birder 2 #55 hits the water

[edt]

My birder 2 hit the water for the first time this evening. It handles well. It was a little windy - the sailboats were not reefed though. There were 6 inch to 1 foot waves with no white caps. The boat is quite stable and easy to handle.

I built a rack to carry the boat on the top of my suv. I wanted the inverted boat supported near the bulkheads. So I built a simple rack out of 1x6 cedar. It clips to the built on rack and straps are used to hold it centered. Seems to work well - time will tell.

I got many favorable comments. It still needs some finishing. Everyone liked seeing the wood and encouraged me not to hide it under paint (and there _are_ imperfections)

Ed

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[Scott Dufour]

Absolutely wonderful. There's nothing like putting wood you made into the the water and having it do all those boaty things it's supposed to do. Congratulations.

[edt]

Its a real good feeling when it actually floats - there have been lots of, half joking, comments about that.

I did have one small problem. Not with the boat but with one of the seats I made. Part of one of the backs unglued along a fibreglass joint. No real problem I just have to make it a bit stronger... Guess thats why they call it a trail.

Ed

[John Burritt]

Boat looks great! Regarding finishing - many folks will paint the hull up to the shear, then do the deck bright. Comes out well. Sometimes too much wood showing is too much of a good thing.

Have fun!

[Kudzu]

Sometimes too much wood showing is too much of a good thing.

BITE YOUR TOUNGE!! :wink: