attn Ji-san and other boat minded folks

[Grizz]

been having a little bit of nice fall weather before the less nice weather arrives and been using it to make progress on my dory boat. it's one of those projects that gets interfered with by life's variety of distractions.

some will recall that I eliminated the outboard well, installed heavy duty bottom framing, added an INCH of plywood to the bottom .... and now am in the process of fiberglassing the bottom half of the hull.

dory_2749.png

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This boat was built a long time ago in a far away place. Aeolus Boat works, Bill Grunwald in Davenport Ca. A locally famous builder who made quite a few of this model. This is a replica of the bank dory, and I believe from the lines taken off and published by Howard I. Chapelle in American Small Sailing Craft.

This is the second Grunwald dory I've owned. The first I bought in Ca. I rowed it to Sausalito from Berkeley several times, a couple of them at night. When I moved to Alaska I towed it behind my '45 Dodge flatbed, and when I moved to Secret Cove from Juneau it was in the dory with a 5hp Seagull outboard in the well, with a guy named Bill Wise as pax, and my crazy dog Gobi as mate.

in future the sail rig will be the viking square sail. not a rig for sailing into the wind, but a perfect downwind sail, and it just looks great on the scandinavian boats that still use it.

but funny thing, as I get the structural work closer to being done, I keep having an image pop up of sailing the little cockleshell onto that beach near Diamond Head where the local sailing canoes beach. wouldn't that be a kick in the smile department?

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which is how this came to be addressed to Ji.

OTOH, I have family in Japan, and I also have images pop into my viewfinder of sailing into a fishing village and giving them a call.

One possible further modification to the dory, if I find a really cheap hobie cat for parts, is to turn dory-boat into a trimaran. this would increase the s.o.g. and make a weatherly boat that can sail upwind in most conditions.

Anyone else thinking about this stuff?

[Blaine]

Really rough water, and small boats.....

Now, I have very fond memories of being on TDY in Belize, and their Navy took our unit out to English Cay for a day on one of their coastal gun boats...50? 70? feet.....We had to go through a big storm to get there. No sweat. Lot's of action. Great fun.
In a 20 foot open dory? Maybe not.

[Grizz]

wowsers Blaine, that sounds like an interesting ride and good memory to have!


I would have turtle decks fore n aft and possibly wt bhds as well. and airbags. this boat, or one that replaces it, is my hospice plan . . .

dorys have transited the atlantic many times, and crossed the pacific, and sailed from downeast thru the canal and north to san diego. that was a decked dory. dory variations have crossed the atlantic hundreds of times in several configurations. solo, 2 up, etc.

sometimes smaller boats are more comfortable than larger ones.

but the sea is always the sea, and any sea can destroy any boat any time. that's just how it is.

[Blaine]

wowsers Blaine, that sounds like an interesting ride and good memory to have!


I would have turtle decks fore n aft and possibly wt bhds as well. and airbags. this boat, or one that replaces it, is my hospice plan . . .

dorys have transited the atlantic many times, and crossed the pacific, and sailed from downeast thru the canal and north to san diego. that was a decked dory. dory variations have crossed the atlantic hundreds of times in several configurations. solo, 2 up, etc.

sometimes smaller boats are more comfortable than larger ones.

but the sea is always the sea, and any sea can destroy any boat any time. that's just how it is.

Some more good times were taking jon boats, and canoes and launching them at Gamboa where the Chagres River entered the Panama Canal. There was a couple miles of water in the narrow part of the canal before we could get to the great Lake Gantún. We often shared the waterway with container ships, and once, the QE2, and other cruse ships. As you say, the smaller canoes were actually safer. We just hunched down on the floor, and did our best not to get sideways in the wake. We were very motivated not to go in the water and share it with 8' caiman, vicious little fish, and lots of badazz snakes. The peacock bass fishing was well worth it.

[Grizz]

Nice! A video of those times would be priceless now!

a decked log canoe, Tlingit origin I think, circumnavigated the globe. it's not hard to do, either it works out, or you disappear. NBD

[Old No7]

Really rough water, and small boats.....

In my experience -- and for others I've personally witnessed too -- that is the fastest way to find Jesus in your heart!

And you hope to find He is in the boat with you too!!!

Good luck!

Old No7

[JReed]

Grizz
Is that graphite mixed with epoxy on the bottom? The hull is shaping up nicely. Looking at the shape it should row very well.

I think this will be my next build. http://duckworksbbs.com/plans/storer/gis/index.htm

[2ndovc]

Jeremy,
That's a pretty cool looking sailboat. I've been wanting to build something like that for years. Thanks for putting it up.

Grizz, I like what you did with thickening of the hull. I've had one boat project or another since I was a kid. Hard not to when you have your own dock in the back yard. Biggest one I took on was a 26' Bristol that had run aground in a storm. The owner's ins. co. totaled it out and the adjuster was a friend of my dad's. He asked if I wanted to buy it as salvage for $400. I borrowed about half of that from the old man and had it towed to the boat yard. Spent half the summer rebuilding the keel. It originally had a shallow draft keel with a center board but that was destroyed and lost when she ran aground. I built an oak form, lag bolted it into the keel and filled and glassed the whole thing. When the gel coat was finished and sanded you couldn't tell under the bottom paint that it hadn't come that way. Sold it a few years later and bought a C&C SR 21. Fastest sailboat I've ever been on.

You guys have me thinking it's time for another project. I know where there's a Tartan 10 I could pick up for next to nothing.

jb

[Grizz]

good catch, that is graphite. I bought DWX from duckworks with the slow hardner. with the low overnight temps I didn't have to worry about getting the chemical bond the next day. the cloth covers down to the top of the garboard, and there is 3 inch tape covering the edge of the plywood. and graphite.

I used resin research 2000 with slow hardner for the final coat so it would kick before dark when I tented it over to cure up over the coming week or so. I do not have the quality of finish you see in the GIS. Not that patient or talented. Ugh

Goat Island Skiff seems to be a rocket from the videos, and Michael Storer seems to be a genius at rigging the balance lug for performance. Is there room to sleep on the floorboards? It is one of my requirements.

When can you start? Do you have an indoor build spot? That goes a long long ways to keeping the finish smooth. I have spruce needles in various spots under the glass that I was unwilling to dig out once they'd cemented themselves into the layup. Ugh.

I hope you will put a link up if you document your build, I'd sure like to see that boat going together, it's a classy ride and I bet a joy to sail.

[Grizz]

Hey Jason,

Thanks for posting. I have another plywood project part way along, a Michalak AF4 outboard cruiser design.

It's upside down also in another spot. Waiting for much the same glassing job when the wx returns to more build-friendly. It also has an overbuilt bottom for its planned use in Alaska.

But I gotta admit, I'm no big fan of either plywood or fiberglass layups. If I ever get to build another boat it will be aluminum hull and decks, and normal wood construction inside. I'm a better welder than epoxyer. Thinking about this one, or a near cousin . . .

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also fond of the Dutch types and have hundreds of pictures and plans of their various sailboats, some used in the north sea as fishing boats.

flat bottom for taking the ground regularly and getting off again without the damage you repaired. comfy living and able to go anywhere. perfect for near shore exploring, including rivers, sloughs, bays, inlets and all the spots most sailboats can not get into.

[Grizz]

homage to true craftsmanship. a real boatbuilder.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XthOkO-wsK4

worth the time for the exquisiteness of it, if that's a word . . .

thanks

[Blaine]

A 14 Foot Livingston with a 20 electric start/tilt/trim will suffice if I ever get another boat. I doubt if anybody has ever got into trouble with one of those.

[JReed]

good catch, that is graphite. I bought DWX from duckworks with the slow hardner. with the low overnight temps I didn't have to worry about getting the chemical bond the next day. the cloth covers down to the top of the garboard, and there is 3 inch tape covering the edge of the plywood. and graphite.

I used resin research 2000 with slow hardner for the final coat so it would kick before dark when I tented it over to cure up over the coming week or so. I do not have the quality of finish you see in the GIS. Not that patient or talented. Ugh

Goat Island Skiff seems to be a rocket from the videos, and Michael Storer seems to be a genius at rigging the balance lug for performance. Is there room to sleep on the floorboards? It is one of my requirements.

When can you start? Do you have an indoor build spot? That goes a long long ways to keeping the finish smooth. I have spruce needles in various spots under the glass that I was unwilling to dig out once they'd cemented themselves into the layup. Ugh.

I hope you will put a link up if you document your build, I'd sure like to see that boat going together, it's a classy ride and I bet a joy to sail.

Got to love Chuck and the gang over at Duckworks. They are enablers thats for sure. The graphite will go a long way to prevent damage from scratches and it just looks sharp.

The GIS unfortunately wont allow you to sleep on the floor due to the framing but a few folks have built removable floor boards that go between the seats to give you a sleeping platform. I still dream of doing the EC, TX200, and the OBX130 one of these days and this design gives me a better than 80% solution for what I want to do with it, plus it is just a great looking design. Every one I have talked to says that it is a rocket, there is even a couple guys that race them against Lasers and the like.
Not going to be able to build for a while, still hunting jobs and houses. Staying with Inlaws and working at Bass Pro doesnt give you room or funds for projects.

That AF4 should be a great family boat when you get her finished. My favorite Michalak design is the Frolic2 she just looks like a pleasure to sail especially as a camp cruiser.

When I start building you all will be one of the first to know. The GIS isn't a cheap build so most of it will just be time spent buying the materials as funds allow. Nice thing is Really Simple Sails makes a high quality affordable sail for it with all of Michael Storers design updates.

[Grizz]

hey Jeremy, thanks for the catch-up on your plans. I would love to sail in those events, but I literally get deathly sick in high heat and depend on air conditioners to stay alive. my trips mostly involve higher latitudes, except for that silly and pesky selfie of me surfing into Waikiki Beach with the beautiful Hawaiian canoes. I don't think I could take the heat waves on the crossing. But if I made it, there would be a LOT of surprised Hawaiians. Including hopefully Ji. Imaginary image adjusted for whichever island Ji resides on.

Keep your dream warmed up brother. Have you started a scale model? That's a good way to practice building GIS, helps to find boo-boos before you go full size, etc. I'm sure you know all this.

You know which Tx200 build I like a lot? It's Laguna. I love the way the rig looks and how it works. It is a very powerful sailer. It just smokes along in those Tx conditions. Considering that flocks of PDRs have made the trip, laguna is a cruise ship in comparison.

http://www.duckworksbbs.com/plans/jim/laguna/index.htm

And I bet GIS will have no problem keeping up!

thanks for posting

[JReed]

Yep Laguana sure is a rocket! But it really requires a crew to balance her out and keep her trimmed. I dont think anyone wants to be on a boat with me for that many hours

No havent started a model yet need to get off my but and purchase the plans. The tricky part being on the west coast is going to be finding the appropriate lumber. Mik specifies some really light weight stuff for the build and folks that stick to the BOM usualy end up with a hull that weighs in around 130lb

The gulf coast is for sure toasty in June and I understand medical conditions wont permit you to make the trip. If and when I amable do the 200 I will reach out to you and see about an idea I have.

[Grizz]

Jeremy, thought you were in NC!

I'm an hour's drive from Edensaw in Port Townsend. Probably the highest priced purveyor around. But they have stuff. I got marine grade doug fir ply for the two boat bottoms. Not that great quality either. I got the maranti for the AF4 there also.

If you look around on forums and stuff you should be able to come up with some sitka spruce flitch, say 2" rough sawn. I should think that's possible anyway. Might be worth a post on some of the louder ones. Then resaw to your needs.

I might guess that anywhere there is a Navy shipyard there will be suppliers with lots of good stuff, Oakland, San Diego, etc.

I'm pullin' for ya