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Converting Long Shot * part six

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This is a two for one post.. I am going to update you on the boat and do a quick review or first impressions if you will, of the Critter Sprayer.

I believe I mentioned previous that I read somewhere that all/most/some Baidarka frames were dyed red. No idea why and not sure if anyone knows. I would guess they used blood to stain them and it was for religious or superstitious reasons. I always thought it was a neat idea and red will contrast with the painted skin really well, so that is why I wanted to try it.

I asked on a wood working forum I frequent and the overwhelming consensus was to use Aniline dye. It will mix with a lot of different media and water was the one thing I had plenty of. So I heated some water, added the dye till it was dark blood-red and them put it in the fridge to cool.

I set up the frame outside and here you can see the end results. The new wood accepted the color much better and is much brighter. The old wood is darker and looks more like a blood-red color. Once it is skinned I think I the new wood will be much less obvious and it should all blend in just fine.

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Now, the Critter sprayer. Let me start by saying I am impressed over all. It worked well and clean up took 3, minutes TOPS! It take 30 minutes minimum, to clean my HVLP gun. That along is a huge selling feature.

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The only thing I didn’t like was the vent hole to allow air into the mason jar. It locate on top of the lid with no baffling. Trying to spray inside the boat and I would be holding the gun at odd angles and that allowed a dye to leak or slosh out. Of course I ended up with it on my hands. With something thicker than water I think it would be much less likely to leak out as easy. After realizing what happened I tried to keep the gun more level and didn’t have it happen again.

It has one spray pattern, a round(ish) smaller spray pattern and  you can’t adjust it. It’s much like spraying with a rattle can, just larger. It took me 3 or 4 attempts at adjusting the siphon nozzle height to get it spraying like I wanted. But that is quick and easy to do.

You find the Critter sprayer online for $40 or less. It looks like a toy but my first impressions say otherwise. It is much like an oversized air brush. I wouldn’t want to paint anything really large with it, but as easy as it is to clean…. it might be worth  the extra time it would take. I really hate cleaning a spray gun.

 

Converting Long Shot * part five

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Today I was finally able to get back to work on Long Shot. First work got very busy and I was so tired that I just didn’t feel like working. I should have recognized that as a warning. I have been through this so many times!  I was coming down with a sinus infection and for almost 2 weeks  I barely felt like getting up and fixing something to eat, much less going to the shop to work.

As I mentioned, this boat was a prototype and the frame was very flexible.I have wanted to do something to stiffen the frame for a long time. I decided to try the Geodesic Boat method of using Kevlar roving wrapped around the frame. Platt’s boat frames were so extremely light he used the Kevlar to give them enough structural strength not to collapse. OK, I don’t know that they would have collapsed but I strongly suspect some of his designs would have failed without it.  He took light weight to the extreme!

This morning I started with the Heat n Bond tape and ironed it onto the frame along the gunwale and the keel. I tied off the Kevlar to the frame and started wrapping it around the boat and then clamped the end to the frame. Starting at the front I pulled the Kevlar tight working toward the cockpit. Once the roving was tight all the way down the boat I secured the end.

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Using my heat gun to warm the tape where the Kevlar crossed I took a dowel with the end rounded over and pushed it into the tape to ensure a good bond.  Latter I found out that it was easier and quicker to just use the iron with some of the paper backing between the iron and roving. This kept glue from getting on the iron.

After giving the tape time to cool, I removed the clamp and was impressed with how well the tape held the Kevlar. I could lift it up without a lot of effort, but in tension the grip was strong that this where the stress is.

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I started on the bow wrapping the roving around the boat.  I now realize I was spacing it way to close together. On the rear of the boat I used a much bigger spacing and it is just as stiff and it was much faster to apply. And it looks much better.

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I kept testing the frame by flexing it and at first I was disappointed. There just didn’t seem to much improvement. But once I got everything in place I could tell that the frame was much stiffer than before. Not stiff like a plastic boat but miles ahead of where it was. 
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When I put the skin on I am going to pull it tight and bond it to the tape with the iron before sewing. Once the skin is shrunk I am very confident that this boat will be at least as stiff as the rest of my designs and I will be a bit surprises if it is not stiffer. Either way it will much improved over what it was.

 

 

 

Converting Long Shot part two

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I now have the frames cut out and wrestled into place on the boat. They are not that hard to replace but they sure don’t fall into place either. It took some gentle persuading with a wood mallet to convince them to go back in place. But once you get them close they just fall into place. I have started lashing but I just did enough joints to lock them in place.

Here is the bow sort of in place. I wanted to see what I had and what I needed to do to fit it in place. I want to build up the bow by gluing on some wood and then shaping it to get the proper look. This is going to take some time to get it shaped exactly like I want.

The stern I am extremely happy with. I have been through a lot of ideas before I finally settled on this one. I wanted something fairly traditional but at the same time I didn’t just want to copy what has always been done. I took ideas from two or three different boats and this is what I settled on. I really like the way it looks. It’s look better than it did on the drawings.

Kayak Geocaching

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I tried something this past weekend that I have wanted to try for a long time, Geocaching. If you are not familiar with it, it is big Easter Egg hunt using million dollar Government satellites to find hidden ammo boxes and Tupperware hidden in public places.

What? I lost you?

All around you, totally unknown to you, strangers have hidden containers know as caches. They are out there just waiting for you to join in the fun andtry to find them. It is called geocaching.

Geocaching is a game, well maybe it’s better to say an activity, where you search for hidden ‘caches’ using a GPS unit or a smart phone with a GPS app. You are given the coordinates for where the container is hidden and sometimes a clue. Using this information you go on the hunt to find the hidden cache. The containers range from very small, with just a small scroll of paper for you to log your name and when you found it, to larger boxes with a log book and trade pieces inside.

Ammo boxes and Tupperware of probably the most common containers used. As I said, larger caches will have a log book and some trade items inside it. Most of time the swag is inexpensive items not something of any real value. Much of it is would appeal to children. You can get you kids interested and once they find the cache they can trade for something in there.

There are certain items such as tokens that some cachers collect. There are travel bugs, that when you find it, if you can, you take it and move it another cache. The travel bugs locations are logged and their travels tracked. When you find a cache, if you take something you are supposed to leave something in its place. That way there is always swag in there for the next person to find.

You can learn all about geocaching and sign up for free at www.geocaching.com.  From there you can find a map with the information you need to start hunting caches in your area.

When I got interested, looking at the maps I realized there were several caches hidden around the lake and some that are only accessible by boat. Since we paddle so much, some of the areas have become kind of routine we know it so well. We are always looking for something different and this sounded like fun to me.

Searching the map I found four caches in the general area around the Dam. I discovered there were two catches hidden on Goat Island. It is a rock island that is probably close to 3 acres in size and the only access is by water. So I planned my paddle around these four caches.

Dan, who took these photos, came along with me and we started on Goat Island. We found a place to get out, not an easy task since much of the island is  bluff. Using the GPS I narrowed down the search to a rocky area with lots of places to hide something. We both searched for a few minutes looking in all the nooks and crannies before we found the first cache. Once opened I signed the log book, looked over the ‘swag’ and since I didn’t bring anything, I didn’t take anything other than some photos.

The 2nd cache was across the island so we head out. It’s a warm day for December and I can promise you hiking up hill and over rocks is no fun in a dry suit! It would have been well worth the effort to have removed it and put it back on when I got back to the boat.

Eventually we got to the location on the highest point on the Island with a beautiful view of the water. It took both of us looking to find this cache. I was thinking we were not going to find it when I finally spotted it after a lot of searching. It was another ammo box with goodies inside. I signed the log book, checked out the Swag and put it back in place for the next person to find. At this point I was hooked. This was a lot of fun, like a treasure hunt!

There were two more caches hidden further down the lake and I found one but the other one eluded me. Reading on the web site when I logged in my finds and the did not find on this one, I discovered some others had problems finding it too. For some reason the GPS signal isn’t that good in this area and it was jumping all over the place. Seems other had the same problem. I am hooked and I will go back and find that one later on this winter!

If you haven’t tried geocaching look into it. If you’re near water there is a good chance you can find some caches that you can paddle too. If you are taking a trip you can look up caches hidden in the area you are going to be. It is something that kids can participate in and is a good way to get them outside and away from the TV.

Keep in mind some caches are hidden really well and are very difficult to find. Each one is rated as to how hard they are to find and also how rugged the terrain is. That ways can look for caches that are easier for the kids or if you prefer more challenging
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If you try it let me know what you think. This was my first time but I loved it!

 

Book is now available for Pre-Sale

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It’s been a long road but the new book will be available shortly. It’s close enough that I am now preselling it on my web site. I am waiting on a second proof copy to arrive but I am confident that if this is not ‘IT’ that the next one will be.

Actually if I hadn’t messed up the cover the first time around it would be in print right now. There is nothing like seeing a printed copy in your hand.

It looks perfect on the computer. Your order a proof expecting on minor changes. You run to the mailbox, it’s here! You rip open the mailer with your first proof, all excited to see it and  then it just jumps in your face and say “ARE YOU BLIND??’

I wasn’t sure how to answer that …..

The new book has five, count them FIVE new boats. Admit it, you buy the book for the free plans. So I gave you a bunch this time. Two rowing boats, a Pirogue, a kids kayak (long over due) and as much as I hate to admit it, a Recreational Kayak.  Yea, yea, I know! You guys love them but I just hate them. But, since I really need your money I caved in. I am so ashamed….

I wish I had kept tract of what day I started the book. I know it was in mid January because that is when I brought Makin’ Waves into the shop to start the restoration. I remember before I could get started on her I decided to write the new book. It’s getting really close to January again and Makin’ Waves is just now being taken apart.

It looks like, by the time the book is printed and makes it to Amazon and my store it will be 10 months. No wonder I am so sick of it!

Now for a bit more advertising. In my new book I have a couple of row boats. One is really just begging for a sliding seat. I finally finished up the plans for my sliding seat rowing unit. Just in time to go with the book. Smart huh?

Not a really good photo but I can’t seem to locate the good ones. But keep it in mind if you need or just want a drop-in sliding seat unit. It is listed in the plans section of the Kudzu Craft Store.

Now I need to go check my bank balance and see if I can hold out till it starts selling.

We have lift off

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The boat lifted off the trailer that is. In my last post I mentioned it took me a full day to lift the boat off the trailer just an inch or so, I knew I had to have a better way. After much contemplation and racking of the brain, I finally settled on pair of gantries.

While this was a great idea, it turned out it was going to cost a fortune!! I needed 4 hoists and 8 industrial casters and neither of these are cheap. Plus I needed lumber too.

I priced chain hosts first. At least $125 each and I need 4. Casters are at least $40 plus and I need 8 of those. That is $820 plus and that doesn’t count shipping. That could buy a lot of mahogany!

Well, never doubt the power of prayer. I found all the above for a little over $300 and scrounging around my barn I found all but 2 pieces of lumber for the 2 gantry frames. All I can do is say Thank you Lord!

I pulled the boat out of the shop late in the evening to make room to build the gantries. The next morning I started to gather all the parts and lay them out in the shop. The Weatherman was calling for a nice day but storms that night so I had to get these built today and the boat back inside. I knew that once I got started it wouldn’t take that long. But handling all those heavy pieces made for one LONG day.

I added another item to my “I will never do that again” list. Trying to stand up a gantry by myself. While I did it, it took more than one attempt and there was some collateral damage the first attempt. But we are not going to talk about that.

If you look close you can see the second gantry is built and upright minus the wheels. The second one, with wheels installed is standing upright too. Wheels can turn a simple one man job into a bloody nightmare! But being the kind of person to learn from his mistakes, I laid the second gantry down, finished assembling it and waited till help showed up before I tried to stand it up. Of course the fact I was teetering on the edge of exhaustion probably had something to do with that choice too. But about 7 pm it was done and boat was safely back in the shop.

Jumping ahead a couple of days my new strap, not straps, came in. Being the patient person I did take the time to read the invoice and find out why I only had one strap when I had order two. It seems they only had one in stock in Atlanta and the other one was coming from the warehouse somewhere up North in Yankee land. With my luck, it will take a week to clear customs at the Mason-Dixon line.

I wanted to see what happened to the gantries when I put a load on them. I hung two chain hoists, pulled the strap under the boat and tried to lift the back of the boat.

Exciting photos huh? Even though you can’t see it, the boat is just clear of the bunks on the trailer and I can see day light between them. Lifting the boat was almost effortless. I measured the gantry to see if was trying do the splits but found it had just barely moved.

One thing I see I need to change is the braces at the top. Now that I see everything in place I see a better way to brace it. I can give the hoists more clearance and spread the load out more.

While I wait on the second strap I am going to leave it hanging on the hoists. I will measure it before and after I take the load off the boat and see what if anything moves. Assuming no surprises, it won’t be long before I can start getting serious about tearing it apart.

Making Waves * Take Two

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Back a while ago I said I was starting on the restoration of Making Waves. Well, that changed about as quick as it started. God had other ideas and instead I have been writing my the new book. With the book nearing completion I have some time to actually start on this project.

The first big step was to start removing her ‘furniture’ and see exactly what I have to deal with.

Inside

Event though it has been covered while it was stored it is still amazing at the amount of dirt and trash inside. It was more amazing at all the ‘things’ that ended up in the bilge too! In the photo I can see a flip flop, ski glove, and cup. Trust me I have pulled a lot more than that our all ready!

seats out

floors out

Earlier I found a Bumble Bee nest in the bow. The drain plug is in the bow and had been left open so if water got in it could drain out of the boat. Great idea but it seems the Bee’s found this opening inviting and built a nest under the floor boards! Their nest was keeping the area damp and now we have rot to deal with where the nest was.

Next big problem is that the boat was not sitting on the trailer properly and that has led to a deformation of the hull and some broken ribs. There is one area where the planking will have to be replaced for sure on the hull. I expect there is more that will show up as I get into it.

Bilge will have to be painted, that zinc chromate green has to go! Who thought that was a good idea??

Earlier this week my project was spending a full day jacking up the boat and getting it centered and back down on the trailer. This was a harder task than I had expected. Since I have a lot of work to do on the bottom of the boat, I see I need a better way to lift and shore it.

After all the effort to get the boat off the trailer I have decided that the only real option is build a gantry and use chain hoists. So this weeks project to built two gantries and find some chain hoists. Then the real work can begin.

More Fuselage Frame boats

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For the two or three of you that follow my blog I have been wanting to post something, but I promised myself not to post unless it was worth reading. No one wants to read the random thoughts that run through my head. If it wasn’t for the funny voices they use, I wouldn’t want to hear them.

So, I have waited till I had something worth posting and that is that my new book is written! Notice, I didn’t say it was finished? All the words are now on paper, actually they are just a series of 1’s and 0’s on a couple of computer hard drives. But, it is out of my head and on paper…. so to speak.

I am not sure if a book is ever really finished. After working on this one for several months I am now convinced that writers just get to the point they give up and say “It is finished”. If they are smart they give up and get a real job. They have to do one of other or they end up with a vacation in the Loony Bin.

Me? I gave up! A copy is now in the hands of my new Editor, Vaughn. He is currently being tormented by my thought process, trying to make it coherent for you guys and gals (have to be politically correct there). After editing my first book my previous editor now works as a baby sitter, that should tell you something. So, you guys will owe Vaughn a BIG thank you! You can probably thank him next month at the drive-thru window.

While Vaughn pulls his hair out, I have some free time on my hands. I worked on the cover and this is what I came up with. Not to shabby, huh?

As usual, I have changed it some since I saved this image. Actually, I have changed it several times since then. I will probably change it several more before I ‘give up’. It will probably look totally different than this by the time it hits the store shelves. Maybe you should just ignore this.

And speaking of hitting the stores; More Fuselage Frame Boats will be available on Amazon late this Fall, just in time for Christmas! (hint, hint!) And of course I will be selling autographed copies on my web site in the store. I am sure my signature makes it worth at least double what I will charge.

So what is in the book that makes is worth buying? FREE PLANS! If I can’t get you cheapskates to buy my full size plans, maybe I can entice you to buy the book if I include a few for free. 😉

In the book you will find a Pirogue named Crawfish. It is a two man boat. Excuse me, two woman, or a man and a woman or….. Two people can fit in it.

There are a couple of rowing boats, Flyfisher and Matilda. Yes rowing boats! They even have varnished transoms, something you have probably never seen on a skin boat before.

I had to include a couple of kayaks so I included the Mess About 12, a short, fat recreational kayak that are so popular. Why I don’t know! But if it makes you buy the book… 😉

Since your kids want to go kayaking too, I now have a kids kayak, Tadpole. Say thanks to Phil for the name, I think it is perfect! Tadpole has a strong Greenland style just liked Mom and Dads boat but it in a smaller package.

So, now you are up to date! With the cooler weather maybe I will get paddling photos soon.

Paddle #2

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Just got in from a 5 minute paddle and learned a lot more.

Raising the oars 2″ made a dramatic difference. No bloody knees! Plenty of clearance and did not bang my knees once. So that was a huge improvement and one issue resolved.  I had searched and searched the web but could never find any recomendation on this height so I guessed and guessed wrong. But now I have a good starting point from now on.

As a side note I am thinking I made this boat to low. It should have been at least an inch taller and maybe even two. I don’t want to get caught out in rough water in this thing. Maybe with some experience it will OK but that leads to the other issue, stability…..

There is more to stability than just keeping a boat upright. I have no problems there, I can sit in the boat with or without oars no problem. It’s tender but I guess from paddling lower stability kayaks is why I don’t find it a big problem. Phil however struggled with the stability which sort of surprised me.

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But today, since I wasn’t focused on keeping my knees out of the way I started to confront the next issue. I keep dipping one oar in the water which could be a really bad thing at higher speed. Right now it is just a major annoyance and frustrates the heck out of me!!!! I was assuming it was just me letting one side droop and hit the water. But being able to focus on this, I realize that was not the case.

I am wobbling as I paddle, leaning the boat to one side or the other and with the lenght of the oars it doesn’t take much for an oar to dip into the water. So it is a stability issue, not turning over but rocking from side to side. That will improve with experience I am sure but since I can’t paddle worth a darn now I am going to try to lower the seating position.

I tried sitting on top of the seat frame (very uncomfortable!!) with the sliding seat all the way back but that made a big difference. It would not be very hard to add a board across the frame to use as a fixed seat. That will lower me an inch and half and that will make a marked difference. And it’s easier than making a new frame. So I will probably start with that.

Stay tuned!