Douglas Fir

[rmcclint]

Hi. I am Ron and about to start an Ensenda 25' sailboat. I can get rough cut Doug Fir, but being in MN it is not so common and rather expensive, averaging around $7.50 a board foot. But I found a "deal" on some 1"x 10" T&G Doug Fir for $1.5 a ln ft. It has been primed on one side and rejected by the original customer. I can easily rip it on my table saw to turn it into the 6" and 8" in width that covers most of the need. For the keel I can buy the normal stuff.

I will have to scarf some pieces together, but would have to do that with the more expensive source anyway. This will drop my framing lumber from about $1300 to under $500. Does anyone see an issue with this? Will the one side primed be a problem? I would be willing to scuff it up with a belt sander if needed for epoxy adhesion if need be. I am going to examine it tomorrow, but from the photos on Craig's List, it would seem to be more of a stain than a paint...grain is visible through the prime.

Thanks in advance.

[hoodman]

Wow, I ended up paying around $4 a board foot for quarter sawn white oak. You might look around for different types of woods that may be more common in your area. I bet the pre-primed stuff is flat sawn too.

[slug]

Douglas Fir is strong and reasonably light, BUT, it is very splintery, so not very suitable for battens. It will split off if you try to plane or fair the battens. Should be great for the frames though. I'd try for sapele or some similar wood for battens.
Doug

[galamb]

Agree somewhat with Slug.

I framed my entire build with Douglas Fir - it was the most economical option on my 26' Cuddy.

It really doesn't like to bend - I literally "blew up" a couple of pieces when forming the chine - ended up soaking them overnight to get them to co-operate.

It really sucks when you scarf together a 26' long piece, are drawing it in with clamps and you hear "craaaaaaaack"

[Mike Worrall]

You don't say specifically if the bargain T&G is 'clear', i.e. generally free from knots... This is important. From Glen-L description of woods to be used on Ensenada: " Douglas fir (preferably dense clear vertical grain) and Sitka spruce are specified because they are light and strong."

Should look like this:

http://www.bearcreeklumber.com/species/fir_cvg.html

[kens]

If it is not clear of knots, you will generate so much waste that the price isn't cheap anymore.

[rmcclint]

Good points all. Thanks. I do not yet know how clear it is, I am going to inspect it soon. Assuming it is clear, I am concerned about the primer coat already on it. Will epoxy stick to it, and will the joint be as strong as bare wood? It probably won't be visible, that is not so much a worry. I can always scuff up the primer with a belt sander I suppose, but don't want to take too much off.

[kens]

I would plane off the coating, I always plane all my stock to a common thickness anyway, just so that any piece I pick up, I can match thickness with any kind of gusset, any joint, anywhere I put it.

[rmcclint]

Thanks all. I was able to examine the wood. Totally unacceptable. It was grooved 50% through, every 2 inches, on the back side.

[hoodman]

Keep looking, you'll find a good deal somewhere. You may have to broaden your search to different species. Do you have Glen's book "Boatbuilding with Plywood"? It has lots of info on different species of hard and softwoods suitable for boatbuilding. There may be something that grows in your area of the country that is suitable. Like white oak here in the southeast.

[jamundsen]

I found my Honduras mahogany on Craigslist
Random random
I paid $4.50 a board ft but I had to take it all. I still have some left

[acan96]

Douglas Fir is strong and reasonably light, BUT, it is very splintery, so not very suitable for battens . It will split off if you try to plane or fair the battens. Should be great for the frames though. I'd try for sapele or some similar wood for battens.
Doug

I would have liked to see the result when you finished it because I also have this kind of project for my boat.

[galamb]

On my Cuddy Sport (stretched to 25' 8") all my frames and longitudinals (chine, sheer, bottom battens) were Douglas Fir. I didn't find it particularly "splintery" (I picked far more Khaya splinters which I used for the decking/windshield frame, helm etc and a ton of Okoume/Gaboon splinters from the plywood out of my hands - the DF wasn't bad at all) and I had to do some significant fairing, particularly on the forward sheers (which were made up of three lamination's because so much material had to come off).

Most of my fairing was done with a power plane and I had no issues.