Year End Recap

Does anyone know what happened to 2009?. It’s gone and I cant find it anywhere.

The Big Tuna is right on schedule and the 2009 goal was achieved.
- Frames built
- Keel set.
- Chine logs put in place

Very minimal fairing has been done due to lack of time and the need to proceed with the rest of the build.

Many thanks to Svein for his support, wisdom, inspiration, and technical tips.I also want to thank Gil, my neighbor, who was my third and fourth hand when I needed it. Both of you are welcome on the Big Tuna any day.Honorable mention to Luis and Riley who also helped with the boat. "Is it finished yet pop?"

Best wishes to everyone and a wonderful, healthy and happy New Year!

Now I leave you for 2009 with some updated pictures of the Big Tuna.

Placing the port side chine log on frame.
 
 
 
 
 
 

Starbord view from bow to stern. Uper and lower chine logs in place.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Stern to bow veiw. with chine logs in place.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Chine logs meet at the bow. Finally! This picture shows rough cuts for notches. The notch shown was all done with a hammer and wood chisel. Be patient. Chip away. Step back. Look. Rough fit. Chip away. Step back. Look. rough fit. And so on. If you get tired, take a break or call it a day but what ever you do, dont rush it.

And finally the chine logs meet. The exess piece will be trimmed off and sanded flush.
Again, best wishes for 2010!




More picturs and updates to follow in January 2010.

Quote of the Month

We're not exactly building a concert grand piano here but she's gotta look sweet inside and outside.
- Svein Kopfelt

Advice from Svein after a few email exchanges discussing the assembly of the chine logs.

The Big Tuna Skeleton

The end of October was productive. The keel was dropped in place and the starboard chine log was fitted with clamps. In addition the bow stem was also installed. Let's view it.

Keel dropped in place and secured with clamp. Note the notches on the right side (also one on the left side). This notch allows the water to drain to the back of the boat where the bilge pump will pump it out of the boat. Without those notches, the water will accumulate in each comportment making it more difficult, if not impossible, to drain.

Perhaps the most frustrating part of the build so far has been fitting the chine log. To think that there are three more to go! Luckily a boat building friend, Svein, was able to assist me by providing some words of wisdom and encouragement via telephone.  This picture shows the transom with the chine log fit in place. It is currently held on using clamps while checking for a flush fit against the vertical frame. The best advice I can give anyone who gets to this phase can be summed up in one word. Patience. It will be tested. Speed here is not an option. As a matter of fact it will hurt you.

This was a very difficult notch to cut. It was mostly done by hand, like the old days, with a chisel and hammer. Note the bow stem in the front also has a notch to receive the chine log. That notch was also made with a chisel and hammer. The plank on the left side of the picture is the actual chine log. It will bend around to fit in both notches.

Side view of the Big Tuna with the chine and keel in place. The end of the chine log will be trimmed down flush to the transom.

It’s actually starting to look like a boat!

The next step is fit the port side chine log. Once the port side has been fitted, they will be screwed and glued in place. Keep  your chisels sharp!

Lost My Parking Spot

Now that Big Tuna’s frames are off the floor and on the strong back, I lost my parking spot in the garage. All in the name of progress.

Speaking of progress, let's take a look at what has been done.

KEELSON & DRAIN HOLES

Prior to cutting, I needed a guide for the keelson notch. I cut a small 1/4 inch think piece of the keelson to use as a template.

I lined it up in position and I traced the template on the frame.

Once the cut is made, I verified it with the template. Any small "imperfection" of the cut can be filled with epoxy and filler.

For the drain holes, I again used a small template to make my cuts.

Notches for keelson and drain holes have been cut on all frames. There is a gusset on every frame for additional support on the joint but only located on one side.

CHINE LOGS

To create the notches for the chine logs, I cut a small piece of the actual chine log so that I can use it as a template. I gave it a light coat of epoxy to prevent it from chipping while working with the template.

When I was ready to cut the notch, i would trace the template on the position that I wanted.

Carefully and patiently, I then cut the notch for the chine log. Note that the top edge (over the ruler) is on the very edge of the frame. You have to make sure that the outer corner of the chine log meets evenly with the edge of the frame. The remainder is sanded down flush.

SETTING UP THE FRAMES ON THE STRONG BACK.

The strong back helps in many ways. It is a must to build if you want to move forward with the project.

Here Gil and I are lining up each frame on the strong back to the exact spacing as indicated in the plans. I cut a block of 2x4 for the proper spacing needed (18inches). I then used a right triangle to assist in truing up the frames to ensure they were lined up properly. Unless you're an octopus, an extra set of hands can be very useful.

Gil man handling what appears to be Frame #5

Lou checking frames.

Frames Completed

Went to the Sea Aquarium this morning with the family. For some reason, I had a sudden urge to finish the last frame on the Big Tuna when I got home this afternoon. Well...the frame is finished. The most cumbersome part of the build appears to be over!

Next steps are:
Sanding the frames.
Cutting notches for the keelson
Cutting notches for the chine logs.

After this, it will start looking like a boat!

Should be on schedule for the February 2010 launching!

How's It Looking?

Front view looking to the stern.
It's not looking like much right now but that's part of the fun. Here is the layout of the transom and frames 1 through 3. As you can see, it's going to have a nice width which will be comfortable for fishing.

The wood is made of spruce and it's the common 2x4 found in your local home improvement store. They will have a coat of epoxy once the sides and floor are fitted.




Back view of the transom.
Right now the engine mount is set at a 15" height, however, that may be modified to a 20" motor mount. A self bailing compartment is in the works for the transom. Looking at the width, it appears that two people can sit in the stern comfortably.

The supervisor in the background is Uncle Gil. He's really my neighbor but we call him Uncle Gil. He's had a hand in this project and it's been very helpful thus earning his fishing spot on the dory.

Quote of the month....

From a fellow boat builder via email June 12, 2009:

"I believe that building a boat is an admirable avocation. Building a boat that you will launch and step into and run it into whatever seas are present takes an unusual leap of faith. Life is a journey and when you have taken that first ride in your boat you will be a different person." - Svein Kopfelt

That pretty much wraps it up.

The Power Plant

I've been doing some research on marine outboard engines particularly the tillers. I’ve looked at Mercury, Honda and Evenrude. However, I don’t think Evenrude makes a 20HP tiller. Yamaha is next on the list to research.

I’m not quite sure what size engine I should use so a little more consulting with Jeff Spira, the designer, may be in order. I’m not looking for speed. I am looking for reliability and some giddy up and go power if the weather suddenly changes and I have to head back to the marina or the bay.

Building the Transom

TRANSON BUILDING NOTES:

What ever plans you use, I recommend using butcher paper to draw out your angles and cuts. I had no butcher paper so a good garage expedient method was using the back of some old wrapping paper. Just roll it out on the table and draw out your measurements from the plans on the white side. (I thought you would like that.) Lay out the right half of the transom on your paper and follow the directions from your plans. Remember measure twice and cut once. I then laid out the left side but reversed the angles on the saw. (That was a tip: Key word "reverse.")

While at the beach, we decided test the waterproof glue we were using. After immersing 2 pieces of glued 2x4 scraps for nearly six hours in salt water, the glue held! We used Gorilla Glue HOWEVER, I am not sure if this is the best glue to use for this project. I will need to research this a bit further.

This is the almost fisnished transom. Once the clamps and straps come off, a little light sanding may be in order. This will remove any splinters from the wood and the excess glue that squeezed out from the joints.

Let's get it going!

This Memorial Day weekend was a good opportunity to get started. It would also brush me up on my old wood working skills. We started to build the transom and yeap, my wood working skills were rusty and in need of some polishing.

Here is the information on the boat:
Boat Type: Carolina Dory Vee-Bottom
Model: Alamitos
Lenght: 15 feet
Width: 7' - 3/4" feet at the widest section
Transom Width: 5' - 1 1/4"
Stern Height: 1' - 10 1/4"
Bow Height: 2' - 9 3/8"
Designer: Jeff Spira / Spira International, Inc.
Webpage: http://www.spirainternational.com

After months of researching web pages and plans, I found that Jeff's web page had the best information and the study plans he offers for each boat seemed relatively easy to understand.

If you can't buy it...Build it!

I've been wanting to own a boat as far back as I can remember. The only problem was that the prices were way out of my range. So many years back, I created item number 9 on my bucket list: Own Boat. I've managed to scratch off many items on the bucket list and there are still plenty to go. However, old #9 sticks out since items 1-10 have been crossed off. For many years, I've always said that next summer, I'm going to have a boat. But that summer came and went and I had no boat. Here I am years later with old #9 on on the bucket list staring at me.

One frustrated day while looking at some boats, I wondered if I would ever own one. Suddenly it hit me. Why not build one! Could it be done? Has it ever been done? To my surprise there are people out there that actually built their own boats! So after months of of researching, I was confident that I could build one. I was as confident as knowing that my wife of 20 years was the right girl.

I plan to share all my boat building adventures with you. Some of you that are planning to build a boat may find my blog useful. Keep in mind, I don't know anything about building boats. I don't even know the terminology of the parts of a boat except for the bow and stern and port and starboard. It will be a great learning experience for me and my two boys. I can't put a price on the adventure we’re about to take. Even at the end, if the boat sinks in the marina, the experience, fun, and memories I will share with my family will last forever.