Boat Building Classes

PaleoDan

PaleoDan

Member
First, I would like to introduce myself. I live in Central NJ and have been hunting and fishing most of my life. Recently, on a deer hunt with some friends, the topic shifted to duck hunting. This has always been something that I wanted to try but never got around to. Anyway, I have made it a goal for 2010 to make sure I get out and give it a try.

Onto my question...I was wondering if anyone knows of any boat building classes on the East Coast that cover Duck Boats. I have found a few classes but none feature duck boats as an option. I would like to build my own boat but do not think I can without some hands on experience first. I think if I can't find one specific, then I will sign up for a stitch & glue class I found in MD. http://www.clcboats.com/boatbuilding_classes/109.html

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Dan Herrera
 
The CLC class would not be a bad second choice. You will learn the basics of stitch and glue plywood construction and fiberglassing. The guys at CLC have been in the forefront of the stitch and glue process development for light boats. They know what they are doing is an understatement. And the beauty of the SnG process is that no matter what size of craft you tackle the process is going to be the same.

Some folks find the fiberglassing the hardest part since it is a timed process. My first boat, a canoe, was harder than all the more complicated ones that came after it.

There are several first time builders on here so there will always be support for your project.

Back to duck hunting.
Go do it first with someone that knows what they are doing. It can be way too easy one day and the hardest thing to accomplish on Earth the next day. Depending on where you are in NJ a boat may not be needed to get started waterfowling.

No matter how the duck hunting goes for you, you need to build a boat anyway. Creating something is always worth the time and hard work, and boats are a lot of fun to use.
 
Dan,

Welcome to the best site on the net. There are so many talented builders and hunters here that I'm sure any building questions can be answered.

I realize that this school is in northern Michigan, but you've started an excellent topic, and I want to get all the options on the table. The Great Lakes Boat Building School was just built 2007 in Cedarville, MI. The Les Cheneaux Islands have a long and deep history of wooden boats and the Les Cheneaux boat building community and the Historical Society has put this school on the map. I've been through the school and it's amazing. It's a first class operation and the instructors know what they are doing. It's worth looking into because you never know where it might lead you in your search for knowledge.

The link: http://greatlakesboatbuilding.org/home

Good luck!
 
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