James wrote:
Hello all,

I have some holidays (finally) and I am looking to start building a
skin on frame boat. I'm considering a Platt Monfort 'Classic 12' but
have not yet purchased the plans. Does anyone know if Maple would be
ok for the ribs, stringers, gunwales and floorboards? I have quite a
bit of it as I took down two larger Maples last fall at my cottage and
have now milled then to various sizes. I believe the recommendation
for the ribs is to use ash, oak or juniper but I haven't found a
suitable source for these in Ontario. I believe green/red ash is
indigenous so it shouldn't be too hard to find.

Using a heavy wood like maple sort of defeats the purpose of building a
lightweight boat. It doesn't steam bend well, either. White pine would
be a good choice for the parts that don't need to be steam bent, with
ash for the parts that will be steam bent.