Teak deck installation

Discussion in 'Wooden Boat Building and Restoration' started by Kaptin-Jer, May 22, 2012.

  1. Kaptin-Jer
    Joined: Mar 2004
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    Kaptin-Jer Semi-Pro

    Can someone point me to site or book that shows how to lay a traditional teak deck that follows the curve of the cap plank and ends in a key or king plank w/ instructions on how to cut curves around hatches, etc. the only ones I found are promoting synthetic teak lookalikes, or selling ready made streight squares.
    Thanks
    Jer
     
  2. PAR
    Joined: Nov 2003
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    Location: Eustis, FL

    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    Most building texts just lightly cover this as there are several methods and installation techniques. If the boat is big enough, you can spring planks and there are two categories in which most fall: a laid deck or a veneer deck. A laid deck typically uses fairly hefty thicknesses of teak, often tongue and groove edged and is hard fastened over bedding, after being sprung into place. A veneer deck is as the name suggests and a thin layer of stock, usually cut to shape and bonded to the subdeck. Some of the veneers are thick enough to have hidden fasteners (inside the caulk lines).

    The laid decks fall into two camps, tongue and groove and strip planked. Strip planked is usually narrower and easier to install, tongue and groove is just like your grandma's living room floor.

    Gougeon brother's book on boat building has some information as do other books, but mostly it's a figure it out as you go sort of thing as each deck has it's own unique problems to solve.

    [​IMG]

    This might help http://www.westsystem.com/ss/installing-a-teak-deck-on-zatara/
     
  3. Kaptin-Jer
    Joined: Mar 2004
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    Kaptin-Jer Semi-Pro

    Thanks Paul
    I have seen these sites before. That are about the only ones that have decient info. The deck is small. Like a 12 1/2 or Buzzards Bay so the small details are important, like how to cut radius 45's around hatches and maintain the full width of the plank. Seems simple but-?
    Are there places that sell pre cut radius pieces?
     
  4. Boston

    Boston Previous Member

    Are you thinking veneer or plank. Either way, my personal preference is for everything to be picture framed with a herringbone joint where the deck meets the frame.

    Got any pictures of what you have in mind ?
     
  5. PAR
    Joined: Nov 2003
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    Location: Eustis, FL

    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    Small boats usually have planking laid fore and aft, simply because the curves are too "quick" to get planking stock to bend reasonably. A strip planked approach is generally employed if you want to spring the planks on a small boat.

    As to figuring out how to make hatch and deck protrusion openings and the like, well you can establish a "book" for everything. For example; all deck protrusions would be 90% of the deck edge covering board width, all planks 80% of the covering board width all out side corners a 4" radius, all inside corner . . ., etc.

    Usually it's best to lay everything out with pencil on the deck. The covering boards are usually the widest, the trim around things sticking up through the deck slightly narrower, the planking even narrower, etc. The amount of angle before you "nib" off a plank is an "eye ball" thing and would be scarf placement, corner radiuses, etc.

    Bisecting the corners for 45 degree cuts is a fairly simple geometric problem. You could use the simple technique of measuring along each side the same amount, then a square to find the point. An easier method is just a compass and swinging a couple of arcs to find the center point. The hardest thing of all is to get the right amount of radius that looks good and matching the inside and outside portions with complimentary radiuses. As you would think, it's the details that make these decks look good. The piece linked above shows good details for a veneer deck. I like the "scalloped" ends, rather then the typical nibbed. The "S" curve scarfs are very nice.
     
  6. Kaptin-Jer
    Joined: Mar 2004
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    Kaptin-Jer Semi-Pro

    Par, As always you really helped a lot. I'll print this out and use it as a guide.
    Thanks
     
  7. tunnels

    tunnels Previous Member

    All wooden things are usually logical if you sit and look at them !! If you are doing the traditional patterns and ways then take a camera and go walk the marinas photo every teak deck you can find !! very quickly you will see they are all very simular to each other as to how things are done and the patterns etc etc . I use to lay wooden floor and did the same but over time i put my own touchs to how things were done and before long i was getting asked to lay floors in all up market and exspensive houses because i dared to be a little differant ,tradional with a touch of modern !! Theres nothing wrong with that !!
    They lay small boat decks straight or almost straight and it looks terrible in my eyes !!,Depending on the planl width determins the amount of curve you can get so, narrow planks more curve !,wide planks less curve !,not to say that you cant spit and re-fabricate and or taper ends etc etc . its wood and can do almost anything with it !, its just limited to your imagination . traditional looks nice on a older styled boat more modern decks need a personal touch so think outside the box your head is in and cut some flaps to look out of :)

    I have a personal friend /boat builder /designer and is old school ,His teak decks are beautiful but he works only on big boats , He has formulars for everything and how its to be done .
     
  8. PAR
    Joined: Nov 2003
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    PAR Yacht Designer/Builder

    I recently did a veneer deck on a 17' boat. I couldn't spring the planks, but I did set them at an angle to the king plank and was able to curve them a little. The results looked good, but they didn't follow the covering boards precisely in the forward areas, though they did in the aft sections. I just nibbed them in when the angle was too sharp or I couldn't get enough edge set, without them trying to cup.

    Think of the layout, for a while. It's a bit like laying tile in your grandma's kitchen. The layout is the key to a good looking job. You can erase pencil lines, but yanking up planks will just piss you off. I usually do a scale drawing of the deck and try several arrangements, before settling on what I want. I don't scale from the drawing, but just use it as a guide and take measurements from the work only. Always build to the work, not the drawings.
     
  9. Kaptin-Jer
    Joined: Mar 2004
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    Kaptin-Jer Semi-Pro

    That's pretty much how I did this build. The plans were great for the hull, but after I turned it over I threw the plans away. I built the full deck out of cardboard first. Even drawing the planks, hatch, and splash board on before I cut wood. This is the 3rd boat (and the smallest)that Par has talked me through, and my 5th project. But I told Par no progress pictures. I'll send pictures when I splash. So far this is my best. A real keeper.
     
  10. tunnels

    tunnels Previous Member

    Just have to sit and ponder a while !! As i said take a camera and see what others have done .
    My flooring when doing parquet used to take me a fill day sometimes just to mark out and square everything and adjust the size of the boarder .Can hid a lot of things with boarders !! specially when flowing from one room through into other rooms !!,seen a square room yet and two rooms walls are hardly ever in line with each other . Boats are even worse !lucky they only have port and stbd and inside and out side . Things that look great on one boat never seem to work on others draw and fiddle a little it will all fall into place eventually !!:D
     

  11. wsvoboda
    Joined: Aug 2011
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    Location: California

    wsvoboda Junior Member

    The Gougeon Brothers have a book on boat construction and talks about teak decks
     
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