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catsittingstillI feel like I'm making better progress on the canoe.
You may recall that I put in the interior fiberglass in stages. I do the (relatively) easy middle in one big step, covering about 90% of the surface area. The ends have to be done in two steps (at least) anyway--flaps on the sides that go up to the end but not across (in practice they stop an inch or so from the end) and a bias cut strip that bridges the gap from one flap to the other. However these flaps are tricky to do because of the curves of the canoe in this area, and because the ends tend to be narrower than the middle, and you run out of room to work. When I made Patience I worried that I would end up fiddling with one set of end flaps while the epoxy was curing at the other end; what if I needed so much time that the epoxy had cured at the other end too hard to work with? So I did the middle as one piece that ran to within 18 inches of each end without flaps, and did the end flaps as separate overlapping pieces the next day. That took some of the stress out of the process, and the overlaps are the sort of thing you can spot if you know what to look for, but that nobody notices in every day use.
So I took the same tack with Constance. However the white pine I used for Constance is lighter in color than the cedar I used for Patience. Since bubbles show up as whiter areas in the layup, which were harder to see against the lighter wood, this led to stealth bubbles that escaped my attention while I could have fixed them easily, and which had to be sanded off and patched when the epoxy cured.
Sunday I sanded the bubbles off. Monday I made a rolling board with leftover plywood and 4 cheap castors that I could load the cradles and boat on, so I could easily roll the boat in and out of my workshop. My plan was to check my layup work in daylight then move the boat back inside before the direct sunlight could heat the air in any remaining cracks and crevices and cause bubbles in the layup. I also sanded off all the extra bubbles I found when I moved the boat into daylight.
Tuesday I marked all the areas that needed patches (by putting tape on the *outside* of the boat, because I didn't want the marks to be a permanent part of the boat) and cut fiberglass for all the patches and the end flaps, and laid them all out on the strongback-auxilliary-workbench in a systematic way so I could put the right patch on the right bubble. Note that it's easier to cut the end flaps if you mark the cut lines with the fiberglass inside the boat--clamp patches of roughly the right size to the sheer to hold them in place. A sharpie will mark on the glass, but be careful to cut *all* the marks away when you cut because tiny flecks of sharpie ink spread out a lot when you add epoxy. Also if you mark on the inside of the boat accidentally it's reasonably easy to sand the marks off with 80 grit sandpaper but do it before layup!
Wednesday I put in the end flaps and patched the bubbles, which went very smoothly thanks to all the layout and marking work that felt like spinning my wheels the day before. I also rolled the boat out into daylight to check my layup, which helped me catch a forming bubble or two and fix it. I was worried that moving the boat would flex it more than the forming layup could accept (that the boat would flex enough that fiberglass would come loose or bubbles would form) but that doesn't seem to have been a problem.
Yesterday I sanded the edges of the end flaps and the patches, put the last little bias-cut bridging pieces across the bow and stern stems, and added extra epoxy across the whole canoe to fill the weave. I also made a jig to hold the 2 sides of the 2 decks (4 sides in all) firmly together, then glued up the decks. I'm particularly proud of myself because I fit this in around a folk singing meeting and cooking dinner. It did mean I didn't get done till 8 pm.
But that means today I can put in the through-holes (already made) and level the tops of the bookmatched decks and maybe even dry-fit the inwales.
If nothing went wrong with yesterday's work.
You may recall that I put in the interior fiberglass in stages. I do the (relatively) easy middle in one big step, covering about 90% of the surface area. The ends have to be done in two steps (at least) anyway--flaps on the sides that go up to the end but not across (in practice they stop an inch or so from the end) and a bias cut strip that bridges the gap from one flap to the other. However these flaps are tricky to do because of the curves of the canoe in this area, and because the ends tend to be narrower than the middle, and you run out of room to work. When I made Patience I worried that I would end up fiddling with one set of end flaps while the epoxy was curing at the other end; what if I needed so much time that the epoxy had cured at the other end too hard to work with? So I did the middle as one piece that ran to within 18 inches of each end without flaps, and did the end flaps as separate overlapping pieces the next day. That took some of the stress out of the process, and the overlaps are the sort of thing you can spot if you know what to look for, but that nobody notices in every day use.
So I took the same tack with Constance. However the white pine I used for Constance is lighter in color than the cedar I used for Patience. Since bubbles show up as whiter areas in the layup, which were harder to see against the lighter wood, this led to stealth bubbles that escaped my attention while I could have fixed them easily, and which had to be sanded off and patched when the epoxy cured.
Sunday I sanded the bubbles off. Monday I made a rolling board with leftover plywood and 4 cheap castors that I could load the cradles and boat on, so I could easily roll the boat in and out of my workshop. My plan was to check my layup work in daylight then move the boat back inside before the direct sunlight could heat the air in any remaining cracks and crevices and cause bubbles in the layup. I also sanded off all the extra bubbles I found when I moved the boat into daylight.
Tuesday I marked all the areas that needed patches (by putting tape on the *outside* of the boat, because I didn't want the marks to be a permanent part of the boat) and cut fiberglass for all the patches and the end flaps, and laid them all out on the strongback-auxilliary-workbench in a systematic way so I could put the right patch on the right bubble. Note that it's easier to cut the end flaps if you mark the cut lines with the fiberglass inside the boat--clamp patches of roughly the right size to the sheer to hold them in place. A sharpie will mark on the glass, but be careful to cut *all* the marks away when you cut because tiny flecks of sharpie ink spread out a lot when you add epoxy. Also if you mark on the inside of the boat accidentally it's reasonably easy to sand the marks off with 80 grit sandpaper but do it before layup!
Wednesday I put in the end flaps and patched the bubbles, which went very smoothly thanks to all the layout and marking work that felt like spinning my wheels the day before. I also rolled the boat out into daylight to check my layup, which helped me catch a forming bubble or two and fix it. I was worried that moving the boat would flex it more than the forming layup could accept (that the boat would flex enough that fiberglass would come loose or bubbles would form) but that doesn't seem to have been a problem.
Yesterday I sanded the edges of the end flaps and the patches, put the last little bias-cut bridging pieces across the bow and stern stems, and added extra epoxy across the whole canoe to fill the weave. I also made a jig to hold the 2 sides of the 2 decks (4 sides in all) firmly together, then glued up the decks. I'm particularly proud of myself because I fit this in around a folk singing meeting and cooking dinner. It did mean I didn't get done till 8 pm.
But that means today I can put in the through-holes (already made) and level the tops of the bookmatched decks and maybe even dry-fit the inwales.
If nothing went wrong with yesterday's work.
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no subject
Date: 2010-09-24 01:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-09-25 12:35 am (UTC)The gunwales are probably going to have to go in one at a time, so that's four days right there, if everything goes perfectly (and not counting the fiddly bit I want to do at the ends). The decks might be able to go in the same day as the last gunwale, or maybe not since I'll have to shape the outwales before I put in the screws to hold the decks. The seat--the mortise and tenon joints I might be able to do in two days if all goes well, then it has to be rounded, sanded and all the holes for the caning drilled which would probably be another day. Then it needs at least 2 coats of varnish (at least 2 more days) and preferably four, and caning adds at least another day. Then installing the seat will take 2 days because the seat supports have to be epoxied in. Shaping and varnishing the thwart could happen while the seat is under construction. It would really be best to take the canoe to the water at that point to test the center of balance; it should be even with the widest station but I'm not sure--and I know where the center of gravity on a sitting or kneeling paddler is, but how about if the paddler's legs are stretched out in front of her? But if the boat is going to hit the water then I really ought to put at least one coat of varnish on the gunwales and decks to protect them, and I'm worried about that lake water leaving some kind of film on the epoxy that will make the epoxy varnish relationship (tricky to begin with) more problematic.
Short version: three weeks best case. I might be able to varnish more than once a day, depending; that would cut things down. If I'm smart, I could combine varnishing the inside with varnishing the seat and thwart. The workshop will reek...
no subject
Date: 2010-09-24 05:43 pm (UTC)http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39277933/39336159
Maybe I am infected!