Aluminium boat out of one piece - self casted, one big mold...

A little example of how it is done on the Amazon:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...a=X&ei=TfIlTJOVMYL6lwfGopTJAw&ved=0CDIQ9QEwAw

"Our wooden princess: 100' L x 15' W"

 

Somewhere in the Biochar site was a list of the fund owners. 4 people were listed, a social scientist, an agricultural expert, an economic expert and some one else, maybe medical. Do you have a "handyman expert"? Someone who does know a little about boatbuilding, carpentry, wiring, welding etc?

The guy you are considering for the steel barge says he can do it but you have no way of knowing. Does he have all the equipment, welders, forklifts, handtools, grinders etc? He can use the existing (defunct) boat building infrastructure, so he says. Who says he can? For how much? I bet I could almost watch the $10,000 disappear on google satelite.

I mean, think about it. Do you know how a drydock works? What are the chances of an abandoned, defunct one working? How many people does it take to operate one? How many pumps, gates, gears, electrical, hydraulic and mechanical systems are there that are needed to make it operate?

As you say, there are hundreds of abandoned ships, boats and barges all over the place. The possibilities there seem good.

Your current organization is focused on farming. Are there any organizations focused on the problem presented here, river transportation and boats?

I assume you came from Belgium or Holland. Very industrious , forward looking people, yourself as an example. Here in the US, we have occasionally been known for that also. Historically, people got things done on their own, no government help, the most basic of tools, axes, handsaws, hammers, no electricity, etc. Humans were invented in Africa. Why is the place still so dismally primeval? (I also wonder the same about numerous other places.)

Again, are there any organizations focused on the problem presented here, river transportation and boats?

 

Well said.

 

I would like to highlight ONE interesting point: Congoriver thought of a mold process to produce A LOT of boats at a small price. We are speaking of 10T of cargo, so a pretty big boat.

Builing in wood is slow and complex, requires a lot of workers, skilled for these specific tasks. If you knew africa, you would understand that they simply don't want to make an ugly boat in a poor material : they don't want to feel that they are poor.

That is why they like steel. Their workers are just fantastics ! You can find a lot of persons who are just making "magic" with old steel, second life diesel and unprobable parts.
So, steel is what they would love.look at the "floating villages", that's cultural.

But steel boats are also "one shots" : building 100 boats requires 100x the price of one boat.


So, I think the MOLD is a CRUCIAL IDEA.

Pay one guy to make a nice mold, with a complex round shape, and you will get these advantages :

- 1000 boats for a very small price, made by very few people, very easily
- very nice hull, with good fuel savings, and more important : good looking ! not cheap

So, I only have to add the material : FERROCIMENT!

It is a fantastic material, very cheap, and almost light after a certain size of boats ! It is extremely robust and easy to maintain, can be painted for the look, but doesn't need to be painted.

I think that this way, we can build a nice series of boats they could be proud off. Don't underestimate human beings, africa is not a company, that's mainly a land where people are happy.

 

I must disagree. Wooden boats have been built since the dawn of civilization, pre-dating both metallurgy and cement. The vikings raided as far as Constantinople as far back as 1000 years ago, moving their boats by river and bringing back their plunder. Perhaps you should study the route by which they did it. If the people are willing to do the work, it is do-able. Trunnels are a proven fastener if metal is too costly. Buck saws work if gasoline saws are too expensive. It all depends upon how determined these people are to help themselves. Save the cement for the docking facilities. Save the metal for the warehoused produce.

 

Ferrocement doesn't use a mold. It is a "one shot" method.

 

Ferro boats have been built over male moulds.

 

Forgive me here, but since the skills are already there to make the pirogues, why not put a deck across a pair of them ?

I built a 14 foot pirogue myself, and I have since decked it and am currently building outriggers and a sail rig for it - I am amazed at how much weight this simple hull will float and how fast it went together.

Pontoons can float a hell of a lot of weight, are stable when loaded, and have a shallow draft. Since you are running on rivers, you will be heavy going downstream with the current and (mostly) empty to run against it.
It's conceivable that, if the current is slow enough and the river shallow enough, poles could get you downstream that distance in a few days.

Since you seem to be looking at it from an infrastructure prospective, the produce could go into a marketing collective that compensates the farmers while also providing for a tow back upstream - that way you are using fuel and resources for only one power vessel to tow a string of pontoon boats back up the river say...weekly or bi-weekly.

Even if you do power these boats, an engine can be placed on the deck to keep is out of the water with the pontoons acting a bit like a tunnel.

Using a plethora of small boats seems to me a more robust idea than building a smaller number of bigger craft. Plus, if two families each build a pirogue and collaborate on the deck, the total payload is greater than for two single boats: win-win.

Not as sexy as solving the problem with industrial might but, like Occam's Razor, the simplest solutions are often the best choice.

With no local knowledge however, it's just an internet opinion....

 

This is from the previously posted amazon thread.:

 

I am living in norway and I have a viking name, so I know quite a lot about viking boats and I can tell you that some ******** has been told about it on this forum.
Of course you can do very nice ships in wood, it's not the point. I just say that you don't bring anything new : Most of the boats they make are in wood.
So, if they haven't done it by themselves, it just means they need something else.

 

Don't say it isn't so.: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking

 

Then you know that you would not like to spend 6 weeks on it, on a river 30km wide !
You know, they are not that poor...

 

-Quote
In Kinshasa, steel is plentiful, all types.

-sheet/plate sizes are uniform across all thicknesses: 1 meter x 2 meters.

-2mm costs: US$80 per sheet
-3mm costs: US$200 per sheet
-4mm costs: US$300 to 400 per sheet
Quote
Far too much expensive...and curious. Steel is normally sold by Kg and 4mm plate do not cost 5 times the 2 mm plate ! 1*2meters plates are totally useless for boat building.

And I agree with Sam Sam
Again, are there any organizations focused on the problem presented here, river transportation and boats?

I'll add; big general project with big money or simple comunity project???

 

There is one major difference between norway and Congo : the trees !
Here in norway, fir trees are easy to cut, easy to clean from their branches, and they are straight ! Making planks out of it is logical.
Now, look at the african forest and tell me that the easiest thing to do with these trees is a drakkar ! My brother spent two years in the forrest in africa, cutting wood. Planks are made in europe, too difficult to do it in africa.

 

Who's talking about a drakkar? I am talking about the type of boats in the earlier photos I posted. There is not a drakkar in the lot of them.