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My Woods Wannigan- Blueridge #1 Special

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I've been admiring traditional wannigans here and elsewhere for some time now. Seeing two of them last summer nestled between someone else's thwarts finally tipped me over the edge, from woesome admirer to willing DIYer. Something else that is woesome are my carpentry skills. Nevermind, what's the worst that can happen (besides personal injury), more firewood? After checking the dwindling kindling pile and stocking up on bandaids I decided to go for it.
As much as I like tump lines, I'm not getting any younger, and for the past few years I've been trying to lighten the loads. For that reason I wanted an alternative to a big, heavy wannigan I'd have to tump across portages. I planned and scribbled design ideas to fit a slimmer smaller wannigan into my Woods canvas canoe packs. This means a radical change from a "trunk" design to a "cupboard" design. First I measured the kitchen kit dimensions, such as coffee pot, fry pans, cook pots etc. And then I "built out" using plywood not too thin, not too thick, forgoing an interior frame to further provide interior space and reduce weight, all the while trying to make sure the final result would still slide into the Woods pack. Another woesome problem was my being a little arithmetic challenged, making the necessary tweaking of measures interesting, as a slight incremental adjustment seems to complicate matters exponentially all over the place. Ah well.
My Woods Blueridge #1 Special has room for a wannigan built of 1/2" plywood, measuring 22" high, 18.5" wide, 8.5" deep (outside dimensions). I kept the 2 interior shelves loose, so they can be left out for larger items. Brass, nickel plate and an old leather belt completed the fittings. All joinery was glued and screwed, but this box is not waterproof. It's purpose is to contain kitchen kit only, and hopefully give a little protection against dents and dings. I like the look of the exterior stain, but chose a white (primer/sealer) interior to make it brighter inside to find things on grey days. I haven't weighed it, but am impressed by how light half a sheet of plywood can be. I'll probably slide a spare sleeping pad down the inside of the back for added comfort on the carries.

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My hatchet and small saw fits into that narrow shelf, but we'll probably find other places for those. Cutlery and stuff will tuck in there instead. I ran out of ideas of what to pack in this simple box. Every trip we take is a little bit different, but any and all the basics fit. I like the fold down work table idea; I saw it on another build on the internet. Lots of good ideas out there, and far better workmanship than my own, but it was an enjoyable project. The cupboard design doesn't easily lend itself to a waterproof result, not without gaskets and such. I half thought of tinkering with old bicycle inner tubes etc, but gave up on that. I settled for a simple wooden box with which to prepare our meals up off the ground. An added plywood cleat on the top front edge gives extra oomph for the draw clasps as well as providing a foot to keep the work space just off the ground and out of the dirt.
 
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I'll take two please! Very nice. I started out canoeing back years ago and wannigans it was, well once I graduated from garbage bags. We used to use pack frames with the shelf built in to portage, heavy buggers they were. Very nice job and will fit the bill for your needs!

dougd
 
Great job, I like the idea, that and you've got to love the WorkMate. I have a pair of them that I use more then my fixed bench.
 
Thanks guys. I made 2 of these boxes. Standing in the plywood aisle thinking "Hmmm, 1 full sheet at $20, or a 1/2 sheet for nearly $15?? A full 4x8' sheet slides nicely into my van. (The other other reason for buying a vehicle besides canoe topping). But to be truthful, besides the more bang for a buck thing, I reasoned that if I totally fluffed the first attempt I'd still have enough material for a second. Who woulda thought they'd both (almost) turn out. Too good to burn, too bad to take close-ups. Ha.
While I was pondering plans I went for an imaginary spending spree. New and better table saw. New and 1st router. Maybe 2 of those. New workmate type of tables. A dado blade or two. Sheesh, before I knew it I had a whole buncha imaginary workshop tools and no workshop to park them in. I'll never have the stuff and skills everyone else has, but I had the time. And a full sheet of plywood. Ha.
 
Oddie......Great job of work, love the looks of that Woods pack too. Gives me the idea that I to should ditch my cardboard box, an make a vertical wannigan for my Northwoods pack (a knock off, by the Duluth Pack Company, of the Woods Pack).
A lot of trailer houses, shacks and and shanties in the greater Fairbanks area, have a unpainted plywood arctic entry built around the main or only door, that they call Wannigans. They help keep some poorly insulated places of abode, livable and gives added storage space.
 
Thanks Birchy, interesting about Alaskan wannigans. Clever use of the word. Some words are newly made up, others are lost in time, while others are adopted and so evolve.
I'd like to see that Northwoods pack some time. Funny you should mention cardboard. Before I even thought about buying wood, I taped two empty cardboard boxes together to form a rough proportioned idea of these wannigans. That cardboard Moai thing must've sat on my dining room table for two weeks, staring me in the face. "Should I have a checkerboard? Where do the handles go? How do I open this thing?" You'll never know how close I came to just cutting the top off that cardboard box and calling my wannigan project "done" !!
 
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