Cockpit Coaming finished

I managed to get the rim steamed round and glued.
Here is the process I went through to get to finish it


The first was to find what the length and width of the ring
is going to be. This is of my hips plus som fingers for the width,
and the length was the opening between the cockpit beams plus some
to aid getting in/out and bending back when I start rolling :)


Next up the form this I made from some planks
and 4 x 2's. And a strap to assist with the bending.


This is the main ring after its been steamed and
bent and clamped.


And finally after I got the outer rim in place, I then glued it
and here it is after some sanding.


And then it was time for some holes to be used when sewing the
coaming to the covering cloth.

Next up adding some of the vanish that I am going to cover the
covering cloth with. And then time to cover the frame :)

Frame Oiled and ready

The final chapter on the frame is to coat it with some Tung-oil to give it a little water proofing and keep the rot out. The coaming ring continues, the main ring went really well and steamed a treat, but I am having less luck with the lip wood for the coaming, I am on my 3rd piece of ash not much fun...

Paddle finished

I have really kept up with the paddle progress but I have been
working on it when the weather was bad or I wanted a break from the kayak.
The final stage sanding with some 200 grit paper.



And then finally some Tung-oil to seal the surface, I am pretty
happy with it.


Next up Oiling the frame..

Floor planks and the end of the frame

The final part of the frame, the floor boards. Two sets a pair where
I will sit and another pair where my heels will rest. The first thing to do was some heavy planing to get the boards to sit between the chines and not protrude into the skin when it comes. Once all the planks are cut and planed it time to lash them. This time, because of the wear they ar going to receive, I lashed each rib separately and lashed them 3 times to make sure they will hold up to my build :) A view into the cockpit area with floor boards in place. And there it is the frame. I going to add some tung oil to it in the week but otherwise the frame is ready. Next up the cockpit coaming...

Deck stringers

Now its time for the two sets of deck stringers. Two behind the coaming hole and two in front. The two behind ones were pretty straight forward, two wider beams that will help displace the weight when entering and exiting the kayak. These are the two front ones getting lay out for measuring. I then made a recess to fit them against the masik. Then the front ends are filed to rest on the 3rd beam. Finally they are packed where needed and fixed into place with trunnels. Next up floor boards and the end of the frame :)

Making and installing the Masik

Now on to the last deck beam the masik. I choose to
make it from a pine branch which has the riight bend
which allows me to make a thinner but just as strong
beam.


First up finding the right height and curve by making some
batterns and getting in and out and test sitting.


Now to find a nice piece of pine to make the masik
with. Thats my baby in the middle :)


Here is the branch I choose from my father-in-laws
summer home. The template I made from the measurements
I got from the batterns.


Next fleshing it out with a power-planer and sawing
and and chiseling to get the rough form.


Here it is with most of the rough wood removed.


Next a box to get the angles against the gunwhales.


And then adding the marks to the masik.


The finished masik.


And here it is in place fixed in with two trunnels on either
side.

Next up the the deck ridges..

Stem plates

Now on to securing the ends with stem-plates.


First Setting up the Japanese saw with a stop and sawing
out to help with chiselling the recess for the plates.


Then on to cutting the plates and planning them to fit the slot.
After that the upper surface is planned and filed to make a
nice transition between the gunwales and the cutwaters.

Finally the plates are fixed in place with dowling and trunnels.


Then the plates are trimmed and planned on the edge
and the whole piece is sanded.


Both plates in place and sitting pretty.

Next up the masik, the last deck beam.

Adding the chines and finishing the Hull

Now to finish the hull. All that is left the stringers/Chines that sit either side of the Keelson.
First I have to plane the last 1.2m, tapering down 3mm on each side.


Then onto strapping the chines to the ribs and finding the right lay.


Next shaping the chine ends to fit against the stems.


Then its a running lash down each chine and then lashing each pair together
and each end.
Finally the frame Hull is ready. I am really happy
with it and heres a few pictures at different angles.








Next, flipping the kajak over and working on the plates at the bow at
stern to secure them.

Side project Part 1

I thought would get going with my greenland paddle so I can try and have both
finished at the same time. The planes I am using are from Chuck Holst
and the video at carvegp.


Here is the first part complete, the blades feathered out from the blank.


Next I have cut out the main outline and sanded to the lines.



Next up marking out the bevels and angles for the final shape.
More to come....

Stem Watercutters in place

Next up is getting the Watercutters in place.

First I drilled two sets of holes and lashed the boards to
the gunwales. I was surprised how stable the plates sat
after just the lashings.


Next the keel is clamped into position and a line to strung out
to check that everything is nice and aligned.


The keel is joined at both ends with doweling wedged
at both ends similar to the trunnel I used earlier. Finally
the keel is sawn and sanded to the right shape.


Here's the bow plate.


The view from the stern.


And from the bow.

Next up lashing the keel to the ribs and also
lashing/fitting the chines beside the keel.

Little update

Next up the stem-plates. This took alot longer than I thought, lots of options to
think about.


The stern plates notch is sawn out, a bit more marking out
left.


Both plates sawn and sanded.


Both plates clamped in position and ready to be fixed
into position.

Ribs Steamed and in place

After finishing the upper frame by cutting the tenon ends off and
sanding the ends flush its time for the feared "steaming of the ribs".

I made a steam-box out of a polystyrene board and joined together with
silver tape. I added a towel atone end as a opening and pushed some wires through
to make shelf's to keep the wood in the middle when steaming.
I then used an old kettle and our camping stove to produce the steam.
I have to say it worked really well and made the job a easier.


The steamer.

I also made the bending jig recommended in one of the books I following
this also worked really well.


Bending jig.

I managed to bend all the ribs in an afternoon and very few breakages
a real positive surprise and a rewarding job.

Here's a few picture of the ribs in place.


From the bow.


And from the stern.

Next up sanding and pegging the ribs.