Devlin bluebill build thread.
- Thread starter Paul W
- Start date
So, mahogany? White oak? The dude designing the boats seems to think it would work! Ha.
One of my local yards carries African and Philippine mahogany. Also, white oak. And all sorts of other nonsensical woods.
http://www.youngbloodlumber.com/hardwoodimported.html
http://www.youngbloodlumber.com/hardwooddomestic.html
They also carry the vertical grain fir.
Tom Scholberg
Well-known member
Paul, On mine I used the Philippine mahogany from Youngbloods and and Lake Elmo Lumber. Check Lake Elmo out, they are a lot closer to you. I have been happy with that.
Steve Sanford
Well-known member
Paul~
Philippine Mahogany (aka lauan) takes fasteners and adhesives well - I use it commonly for framing.
BTW: Note that the vertical grain clear "fir" I was referring to is actually Douglas Fir.
SJS
Philippine Mahogany (aka lauan) takes fasteners and adhesives well - I use it commonly for framing.
BTW: Note that the vertical grain clear "fir" I was referring to is actually Douglas Fir.
SJS
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So, mahogany? White oak? The dude designing the boats seems to think it would work! Ha.
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Fir would work, but it will dent with hard use. Most of the boats that Devlin builds are pretty boats, not work boats used like a duckboat. My concern with glassing schedule above and use of fir in high wear areas like sheer clamps reflects this I believe. I like a boat that is pretty and can be used hard.
So, mahogany? White oak? The dude designing the boats seems to think it would work! Ha.
[/QUOTE]
Fir would work, but it will dent with hard use. Most of the boats that Devlin builds are pretty boats, not work boats used like a duckboat. My concern with glassing schedule above and use of fir in high wear areas like sheer clamps reflects this I believe. I like a boat that is pretty and can be used hard.
Kris Washington
Member
Looking fantastic Paul. I'm building a Snow Goose and used white oak for the sheer clamps and keel (mainly because I had some already). Sam didn't specify species in my plans but called for hardwood. It does seem, as others have stated, that its greater density and tight grain may better withstand wear. I remember the sheer clamps taking the bend well. Getting the keels on, however, was quite a challenge.
Another consideration is the process of fairing the top edge of the sheer clamps to receive top decking. In my case, a great deal of block plane work was required to achieve a flat, uniform joint between the sheer clamp and the plywood of the top decking. I recall the hand planing of the oak taking quite a bit of time and frequent sharpening to avoid tear out. Mahogany might be a bit easier to shape in this regard.
I'm picking up great pointers in reading replies to your posts... So thanks ; ) I look forward to seeing more of your great progress.
Another consideration is the process of fairing the top edge of the sheer clamps to receive top decking. In my case, a great deal of block plane work was required to achieve a flat, uniform joint between the sheer clamp and the plywood of the top decking. I recall the hand planing of the oak taking quite a bit of time and frequent sharpening to avoid tear out. Mahogany might be a bit easier to shape in this regard.
I'm picking up great pointers in reading replies to your posts... So thanks ; ) I look forward to seeing more of your great progress.
Most use one of the flat enamels, either Parker or Lou's FME, but there are other (maybe better) options that I haven't worried about. I've used both the enamels. In the old days a lot of guys used the epoxy primer Devlin suggests. I can't remember if it was DP 40 or if DP 40 was the replacement for what he used. I haven't used a primer and just sanded and painted and I've always been thrilled with the adhesion of enamel over epoxy. What I will say is that if you paint fresh epoxy (less than a couple weeks old) with enamel there seems to be a chemical reaction that extends curing time of the enamel (takes a couple weeks to be truely hard). The enamel cures dramatically faster over old epoxy or over enamel than over fresh epoxy. I don't know why, but there is something going on. If you paint and flip onto something soft and baby it until it is really cured you are fine, since you aren't using the boat soon, anyway. Even though the cure is slow the bond is excellent.
I'd say sand with 80 grit (or maybe 120) and paint with enamel, wait a couple days (maybe in the sun) and flip carefully.
Steve Sanford
Well-known member
Paul~
Epoxy releases an "amine blush" as it cures - it should be removed with warm soapy water.
And, I concur with Tod that sitting outside in sunlight's UV seems to be a good thing for paint adhesion/curing.
All the best,
SJS
Epoxy releases an "amine blush" as it cures - it should be removed with warm soapy water.
And, I concur with Tod that sitting outside in sunlight's UV seems to be a good thing for paint adhesion/curing.
All the best,
SJS
Few things I got done last week before I was hit with one of the worst chest colds I've ever had. Fever, whole nine yards.
taped in the cockpit bulkheads
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the nice rounded edge my dad's router provided
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then saturday I flipped the hull over
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and that's how it will stay until next week, I have to (try) and recover this week. I am required to do on-call friday night, and an extra shift saturday. I am not sure how I made it through the day yesterday, but I did somehow.
taped in the cockpit bulkheads
the nice rounded edge my dad's router provided
then saturday I flipped the hull over
and that's how it will stay until next week, I have to (try) and recover this week. I am required to do on-call friday night, and an extra shift saturday. I am not sure how I made it through the day yesterday, but I did somehow.
Kevin Weir
Well-known member
Hang in there and get recovered Paul. This is starting to get real interesting now. Your doing a great job on that duck killer.
Cody Williams
Well-known member
That's coming along great! As far as paint and primer goes I can't recommend Lou's FME enough, it really is fantastic stuff. It is self priming put I also put a layer of 2-part epoxy primer on all my boats, it really seals the hull and gives an extra layer of protection to everything-I've had several scratches and dings that have gone through the paint but stopped at the layer of epoxy primer. I get mine from Southern Polyurethanes, it's by far the most reasonably priced stuff out there.
Just a quick comment on your pics. Don't take this a harsh critique, just somethign to think about. On your fillet glassing it looks like you are getting run out of epoxy from the fiberglass. This suggests a high epoxy to glass ratio (otherwise too much epoxy in there). The downside is that with a lot of epoxy in the glass you get the glass floating up off the wood and less strength as well as the downside of more waste and more sanding. I know you are pretty much done with fileting, but think about this for glassing (which you have a lot ahead of you). Use as little epoxy in the glass as possible and squeegee what you can out (within reason) and then fill the weave after the stuff starts to set up and is tacky. You can't glass and fill the weave in one step, filling the weave has to come after.