooden Boat" mag, Jul/Aug 1999, where a nice article about "Hollow Spars" is written. The article is well written and will lead you to making just what you want. I used staves 3/4" by 1 5/8" for my mast. It is slightly larger then 3 1/2" across. For wood, use Doug Fir if you can find it. Hemlock will work if you use the grade used in finish work for new homes. Either way be sure it is quarter sawn. I'm not sure what wood you have available "down under" but ask your local lumber people what would be best. You don't want cedar as it is somewhat brittle and you do want light weighting wood if you can find it. It should be light, bendable slightly and verticle grain for best results.. If you can't find the magazine, let me know (aeeaton@cybernet1.com) and I will copy it and slow mail it to you. Include your address in the e-mail.

Plywood is not the problem. I have about 15 sheets of DF AB Marine on hand. All 1/4". I bought 25 sheets many years ago for 18 bucks per. Couldn't pass up the bargain.

I have been pouring over the plans for the Sunray and have been thinking of making this boat with plywood. Now the orignal used 1 X 12's for the bottom, sides and deck area. I think plywood would work and be easier to build. Has anyone ever built this boat? If so would you respond with details on how it went and wether you think plywood would work. I'm almost finished with the Vacationer and really need to keep my shop warm.

I've got a 30 gal., 6 HP. Works all my tools and then some. I only wish that I had gotten a vert. one instead of a horz. one. The vert. takes up much less room.

You might just try E-Bay. I found 37 items listed under block and tackle. One I noticed uses 1/2 inch rope.

What's that leaning against the left wall in pic 7? Kinda looks like a unfinished boat of somekind.

Plywood checking is mostly caused by the sun and moisture. Inside won't have a lot of checking if any at all. Pine and other woods won't check at all, only Doug Fir, at least in my experience. I plan on using a good primer and then a good ext. oil paint.

They look very nice. An easy way to make grab rails is to buy a board which is twice as wide as the finish rail will be tall. Then using a large foresner bit, drill four holes in line down the middle of the board. Using Adla's rails as an example, there would be a hole at the begining and ending of each cut out . Then run the whole board thru a table saw right down the middle to make two units. Cut out the middle wood on line from the top of each hole and you're done, except for sanding or rounding over of the edges. Helps if you have a band saw. I used a 3" bit, gives your hand a 1.5" clearance.