Hirilonde Posted March 21, 2016 Posted March 21, 2016 The key is the green background, cept in my case, the brownish green. Watch out, you might just finish this thing! Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 21, 2016 Author Posted March 21, 2016 Well. I got the cloth all draped on and trimmed roughly. I got some of the 6oz. cloth, and the weave is loose, so it's easy to disturb. Just as easy to rub right back into shape, too, with your thumb. Anyone using this cloth should REALLY round over every corner-like surface. I left a few that I thought I got. No big. Just take your time, eh? I don't want to sound negative, because I am VERY excited about this cloth! Also, I decided I really did need to make the stem thicker. I split a piece of 3/4 inch pine. You rip that with a ryoba saw, and put the surfaced sides in for glue, sawn sides out for shaping. I had plans to shape them a little on the bench, but thought I'd rather just carve on the boat. The trunnels are the scientifically calculated best places to leave it full thickness... I left the oil off this bit in anticipation I might glue on pads. Boy, am I smart, or what? What? Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 21, 2016 Author Posted March 21, 2016 Oops. This is the trimmed cloth photo... Shows the shape well, even baggy. Quote
Kudzu Posted March 22, 2016 Posted March 22, 2016 You are on the money with that fabric. I really don't like it except for the price. The weave is just so loose. But I just ordered another 400 yards today because it sells good. Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 22, 2016 Author Posted March 22, 2016 I bought some extra cloth on purpose, just to mess with. It reminds me very much of fiberglass cloth in every way except hand, the way it feels. It's certainly a long way from the #10 cotton duck I covered my first kayak with! I have been informed this one needs to be pink. Not girlie pink, punk rock pink. With black graphics. Geez. I thought this was my boat... Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 22, 2016 Author Posted March 22, 2016 My oldest two kids. They have been around long enough, though, to know dad is so cheap he's going to use whatever mis-tinted gloss paint shows up in his life, because that's what I do. People often ask me where I get such and such color. The answer is almost always that someone else rejected it, and I paid a fraction of the price. Of course, my luck will have me finding some fuchsia porch and floor on my next trip... Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 22, 2016 Author Posted March 22, 2016 Whose dumb idea was it to carve this thing while it was attached to the end of a long of flimsy boat skeleton? Oh, right. Actually, the boat ain't all that flimsy, as you all might know, but the inside hook of the jaw was a bear. I got crazy with the chisel, then brought out the big gun... my tiny shave! Now I'm going to oil it up, and think about starting to stitch up the butt end of this thing... Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 22, 2016 Author Posted March 22, 2016 Easy, Tiger. Those puckers come right out with a little longitudinal tension, such as will be present when the stems and coaming are sewn in. This is something I would not want to try without the cords. I can smell the finish line... Or is that the oil drying on the other end? Quote
Rich D Posted March 23, 2016 Posted March 23, 2016 Very nice stitching. For some reason I get a wavy line of stitching all the way down the boat. Happens with both the 11 oz and the 6 oz. Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 23, 2016 Author Posted March 23, 2016 Oh, man. Further aft the fabric started unraveling at the edge. I cut with a hot knife, but maybe not melty enough? Any way, I did some judicious steering of the seam further aft to keep a decent hem allowance, then decided to hide my creative solution by deliberately stitching a wavier seam. I'll post photos tomorrow when I take them. To keep the seam straight, I keep the two cords relatively taut and use the center stringer to keep the stitches even and centered. And lots of dumb luck. I kind of Forrest Gump my way through life, after all... Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 23, 2016 Author Posted March 23, 2016 The stem is oiled and pretty darn dry, so by the time I sew my way down there, it should be ready. Meantime, back at the aft half again. That severe curve is where the fabric edge began to unravel. I think my hot knife didn't melt the edge enough. Anywho, I couldn't really shift the cloth that rapidly, so I just decided to move the seam. Fortunately I left a generous allowance. Then, later on, I just decided to keep up the random curves. I may even put some false seams in a couple of spots to make it look more patchwork, like a real skin boat. Whatever. I am too easy going to let a wavy seam bug me. Much. Notice in the second photo you can see the stringers right through the cloth. Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 23, 2016 Author Posted March 23, 2016 Okay, there. Nice and crooked. I like it. Makes me regret the dead straight part up by the cockpit... I think I may stitch two random strips together with cords and oversew them branching off the straight part of the seam. I'm probably going to meander with the bow seam, too. Maybe add another false seam up there. Embrace the fauxnachronistic spirit a bit, and, more importantly, artfully cover what could have been a big mistake. I was able to pull this cloth tight enough to see the lashings, with not too many holes. There are a few pull holes, but nothing major. I wanted a light cloth, and I got one. Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 23, 2016 Author Posted March 23, 2016 The hard part was getting the seam back to center. There is one slight wrinkle on this side of the stern, and a few on the deck that may iron out, but I won't iron much of this half. It is plenty tight. I may get to the front half of this boat today. I don't know, though. It feels I'm moving uncomfortably fast. Quote
Rich D Posted March 24, 2016 Posted March 24, 2016 Nice recovery from what might have been a 'do over'. I once saw a picture of a boat that had been skinned with several different random pieces on the deck. The idea was to look like it had been pieced from seal skins. Looked pretty cool. Here's my stitching issue. I follow the deck ridge OK but each stitch pulls a 'zigzag' into the corded seam. Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 24, 2016 Author Posted March 24, 2016 One of my first boats needed quite a few darts, because of the shape, the stiffness of the cloth, and my inexperience. The darts gave it the appearance of being multiple cloths, so I did a few other boats with actual patches. The only advice I can give on zig zag is to be sure you pull the same amount on both sides. The trick to steering the seam is to pull less tension on one side and more on the other. I think a light variation in how much you are pulling makes the zig zag... Which is barely noticeable, by the way. Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 24, 2016 Author Posted March 24, 2016 Stitching break. My finger tips are tired from learning new songs on the uke, pruning citrus, and rolling cloth around a cord... I thought about my above comments more. The important thing is to make sure the cloth stays centered, and both stitches pull the same amount. If the distance from centerline is the same, and constant, for both stitches, the line will be straight. Putting one stitch in the middle of the stringer and one 1/2 inch to port, for example, will pull the seam towards the port side. You can use this method to steer the seams (ask me how I know!), so I imagine that could be the cause. There are so many variables here, though, from the shape of the vessel to the batch of cloth, the type of cord, stitching thread... It is pretty hard to get dead straight seams and perfectly smooth and tight cloth. Certainly with this scrim weight stuff. Then again, if I wanted a smooth boat with no wrinkles, I wouldn't use cloth to cover it... 1 Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 25, 2016 Author Posted March 25, 2016 I think the stern looks kind of pretty with the light shining through. And I think my "random", wavy stitch on the fore deck looks suspiciously like a pattern... No more fooling, it's a straight seam right to the bow from here! Quote
Action Tiger Posted March 28, 2016 Author Posted March 28, 2016 Sewed all the way to the front, but not the stem(s?), yet. I got some heavy garden work and another race this week, so I'll rest my fingers for a few days while I get out a coaming form... Quote
Abyssdncr Posted March 29, 2016 Posted March 29, 2016 Okay, there. Nice and crooked. I like it. Makes me regret the dead straight part up by the cockpit... I like it too. Gives me an idea for the Tadpole. I saw a guy who did a wicked sweet strip cedar deck on a S&G who just made a big "S" along the length of the deck with white cedar & red cedar having the center of the "S" at the cockpit. Not sure how much fun that would be to do on purpose with the stitched seam, but it would make a nice artsy to demarcation line for the colors. She picked out punk rocker pink and aqua-marine about a month ago for her trim colors. Quote
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