1923 Larson Duck Boat Restoration

 I believe we are finished with this clean up and polish project! I have way more hours into this than I should have put but the end result is worth the extra time.. It will never float again without a layer of fiberglass on the hull, but it will make a sweet wall hanger for the client.

About a hundred years of barn dust and cobwebs, dry rot. An entire quart of varnish went into the wood on the first coat topside. I don't think I have ever seen wood that dry before.

First urethane in 100 years

 It has probably been a hundred years since the last time this boat had any kind of finish on it besides barn dust and rain. Its pretty amazing how fast the wood sucks it up as it gets painted on. No fear of drips and runs on this coat! Now just three more coats and the boat will be ready to flip over and start on the top!

Interior stems

So I get the question a lot, "How do you bend the boards around the sharp corners?" Do I use steam or soak the boards in water or a half a dozen guesses. The reality is quite simple, I use clear oak for the interior stems and do this in three pieces. I rip strips just shy of a quarter inch, apply a liberal amount of glue, and bend them around the end forms and clamp, clamp, clamp. Oak is a nice hardwood but it is also flexible when cut into thin strips. Seldom will it crack or splinter while bending as long as you go slow and steady. These stems give a good surface to glue the body strips to as we start to come up the sides.

The whole canoe

Check out this panoramic of  the canoe mold on the strong back. Keep in mind this is 17 feet long.

Special thanks to the B-man for taking the photo.

The whole thing.

Canoe Prep

I'm setting up for the next 17' canoe. It looks like I found some pretty cool colors in the cedar boards. I used eight 1-1/4x6x10 cedar deck boards to make 104 quarter inch strips. The next step is to put a bead on one side and a cove on the other so everything fits together as they are wrapped around the mold and glued together.

17' canoe, some assembly required

Mold is assembled, leveled and plumbed

Queen Charlotte overhaul

In the shop at the moment is a refinishing project for a 25 year old stitch and glue kayak. This is a Pygmy kit boat that was constructed over 25 years ago. The original design was to only have strips of fiberglass on the inside with a full cover on the outside. The boat received some damage and the plywood did split along one side. The rudder system broke loose from the aft end poor as well.

I have the hardware taken off and repairs are underway. the damage to the aft end is repaired with thickened epoxy poured into the void and will be re-drilled for the rudder. The rest of the boat is ready for another layer of glass, sanded and prepped..

New Adventure

I would like to announce the grand launching of the "Twisted Canoe Boat Shop"! www.twistedcanoe.com

We have finally reached the point where enough people wish to purchase canoes that it is time to get serious and start getting things done.

I intend to use this blog as a shop blog to document the daily progress or lack thereof, of each project as it comes in and goes out. This will also give customers updates on their projects while they are under construction.

17' Tandem Canoe

This is a new venture, half the fun will be trying to figure out how to put it all together and develop a professional web presence and efficient shop.

Stay Tuned!