Boat building

sprucegum said:
I had to order more epoxy, I started with 1.5 gallons. I'm sure that I could have finished it with the 3 quart kit, but I opted for another 1.5 gallon. I'm pretty sure that I can find other wood working uses for the surplus. It's dries pretty clear so it should work for filling voids in turning blanks. I've been pricing marine paint, they don't give that stuff away 😞. Some people have good luck with porch and deck paint, I have a little dab left over from another project so I painted a test piece.
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No, they don't. I'll need a dead flat paint (for hunting purposes), so have limited options. Likely will go with Parkers duck boat paint. Except on the bottom - I'm going to use Wetlander... both for additional abrasion resistance and for slickness.
 
I'm going to mix graphite with epoxy for a black bottom . It's supposed to make a tough slick surface and is pretty easy to maintain and repair. I got my aft and fore decks fitted today, they make water tight compartments for floatation and dry gear storage. I cut them when I cut the other parts from the plan. The aft deck fit with just a little block plane work. The fore deck fit so poorly that by the time I got it scribed it was too short. I butt jointed on a piece to fix it. The butt joint will make it stronger because part of it is now double thick.
 
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You both are coming along nicely and making good progress! I'm enjoying watching both come together.

sprucegum said:
I've been pricing marine paint, they don't give that stuff away 😞. Some people have good luck with porch and deck paint, I have a little dab left over from another project so I painted a test piece.
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Consider implement enamel as another option. My father used it on his boats and it held up quite well. It helped that there was a local surplus store that he could get it real cheap from. So lots of things got painted with it, including at least one vehicle.
 
Sprung said:
You both are coming along nicely and making good progress! I'm enjoying watching both come together.



Consider implement enamel as another option. My father used it on his boats and it held up quite well. It helped that there was a local surplus store that he could get it real cheap from. So lots of things got painted with it, including at least one vehicle.
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It used to be pretty cheap at Tractor supply, I haven't bought any for a few years. You can buy a gallon of porch and deck paint for what a quart of marine costs.
 
Pretty cool how that works. I assume the mating edges are beveled to something other than 90 degrees to try to get that joint as snug as you can?
 
DLJeffs said:
Pretty cool how that works. I assume the mating edges are beveled to something other than 90 degrees to try to get that joint as snug as you can?
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Yes. 45s on the inside edge of each mating edge
 
sprucegum said:
Looking great, I am happy that I don't have to do all of that epoxy and fiberglass.😂
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Yep, things are about to slow down a lot (at least visually). Epoxy tabbing between the stitches then removing then epoxy and fillets and glassing and plenty of sanding, etc. Will be a long, slow slog to get the bottom finished and before I can flip it and start work on the inside.
 
SENC said:
Yep, things are about to slow down a lot (at least visually). Epoxy tabbing between the stitches then removing then epoxy and fillets and glassing and plenty of sanding, etc. Will be a long, slow slog to get the bottom finished and before I can flip it and start work on the inside.
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My little drift boat is constructed topside up with the bulkheads and bottom being the only form. No strong back is used, just a flat bench. Somewhat contrary to the instructions I'm doing as much as I can before I flip it to do the bottom. I've strayed from the plans quite a bit to allow for seats to be adjusted fore and aft to distribute the weight better depending on the number of passengers. The main seat was supposed to be attached to the topsides, I'm using a center fore and aft seat mount with a aluminum track to move the seat. I added a rib to take the place of the support that the seat frame would have provided. My gunnels will have 4 laminations of 1/4" x 1 1/2" strips to provide plenty of meat for multiple oar locks. All of my mods will probably add a few pounds but as long as I can drag it in and out of my pickup bed alone I will be happy. IMG_20250316_135842603.webp IMG_20250316_135842603.webp
 
I have the decks glued in place and the inwale finish, still a few more fillets to do but I'm pretty low on epoxy. I flipped it over so I can work on fairing out the topsides and bottom. I expect my epoxy to come Monday, then I plan to complete all of the bottom work before turning it over to finish the rest of the inside. I turned it over alone and was able to lift it off the horses to test the weight. I'm guessing it's still a little shy of 100 pounds. It should come in easily under 150 which will make it easy enough to load alone. IMG_20250322_110949288.webp IMG_20250322_112055962.webp
 
Eric Rorabaugh said:
That's looking awesome. Can't wait to see it on the water
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Me too, ice is pretty much out of the rivers and trout season opens in a couple of weeks. However I want to make my maiden voyage on flat water, the ice won't be out of the ponds for another month. The perch will be running end of April , they spawn close to shore so I'm shooting for that time frame.
 
How will you run your anchor rope? Most drifters run it thru holes along the deck, with a floor clete on the deck, up into the rear transom and onto a small davit so it doesn't bang against the stern. But I'm not seeing any holes for routing the rope. I have seen one run the rope along the side just below the gunnel but in my opinion that isn't ideal because it forces you to let go of one oar (or both) to clete off the anchor rope.
 
i have been thinking about that, lots of neat gadgets available online, haven't decided yet. Maybe a coffee can full of concrete and a rope tied to a ring at the bow like grampa used to do 😂
 
sprucegum said:
Me too, ice is pretty much out of the rivers and trout season opens in a couple of weeks. However I want to make my maiden voyage on flat water, the ice won't be out of the ponds for another month. The perch will be running end of April , they spawn close to shore so I'm shooting for that time frame.
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We lost 16 inches of ice in one week in the 50's. I was amazed how fast things got thin this season.
 
Mr. Peet said:
We lost 16 inches of ice in one week in the 50's. I was amazed how fast things got thin this season.
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A few brave souls are still hard water fishing this weekend. I hear that the ice is pretty thick but it's thawing at the edges making it hard to get onto it.
 
sprucegum said:
i have been thinking about that, lots of neat gadgets available online, haven't decided yet. Maybe a coffee can full of concrete and a rope tied to a ring at the bow like grampa used to do 😂
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That works!! Except I'd probably figure out a way to make it easy to set the anchor from the rowing seat, preferably with one hand. That way if you're on a faster moving river you can get the anchor set and still control the oars so they don't beat you to death.
 
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