BBSB Pond Box Build

Eric Patterson said:
SJ

I'd rip my own because I enjoy these tasks and having control over the final stock. You can buy router bit sets for such fun and a router table set-up for this operation can be made from scrap plywood sitting on a workbench or saw horses. Add a fence, made from scrap too, and a few feather boards and you are off to the races. Picture below, compliments of Fine Woodworking, shows how simple it can be

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Thanks for that. I have the canoe router bits and access to a shaper. The canoe bits I have are made for 1/4" strips, I'll test them on my strips if they end up a bit thicker in line with my current thinking. Another thought is that if I can get 1 1/2"+ material for the strips, the cove and bead may not be required. I've planked with 2"w x 1/2" white cedar on ribs with good results. I just learned that clear KD White Pine is available locally for barely 10% the cost of Kings Ransom Cedar. I'm thinking it might be worth the risk to try it. The cost to build the boat the way I described is $1,200+ cedar, plus fasteners, glue, epoxy/glass, Wetlander, paint etc. I'm disgusted over $2,000 for a DIY 9' boat. :oops: If it reverts to $1,000 that would be nice. That's a lot of 🍻 I did get the 3/4" plywood to be used as molds for free. (y) :)
 
SJ

I have no doubt there is a maker of the bits in 5/16" or 3/8". If you have access to a shaper then I'd go that route and never second guess making my own. The cutters will be more than router bits, but someone probably makes a set that isn't that bad. If the shaper has a corrugated knife cutterhead a custom grind for bead/cove profile wouldn't be that expensive. I use www.wmooreprofiles.com for such items. If you go the plank route, I see no issues if you glass over the exterior and maybe the interior.
 
I went lumber shopping again late this afternoon. For better or worse, I made my mind up to use a cedar. Western Red is available but super pricey, and no selection of White. While poking around I came across a bunch of 6/4 Spanish Cedar. When I was a kid they called it "cigar cedar", but I know of boats built near where I live that are made of it. I believe there is a dory maker in ME who uses it for mid-size vessels. The grain is quite straight with a small knot or sap here or there, but overall nice wood. I think it's a touch denser than WR and certainly White but not enough to fret over. With Western Red at basically $30 BF and Spanish at $8, it was a no brainer to try it.

When I got it home, I cut a test strip at 3/8". The wood bends as well as any without steam, it appears there will be no problem wrapping it on the molds creating a 3/4"+ sandwich. An order of 3/4" bronze nails is on the way. Before anything gets epoxied and nailed down I'll test a few strips to determine if they lay fair enough to forego the cove and bead. With luck I'll have the molds mounted on the strongback this weekend and will be ready to build.
 
Henry,

It mentions boat building in your link, happy to hear I'm not just one more lunatic. Interestingly, it gives a range of densities attributed to natural vs farmed trees. There were two racks of it, one rack noticeably denser. I went for the lighter weight stock. Good to know I can also make violins and cigar wrappers with the scraps.
 
Made a little progress the last couple of days. I wanted to get farther, but my home fixup list included new molding around doors in a bedroom. Checked that one off.

I have a few photos to share, a progression from cutting out molds to current.

These are the various molds cut according to the plans. You can see how they're intended to finish as a feather edge. The bad news is as I got deeper into it, I question whether I can complete it as a feather edge. The narrow strip width will leave some ends hanging out in space unsupported. We'll see how it goes.

20250823_190320.jpg

This is a simple strongback. I've used 4x4 in the past, but fun to try something new.

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I made a full size study of the bow area and traced it onto 3/4" plywood. I'm not sure the plywood will stay, but we're moving forward.

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This how the molds get mounted. There is a centerline and baseline on the strongback and vertical supports respectively.

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Now that the molds are mounted, time to put fairing strips on them to see if the lines look right. As expected, I had to clip the ends of the molds to fit a chine log. Still not sure how fine an edge I can achieve.20250824_115713.jpg

Here's a look at the bow, a work in progress. I'd like to make it out of hardwood, but it might be more trouble than it's worth.

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Another view of the {unfinished) lines.

20250824_145420.jpg


Next up is a bunch of planing to gets the humps and bumps out of the molds. Only molds 1 & 9 will stay in the boat but they need to be smooth to keep the strip planking nice.
 

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SJ Fairbank said:
I decided to lay out the molds, but not cut yet. On past boat builds I've had good luck using a 4x4 as a strongback using 3/4" plywood as molds. The 4x4 provides straight, solid support which resists twisting of the molds. I need to pick up a 10'er for this boat.

First step is to make a template, in this case a 36" radius which can be copied for each station's mold. I'm not set up to saw on a beam compass, so bandsawing by eye will have to do.

For the mold template I set up a simple beam compass using my 48" straight edge. It has a hole conveniently drilled at about the 1" mark, so we add an inch to the desired radius and trace out an arc. The template should have a chord line sufficient to trace an arc equivalent to the largest mold.


View attachment 67831View attachment 67832

The next step is to cut it out there's a picture of it in the next photo. Simple and easy, but admittedly not perfect.

To lay out a mold for boat such as I'm building, trace an arc long enough that the mold length (boat beam) can be accommodated. Using your straight edge, draw a line ( a chord) intersecting the arc at the mold length. Then flip the template and make a mirror image on top. Mark a centerline perpendicular to the chord for alignment of the mold on your strongback. Be sure to identify which mold it is or you'll drive yourself nuts later on. Stations 1, 2 and 9 will be permanent, probably made from cedar like the rest of the boat.

Here's the first mold, the largest, laid out.

View attachment 67833

I finished the others but I'm still shopping for lumber. I don't think I'll cut until I'm sure what I'll use. Right now the lead contender is King's Ransom Cedar, more commonly known as Western Red Cedar. $$$$:oops:
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I love it.

If you could take a ride down to Tuckerton there's plenty of really nice white cedar both at the show and at several sawmills close by.

I would definitely lean towards using the white cedar for the deck.

Covered in glass after a good cleaning makes for a durable and beautiful boat.

I'm neck deep in a TDB restoration.

But I enjoy following your builds
 
SJ~

I had the same thought as Jode - plenty of nice Atlantic White Cedar at the Tuckerton show. I have been able to hand pick my boards - whether for planking or for decoys - and can always get clear or virtually clear. And the low prices (compared with finished boards in my lumber yards) always astound me.

There seem to be plenty of small mills around once you get a bit South in the Garden State.

And, I am thoroughly enjoying your build as well. I like the robust strongback. Seeing your vertical "cleats" as a purchase for clamping your chine log made me smile and think: Of course! Clever and very useful design.

I am wondering why you are considering hardwood for your bow frame/harpin. For a new vessel (not a traditional restoration) I have used quarter-inch plywood with some clear White Pine (futtocks) laminated on both top and bottom. The Pine gets shaped to mate with the bevels of the hull and deck. Just a thought.....

Here is the approach on a the fantail of a heavier vessel (my White-Wing once again) - the Pine laminated to some good AC plywood:

sm 25 - Notch in fantail harpin receives king plank..jpg

The decks were quarter-inch plywood - and were bedded in 3M 5200 and fastened with bronze boat nails. I faired the Pine as I began to fit the decking.

sm 29 - Framing is complete once purlins are glued in place..jpg

Thanks again for keeping us entertained!

SJS
 
jode hillman said:
I love it.

If you could take a ride down to Tuckerton there's plenty of really nice white cedar both at the show and at several sawmills close by.

I would definitely lean towards using the white cedar for the deck.

Covered in glass after a good cleaning makes for a durable and beautiful boat.

I'm neck deep in a TDB restoration.

But I enjoy following your builds
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I've been wanting to attend the show, but never seem to find the time. If I can I will. I don't think I'll switch to white cedar this build unless the gremlins rear their ugly heads. I have enough wood to finish the boat, I want to see how it turns out with all 1 1/2" strips. When I get on another build appropriate for it, I'll pester you for a sawmill contact for white cedar. :)

The sad thing for me is where I build the boats is less than 50 yards from a stand of large Atlantic White Cedar. Some are well over 30". My family owned it forever and that's where we got our boat cedar. We dragged it out in the winter using a cable behind an old pickup. We sold the property to the local land trust to remove the temptation to develop it.
 
Steve Sanford said:
SJ~

I had the same thought as Jode - plenty of nice Atlantic White Cedar at the Tuckerton show. I have been able to hand pick my boards - whether for planking or for decoys - and can always get clear or virtually clear. And the low prices (compared with finished boards in my lumber yards) always astound me.

There seem to be plenty of small mills around once you get a bit South in the Garden State.

And, I am thoroughly enjoying your build as well. I like the robust strongback. Seeing your vertical "cleats" as a purchase for clamping your chine log made me smile and think: Of course! Clever and very useful design.

I am wondering why you are considering hardwood for your bow frame/harpin. For a new vessel (not a traditional restoration) I have used quarter-inch plywood with some clear White Pine (futtocks) laminated on both top and bottom. The Pine gets shaped to mate with the bevels of the hull and deck. Just a thought.....

Here is the approach on a the fantail of a heavier vessel (my White-Wing once again) - the Pine laminated to some good AC plywood:

View attachment 68157

The decks were quarter-inch plywood - and were bedded in 3M 5200 and fastened with bronze boat nails. I faired the Pine as I began to fit the decking.

View attachment 68158

Thanks again for keeping us entertained!

SJS
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As I mentioned to Jode, WC is on the list for the next build. My objective was to build with "canoe" style strips just for the heck of it, so far the Spanish Cedar seems pretty good. You'll appreciate the 3/4" bronze boat nails arriving today from Jamestown Dist., for nailing the 3/8"strips to the 3/8" timbers bent around the forms. This is uncharted territory for me, who knows what's gonna happen.

I like your method for framing the bow. My objections to plywood is that it's heavy, subject to delam and doesn't alway hold screws. But, the die is cast for this one as I glued the stuff in the photo together last night.
 
SJ Fairbank said:
Now that the molds are mounted, time to put fairing strips on them to see if the lines look right. As expected, I had to clip the ends of the molds to fit a chine log. Still not sure how fine an edge I can achieve.View attachment 68144

Here's a look at the bow, a work in progress. I'd like to make it out of hardwood, but it might be more trouble than it's worth.

View attachment 68147

Another view of the {unfinished) lines.

View attachment 68145


Next up is a bunch of planing to gets the humps and bumps out of the molds. Only molds 1 & 9 will stay in the boat but they need to be smooth to keep the strip planking nice.
Click to expand...
Ive enjoyed your progress and had some ideas on the feather edge. Since the boat will be glassed why not add a heavy filet on the inside, covered in glass tape, and then on the outside. This would keep that feather edge . You would have to lay the filet in before you get to far up the deck to ease the process.
 
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