Search results

Finishing touches: Hardware and paint First, paint. I used red tinted epoxy for a fill coat which does not leave a visually acceptable solid color, but might make the inevitable scratches less drastic. I rolled a single coat of red rustoleum Marine topcoat paint which seems totally fine for...

One small benefit of building the plug from forms is that you already have pre-cut templates for your float tanks - the last station molds. This is the only pink foam on this hull. It still requires a little bit of sanding to fit, but it is pretty straightforward. I think Jim or someone has a...

I’ve been scrambling to get this done before we leave for our trip tomorrow and it is finally complete! I’ll post some detail on how it went and some learnings that may be helpful. Picking up where we left off.. The next step was putting in the foam core. This is where that scrimmed/scored...

Next step was the gunwales. I’m sure this is 75% of the reason you’re following this :) To recap, I’m using 2 strips of 1/4” divinycell stapled at the top and strung through a carbon-Kevlar sleeve. It’s applied like a uni-wale where one side straddles each side of the hull. See an earlier post...

It has certainly been a minute since I’ve posted an update. With everything going on in life and the revolution beginning in Minneapolis that no one would have predicted would start here but Prince, I’ve been a bit occupied physically and mentally. Working on this build has been a good...

Here are some pics of how I built a sliding seat on my last build. I used black PVC pipe and 1” aluminum tube. The PVC pipe is attached to the seat, which can slide along the aluminum tube when there is no weight on it, but very sturdy when someone is sitting on it. The cross brace the aluminum...

I had a T-shirt and old long sleeve shirt on under a cheap rainsuit. My t-shirt was drenched when we were done. That smells, but not of epoxy. The rain suit is probably stuck to itself in the corner. I think what you’re seeing in that pic is the peel ply, which are cut into about 14” strips...

Today was the day, my brother and I did the layup on the Merlin. I sealed off the basement room in plastic and we had 2 fans going out the window. All the epoxy mixing took place by the window too. I’m pleasantly surprised I can’t smell it anywhere in the house except that little room. A few...

Wow, you are the Picasso of canoe deck plates, that looks awesome!

Wood and screws, tell me more @Jim Dodd

Wow, thank you all for sharing your wisdom. I’m feeling better about using the 1/4” foam on either side, which should leave me a little extra foam if side ribs are needed in places. Alan, you’re freaking me out man. Found your post in question where you preshaped the gunwales and thanks for...

Thanks! I’ll do some photo research on the Savage River gunwales. The sleeve is 7.5 oz. If you look closely at the grainy 2nd picture of the foam in sleeve I posted, I’m imagining creating a crease between the inwale and ouwale where it will slide onto the thin hull. If I staple the tops of the...

Thanks for the heads up Stripperguy, I’m going to consider putting a thin layer of glass over the gunwales given the challenges with the Kevlar in the sleeve. What was the width of that thwart? I don’t have enough foam to cover the entire hull so it will just be a foam bottom like your carbon...

Like Muddyfeet mentioned, I ran into a similar issue with some of my boards warping in or out after applying the first coat of drywall mud. It happened in just a few spots between stations where it was already kinda floppy. I really had to lay extra layers on thick in those spots. I’m liking...

Thanks Jim! That’s a good idea to cut open the ends. It sounds petty, but sealing the stems has been my least favorite part of the composite process. Before my last build, I saw that you used Duck brand window shrink so I tried it and noticed a huge difference between that and the 3M brand. It...

Ah yeah, that might have worked! Just googled it. Cool that it can bend multi directionally.

No need for apologies Jim, I know you’ve got nothing but positivity and advice for everyone attempting builds and it is much appreciated! I have seen used “Moran style” plugs on Facebook marketplace, so they can be reused with a bit of refurbishing. Mine should actually be sturdier as the...

Jim, I do not doubt for a minute that you’d have had a cedar strip canoe on the water by now :). I’d honestly probably be at about the same point I am with the plug, unfortunately. Though it would be a lot easier to get rid of a half-finished strip canoe on Craigslist than whatever is left of...

It has been awhile since I posted an update, mainly because this has been a really tedious process. I stripped it up with the hardboard strips along the sides and luckily could get larger sheets to fit nicely on the bottom. That part worked beautifully and I was hoping the whole boat would go...

That’s good to know you were able to make it work with the sharp angle of the kite. And yes, I was planning to seal both stems on this kamakazee plug.