wood

Looking into building a small speed boat (11') from the old PopMech/PopSci plans. If I was to coat the entire inside with epoxy resin, could I use pine or poplar for frames, chine, sheer clamp......The plywood hull and deck would be F/G on the outside. If not Home Depot/Lowes lumber what would be a cheaper wood available in 3/4" ?
Thanks for your input.

 

There shouldn't be any reason to skimp on the framing wood used on such a small boat. Then, you plan on coating that cheap wood with expensive epoxy?
If weight is a huge issue, I'd use southern (yellow) pine for the frames, or fir, which is available everywhere. white oak, the best choice, is stronger, but adds a few pounds to the boat,
All three are stronger than pine. Poplar is a wood that would have to be completely epoxy-sealed, and I'd recommend against it in any case, sealed or not, becaise it rots readily.
White pine makes a poor framing wood because it doesn't hold fasteners well and you'd have to upsize the dimensions of the frames significantly to use it.
The place to epoxy a dry-sailed boat like yours is on the exterior. after taping and fairing the seams. A good porch and deck enamal is fine for the inside. You shouldn't expect long term standing water inside if you care for the boat properly.
All that said, there's nothing wrong with extra protection, but each piece should be individually sealed before assembly on any boat designed for paint alone. Modern epoxy-filleted framing methods can be sealed afterwards, but they are completely bonded pieces.

Alan

 

alan and everyone else,,Im going today to buy a but load of (southern yellow pine from home depot),,with canadian markings on it ??,probably good stuff ,,,,,,,,but how long will it last?,for sale I mean,,looks good but green,longliner

 

it'll always be green from canada,,,and warp fast,,but if stacked right will dry straight.thier wood is the same as ours,,,,cept they dont "care" for it (drying)
like we do in the states.
as for if its as good for building with,,,well,,,i'll leave that to alan,,,,i hate wood,, hehe

 

A fair amount of the Canadian lumber that ends up in the US is meant for the home-building industry and is fairly green, basically loaded straight onto the trucks right after sawing. Often you don't know exactly what you'll be getting as it's just stamped "S-P-F" (meaning it could be spruce, pine or fir). Great for houses but not so great for boats. If you're ordering a specific species and grade, though, odds are it'll be of comparable quality to the same species and grade elsewhere in North America. Stack it properly when you get it, protect it from the rain, and you shouldn't have any problems. The grade stamp should include the marking 'green' or 'dry' (Canadian wood, if dry, is most likely kiln dried; unless it's marked as dry, it's probably fresh off the saw.)

 

Alan and others...
Thanks for the info. Thinking about a white oak keelson (stright) and then maybe 3/4" yellow pine for framing with 1/4" marine ply gussetts. Would be 3 full frames plus transom and a forward braced deck beam. Also, found a possible source for mahogany but don't know the cost compaired to yellow pine, more? Only trying to stay cheap because it is my first build, and unsure of myself. I'm sure I'll have more questions.
Thanks again.

 

i cant tell ya bout prices,,,but,,i can tell ya ,, i know people who have done their first build as cheap as possible,,,only to half drown,,or be disappointed the next year when their boat is a pile of crap,,and then ( most where very talented people) never try again.,,,but i also know lots of untalented people who built their boat to live a few years,,,and even though they couldnt cut straight,,or measure,,their boats last for years,,,and they end up building more.,,,do ya want ya FIRST boat to be nothing but memory and pictures 2 years from now,,,,or do ya wanna be able to show someone how good it is?.

 

white oak for keelson ,,go find old barns ,,hand hewn white oak beams ,,hard to work with,,oak the older it gets the harder it gets,my keelson and chines are barn beams,,100 yrs old.longlinger

 

Sounds like you're going in the right direction, Waxer. For the small amount of materials you need for frames, you might use fir or yellow oine. Dry fir is often sold as decking, either T&G or S4S with eased corners.
The oak keelson is alright, very strong. Mahogaby, if true Honduras, will be $12 a foot easy, maybe more, twice or three times the cost of good already mentioned alternatives. Use mahogany for show--- otherwise you'll go broke.

 

The1, you opened my eyes to do it right the first time!
Is the fir, douglas-fir? And how would it be labeled?

 

http://www.horstmeierlumber.com/

Try these guys for cypress lumber for your framing and good quality materials for your project.

For quality plywoods contact

http://www.harborsales.net/