[Boatdesigner]

Oyster told me there was another thread going, so I figured I would stop by. The boat looks really good. Everyone will notice that this boat is built with the new plywood frames version of the plans. I figured it makes it a little easier, although it may be more expensive due to the crazy cost of good marine ply. It is a shame the fir marine ply is so hard to finish, it would save quite a bit of money.

As for that Chittum skiff, I wonder if they left that band around the outside due to the pattern of the carbon not running the way they want around the sides? It's easy to line it up so it looks nice on the flat center section, but where it wraps around the edges and overlaps it would be next to impossible to get the pattern to look good. I have seen a couple of wood boats with transoms done that way, always thought it looked a little odd, but figured the builders had some good reason for doing it that way. Frankly, anything that doesn't look like everything else on the water is fine by me!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Looks great Luke, the joints are all nice and clean! Keep up the good work, you're making great progress!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Watching and learning.  What is the projected weight of this hull at completion?  Do the plans tell you what kind of wood to use or is that all up to the builder? 

Sorry not to reply sooner, spending too much time with doctors. The bare hull weight according to my weight study should be exactly 552.76 pounds. I'll understand if you are off by a few ounces! ;D The 1300 pound figure is the full weight of the boat with motor, gear and a fisherman going out to the flats. The draft is 6" in that fully loaded condition to the bottom of the keel. The plans call out the various materials you will need, but some things like wood you can make substitutions if you'd like. Just let me know what wood you want to use and I'll see if it will work or not.

The boat looks great Luke!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Boat looks great Luke! I really need to get your pics up on my website. Maybe while I am stuck here in the hospital I'll have the energy to get it done. Keep on going as it really looks sweet!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Looks great Luke! I am out of the hospital now, so if you have any questions, drop me an email. You are doing it right by using separate planks on the topsides and bottom. I worry about the stress across the chine log using a single piece and kinking it at the chine. Rosco is right, it will be easy to round off the chine after planking, but before glassing.

Be careful not to use too many screws. Those stringers are pretty small and you are perforating them with a zillion little holes! You still have a second layer to go on, and more holes. That is one reason I recommend staples, the holes are smaller. Looking good though, keep it up!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Looks great! As for the spray rails, I don't like any of them as they mess up the clean lines. I do think the way Oyster did his, by overhanging the deck edge, works really well and doesn't mess up the clean look of the hull. Keep up the great work!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Boat looks great Luke! I have never seen that rod holder before, that looks really clever. I imagine you have to be careful to not rip your eyes off when you feed it in though.

Another Osprey has just started building in Texas. Then I sent another set of plans to a second customer about 40 miles down the road from that one. Don't know when he'll start, but it would be neat if the two were both building at the same time so close together. I have put the two builders in touch with each other so they can compare notes.

Keep up the great work!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Looks great! Keep it up and you'll be fishing in no time. I am sending another set of plans to Austin, TX today. Third set of plans to Texas in a month, must be something in the water (Redfish or Sea Trout I guess!). This one will be different though, he wants to build it from foam core fiberglass. It should be an interesting build.

At this point, the really intimidating part of the build is over. The hull is built and just needs to be made pretty. The deck and the interior are pretty easy to build compared to the curvy, laminated hull. The finish work is more tedious than challenging. The big thing now is not to get it in your mind that you are almost done and lose motivation. All that finish work is really time consuming.

 

[Boatdesigner]

I don't think my 1988 Mitsubishi Mighty Max with 215,000 miles will make it to Texas either! Mainly because the frame is so rusted out from too many years up north driving on the salt roads. I do still tow my little 14' Smoker Craft with it though. It only weighs about 600 lbs, including the trailer. Funny, I may never own a boat of my own design!

 

[Boatdesigner]

I don't know how it works with all the different paints available, but Duratec is a great product for finishing as it fills holes very well and is very easy to sand. It can also be applied in a couple of layers in a very short time frame. You could probably fair it with Duratec and then do your final finish with gelcoat. You might save a bit of money too compared to those two part urethane paints.

The boat really looks great! It looks like your helper is getting into it as well! I should have done something like this when my little guy (who is now 6'-1" tall) was young.

 

[Boatdesigner]

Have you thought about using Plasteak or something similar on the sole? I saw some really nice examples of this fake teak at a trade show last week and I think it would make a great deck in a small boat. Good non-skid and it looks nice. Real teak is extremely expensive and pretty heavy, not good in a small skiff.

I love the transom, looks great! I would finish the inwales bright as well, although you would probably have to make them from solid mahogany and not veneer.

 

[Boatdesigner]

Lookin' good! Boy I'm really getting excited about seeing the progress you're making. Have fun sanding! ;D

 

[Boatdesigner]

Great Job! I am glad somebody got something accomplished last week! I went to NJ to visit family, where a promptly got sick and it was like the Bataan Death March to get me home yesterday. I guess my immune system needs a little more time on its training wheels!

It looks like you have done a really neat job with all of the finish work. The plywood frames really simplify things quite a bit. Time to coat and sand all those nooks and crannies though!

 

[Boatdesigner]

It must be getting late. When I looked at your pics I got this strange idea of using clear acrylic for the cockpit sole. Then you could look down and see those beautiful mahogany stringers and keel. You've done such a neat job it seems a shame to have to cover it all up!

It looks like you are doing the deck similar to Oyster, I need to add that to the plans as it seems like a really neat way of doing it.

 

[Boatdesigner]

Looks GREAT! I think you will pass Oyster any time now!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Good to see you back at it again! Are you planning a leg on the inboard side of the console or just letting it float? I like it without a leg as I think the leg will get in the way when you are sitting down to drive. On the other hand, the console sure looks vulnerable hanging out like that!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Just my old fashioned opinion, but every boat should have cleats! A bow cleat could prove very useful if you break down and need a tow home. I also think every boat should carry an anchor. That is your brakes if the engine doesn't start and you are drifting into a dangerous area, like a jetty. What do you tie the anchor rode to without a bow cleat? How do you tie up to the dock while you go get your trailer? Ever stop at a waterfront restaurant for lunch? Sorry, not having cleats to me is almost dangerous and I don't recommend it at all. I'll step down off my soapbox now, just don't get me started on "saloon" vs "salon" . . . ;D

The boat does look great though! It's good to see you are making some progress. I imagine the epoxy is kicking off pretty quick with the temps being so high. I don't know about where you are, but we have had just about non stop rain for weeks now. The last two days have been the first sunny days in at least 2-3 weeks.

 

[Boatdesigner]

Where would a cleat work on the bow of my boat?

I would mount a pop up cleat as close to the centerline as possible, in the raised toe rail. I am not sure what you have mounted there at the moment though, is that a mount for a shallow water anchor? On the walleye boats I have designed, we mounted the cleats a little further aft so they wouldn't interfere with the trolling motor. That works fine for docking, but not so good for anchoring. It really needs to be thought out from the beginning when the boat is built so you can space everything to make it work.

On another subject, that is one nice snook!

 

[Boatdesigner]

Are my eyes playing tricks on me or did you overhang the deck up forward quite a bit?

 

[Boatdesigner]

It won't hurt anything, just make sure you beef it up enough that the deck won't get torn off on a dock by accident. I assume you are trying to build in an upper spray rail similar to what Oyster did on his? His overhang is a bit smaller than yours, so I hope the next guy doesn't try to one up you both and make his 6" wider or something! I think it still looks better than those big molded in bumps in the sides of some of the production skiffs. The one on the Marquesa always looks like it is going downhill toward the bow to me, which to my eye is just plain wrong! It costs no more to build a pretty boat than it does an ugly one, so why not make the lines flow together well? The boat looks great and I can't wait to see it all finished off!