I mentioned recently that I was out of glass bubbles (an important filleting additive) and getting low on epoxy. So I've placed another order with Merton's, to the tune of $67.24. This brings the epoxy lineitem in my budget up to $243.76, and the total cost thus far to $595.89.
For those of you keeping score at home, that's around $150, or roughly 33%, over the initial budget estimate, which I arrived at by converting Wharram's budget estimate from British pounds to US dollars.
But the "good news" is that I'm not only well over budget, I'm also well behind schedule. Extra time means extra time to save money towards the build. So while I'm not thrilled to be over budget, I do at least have the money to spend. If I had reached this point in the build last fall, I would have had to put the build on hold while I saved up for more materials.
Oh, and that Merton's box showed up yesterday, so I should be able to produce some more construction news shortly. That's all for now.
Showing posts with label materials. Show all posts
Showing posts with label materials. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Materials, part 3: Sailcloth
Dreaming of this boat building project over the last few months, I've largely forgotten that it is a sailboat, and will eventually require a sail. The Bolger Teal I'm building with my brother has caused the same sort of amnesia. I guess one gets so caught up in making the hull that it's hard to remember all the other pieces required to make it move when the wind blows.
Luckily, the Melanesia plans come with a detailed description of the crabclaw rig, how to trim it for performance in various winds and on various points of sail. They also describe how to sew together the sails with a simple technique that actually seems achievable, despite my complete helplessness with cloth. So I've been thinking about the sail materials before I've even begun lofting the hull panels. Quite a turnaround!
I've read about people cutting their sails from inexpensive plastic tarps. It's certainly an option, and one Mr. Wharram endorses, though he warns that such sails deteriorate rapidly from UV exposure. But it would cost only about $10 to make a sail from a tarp, and that option will remain on the table until I get a sense of the budget.
Another option would be to use Tyvek, a sort of plasticized paper that is commonly used as a semi-permeable house wrap in the USA. If the name doesn't instantly conjure up memories of the Tyvek logo plastered all over a new home, you may recognize it as the stuff of FedEx envelopes or disposable painter's suits. From what I've learned reading other cheapskates' sailing stories, it is lighter than polytarp, performs better in light air, and lasts a bit longer. It's available in 3' x 100' rolls - enough to make ten or fifteen sails - for under $30, or I might be able to score a partial role from a construction site dumpster for free.
And then there's the "real" sailcloth option. I happen to be within an hour's bike ride of Rockywoods Fabrics, who stock a large variety of outdoor fabrics for camping/backpacking DIY'ers. I looked up specs on a replacement sail for my El Toro, and found that it was made from a 3.5oz polyester fabric. (Polyester apparently stretches less than nylon, and so makes longer-lasting sails.) Rockywoods sells a white 4.5oz coated ripstop polyester fabric for $5.09 per linear "yard." (At 5' of width, a "yard" of this fabric is considerably more than a square yard.) It appears that I would need about 5-10 of these yards to make the sail; at $5 per yard, this makes a real sail cost-competitive with buying a roll of Tyvek and only 3-4 times as expensive as polytarp, while lasting much longer. Rockywoods sells online, in case you're looking into sails for your small boat & like the sound of that fabric.
As I said earlier, I'm postponing this decision until I see what I can afford. But if at all possible, I think I'll go with the polyester fabric option. It seems much more of a "real" result, and it's only slightly more expensive than the cheaper materials.
Luckily, the Melanesia plans come with a detailed description of the crabclaw rig, how to trim it for performance in various winds and on various points of sail. They also describe how to sew together the sails with a simple technique that actually seems achievable, despite my complete helplessness with cloth. So I've been thinking about the sail materials before I've even begun lofting the hull panels. Quite a turnaround!
 |
| A crabclaw polytarp sail in action |
| on a different outrigger canoe design |
I've read about people cutting their sails from inexpensive plastic tarps. It's certainly an option, and one Mr. Wharram endorses, though he warns that such sails deteriorate rapidly from UV exposure. But it would cost only about $10 to make a sail from a tarp, and that option will remain on the table until I get a sense of the budget.
Another option would be to use Tyvek, a sort of plasticized paper that is commonly used as a semi-permeable house wrap in the USA. If the name doesn't instantly conjure up memories of the Tyvek logo plastered all over a new home, you may recognize it as the stuff of FedEx envelopes or disposable painter's suits. From what I've learned reading other cheapskates' sailing stories, it is lighter than polytarp, performs better in light air, and lasts a bit longer. It's available in 3' x 100' rolls - enough to make ten or fifteen sails - for under $30, or I might be able to score a partial role from a construction site dumpster for free.
As I said earlier, I'm postponing this decision until I see what I can afford. But if at all possible, I think I'll go with the polyester fabric option. It seems much more of a "real" result, and it's only slightly more expensive than the cheaper materials.
Materials, pt. 2: Found Timber
One neat thing about the Melanesia is that it calls for several pieces of found timber, to be used as spars, outrigger poles, outrigger attachment sticks, and the outrigger itself. The plans give detailed specifications, including length, diameter, and, in the case of the outrigger float, ideal density. They go on to recommend certain species of tree that might be good for each purpose, and mention that bamboo is acceptable for most of these applications as well.
Dimensional lumber can be substituted, but it's described as an inferior choice, and I'm on a tight budget anyway, so there's no reason to go that route. I'm tempted by the idea of using bamboo poles because of their incredible strength to weight ratio, which would really maximize the boat's performance. But poles are prohibitively expensive, because they don't seem to be available locally, and only expensive trucking companies will ship parcels as long as 12-13 feet. So found lumber it is.
James states in the Melanesia plans that using found timber will change your relationship to your environment, because you'll suddenly find yourself assessing every tree you pass. I can confirm that this is the case. In the last week, I've noticed dozens of trees along my daily commute that never caught my eye before.
The plans actually list a density figure for the outrigger float (ama) of 30lbs/cu. ft. Not knowing wood densities by heart, I looked it up and found that elm, the most plentiful wood in my back yard, is too heavy. Pine, which is abundant in Colorado, is all over the density table at 23-55lbs/cu. ft. Some varieties are light enough on paper, and a friend has a few dead pines standing on land near his cabin in the mountains that I could have. But I have a theory that our dry climate produces a denser pine than is typical. The growth rings are pretty slim on the pines I've seen; I might find something suitable, but it would take a bit of looking.
We have plenty of cottonwood about, but it's rarely straight, and I think it has all the structural virtues of soggy cardboard. It's an odd, spongy wood, and I don't think it could be used for anything on my boat.
Another common Colorado wood that is well under the maximum density but stronger than cottonwood is our fabled quaking aspen. I happen to have a friend who's been battling a blight in a stand of aspens he owns, and frequently brings chunks of dead aspen over when we host bonfires. I buzzed him, and he has a trunk that would be promising, but it's a little short.
So for the moment, the ama could end up being two pieces of aspen joined together, a pine trunk from the mountains, or a particular elm in my backyard. Unless I find something better. I'm considering calling around to local tree services and see if anyone has a better aspen trunk available.
As for the rest of the pieces, I scored a few small sticks of unknown species for the outrigger attachment role. They're supposed to be about 0.75" and springy; I chanced on a pile of saplings the city had cut near our bike path, and found several decent lengths of the right diameter. There are 12 of those sticks; I have at least 3 or 4 now, possibly more. I stripped the bark off a few of them this evening after work, and they seem perfect for the job.
I have one or possibly two standing elms that could make outrigger poles, and I found a couple pieces in my neighborhood this evening that might make good spars, if they're long enough. Length seems to be the biggest problem. Twelve feet is long, apparently longer than I think, because I keep bringing home sticks that are too short to use anywhere.
And a couple good crotches are required to make the spars. I'm pretty sure I can take them from the elms in our back yard.
I'm sure there will be plenty more to say on the subject of found materials in the days to come. I'll be nervous about it until I see a neat stack of stripped poles against the shed.
Dimensional lumber can be substituted, but it's described as an inferior choice, and I'm on a tight budget anyway, so there's no reason to go that route. I'm tempted by the idea of using bamboo poles because of their incredible strength to weight ratio, which would really maximize the boat's performance. But poles are prohibitively expensive, because they don't seem to be available locally, and only expensive trucking companies will ship parcels as long as 12-13 feet. So found lumber it is.
James states in the Melanesia plans that using found timber will change your relationship to your environment, because you'll suddenly find yourself assessing every tree you pass. I can confirm that this is the case. In the last week, I've noticed dozens of trees along my daily commute that never caught my eye before.
The plans actually list a density figure for the outrigger float (ama) of 30lbs/cu. ft. Not knowing wood densities by heart, I looked it up and found that elm, the most plentiful wood in my back yard, is too heavy. Pine, which is abundant in Colorado, is all over the density table at 23-55lbs/cu. ft. Some varieties are light enough on paper, and a friend has a few dead pines standing on land near his cabin in the mountains that I could have. But I have a theory that our dry climate produces a denser pine than is typical. The growth rings are pretty slim on the pines I've seen; I might find something suitable, but it would take a bit of looking.
We have plenty of cottonwood about, but it's rarely straight, and I think it has all the structural virtues of soggy cardboard. It's an odd, spongy wood, and I don't think it could be used for anything on my boat.
Another common Colorado wood that is well under the maximum density but stronger than cottonwood is our fabled quaking aspen. I happen to have a friend who's been battling a blight in a stand of aspens he owns, and frequently brings chunks of dead aspen over when we host bonfires. I buzzed him, and he has a trunk that would be promising, but it's a little short.
So for the moment, the ama could end up being two pieces of aspen joined together, a pine trunk from the mountains, or a particular elm in my backyard. Unless I find something better. I'm considering calling around to local tree services and see if anyone has a better aspen trunk available.
As for the rest of the pieces, I scored a few small sticks of unknown species for the outrigger attachment role. They're supposed to be about 0.75" and springy; I chanced on a pile of saplings the city had cut near our bike path, and found several decent lengths of the right diameter. There are 12 of those sticks; I have at least 3 or 4 now, possibly more. I stripped the bark off a few of them this evening after work, and they seem perfect for the job.
I have one or possibly two standing elms that could make outrigger poles, and I found a couple pieces in my neighborhood this evening that might make good spars, if they're long enough. Length seems to be the biggest problem. Twelve feet is long, apparently longer than I think, because I keep bringing home sticks that are too short to use anywhere.
And a couple good crotches are required to make the spars. I'm pretty sure I can take them from the elms in our back yard.
I'm sure there will be plenty more to say on the subject of found materials in the days to come. I'll be nervous about it until I see a neat stack of stripped poles against the shed.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Materials, part 1: Plywood
The Melanesia plans call for 2 sheets of marine-grade plywood. Here in Colorado, marine ply is a mythical substance rarely seen. I called around once a couple years ago and was quoted prices near $100 per 4x8 sheet! So I was a bit nervous about what this item would do to the tight boatbuilding budget.
James discusses the issue in the building instructions at some length. WBP ("weather and boil proof") ply can be used, but it's a gamble, as not all WBP ply is truly up to marine applications. He then mentions that one of the better, more affordable options is quality Douglas fir marine ply. This sounds great for two reasons: first, because low cost is important to me, and second, because I would much rather use a relatively local wood. As James points out, tropical hardwoods are being harvested faster than they can be regrown, and I'd rather not be a part of that.
I called our local "boutique" wood shop and found that they stock Meranti marine-grade ply at $55 per sheet. That's great news, far cheaper than I expected! I inquired about Doug fir marine ply, and they said it's a special order item but yes, they can get it, and it only costs $34 per sheet. This news puts me over the moon - it's so rare that the cheapest and greenest options converge like that.
Sadly, it turns out that their supplier won't sell the Douglas fir for orders less than 100 sheets, and the local shop isn't willing to order that much of a low-demand product unless I'm buying it all. Since I'm not interested in spending $3500 and the next several decades as a regional marine plywood distributor any more than they are, the Meranti ply appears to be my best local option. Unless....
I called every lumber store in the region - big chains and local shops alike, and got the same answer each time. (They apparently all deal with the same supplier....) "Yes, we can get it. The minimum order is 100 sheets. No, we will not stock 100 sheets of it so we can sell you 2 sheets." An understandable response, but frustrating nonetheless.
I checked with some of the better-known online retailers of boatbuilding supplies, Noah's Marine of the Niagara Falls region, and Chesapeake Light Craft of Annapolis, MD. Both had good prices on plywood - but both had shipping charge structures that made a small purchase like this financially prohibitive. It was something like, "$99 shipping for the first one to ten sheets of plywood." So a $70 purchase might cost $170 by the time it got to my doorstep. It might make sense for large boats, but certainly not for my tiny Melanesia.
So it turns out, after several hours of phone calls and internet searches, that the best price on marine plywood is at my expensive local boutique lumber shop. Who'd have thought it? I'm disappointed that I couldn't purchase a North American ply, but I'm happy to be able to give my business to the local guys. And they will probably be able to sell me local softwoods for the gunwale pieces, so it makes for one-stop, low-guilt shopping.
Final plywood cost: $110 US.
Coming up in the next couple posts: epoxy options, and the ongoing search for found timber to make the spars, outrigger float and outrigger poles.
James discusses the issue in the building instructions at some length. WBP ("weather and boil proof") ply can be used, but it's a gamble, as not all WBP ply is truly up to marine applications. He then mentions that one of the better, more affordable options is quality Douglas fir marine ply. This sounds great for two reasons: first, because low cost is important to me, and second, because I would much rather use a relatively local wood. As James points out, tropical hardwoods are being harvested faster than they can be regrown, and I'd rather not be a part of that.
I called our local "boutique" wood shop and found that they stock Meranti marine-grade ply at $55 per sheet. That's great news, far cheaper than I expected! I inquired about Doug fir marine ply, and they said it's a special order item but yes, they can get it, and it only costs $34 per sheet. This news puts me over the moon - it's so rare that the cheapest and greenest options converge like that.
Sadly, it turns out that their supplier won't sell the Douglas fir for orders less than 100 sheets, and the local shop isn't willing to order that much of a low-demand product unless I'm buying it all. Since I'm not interested in spending $3500 and the next several decades as a regional marine plywood distributor any more than they are, the Meranti ply appears to be my best local option. Unless....
I called every lumber store in the region - big chains and local shops alike, and got the same answer each time. (They apparently all deal with the same supplier....) "Yes, we can get it. The minimum order is 100 sheets. No, we will not stock 100 sheets of it so we can sell you 2 sheets." An understandable response, but frustrating nonetheless.
I checked with some of the better-known online retailers of boatbuilding supplies, Noah's Marine of the Niagara Falls region, and Chesapeake Light Craft of Annapolis, MD. Both had good prices on plywood - but both had shipping charge structures that made a small purchase like this financially prohibitive. It was something like, "$99 shipping for the first one to ten sheets of plywood." So a $70 purchase might cost $170 by the time it got to my doorstep. It might make sense for large boats, but certainly not for my tiny Melanesia.
So it turns out, after several hours of phone calls and internet searches, that the best price on marine plywood is at my expensive local boutique lumber shop. Who'd have thought it? I'm disappointed that I couldn't purchase a North American ply, but I'm happy to be able to give my business to the local guys. And they will probably be able to sell me local softwoods for the gunwale pieces, so it makes for one-stop, low-guilt shopping.
Final plywood cost: $110 US.
Coming up in the next couple posts: epoxy options, and the ongoing search for found timber to make the spars, outrigger float and outrigger poles.
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