New Plywood Sidewheeler Building

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fredrosse
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Re: New Plywood Sidewheeler Building

Post by fredrosse » Tue Apr 10, 2012 11:19 pm

Got the little boat together this last weekend, same Buffalo Rail as on the steam sidewheeler, Carbon Fibre Gunwales, and a spruce floor (1/4 inch plywood hull should not be steped on!). Went out for a trial run, but there were 20 MPH winds, too much for an 11 ft boat, but at least she floats. Next to build the foot pedal sidewheels, then maybe a small steam plant, I don't know.
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CANOEFLOOR.jpg
1x3 spruce floors
CANOEFLOOR.jpg (42.04 KiB) Viewed 14237 times
Bow.jpg
Bow Rail, same as larger steamer
Bow.jpg (37.21 KiB) Viewed 14237 times
FirstWaterA.jpg
Too Rough for a Small Boat
FirstWaterA.jpg (44.14 KiB) Viewed 14237 times
farmerden
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Re: New Plywood Sidewheeler Building

Post by farmerden » Thu Apr 12, 2012 2:21 am

Looks like you need the sidewheels to act as pontoons! Looks pretty tippy in that chop! Or do you have to be a liittle tipsy to go out at all? :lol: Where do one get carbon fibre from Fred? Den
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fredrosse
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Re: New Plywood Sidewheeler Building

Post by fredrosse » Fri Apr 13, 2012 8:51 pm

Got a little tipsy after the outing, celebration of survival. The carbon fiber tape I got from "fiberglassuply.com" their price was the best I could find, but still expensive at $52 for 3 inch wide x 25 ft x 5.7oz tape. The stuff wets out just like the ordinary fiberglass cloth I use, and looks good in black.
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carbon.jpg
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fredrosse
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Re: New Plywood Sidewheeler Building

Post by fredrosse » Wed Sep 12, 2012 11:51 pm

Got the two canopies onto the boat for this weekend outing, fitted now with Oak turned columns. and Oak seat backrest The rear canopy swings down on its supports to form a weathertight cover on the stern of the boat. The front canopy does the same thing, but does not pivot on the supports to fold down, instead the support columns are firmly attached, then the canopy lifted on, bolted down. This takes about as much time as raising steam, so no real delay with this setup.

The steamer can run with either canopy up or down. On the calm lake usually will have both canopies up, in rough water the forward canopy would typically be down and fixed to the gunwales.

Driving to Lee’s Mills on Friday
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SW Waterford 2012 close B.jpg
SW Waterford 2012 close B.jpg (50.32 KiB) Viewed 14126 times
CANOPYSTERN1.jpg
CANOPYSTERN1.jpg (28.61 KiB) Viewed 14128 times
CANOPY FWD-AFT.jpg
CANOPY FWD-AFT.jpg (44.74 KiB) Viewed 14128 times
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fredrosse
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Re: New Plywood Sidewheeler Building

Post by fredrosse » Sun Dec 29, 2013 4:44 am

Just a shot of the two boats, both the same lines, Margaret S. is 19ft-3in, little sister is 55% size, 10ft-8in. Last month I lifted the Margaret S. on load cells, 2100 Pounds. Somewhat Overweight! I'll have to stop adding stuff, and start on another boat!
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Sidewheeler-ReplicaS2.jpg
Sidewheeler and her little sister
Sidewheeler-ReplicaS2.jpg (111.35 KiB) Viewed 13634 times
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fredrosse
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Re: New Plywood Sidewheeler Building

Post by fredrosse » Thu Apr 12, 2018 11:47 am

Found up in the basement floor joist, a 20% (4 ft long) size hull that was the beginning of this project, many years ago. 1/8 thick plywood, fiberglass cloth over the hull, bonded with automotive "fiberglass resin", I believe it is called "Vinyl Resin"

While real epoxy is far better than the vinyl resin in boatbuilding, many more boats are made with it than with epoxy.

The advantages:
Cost is about 20% the cost of real epoxy
Mix ratios can be very sloppy, it uses a catalyst
Hardening time can easily be varied from a few minutes to an hour
Epoxy can be applied over the vinyl coating, but the reverse is not recommended

The bad:
Fumes while curing, obviously toxic, need good ventilation
Not as strong nor as well adhering to wood as epoxy, but many plywood boats use it.
Same chemicals as in automotive "Bondo", and "Bondo Hair" is incredibly strong
Deteriorates with exposure, should be painted if exposed outside.
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20PCT HULL.jpg
20PCT HULL.jpg (23.2 KiB) Viewed 5071 times
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