I'm just spitballing this while I sit out on my porch drinking beers on a perfect night. Is it possible to build a canoe from only self harvested material, with a caveat of where I live, in Kansas? I obviously can't build a birch bark, so it would have to be some sort of canvas or hide covering. Wood choices for the frames and stringers are difficult here. We have some decent hardwoods, oak and walnut is available to me but those trees don't run straight grained for long around here because of the constant wind and storms, and that seems like a heavy option. Probably the lightest and straightest grain I could harvest off our family farm is cottonwood. Willow or sycamore could be taken along the riversides. We have cedars around here too, but not the good boat building type. It is extremely knotty.
I have a friend with a loom, so if I grow a flax crop I could have canvas made. The other option would be deer hide. We have a huge herd that runs our farm and beds down in an abandoned Christmas tree farm. There are so many deer harvested around here it would be no problem to get the hides, and I could get sinew for any lashings.
The one thing I can't wrap my head around is making my own canvas sealer. I'm hoping some of you guys might know the way the old timers did it. I have no idea, but if it can come from a plant source, I can grow it. And I could probably find any mineral additives that may be necessary.
Help me out here on this crazy quest with anything you have to offer. Wood selection, coverings, sealers, anything. Will it ever get built? Not likely, but if there is a way I'll keep all the knowledge until I have the time for it.
I have a friend with a loom, so if I grow a flax crop I could have canvas made. The other option would be deer hide. We have a huge herd that runs our farm and beds down in an abandoned Christmas tree farm. There are so many deer harvested around here it would be no problem to get the hides, and I could get sinew for any lashings.
The one thing I can't wrap my head around is making my own canvas sealer. I'm hoping some of you guys might know the way the old timers did it. I have no idea, but if it can come from a plant source, I can grow it. And I could probably find any mineral additives that may be necessary.
Help me out here on this crazy quest with anything you have to offer. Wood selection, coverings, sealers, anything. Will it ever get built? Not likely, but if there is a way I'll keep all the knowledge until I have the time for it.
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