What you get when you build a boat...

Whilst on my poor knees the other day, drilling away on the subject of a future blog post, it occurred to me that -- despite the sore knees and aching back -- building this boat was the most fun I'd had in years. And I wondered why, why it was so much fun?

It surely isn't the boat itself, or the future of rowing and sailing it promises. If I'm honest, I don't particularly need a small boat to go sailing. I did plenty of sailing this summer on other people's boats.

No, it's not the destination of completing the boat, so much as the journey of building it. It's the thrill of the possibility. The high of anticipation. The first date with a band saw. That's what makes building boats so much fun for me.

New 'Unlikely Boat Builder' blog post:

http://www.unlikelyboatbuilder.com/2009/11/what-you-get-when-you-bu...

-- John

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Permalink Reply by Dave Z on November 3, 2009 at 9:40am
John,

Seems like you figured it out. Remember what you said and take your time and enjoy the project. When its all done you will miss this part.
Permalink Reply by John Almberg on November 5, 2009 at 7:30am
John,

Funny you should mention it... the topic of my next blog post...

The Essential Boat Building Tool

For about 54 years, I was an unhandy guy. There was nothing I could do about it, it wasn't my fault, it was just the way my genes were wired.

So, while Helena could spend a pleasant afternoon refinishing our 100 year old iron windows -- scraping away rust, cutting glass to replace broken panes, and carefully puttying them in place -- my jobs were exercises in frustrating futility.

My jobs always went wrong. I always had to rework them and every job took longer than it should have or -- more correctly -- longer than I wanted it to.

And the faster I worked, the more of a hash I'd make of the job, and the longer it would take.

Absolute, utter frustration.

>>> Read complete blog post: The essential tool...

Permalink Reply by lhedrick on November 5, 2009 at 11:39am
Something you might have missed.

This is not just about boats. When you are done you will be ready for a lot more. You won't need to go to IKEA and drop 500 bucks on a MDF dining table made in C****. You will know you can build your own and it will better then almost anything you can buy. In addition the items you build will be used for many years after you are gone by the next generation. While the WalMart made in C**** item will be in a land fill.

Any fool can buy a boat or table but, using what we build ourself is worth a lot more then money.

The best part of this. Quality power tools are free. They pay for themselves so, you get a boat, power tools, you save money and you get to go fishing.

L
Permalink Reply by John Almberg on November 5, 2009 at 4:34pm
No, I get it. And my wife gets it... we have started talking about selling our house in the spring, buying a plot of land near Pamlico or maybe Puget Sound, and building a timber-framed house (post-and-beam). The tools and skills seem pretty similar to those needed to build a boat. We'd love to be able to turn our equity (or what's left of it!) into a mortgage-free home, with a bit of sweat equity to make up the difference.

A bit of a jump from building a skiff, but something to think about during the cold winter months :-)

-- John
Permalink Reply by Mike Baker on November 5, 2009 at 6:26pm
On the flip side while I agree once you build a boat you will be ready for a lot more, be prepared for the inevetable "if you can build a boat you surely can build me a..............". I'm not complaining just saying.
Mike
Permalink Reply by John Almberg on November 5, 2009 at 6:39pm
LOL... I guess you could say that's already happened... "If you can build a boat, with all those curves, then a house should be easy".
Permalink Reply by Bryan McDade on November 6, 2009 at 12:49pm
I agree fully, I am now building new kitchen cabinets, Gramps always told me, once your marrried if you do anything well, you'll be doing a lot more of it LOL.
Permalink Reply by John Almberg on November 11, 2009 at 8:21am
I Am Bitten

The other day, I realized I'd been bitten. Not by a dinosaur, but by something just as powerful and a lot more sneaky: the boat building bug.

I was building the stongback for Cabin Boy -- a kind of ladder-frame structure that is used to erect the molds. Compared to lofting and building the molds, putting together the strongback was simple, even for me. Obviously I didn't say so at the time... no sense tempting fate.

Nevertheless, while doing this pleasantly easy work, I had a few brainwaves left over and found myself day dreaming...

Read complete blog post: I Am Bitten

Enjoy: John
Permalink Reply by John Almberg on November 17, 2009 at 4:54pm
How many people on this forum make their own tools?

I took the first step down this slippery slope when I needed a nice wooden mallet to go with my lovely new chisels... all in preparation for cutting the rabbet in Cabin Boy's stem...

As much fun as tool making is, I'm going to need to stay focused on boat making to get Cabin Boy in the water by spring.

Next episode from the Unlikely Boat Builder: Man, The Tool Maker

Enjoy: John

Permalink Reply by John Almberg on November 21, 2009 at 6:43pm
Some call them woodworking 'tricks', but I call them micro inventions -- simple, non-obvious inventions that some wood worker discovered hundreds or maybe thousands of years ago -- that are passed down from worker to worker because they are so darn useful. They're easy to recognize when you see them -- they make you slap your head and utter the word 'Wow'... at least that's the effect they have on me.

This blog post highlights three micro inventions that I used just this week. Notice how they all reduce the complex mathematical problem of capturing a complex shape or angle to a simple tool. Brilliant!

Read complete blog post: http://tinyurl.com/y9s57py

Enjoy: John

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