Thursday, January 29, 2015
More Boat Parts
After evaluating my lumber needs and doing a bit of shuffling around I realized I had enough plywood to make the stem, breasthook, and transom knees.
So what are these, you ask? The stem is the backbone that connects to the keel and forms the bow. Its probably the most distinctive part of the boat and a part that that someone with no knowledge of boats would probably say "Thats a boat part". This part is made from three identical pieces cut from 3/4" plywood and then laminated and screwed together.
Here are the parts after cutting out. I still have to do all the sanding to get them to final shape, and of course there will be assembly. But assembly will occur when the frames are assembled, probably sometime next month (February).
The breasthook, is a triangular part made from two pieces of 3/4" plywood, also laminated together. It serves as the top forward portion of the bow and provides a means of connecting the sheers to the stem. I dont have a photo of this yet but if you look at the picture above and visualize it standing on end (thus forming the bow), the breasthook attaches to one end perpendicular to the stem forming a sort of "T" shape. Then attaching to the edges of the triangle are the sheers which are the top edges that run the length of the boat back to the stern. I will try to post some better pictures soon showing this in detail.
Finally there is the transom knee. Also, made from three laminated pieces of 3/4" plywood, this is an "L" shaped part that provides a connection between the keel and the aft bulkhead (transom). The transom takes a lot of stress from the motor and the knee is one of several parts that make up the structure of the transom and aft end of the boat. Again, I will try and find some decent pictures of this to post as well .
All of these parts were laid out on the same sheet of plywood and then cut out with a jig saw. I laid these out using the technique I described in the last blog entry. Namely, tracing the parts onto tracing paper from full size patterns and then transferring the shapes to the plywood using carbon paper taped to the tracing paper. All will have to be sanded to final shape.
The knees will actually not be cut out until later. This is because they are cut to a certain angle (12-14 degrees). This angle is dependent upon the requirements for mounting the motor to the transom. The angle is also dependent upon the final angle of the installed transom.
When installing the transom, I will strive to get it mounted to the correct angle, but to insure that the knee fits exactly to it and the keel, I will wait until then to cut out the knees. This way I can make any corrections in the knee angle before I cut it out.
There are additional photos in the construction photo gallery.
I imagine the average person will look at these photos and simply see some shapes made from various pieces of wood. That is perfectly understandable since they most likely dont have the same level of interest in my boat as I do!
But because I am intimately involved with this construction, I am already at the point where I can see the actual boat taking shape. Its pretty cool actually and gives me no end of satisfaction. I hope that maybe someone reading this blog will be moved to try out this hobby. Glen L Marine has a wonderful selection of boats for the amateur boat builder, everything from small rowboats to 49 foot long trawlers and sailboats.
So until next time, take care...............
So what are these, you ask? The stem is the backbone that connects to the keel and forms the bow. Its probably the most distinctive part of the boat and a part that that someone with no knowledge of boats would probably say "Thats a boat part". This part is made from three identical pieces cut from 3/4" plywood and then laminated and screwed together.
Here are the parts after cutting out. I still have to do all the sanding to get them to final shape, and of course there will be assembly. But assembly will occur when the frames are assembled, probably sometime next month (February).
The breasthook, is a triangular part made from two pieces of 3/4" plywood, also laminated together. It serves as the top forward portion of the bow and provides a means of connecting the sheers to the stem. I dont have a photo of this yet but if you look at the picture above and visualize it standing on end (thus forming the bow), the breasthook attaches to one end perpendicular to the stem forming a sort of "T" shape. Then attaching to the edges of the triangle are the sheers which are the top edges that run the length of the boat back to the stern. I will try to post some better pictures soon showing this in detail.
Finally there is the transom knee. Also, made from three laminated pieces of 3/4" plywood, this is an "L" shaped part that provides a connection between the keel and the aft bulkhead (transom). The transom takes a lot of stress from the motor and the knee is one of several parts that make up the structure of the transom and aft end of the boat. Again, I will try and find some decent pictures of this to post as well .
All of these parts were laid out on the same sheet of plywood and then cut out with a jig saw. I laid these out using the technique I described in the last blog entry. Namely, tracing the parts onto tracing paper from full size patterns and then transferring the shapes to the plywood using carbon paper taped to the tracing paper. All will have to be sanded to final shape.
The knees will actually not be cut out until later. This is because they are cut to a certain angle (12-14 degrees). This angle is dependent upon the requirements for mounting the motor to the transom. The angle is also dependent upon the final angle of the installed transom.
When installing the transom, I will strive to get it mounted to the correct angle, but to insure that the knee fits exactly to it and the keel, I will wait until then to cut out the knees. This way I can make any corrections in the knee angle before I cut it out.
There are additional photos in the construction photo gallery.
I imagine the average person will look at these photos and simply see some shapes made from various pieces of wood. That is perfectly understandable since they most likely dont have the same level of interest in my boat as I do!
But because I am intimately involved with this construction, I am already at the point where I can see the actual boat taking shape. Its pretty cool actually and gives me no end of satisfaction. I hope that maybe someone reading this blog will be moved to try out this hobby. Glen L Marine has a wonderful selection of boats for the amateur boat builder, everything from small rowboats to 49 foot long trawlers and sailboats.
So until next time, take care...............
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