how to make mold for 16' boat

[jermze]

hi can i make a ply wood 16ft boat and use it as a plug for a mould would that be a process in place? im just currious any information would be great and appreciated thank you.

[hoytedow]

That sounds expensive. Why not just make a wood boat?

You might get some deeper insight here

http://www.bateau.com/studyplans/LB2...=LB26#building

and on the related sides.

Regards
Richard

[jermze]

thank you so much for the information you have given me, i am new to building anything that has to do with boats but i feel now that it is my passion. i live in australia and we do not have courses and have little or no information on building a boats, thats why any information i can have on building, plug, molds is a huge advantage. what is the differece between ply wood and just wood? and can you simplify so it will be much more easier for me to understand thank you!!!

[hoytedow]

Wood is generally planks cut from trees, while plywood is multiple thin sheets of wood glued together at various grain angles to creat something that will resist splitting and greatly increasing the strength in certain ways. Google these various terms and much information will pop up. Not all plywood is equal. Marine plywood lacks voids and is glued with waterproof(as much as possible) glue. Plywood is probably the easiest for a first time boatbuilder. Find some plans and build from them. You will save money and time and finish the boat before you are too old to use it.

[tunnels]

Problem with building plugs for moulds is all the exspence and time involved . If you are wanting to build a 16 footer find a hull /boat thats close to what you are wanting and take it for a ride and see if its what you are looking for . The most important part of any hull is from 50 mm above the chine and everything below . whats above has little to do with a boats performance and is mostly just visual . it could be just a matter of getting a older boat and re bulding new and improved tosides simply by adding timber /plywood and foam and reshaping to what you are looking for . You will then have a hull that you already know how it performs there are some small mods you can do to older hulls that will improve them slightly to todays needs and increase of efficenty of the newer outboards . I am in the process of doing all this myself , the old 1975 boat has a new lease on life and im able to use it and also modify it in stages so at the end you have something special that is what you want .
older hulls where never meant to go as fast as we try to push them now days , My old hull was surposed to do 35 mph tops as a family harbour type boat , now its had stage one its doing 60mph plus with a motor twice as big as it would have had before . Stage two is a whole bottom modification from stem to stern and everything in between .
So my advice is look at any and every old boat you can find never mind what state its in as long as it floats and goes .I have thousands pictures of boats ive seen over the years and collected screeds of infomation and been to every boat show to see whats the latest trends, to see whats good and whats not so good Nothing much changes .

Here the pages in detail:

http://www.bateau2.com/howto/sg101.php

http://www.bateau2.com/howto/jig.php

http://www.bateau2.com/howto/foam1.php

and something very nice:

http://www.newfound.com/

click on "construction notes" to downl. a pdf file.
Read that carefully and enjoy! It is easier than it looks.

Regards
Richard

[hoytedow]

jermze, I assume you are from the States so if you don't know metric, 50mm is just under 2 inches.

Originally Posted by tunnels

The most important part of any hull is from 50 mm above the chine and everything below . whats above has little to do with a boats performance and is mostly just visual .

Careful with such statements.



... the term "reserve buoyancy" might help you understanding what I mean.

therefore:

Originally Posted by hoytedow

jermze, I assume you are from the States so if you don't know metric, 50mm is just under 2 inches.

Moot point Hoyt............

Regards
Richard

[jermze]

is plank ideal for making a 16ft boat runner or so?, may i use what sort of foam is suitable for the model i am making?, please i need to know what mixes, process and chemicals i need to form a mold?, what are the category of tools used to design the whole concept of building a fiberglass boat?, can i use the finished product as a plug to form a mold?, if so what chemicals do i need to transfer the plug into the mold?
thank you so much for your patience, in understanding my situation and i am grateful for you sharing your knowledge to let me become a better boat builder.....

Follow the links above and you have a entire day reading and learning.

Most of your questions will be answered then. (or loose their sense)

R
R

[hoytedow]

Originally Posted by apex1

Careful with such statements.



... the term "reserve buoyancy" might help you understanding what I mean.

therefore:


Moot point Hoyt............

Regards
Richard

True.

[Obsession]

Originally Posted by jermze

is plank ideal for making a 16ft boat runner or so?,

What is the "16' boat runner"? Do you have a picture you can post please or a link to the design?

may i use what sort of foam is suitable for the model i am making?,

Model as in scale model or full size boat? Are you building by hand or do you have deep pockets - http://www.marineconcepts.com/cnc_milling.php

See:
glassing over stryofoam
and
Foam Plug?
and a number of other threads here. Is it the fastest way? It depends on what shape you're building. Do you need to go with a plug/mold at all? Or would you be better off with a one-off to build the finished boat directly?

please i need to know what mixes, process and chemicals i need to form a mold?, what are the category of tools used to design the whole concept of building a fiberglass boat?,

First, if you haven't already, you'll need to start by building a number of test pieces. Do you know how to get an even coat of gelcoat? It's not rocket science, but your first try will probably look terrible and be irregular. You can do a lot with a sqeegie and patience if you don't need to squeeze every ounce of weight out of the finished product. Or you can use more advanced methods. Everything has an advantage, disadvantage (often cost). I don't have the building experience that the others do here. But if you give more specific questions and tell people about what you want to build exactly, those who know more will be able to give you more in return. There is no one magic answer of the one acceptable resin or one best layup or the one perfect wood to use for every boat.