On 15 Jul 2007 11:30:00 +1000, GB
wrote:

# This is a duplicate of a post I've just made to rec.woodworking,
seeperately posted here in the hope that someone here might be
able to help. thanks. #

Hi folks, this is my first post to this esteemed group. I'm
hoping that there's a few Australian participants besides
myself who might be able to cast some light on this enquiry...

I've recently stumbled across a couple of web sites with designs
for tiny one-sheet or one-and-a-half-sheet boats, and I thought
I might have a go at making one. There are a couple of gaps in
my knowledge though:

First, can someone suggest what I might expect to pay for an
appropriate sheet of circa 2440mm x 1220mm plywood in Sydney
Australia, along with suggestions as to a source. I looked
yesterday at my local 'Bunnings' (not really expecting to
find anything appropriate) and found that I could have any
sort of ply I wanted, so long as I wanted 600mm x 1200mm
sheets :-/ Locations from the city to the north-east are
most accessible to me. (Some indicative pricings from other
parts of the planet would be equally welcome)

Second, is there some sort of finish that I might apply to a
plywood boat that would provide the necessary waterproofing
whilst at the same time being clear, so the grain of the
wood remains visible?

Third, what type of plywood should I be looking for? Am I
correct in assuming that I must use 'marine ply' for this
light-use application in a small one-person boat, or are
there alternatives that I should consider? Price is more
of a consideration than durability, since my interest is
more in the building than the using!


Thanks in advance,


GB

I can't give you much advise about plywood size other then to say that
a 4" X 8" sheet is standard (1220 X 2440mm) and you should have no
problems locating plywood of that size.

You want to use either "marine grade" or "exterior grade" plywood.
They both use waterproof glue and the main difference is the allowable
voids in the cores. If you can find a yard that will let you pick
through a stack of exterior grade and select the one that doesn't show
any voids in the core then it will work perfectly well. If you just
have to take the sheet they give you then I would probably take the
marine grade, although it will be more expensive.

I'm not sure how you plan on building this boat but for a small dinghy
I'd use the "stitch and glue" method where you cut the various panels
to size and tie them together with wire, cable ties, strong string,
whatever, and then smear glue in the joints.

Once the glue has hardened you then fair the joints, using epoxy
filler, to a nice smooth radius and lastly tape over the joints with 4
inch fiberglass tape.

While initially this sounds like a lot of messing about it ends up
being easier then setting up a mold, cutting frames and building a
boat the traditional way. The stitch and glue boat will also be
lighter.

You can use anything to build a boat. BUT is it isn't waterproof it
won;t last long. If you build it out of proper materials you can
always sell it and get a little money back but something that is
splintering and de laminating will be a little hard to get rid of.

If you are interested in a really good small dinghy do a web search
for a "D4" dinghy. The plans are free and the guy's web site has a
wealth of information on building boats.




Bruce in Bangkok
(brucepaigeatgmaildotcom)

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