The Utility part 1 Getting started

The Glen-L Utility is a simple but classic 1950s utility / fishing boat. It is 11 LOA, with a 5 beam, wood foredeck, open cockpit, and simple thwart / bench seats. Specs say it can carry up to 3 average passengers. Most of the photos Ive seen of them show basic tiller outboard steering. I got my plans around early April of 2012 & got started immediately.

Having learned my lesson about asymmetry in the construction of the frames, I approached the Utilitys frames very differently. First, I drew out frames 1 and 2, as well as the keel  backing, full-size on a sheet of 1/4" marine-grade Douglas Fir plywood.

Frames & keel backing traced out on the plywood.

Then, I traced all the frame members from the plans directly onto some 3/4" mahogany, and cut them out with much more care and attention to detail than I did with the Squirt. 

I learned an interesting thing about mahogany. Apparently, it is rather light sensitive. Driving home from the lumber yard, a small portion of the board was sticking out my back window. After about 2 hours in the sun, that part had turned considerably darker, as seen on the keel in the photo below.

Keel and frame members laid out on the plywood.

In order to maintain the best possible shape and alignment of my frames, I then epoxied the frame members directly onto the plywood. I later used the scrap from the cut-out portions of the plywood to make my remaining frame gussets.

I fastened the gussets onto the frames using Glen-L Poxy Shield epoxy, (thickened with #2 silica filler), and 1-1/4" bronze screws. The frames & interior surfaces of the transom were encapsulated with 3 layers of Poxy Shield. After each layer dried, I scrubbed & washed off the amine blush using dish detergent, warm water & a Scotch Brite pad. I also sanded lightly between the layers with 220 grit sandpaper.

Gluing the forward frame members onto the plywood.

The frame notches in the plans are 1" deep (other than the keel notch, which is 1-1/4"). Most stock sold as 1" these days is actually 3/4". If I were doing this again, I would probably change the notches to 3/4" in order to use some less expensive & more available boards.

Another thing I did differently than with the Squirt was to take construction of my building form much more seriously. I made it from 2x8s and 2x6s, with well-reinforced cross braces made from 2x4s left over from the Squirt form. I took a lot of care to make sure the surfaces were level, clamping them into position before fastening with 3" wood screws. Trying to build something with level surfaces on a sloped floor was a little tricky. The key is to mark the positions of the legs on the floor once youve gotten the parts level. That is, unless youre going to bolt the form to the concrete floor. Thats the preferred method, but several builders dont do that. I didnt.

Frames, transom and keel on the building form.

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Old Kayak Bent Ribs

Ive got one more set of photos on deck for the old kayak series.  Not that I dont have more old kayaks or old kayak photos, but its a matter of being able to find them.

Todays tale of woe is all about the lethal combination of heavy nylon fabric and a boat left out in the sun for too long.  Nylon, if you dont already know, contracts with high temps and as you can see in the photos, pushes down on the keelson and bends the ribs into a reverse curve.  This isnt that bad, mostly it makes the hull a little flatter.  What is worse is the end to end shrinkage of the fabric which compresses the keelson which responds by taking on something of an S curve when viewed from above.  This makes the boat pull to one side.  But even that is not lethal and I managed to fix it with a rudder.  Its just that the boat is not the elegant craft that you started out with. So beware of heavy nylon combined with heavy sun.

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Desert Storm Tan Repaint

Over the last few years I have been painting the skins of my skin on frame boats with polyurethane varnish.  The varnish has UV blockers in it that protect the synthetic boat fabric from degradation by the UV.  The fabric I use is either nylon and of  late, mostly polyester.  Both get degraded by UV more or less equally.  Degradation means the fiber loses its flexibility and strength and crumbles into dust.  This is not a good thing in a boat skin and so it must be prevented.
In the past, I would try to touch up the varnish.  That worked for a little while but new polyurethane does not adhere well to old polyurethane.  The touch up varnish when exposed to sunlight for about a year starts to peel off.

Heres the original latex painted boat,  exposed to full sun for over two years already with no visible damage to the paint.

The solution as it turned out is latex paint.  Latex paint sticks to degraded polyurethane varnish and it effectively blocks UV radiation and it also is more flexible than polyurethane and does not crack.  Coincidentally, the polymer used in latex paint is acrylic, same stuff that they make UV resistant fabric like Sunbrella out of. You might ask, why not just cover the boats in sunbrella.  Good question.  I suspect it has to do with the price of sunbrella.  And you still have to paint the stuff to make it waterproof.

Heres the King Island kayak about to get a coat of tan paint.  Note the previously yellowish varnish starting to turn a chalky white, a clear sign that is near the end of its life.

The paint I was using was free give-away stuff left over from repainting about an acres worth of commercial buildings in the neighborhood.  The commercial buildings have not peeled and neither have my boats.  Only drawback to this paint is its color, an unattractive sort of Desert Storm Tan.  Oh well, I also have four gallons of Gulf of Tonkin Gray.

And here is one of my baidarkas with a new coat of Desert Storm Tan or maybe it should be called, Afghanis-Tan or would you prefer Afghanistan-Tan

In any case, I painted about 4 boats yesterday.  Six left to go.

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Shim for the strongback

As it turns out, I did install the strongback incorrectly.

Even after Id faired the front of the breasthook down to meet the sheers, it was readily apparent that the forward angle on the strongback was too steep. What I should have done was to notch the bottom of the strongback, so that the front of it extended several inches across the top of the breasthook.

Instead, I cut the whole thing too short, and bent it down too far. 

Cant change that now.

So, I made a shim from a 16" piece of Southern Yellow Pine. Using a block plane and my planer/jointer, I formed it to fit into place. Then I epoxied it on. 

The next step will be to sand the top of it down so that the deck will fit properly.

My test piece of plywood clearly shows that the angle of the strongback is too steep.

The shim, clamped into place while the epoxy cures.

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Double Ridged Unangan Aleut Kayak Paddle

A while back, Suzawa Ikunori of Japan posted some pictures of several Unangan paddles in a Japanese Museum. Unlike most of the Unangan paddles I had seen before which have one face which is more or less flat and one face which has a ridge running down the center,  these paddles had ridges running down both the front and back faces. 

The paddle is quite long assuming the the loom is the usual length of about 22 to 24 inches.

This photo shows three of these double ridged paddles.  The middle one seems to have some damage to the tip.

And this is a drawing of the paddle blade and the relative size of the ridges and the location of the blade edge.
It appears that the layout of the blades is similar to that of the single ridge paddles except that the normally slightly convex side of the blade also has a ridge carved into it.  I have taken one of my single ridged paddles which I found to be too stiff and heavy and have carved away at the flat face of it to create a low ridge on that face.  Testing of this configuration is still pending. 
One thing that double ridged paddles might eliminate is arguments about which is the right way to hold them, ridge forward or ridge backward.  But since the paddle is not symmetrical, there is still room for argument.  I hope to test my own version of the double ridged paddle soon and report on results.

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Zip stem construction

Todays blog post is about assembling the stem for my Glen-L Zip. The Zips stem, as with many Glen-L designs, is made from two identically shaped pieces of 3/4" marine-grade plywood, laminated together with marine epoxy and fastened with silicon bronze screws.

This is now the third stem Ive built; the other two being for a Squirt and a Utility. Learning from previous experience, I did a few things differently this time.

First, I spent much more time and care in shaping the pieces beforehand. I feel very comfortable this time around with the shape being correct.

Second, I used less epoxy. The other two times, I globbed a bunch of thickened epoxy on, just to make certain there was enough. In reality, that just creates more of a mess, because the majority of it squeezes out.

Third, I kept a putty knife ready to scrape away the epoxy that squeezed out from between the two layers of plywood. This makes for much less sanding afterwards.

Also, having learned a tip from a fellow boatbuilder, I used an awl to quickly align the pre-drilled holes before driving the screws back in. This proved to be a great time-saver, since it can be a little tricky to mate the holes back together with epoxy spread over the wood, (particularly while wearing latex gloves, goggles, and a respirator).

For the epoxy, I used Glen-L Poxy Shield, thickened slightly with #2 silica. Poxy-shield is mixed in a 5:1 ratio, using 5 parts resin to 1 part hardener. It can be hard to find very small mixing cups in order to measure small batches of epoxy, so Ive used my own method. I take a regular off-the-shelf mixing cup, and measure the distance between the pre-printed volume marks. So far, all the cups Ive used had a distance of 8mm between the 4oz and 8oz markings. So, I add marks every 2mm between them to show the 5oz, 6oz and 7oz lines. That way, I can pour in 5oz of resin, then add hardener until the mixture reaches the 6oz line. There are, no doubt, more accurate ways to go about this. However, this way is quick, simple, cheap, and effective.

Perhaps not the most scientific method, but it works.

After mixing and thickening the epoxy, I spread it out on the mating surfaces of each stem piece, making sure the whole area was covered. Then, I put the pieces together & aligned a couple of holes with the awl. I dipped the silicon bronze screws in a little epoxy, then drove them down into the holes. Then, I clamped the pieces together solidly, driving the screws in further as needed. Afterwards, I scraped away the epoxy that had squeezed out from between the layers before the epoxy became unworkable. Then I left it alone to let the epoxy cure overnight.

Everything ready to go: Stem parts, Poxy-Shield resin and hardener, #2 silica, mixing cups, mixing stick, chip brush, awl, screwdriver, extra screws (just in case), clamps, and putty knife.

Glued, screwed, clamped and scraped with the epoxy curing.

On a final note, I also worked on the Utility over the weekend... still fairing. It seems like a never-ending process, but its getting there.

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Interior and deck

Have started on the interior paint and attaching the decking.

The WR-LPU works best if thinned a little and painted indoors!  roller and foam brush seems to be a very good approach.  You are looking at 3 coats of LPU over 2 coats of primer for the interior. 

May 9, 2015 - 

Some photos of the progress below.  I did finally have a layer of varnish not set off and remain gummy on one of the wood pieces.  There are two causes for this:  1.  not removing the blush from the epoxy being varnished over.  2.  Not stirring up a new can of varnish (the oils separate out).  Found a simple fix by removing the old varnish with mineral spirits and then scraping with a scraper and then cleaning with lacquer thinner.  15 minutes time lost.  

Swim ladder is on as well as motor board placed.  The entire interior now has a coating of epoxy on it.  Will do another coat prior to priming and painting with the WR-LPU.  

May 15, 2015

Finished painting the interior, and am now focusing on the deck.  

the Environmental Police came today and inspected the hull and issued a Hull ID number.  It is now an official boat.  

Some of the varnish did not set up over previously epoxied surfaces.  I had to scrape, sand, and then wash with soap and water to get the amine blush off, then revarnished.  It is setting up much better now.  ( I did add a splash of Japan Drier to the mix as well.) 

Update:  it is still a tad gummy one week later...I may need to switch brands of varnish, this is not working right.  Paint is so much easier.  

May 22, 2015 update

Finally attached the rear deck to the hull.  All the big parts are done now with only the coaming and the rub rails left as far as the hull is concerned.  I am very tempted to finish the deck clear as it looks terrific right now, However, that is more maintenance than I really want to get into. The WR-LPU is way more durable and looks good as well.  Tomorrow, I will sand and attempt to get a fair surface for primer down.  Would be nice to get a coating of primer on the hull, as many small parts need to get their final coat and I refuse to mix a small batch of this due to the expense of the paint. 

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The iqyax and the Sea Otter

A few years ago, a friend of mine gave me a bronze model of an Unangan kayak.  This year, my wife gave me a bronze sea otter. Coincidentally, or perhaps not, the sea otter was made to roughly the same scale as the kayak and so I put the sea otter on the deck of the kayak where it looks nice and appropriate and also cute.

The notion of a sea otter on the deck of an Unangan kayak is mostly a fantasy.  Sea otters were hunted by Unangan men in the service of the Russian fur traders aka promyshlenniki and later under American rule until the hunt was outlawed in 1911. Apparently, it dawned on somebody in the government that sea otters were near extinction.
So, perhaps coincidentally, the sculptural assemblage of kayak and sea otter is a  belated celebration of the one hundred year anniversary of the cessation of the sea otter hunt.

To modern urban sensibilities, the notion of hunting sea otters is abhorrent since they are so indisputably cute even as full grown adults.
But sea otters were hunted for practical reasons, that is, for money that the Chinese were willing to pay for their fur.

The Chinese needed the fur for their aristocracy which needed the luxuriant fur to trim their aristocratic robes as shown above.

The fur, when not attached to an imperial Chinese robe looks like the above. Legal note:  Only Alaskan Natives may possess sea mammal furs in the raw.  Non-natives may possess art or crafts objects that incorporate sea mammal parts if created by natives.
The Spanish in America, specifically in Baja and Alta California, received mercury in payment from the Chinese for sea otter furs.  The mercury was then used to extract gold from ore and the gold was shipped back to Spain to finance wars against other European nations.  And so it goes.
Sea otters are safe for the time being.  Oil has been found to be much more vital to economic well-being than mercury or gold.

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Captain Cook and his Expedition Artist John Webber visit Alasks and British Columbia

I got two replicas of John Webber prints.  I thought that they might maybe be actual Webber prints but it turned out that they werent.  In any case, they are nice prints.
John Webber was the expedition artist for Captain Cooks voyage of discovery in the North Pacific.  John Webber did sketches of landscapes and local people they encountered.  These sketches were later taken by engravers and turned into etchings that could be printed and brought to the attention of a wider audience.

The first print reproduction I got is called A Woman of Prince Williams Sound now called Prince William Sound without the s after William.  Probably nobody outside of Alaska can find Prince William Sound on a map but if youre curious use your google. The only reason anyone may have heard of Prince William Sound it is because the Exxon Valdez oil tanker ran aground there and spilled oil all over the bay thereby impoverishing local fisheries and ensuring decades of work for Exxon lawyers. But that was a little over two hundred years after Captain Cook visited there.  When Captain Cook visited, the primary residents of the Sound were the Chugach people.  And as you can see from the print, the people of the time adorned themselves with piercings, hair weaves and tattoos much as the people of today.

The picture above shows Prince William Sound as it looked during Cooks visit.  Toward the back is Cooks ship.  In the left foreground are Cooks people in wooden boats.  And in the foreground just to the right of center you can see a two-man kayak.  You can take my word for this or you can click on the image above to see a larger version.The kayaks paddled by the Chugach people were similar to the kayaks of the Unangan people farther to the southwest. The Russians made no distinction between the Chugach and the Unangan people and referred to all of them as Aleuts.  And they called their kayaks baidarkas.

The other print I got was of the Man of Nootka Sound. Nootka Sound is on the west coast of Vancouver Island some distance south of Prince William Sound. People there likewise adorned themselves in modern fashion but paddled wooden dugout canoes instead of kayaks.

The drawing above and the one below are the Webber originals.  These are what the engravers used to base their engravings on. 

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Sailing report Buzzards Bay !

Arrived in Wareham at the local ramp and put Blue J in for her first romp in Buzzards Bay.  My daughter and I went out in about 30 minutes of rigging/launching and spent three hours on the bay prior to the weather closing in on us.  Sorry, no photos.  My phone was in the waterproof lock box, and the crew left hers at home.

This boat sails well in a 3-12kt NNW.  We were able to point within 90 degrees which is quite respectable.  It takes very little wind to move her along, and if we were not on a time table, would have left the motor at home. But, due to severe thunderstorms forecast, we opted to have an escape option.

A few little projects are cropping up after 3 sails.  One is to move the sheeting arrangement for the mizzen around.  I am not fond of reaching behind to trim the mizzen, and it fouls the motor and rudder.  Standard end boom sheeting off a loop from the tiller might work.  or moving the cleat to the mast.  As a temporary solution, I am going to try attaching a fiberglass driveway stake to the motor cowl and point it down the shaft of the motor.  This should keep the line from snagging the knob on the Tohatsu that is used to tighten the motor so that it stays once you let go of the motors tiller.

Switching out the clam cleats on the coaming for cam cleats on the seat are also to be investigated.  Drink holders are a must as well.  We need places to put the water bottles down.

When I started this project, my demands were:

1.  It is to be a sailboat to replace the 1969 Enterprise Sailing Dinghy that is too tough on my back and knees.  Additionally, winter storm Snowmageddon 2015 did a lot of damage to the Enterprise hull.  Yes.  This was dead spot on!   

2.  Able to carry a few guests but not too many!  3 is perfect, 4 a crowd, but doable in up to a moderate breeze.  

3.  Can be built in a single car garage.  Yes,  but barely.  I did move it outdoors to attach hardware, and finish the coaming / deck.  I got tired of moving stuff around it, and banging my head on the ceiling beams. 

4.  Sails well and can handle Buzzards Bay and Nantucket Sound.  So far, so good.  We have only had up to 12 kt breezes under full sail, which moves the boat very well without too much panic from the crew.  I think 15 and above will require one reef.  

5.  Easily launched and rigged in 15 minutes so as to encourage using the boat.  So far, 30 minutes for a rookie,  I know I can get this to 20 minutes with practice.  

6.  Not too expensive.  (ok, not too cheap.  This snowballed a little as I went for more expensive stuff, could have lived without the motor).  It is the finish work that is expensive.  I spent way too much on water based polyurethane, motors, and stuff I could have lived without.  The aluminum masts built in sections work very well and are economical.  

I think this is as close as I am going to get to perfection here.  It is a great boat.  

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Wood and Canvas Canoe Restoration started

Finally got the shop organized enough to get the canoe moved in.  Some internet sleuthing reveals that it is a B.N. Morris canoe.  Helps to know what it is since that narrows down searches for particulars.
Did some measuring too.  Beam is 32 inches at the gunwales.  Length is 17 feet. 

There it is, the B.N. Morris without a skin, sitting on top of the Vibe in front of the shop.

The white cedar sheathing has some gaps that need to be filled.

There it is in the shop ready for the next step.

The ends of the canoe are decked over.  Doesnt look like much, but takes up the first 32 inches of either end of the boat.

And here, inside the hull, assorted parts that were stripped off the hull.  Among other things, here are outwales, gunwale caps, stem pieces and plastic bags filled with bronze nails.  Some sanding and varnish will make this stuff look like new.

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Test fit

Centerboard alot originally ended at the front seat.   I  needed to remove up to the kingpost to raise the board fully.  

I did find that a flashlight shining through the pivot holes from side to side made it easy for me to position the centerboard in the slot.  Cool find. 

I needed to cut the final 2" forward into the bow seating area up to the centerboard kingpost in order to get the board to fully retract into the case.  All is good now.  Glad I did this.  

board goes up and down.  

11-8-14

Started screwing in the center seat.  Immediately broke off a screw in the top of the seat when it hit the horizontal screw going into the seat cleat.  Decided afterwards to use larger screws on the cleats and forgo the glue.  Will plug the gaffe. 

Stepping on the seats prior to gluing led to a small crack where the butt blocks are on the same places port and starboard.  Will glue these up and get this deck on permanently to strengthen these area.  Afterwards, I will add inspection ports to the tanks port and starboard.  This will allow to add the empty wine bladders and inspect the areas for moisture, as well as ventilate during storage.  

11-11-14 

Epoxied seats to framing today,  Forward portion under the seats is sealed with Sikaflex, as well as the internal bulkhead that separates the storage compartment from the flotation compartment.  I think it is sealed tight at this point in time.  Will add 6" ports just forward of the bulkhead for inspection purposes and to extract the small inflated wine bladder (from a boxed wine) that is still in the starboard compartment.  If it is still inflated come spring, will add more.  

I also installed seat drains so that when the boat is heeled, the seats will drain or at least avoid a huge puddle.  

All that is left is to remove all the tiny sheet rock screws, and fill the seams with epoxy filler.  Will try to fair the hole around the drain plugs as well.  

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