Fly Fishing Features...

Here's a couple of things I added to the boat to make it "fly fishin friendly"... hope you like them.

I took a leather strap, glued velcro on the side facing the boat, and then turn my fly reel cushion into a "holster" with the rod resting on the the hand rail so I can put two hands on the oars...

I glued the styrofoam fly cushion from an old fly box to the inside of my fly box lid so I'd have a place to keep my favorite flies... and I put a little wood dowel in the box to keep my spools of tippet organized (I got tired of having tippet "everywhere")...

GH

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Permalink Reply by Jason Knight on March 14, 2009 at 5:23am
Real slick Greg. Don't get mad if I "borrow" some of your ideas! : )
Thanks for bringing this up - I love clever solutions...
Permalink Reply by Greg Hatten on March 14, 2009 at 7:24am
I'd be honored if you borrowed some ideas... you should see some of the stuff I tried that DIDN'T work... I tried for "months" to make a leather holster and then I banged my head on the wall and realized I already had the holster - I just needed a way to hang it.
If you make the lids for your fly box - note the little magnets I put in (second picture)... the lids kept flying up during transportation - magnet keeps em down.
Permalink Reply by Jon Carter on March 14, 2009 at 6:06am
Thanks Greg - I have been so busy thinking about boat building solutions that I haven't been giving enough thought about how to make her do what I am building her for (fly fishing and bird hunting). Seeing the great little mods you have done is a super reminder. As they say - the devil is in the detail and man do you do a job on the details.
Permalink Reply by Greg Hatten on March 14, 2009 at 7:28am
The name of the boat explains a lot - doesn't it... "Obsession"...
Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on March 14, 2009 at 9:11am
Clever little oarlock hold downs. How long did it take to turn those! It loks like your wife's ex-luggage got lots of use on your boat. How about some more details on your on the rowers seat drawers. You have set a very high standard. I picked up my 2006 unbuilt 16+foot Tatman kit. I wanted to get it built in time for the Boat show in April, but after looking at the details you have incorporated and the standards you have set it might have to be the 2011 Show! I don't remember where you home base is. I am hoping that I can see your boat at this years show.

Also if I remember correctly you said that you have epoxy and varnish on the boats' interior. Do you have epoxy and fiberglass on the outside with varnish over that or just epoxy and varnish? Did you epoxy both sides of your sides prior to assembly? Your boats finish is fantastic! I just have to ask what varnish you used.

I realize this is a lot of questions but you are a craftsman whose skills I hope I can approach and want to keep the standards of construction as high as yours.

Thanks again for your help and for taking time to answer both my past and current questions.

Rick Newman
Permalink Reply by Greg Hatten on March 15, 2009 at 8:13am
Rick... once again - "good eye". My wife's luggage took a beating!! I tried a number of "cotter pins" and just couldn't find one I was happy with - for a number of reasons. I made this one over the winter. This is my third set of oar lock "blocks" - I'm pretty happy with this latest version... white oak sandwiched between scraps from the Mahogany bottom. On the seat drawers, I tried to keep the same "lines" as the boat frames and the little in-laid piece I put on front of the oarsman's seat... got the drawer "rails" from Home Depot for a couple of bucks.
My home base is Eugene... home waters = McKenzie... I'll be at the show for sure.
I used epoxy and varnish for the finish inside and out... no glass except for where I repaired a hole in the bottom back toward the transom. Epoxy was applied to both sides before final assembly.
Hope I got em all...
Thanks again for the kind words and the sharp eye!!
GH

Permalink Reply by Mike Dearing on March 15, 2009 at 9:23am
Greg,

Nice details. Hows the rubber stuff holding up on the boat floor? I have a product similar to this, I like your idea of cutting it to fit the boat bottom compartments that get the most traffic. Has it goofed up the varnish any, like giving it black marks or anything?

Rick,

I don't know what kind of varnish Greg used but I used Z-spar flagship varnish and gotta say it really is worth the price. I ended up with a nice finish very similar to Greg's boat. What I found out with the cheaper varnishes is you just don't get the build like you do with the z-spar, way less coats and much better results. The stuff is kind of dark straight out of the can and it gives the boat an almost maple syrup wet look finish when done. The last thing I like about this varnish is it seems to be really tough too, it takes awhile to fully cure but when it does the finish is very durable.

Mike
Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on March 15, 2009 at 9:34am
Thanks for the information and the reply. Did you use a plug cutter to make the contrasting plugs on the thwarts? Also you have sunk in some interesting foot braces I assume that mirror the shape of the knee locks. Is the width where they are located okay? Or are they cleverly setup to be moveable and adjustable? Also you have some sharp inlays such as the one on the thwart that mirrors the shape of the drawer fronts. How did you do the inlay on the frame rib above your oar lock retainers. Did you route a kerf and then shape a "plug" to match? What do you do for a living? Watchmaker? Taj Mahal builder?

Rick
Permalink Reply by Greg Hatten on March 15, 2009 at 10:45am
Rick,
I used a "punch" for my plugs and used scraps from the boat bottom. The foot braces under the passengers seat are actually my first set of knee locks that I never installed. They are "fir" and have a nice grain, but I just didn't like the look of "fir" on "Oak" so I never put them on. I'm "tinkering" with them now... thinking about adding a brass foot rail to get more "power" when I need to apply more force to the oars. (I couldn't bring myself to cut out the traditional foot holes in the floor boards and I have had to use the passenger seat as a "brace" a couple of times in tight spots - not a good long-term solution). So... I was in a cowboy bar with my boots on the brass rail and it hit me - perfect foot brace for my boat... and use the "fir" knee locks to anchor it...??? Thoughts?? Stay tuned.
On the inlay... it was very crude. I removed a single layer of Mahogany from a scrap of the 7 ply bottom. Cut out the shape I wanted... traced the shape on the front of my seat, "routed" it out, epoxied, sanded, and varnished.... probably a better way to do it... but it came out OK.
On the #5 rib... I thought a little inlay in the opposite color combination to the three lines I put on the bow stem would be pretty fun. I routed a shallow channel (before I installed them) that was 1/4" wide and then cut a thin strip of Mahogany to match... slid it down the channel, epoxied, sanded, and varnished...
Greg
Permalink Reply by Greg Hatten on March 15, 2009 at 10:20am
MIke,
The rubber is holding up pretty well. It's a little faded where I put my feet - but it has taken a lot of wear. Might have to replace those every other season... we'll see. The mats don't leave any marks at all on the floor - not even on the yellow cedar in the passenger section (provides a nice cushion for passengers that are standing all day casting...). Z-spar is what I use for varnish and I agree - it's expensive and dries "slow" - but I like the result.
Greg

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