Getting there

Now if the weather would just cooperate I could finish this thing up..... Made some progress this weekend, installed insulation in the roof and back wall and got them covered up with steel. It seems that every time I think about taking pictures it gets to dark to see what i'm doing.
I still have a ways to go but im getting there... hopefully the lake still has ice on it when I am done....

More Progress

We were working too hard to take any pictures last weekend, but a lot of progress has been made. The framing is complete and the interior sheeting is all in place. We have moved the shanty out of the shop and is now in a staging area by the garage. I made a quick trip to the in-laws to pick up some old roof steel they had on a hog barn to use for siding. Now i am just waiting for a little nice weather to match up with an available weekend to put the final touches on it and haul it to the lake!

It looks like we have some walls! and better yet, a heater! The door looks pretty good too... now i just need to finish up the framing..

Oh Crap! how am i going to get it out of the shop?

Im Back!

Wow I really suck, I haven't been here since May! Oh well, just not a lot going on in the shop over the summer. But now its ICE Fishing season, which is just another reason to drink schnapps!

 So I decided I wanted to fish in comfort this season, even though our lake has few fish in it this year. I couldn't afford the fancy wheel systems and because I live within 100 yards of the lake anyway, I just built a pair of skis out of 2x10 material. Then using 2x4 framework I built a 6x8 platform to start out.
Particle board left over from another project completes the deck and four holes to fish out of. I found an old tow bar that I mounted to the sled with big bolts and brackets. And just for fun I installed an outdoor rug.
Lots to do yet; heater, door, walls perhaps a roof and quite possibly even insulation...

Paint

Because I used a painters tarp that I picked up pretty cheep. I only need a few coats of paint to finish it off.

 I did use a primer for the fist coat, just to fill the weave. next I put on a couple of coats of purple. I have some rust-o-lem enamel on hand for that. The pink is an external latex paint. but pretty much any paint will do.
I want to install a rub rail to cover the staples on the chine, it will be a cedar strip. then i will do the final coats of paint.

Skinning the Yack

Now that the frame is complete, it is time to put some sort of skin on the kayak. The choices are numerous and the methods varry but staying with the philosophy of Roger's Woodworks "I can do this cheep" I found a good solution. I am using a painters canvas tarp 9x12 that I picked up from Menards for about 13 bucks. The process is pretty simple, cut out the cloth roughly to shape, then start in the middle and staple and stretch it to the frame. I did this in two pieces, hull and deck, and I will hide the overlap with a strip of cedar screwed to the gunnel. Next issue is to make it water proof. I used a primer paint to fill the weave of the cloth first. You could even use a waterproofing paint that is used in basements. The paint did raise a lot of threads, but a few minuets of sanding (lightly) takes the rough edge off. Next I will put t a couple of coats of the finish paint on, sanding between to build up a nice finish.

How to build a Kayak in a day

First you need a good plan. This skin on frame plan is 11 feet long and is sized to fit a paddler up to 100 pounds.

 

With some spray adhesive, glue down the  shapes then cut out the forms, next rip some 3/4" by 3/4" strips.

 
Start by glueing and screwing on the keel, gunnels and deck strips to the forms.

 

Next whip up the ends, any shape will do.

How many clamps does it take to glue a coaming together?
The correct answer is "All of them".

And we are done!