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You missed the end of the year launching I see? Sounds good....I wish I could say that I have a date for a launching at ths point. I will do some birding this month along the shallow wetlands of the winter geese and hawks with my small launch but fishing is done with family taking precedence on the weekends with the one remaining elderly parent left.

Fishing or birding. It doesn't matter which as long as your on the water. Enjoy

Now back to dealing with nature's engineers.

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

Oyster,

Got something for you. I was going thru some files today and found this short video and I remembered you mentioning delivering boats on the ICW and the bridge down in Beaufort, SC.
This was shot the summer of '08. We are heading north back to our place. In the audio you can hear my wife and I trying to explain a "no wake zone" to our then 11 year old son.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2G-IX6FPJeg

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

That crazy no wake zone south of the town stinks. I understand with the big marina that was built and having it there, but thats a small area for that run. But that creek is so wide that many planing boats while up on plane outside of the marina area, not the town one, left little wake and what it left ended up almost flat when it came ashore. Heck with the wrong winds and hard tide, there was more ugly sea in that area than most boats in most cases. On high tide I would alway cut across and behind the island south as that cut through is really deep. The authorities used to sit on the south side along the shore to get the wakers that would not either read the sign on the shoreline or would not adhere to them in that open body of water. Those were the days. When I had guests on board, I would tell them that we would be going by "Paradise" Island just south and ask them if they wished I drop them off for a bit of R&R in the fall of the year when the weather was bad up north. HEHE!

What was really funny was the the town marina guys would scream on the radio at almost every boat making its way to the bridge going north as it was some kinda power play or sport every single time someone was making way against that hard tide with some power for steerage. It really rips there in the right conditions. I guess they has nothing else to do for their pay.

Now thats funny. I've never heard it called that before. Bet nobody took you up on your offer once they realized what it really was.

I have the utmost respect for all our men and women in uniform. But, for any man or woman that has gone thru basic training on Parris Island during the summer, my hat is off to them. The heat and humidity is one thing. Then there are those big mosquitoes. I've seen some that a shotgun wouldn't take down. Worse even is the no see ems, or what ever they are. Don't bother you as long as the wind is blowing, but let it stop and you are a sitting duck.

There is a good story about the bridge I want to tell you, but it will have to wait.

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

Oyster,

I have a question about the SYP. Took your advice and bought 2x10s, was able to pick my boards. Cut my sheer and chine from the edges for pontoon #1. Clear, no knots.
Cut the keel (3/4" x 2") for #2 from the edge of the best looking board, but there are areas of dark shading on the inside. It is not down right rot, just a darkness in the grains. Fungus, etc. ?

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

Yep fungus type slime for the lack of another word right now seems to be the order of the day with Southern Yellow Pine. We are seeing it with other pines at a more alarming rate.


The reasons for this is that most pine is farm raised and cut before heartwood now is generated, or considered old growth lumber. The heartwood cells generate an acidic type composite for simple terms which closes off the pores and fight against regions that causes decay and rot in wood. If you have ever used pressure treated lumber, this is farm growth and young stuff and the cause for the treatment to bury itself into the woods because of the makeup of the wood pores.

I would recommend that you clean the wood since I suspect its been laying in damp areas with cool changes or even against other boards and dampness has gotten caught. If you can clean it with a scotchbrite pad or even steel wool and a diluted mix of wood bleach or even a small amount of oxilic acid wood cleaners and then go ahead and prime it with whatever you plain to seal your bilge areas with. Depending also on what you plan on using for bedding compound and by using fasteners, this will not reduce the adhesion process.

I have personally been using Kilz for several decades now in the process of sealing SYP as with some many other woods and materials like fairing compounds over glass, which is wonderfull for this process until you can get to the parts with better materials. Even some of the two part tank coatings will actually bond well to it after it completely cures since your building time allows for some time between the time that you will end up doing your finish work.

I now have the keel and chine logs on pontoon #2. Hopefully, will start on the sheer tomorrow and I'm already thinking ahead. Mainly the 8'x12' decking. The plans call for 5/8" plywood covered by carpet, vinyl, etc., but I want to finish with wood. Maybe a thinner ply covered by some wood planking? Here are my thoughts. Everything else is wood, why not the deck and don't even get me started on the railing. You guessed it- wood. Any suggestions would be helpful.

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

Given the appearance to detail and work on the tug project, I understand that you are conflicted in this decision. What I would do and what you would like to do is 180 for sure. Ask the admiral and then build accordingly since this is her boat, a learned trait.

Oyster,

As with anything I look at the full scale of things. Take my using the old golf cart motor and controls, I am studing that from top to bottom, including function and cost. Same goes for the decking. Carpet, vinyl or even painting the deck would be the reasonable way to go I know. But, for now thinking out of the box isn't costing me anything. Was just hoping somebody had an idea to step it up a notch. Now before I go what was your 180, you can tell me I promise not to tell anybody.

Chip

I almost forgot. My Admiral has lent a helping hand the past two nights. Finally had to run her off so I could focus on the work at hand. You know what they say about a woman in uniform.

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

Hello, this is Mr. Hinesight speaking. Oyster is on vacation right now, away from his desk. Please allow me to spend some bandwidth a moment since we are talking off the record here leaving specifics up to personal interpretation for all small crafts. If we do everything that we wish and want to do, we sometimes spend our lives on building fewer boats and still in wanting for another that will meet our needs that changes almost on a two to three year cycle.

By all means building boats is about the process and more than just creating an object. This process seems to be a calming drug for obsessive compulsive disorder. Without it he seems to pace, twist, talk to himself, complaining about loosing sleep at night, and constantly doodling in his chair on any piece of paper thats close at hand. Heck I have even witnessed his hands covered with ink marks during these times.

This is what I have observed living with this guy He has been able to aquire five to date right now. Each year or so if the time presents itself from being off the water he likes to update and tweak one which he says gives him a new boat without toiling through the process of new construction.

He can still be on the water with at least one in the "oven" cooking up some upgrades and freshening up, tweaking what is not quite right or if his mood changes and heaven forbid his SWMBO says that she wants something not avaliable on her last trip.


So if you are asking for a second opinion from a casual observer from afar, first build up your fleet and then figure out areas that you like to combine in a final boat expending your idle time on the right boat.

When you allow a woman in the shop, the decisions that you make will be the perfect match both on the water and off the water including the hours not in the shop too. Always yield to a higher authority, Always, no matter how long it may take!

Thanks

Well stated, Mr. Hinesight!

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Bill

I told my wife we needed a three-car garage for my projects...she told me to ask her for permission next time before I buy a house.
http://www.unitybuild.net

Mr. Hinesight,
Let me start off by saying that I accepted my lower position on the ladder a long time ago and I'm happy I did so. I'm very simple, just tell me when, where and how. The Admiral has never put me on KP, can't say that for the rest of her crew. She helped me in the garage again tonight and after being gone all day I'm starting to enjoy it. No phone, no fuss box, etc. for a few minutes. She actually lets me pretend I'm in charge for awhile. Thanks for the input and tell Oyster to enjoy his vacation.
Chip

P.S. My middle name is Hines and if I could get me some ight I would have it made.

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

Pontoon #2 is now framed. Hopefully, I can start fairing tomorrow and order plywood next week. The question I'm tossing out tonight is. How to seal the inside of the pontoons? Encapsulate with epoxy, encapsulate and then paint, etc.? I do plan on having deck plates or hatches on top so as to vent when not in use.

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A secret to a good marriage is to have a quick mind and a slow mouth!!!

I like to do an all in one reinstall and glue up for your limited access hulls. I would prefit your plywood and and get everything completely fitted with adequate hardware just snugged up as if you have only to sand the edges on the outside when you have glued the plywood up. You don't have to install all the hardware, just make sure that you have enough to pull everything snug all along the way in this dry fit process.

Then remove the pieces and lay out and clean all the chips and dust from along the framing and the plywood. Then I would wet out the plywood using several coats laid flat on like a set of saw horses and make sure that you have used enough epoxy to saturate the plywood completely. This could take several coats.

When you feel that the plywood is sealed completely, then reinstall the sheets while tacky onto the framing. If you feel that you need to add a bit of thickened epoxy to the framing depending on the fits, or use another bedding compound, then coat at this time and place back onto the framing. You are done with the inside. I always start a couple of screws in the sheet plywood all the way and this allows me to hang the plywood in just the right place of the existing holes along the chines while holding tacky wood. Place a sharpie line across the parts which gives you a quick reference point for alignment when its wet.

This keeps movement in check. I then back one screw out while pushing the plywood into the chine slowly and this keeps things in place and keeps smearing of any thickened glue in check. You can do this in the middle part of the plywood or start at one end and have someone hold the sheet away from the framing and then work your way down along the way.