All done!

Wow that was an epic build. Almost 3 years and a major back surgery later she is done. Just posted pics. The green montana boat builders freestone guide.

 

Cant wait to get her on the river. Pics posted on the main...She is the green one.

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Permalink Reply by Jonathan Clarke on May 28, 2012 at 4:03pm

Nice job, Joseph.  Way to go with working through back surgery.

Permalink Reply by Guy Fredrickson on May 28, 2012 at 4:34pm

That's an awesome looking boat. Congratulations for a job well done.

Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on May 28, 2012 at 5:17pm

Joseph, your boat look fantastic, I hope you feel as good as your boat looks!

Good job.

Rick Newman

Permalink Reply by Phillip Westendorf on May 28, 2012 at 7:03pm

Joseph,

Congratulations, on a beautiful boat.  Hope you have many opportunities to use it.

phil w.

Permalink Reply by tungsten on May 28, 2012 at 8:01pm

looks good, i really like the curve on the stem.

Permalink Reply by Ray Cotnoir on May 29, 2012 at 4:17am

Hi Joseph,

Congratulations on your build.  You must have a grin from ear to ear.  Let us know how the water test goes.  Don't forget to tell everybody............."Wood Is Good".

Permalink Reply by Joseph Podesta on May 29, 2012 at 7:06am

thanks everyone! i hope it motivates other builders, either to push through or start up a boat project. now i need to get it registered (california law) and call my insurance company...those two things will be an adventure on thier own...

Permalink Reply by Terry E Walsh on May 29, 2012 at 7:12am
Looks really nice!
Permalink Reply by Dan Hooper on May 29, 2012 at 7:54am

Nice job on the Freestone Guide Joseph.  How did you do the false stem?  I built the Classic model & would like to install a stem like yours.

Permalink Reply by Joseph Podesta on May 29, 2012 at 8:14am

the false stem wasnt too hard to do. you need to build a steamer, I did mine out of stove pipe but others have used PVC. be sure to presoak the wood for a few days as steam actually drys out the wood. you also need to router out a grove before you steam the piece. You will need to work quickly have your epoxy ready. Pull the stem out of the steamer, butter it up with epoxy, put a screw or two in the bottom, clamp at the top. once the epoxy drys you have a perminent false stem. there used to be good instructions out on Jason Cajuns site but he took it all down. You can probably google it and get some pictorials. Keep the screws low so you can either durbak over them or put a rub rail over...

Permalink Reply by Kent R. Feldsted on June 3, 2012 at 7:36am

Beautifully done boat Joseph! I would be very interested in your opinion as to how it rows, handles , etc as compared to other boats you have used.  I'm planning to build one of those too.

Permalink Reply by Joseph Podesta on June 3, 2012 at 8:47am

Hello Kent R. You want to give Jason Cajune a ring. He is the designer of these boats. You can find him over at http://cajuneboats.squarespace.com/. These boats are well know for how they handle, they also draft relatively skinny water but that is true of any wooden boat as they are considerably lighter than thier metal or 100% glass counterparts. As for looks well these are pretty stich and glue jobs. this other site has a lot of great info too.

http://montana-riverboats.com/index.php?fpage=Driftboats/&slide...

Jason took down his old website when the economy forced him to shut down his operations. I think he is a one man show now. His old website had a great forum on too. Real shame its gone.

I really like the Hunky Dory style too. It was a hard flip of the coin on boat design for me. The hunkys have slight design changes from Jason's but are pretty much the same boats. My boat should turn on a dime like the others who picked this design. I need to schedule some lake time to do some water trials soon. Will let you know. All that info used to be up on Jason site, plenty of folks posted results of water trials after they built thier boats.

I did run into a minor issue with the Cali DMV. If I want to drop an outboard on this boat I will have to register it. Only reason I would ever consider adding a motor would be to fish a few tail water fishieries where you need to motor up to the dam and float back as there is no access up river. These are some of the best fishing waters too. Sacramento river is a good example. The Cali DMV wants to tax me on my boat, but I explained I already paid tax on materials. Hard concept for them to get through thier heads, the double taxation deal. For anyone building a boat check with your state on what they need if you have similar laws. Cali DMV wants to see all receipts and a few other hoops. Its such a pain in my @&^ that I am considering just forgetting about the motor...Afterall its a drift boat....

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