Mistakes made in building boats

Discussion in 'Boatbuilding' started by mariobrothers88, Dec 3, 2020.

  1. wet feet
    Joined: Nov 2004
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    Location: East Anglia,England

    wet feet Senior Member

    Those plans were worth exactly what they cost you then.If it makes you feel better there are paid plans out there that are about as good.Its one reason why I think everybody should build a small boat before thinking about anything more substantial.However bad the plans might be,you will develop a bit of skill that goes onward with you and part of this will be the ability to spot dubious features.You might also get a handy little boat if you choose right.
     
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  2. keith66
    Joined: Sep 2007
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    Location: Essex UK

    keith66 Senior Member

    This one wasn't my fault but we had to fix it. 1979 at Thames marine & i with two other guys were tasked with building the first Mirage 2700 for the London boat show. The boat supposedly a new design was basically a Mirage 28 hull with vertical transom added, keel stubs moved a bit & a new modern deck molding to give more accommodation. Things were going really well, keels on, engine in, interior moulding in.
    Deck came from the molding shop & i cracked on bolting deck fittings on it with it alongside the boat while the other two stood the bulkheads up.
    Next day we hoisted the deck moulding up with the chain blocks & pushed the boat underneath & lowered it into position. Couple of temporary bolts at the bow & transom corners, looked round the sides, port side didnt fit.
    The deck moulding was 3" wider tapering each way about 1/3rd of the way from the transom.
    This was a big discrepancy & the yard managers, designer & foremen, pored over drawings & scratched their heads.
    Meanwhile we resorted to glassing up what would fit & the other side two acrow props were used across the boat pushing on bits of scaffold plank to force the hull out to meet the deck. We managed it but there were some bad stress cracks in the gelcoat that had to be fixed before she went off to the boat show!
    Firm went bust three months later.
     
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  3. wet feet
    Joined: Nov 2004
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    Location: East Anglia,England

    wet feet Senior Member

    That reminds me of the tale of a builder of large power cruisers a few years ago.They intended to drop a new superstructure on an existing hull and had the plug built and a mould made.The first moulding was craned over the boat and as it got nearer it became obvious that it was far too wide-not by a few inches but by a full metre!Finger trouble in the drawing office and the fellow responsible soon departed.A bit later he cropped up at another builder,but his reputation had got there first so he wasn't given too much responsibility.Curiously enough that second company is no longer in the business.
     
  4. fallguy
    Joined: Dec 2016
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    Location: usa

    fallguy Senior Member

    was the deck wrong then?

    maybe built for the bigger boat's beam or what?
     
  5. rangebowdrie
    Joined: Nov 2009
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    Location: Oregon

    rangebowdrie Senior Member

    Now that really scores some points,, gave me a good laugh.
     
  6. Will Gilmore
    Joined: Aug 2017
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    Location: Littleton, nh

    Will Gilmore Senior Member

    I don't have a boat building story, but I think you all can relate to this.

    Years ago, I worked as a mold builder for an architectural concrete company in Sarasota, Fl. We built building facades, column covers, that kind of thing.

    I was one of two mold builders and this day I had the shop all to myself for a straight forward job to make the molds for large flat slab walls. I basically built eight, twenty-four foot box beams to use for the mold sides and a similar number of smaller beams for the ends.

    To make separating the forms easier once the concrete has setup, we coated our wooden forms in epoxy, nice and thick and sanded smooth. Vegetable oil is used to coat the completed forms, just before pouring the concrete. It works great.

    I built the forms and had just enough time to get the epoxy on before quitting time. I had the pieces all laid out on saw horses and was rolling the epoxy out, trying to move quickly to get it all done before everything set. There was just enough space to slip between the beams and coat each one. Trying to be efficient, I'd roll in one direction to coat the beam to my left, then turn around and roll back down in the opposite direction to coat the beam on my right, instead of working only on one direction. It worked out and I got it done with just a few minutes late, leaving the shop.

    I got in my truck that had been sitting outside in that Sarasota, Fl Summer heat and was just about to pull away when I saw this guy over by the front office picking and eating something off the bushes. I went over to see what free and wild delights might be had. It was a pepper plant with little green chili peppers and we both just worked our way down the row, popping peppers into our mouths. Finally, time to go and I headed out, but I was burning up. My tongue was burning, but mostly it was my seat. That Sun just beat down on my dark blue vinyl interior and the back of my legs, were on fire below my shorts. Then it penatrated the cloth of my shorts and my entire backside was burning up. I had to stop to, at least, get a cold drink.

    I went into a local convenient store and when I did, I got no relief from getting off that truck seat. That's when I looked at the back of my legs. They were redder than a sunburn with blisters starting to swell up.

    As it turned out, when I walked the length of those form sides coating each one with epoxy, I was dragging my @$$ over the previously coated beam behind me. What I had taken for Sun on car vinyl and hot chili peppers, was actually a chemical burn from the epoxy.

    -Will (Dragonfly)
     
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  7. The Q
    Joined: Feb 2014
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    Location: Norfolk, UK

    The Q Senior Member

    Not predicting the future...
    I designed my little sailing boat for sixteen footer to compete in the Allcomers B class which is Up to 17.5foot. Came home on holiday, to find the class had disappeared, All that was left at the club was Allcomers A (above 17.5ft)_ and various class races..
    So I redesigned the boat for 18 foot, and built it in Saudi.. Finished contract to come home and found... Allcomers B is now a big class with 4 races a day, while Allcomers A has 1..
    So I've been rebuilding the boat back down to 16ft hopefully to be launched this year.

    I did get chemical burns through my overalls , while painting the bilges, I thought it was dry but obviously wasn't and from the fumes had a very HIGH VOC level.

    We did get the odd pot of resin do strange things out there, we were by the coast with incredible humidity working in 50C + there were three of us building boats for something to do.

    The oddest thing was if the humidity was very very high you'd get a pot of rubber, not good for fillets..

    Oh and we set fire to the sand... There was so much sawdust in the sand round our boats when someone threw a fag end into it it caught fire.. we had to put no smoking signs up round our little boatyard.
     

  8. Blueknarr
    Joined: Aug 2017
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    Location: Colorado

    Blueknarr Senior Member

    As it turned out, when I walked the length of those form sides coating each one with epoxy, I was dragging my @$$ over the previously coated beam behind me. What I had taken for Sun on car vinyl and hot chili peppers, was actually a chemical burn from the epoxy.

    -Will (Dragonfly)[/QUOTE]


    Nice surprise ending. I was extremely you to be glued to your truck seat.
     
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