I built a little row boat

[TacitBlue]

It was built with free plans from Hannu's Boatyard. They call it the Micro Auray Punt.



It was designed to be built with one 4' x 8' piece of plywood. I used two so that I wouldn't have a seam in the middle of the gunwale.


Here it is held together temporarily with screws and wood blocks.


Epoxy putty applied between the stitching blocks. Later when the blocks were removed the epoxy bead was filled in all the way around. Then, I laid up fiberglass tape on all seams inside and out and coated the whole thing with clear epoxy.


After that, I forgot to take a picture before I painted it.
The oars are my work too, I didn't want to pay $25 - $35 a piece for ready made oars, so I made my own and it cost... about the same.

I haven't had it in the water yet, I only just finished painting it and I have to work this afternoon. The paint needs to sit and cure for a few days anyway. Expect more pics of the maiden voyage.

[Steve M]

Nice! I like, that looks like 3/8" plywood?

[TacitBlue]

Actually, it's 1/4" plywood. I know that sounds thin but trust me, this thing is pretty solid.

[Fozzer]

Many years ago (1970's), I purchased a full size Canadian Canoe Kit and assembled it, over a few weeks, in my living room!
I varnished her, and called her "Pocahontas"...>>>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocahontas
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Rolfe

My youngest lad and I travelled all around England for years, with it strapped to the Luggage Rack on the top of my motor car.
We have very few inland lakes in England, so most of our Canoeing was done on rivers

[TacitBlue]

Neat story Fozzer. I would never have thought of putting a sail on a canoe! Did it have a tendency to tip over when turning?

Funny you should mention paint, I had a heck of a time painting this thing. Marine paint is expensive and impossible to find in stores around here. I originally tried to paint this boat with polyurethane floor paint, after all it's made to be walked on, so it has to be durable. Well, I managed to get a can of faulty paint. A week after painting the boat it still had not cured! so I stripped it all off and used car paint instead. It's water proof, but not all that durable. We shall see how it holds up to scratches from beaching. If it doesn't do well, I might try coating the bottom with a coating made for truck beds, that stuff is tough as nails.

[Fozzer]

Neat story Fozzer. I would never have thought of putting a sail on a canoe! Did it have a tendency to tip over when turning?

Funny you should mention paint, I had a heck of a time painting this thing. Marine paint is expensive and impossible to find in stores around here. I originally tried to paint this boat with polyurethane floor paint, after all it's made to be walked on, so it has to be durable. Well, I managed to get a can of faulty paint. A week after painting the boat it still had not cured! so I stripped it all off and used car paint instead. It's water proof, but not all that durable. We shall see how it holds up to scratches from beaching. If it doesn't do well, I might try coating the bottom with a coating made for truck beds, that stuff is tough as nails.

...tendency to tip over with sails?... ....

..shhhhh... ....

...Outrigger floats!.... ...!

A plank strapped across the centre seat, with a small plastic oil drum on either side...just clear of the water....

...I just invented the; "Catamaran"!.... 8-)...!

Paul.... ...!

Varnishing it was a bad move. It looked fine when new, but after a few scuffs, trying to paint more varnish over shiny, slippery varnish doesn't work. (It would have needed to be rubbed down all over again first!).
Paint would have been a better idea, although not looking quite as nice!

[BigTruck]

Cool little project!  About how much did the whole thing cost, if you don't mind me asking?  You should use Rhino Liner on the bottom for a tough as nails finish and sealant.  I don't know if it adheres to wood or not, but it's guaranteed for life!

[Fozzer]

[quote]Cool little project!

[TacitBlue]

[quote]Cool little project!

[BigTruck]

[quote][quote]Cool little project!

[TacitBlue]

I took her out for her maiden voyage today! I couldn't get anyone to go with me, so I don't have any pictures.

All in all, the little boat did quite well. It's easy to row, turns on a dime and is stable enough for it's size. Now, I really really don't like swimming in deep water. I'm not going to panic and drown or anything if I fall in (especially w/ my life jacket), but it would be a little more traumatic for me than it would for say, Chuck Norris. With that it mind I can tell you that I felt pretty safe in this boat. If it hadn't been so darned windy I would have stayed out longer and done a little fishing. Ah well, there's always tomorrow.

Also: Truck, if you decide to build one, PM me or something. I can point you in the direction of cheap supplies and offer advice if you need it.

[BigTruck]

Also: Truck, if you decide to build one, PM me or something. I can point you in the direction of cheap supplies and offer advice if you need it.

Good to know.  Won't be for a year or two, I need to get out of the military an get settled back home, but it's something to store away for when the time is right.