Rascal Runabout - Wood Questions

[DavidS]

Hi,

I'm studying the plans for the Rascal Runabout from Ken Bassett and have some questions.

The plans call for the frames and plank battens to be white spruce. I've checked several places around Atlanta and can't seem to find this anywhere. The other options for the frames are fir or mahogany and I'm sure I can get mahogany locally so that's OK. What are my options for the plank battens (1/2" x 1-1/4" x 16ft)? The only spruce I have been able to find is for aircraft and this is really pricey (mil. spec. spruce makes the battens cost $30 each).

The planking is to be 1/4" mahogany but I've only found 4/4 boards or thicker. Where would I be able to get these cut down to size?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[Tom Lathrop]

The studs in just about every house in Atlanta are spruce. Any building supply house will have construction grade spruce in 2X thickness and several widths and lengths. You gotta search to get the clear stuff and will have to cut around the bad spots but the price is right.

The Woodworker's Guild of Georgia has lots of local members that can resaw lumber. Check at Highland Hardware in Virginia Highlands for sources of wood or anything like this. There is also a wooden boat group in Atlanta. Ask at HH.

Some mahoganies can be pretty heavy and as almost double the weight of the lightest spruce. Much of what is being sold a mahogany these days is crap and pretty light though (color and weight).

Rascal is not a simple build but a fine boat.

[DavidS]

Tom,

Thanks, I hadn't yet checked at Highland Hardware.

By construction grade spruce in 2X thickness, is this "Home Depot" type of wood, or something more definitive?

Thanks again.

[Tom Lathrop]

I don't buy wood from HD or Lowes so I can't say. I was talking about other builders supply sites where the quality is generally higher. It's worth while to spend some time checking out the various sources available to you. There are lumber yards scattered all over your local counties, or at least there were when I lived there. The Woodworkers Guild and Woodenboat groups are both full of people able to help you.

[JimConlin]

Ask at a genuine lumberyard for staging planks or ledger boards. In these parts, they'll be 2x12 and 1x8 rough spruce, respectively. They're not clear, but not expensive either, so if there's 50% waste, you're still smiling.

[Bill Perkins]

I'm in Atlanta David . Randal Brothers on North Ave. has boat quality clear Spruce I feel sure is cheaper than the aircraft stuff .I've used it for the superstructure of my boat ; it's wonderfully light and easy to work .I think it's important to commit to high quality wood : it's always been so .

The construction stud lumber here is a construction grade SPF (Spruce ,Pine,Fir ),a mixed species commercial grouping .I've used carefully selected pieces of this for a couple of small boat spars that are easily replaced , but I wouldn't build it into a hull I was going to put allot of work into .

Randall Bros. also has clear Douglas Fir (heavier and stronger ),and clear White Pine . Swanneee Lumber has good roughsawn White pine I know .

[ 07-27-2005, 08:03 PM: Message edited by: Bill Perkins ]

[Bruce Hooke]

I'm not surprised that you could not find White Spruce. I am surprised that a designer would explicitly specify White Spruce, particularly without giving other options. From what I've seen, even up in spruce country (e.g., Maine) your only hope of getting White Spruce would be to go directly to a sawmill, and even then you would probably have a rather hard time finding a mill that distinguished between the various common species of spruce.

[Bruce Hooke]

Originally posted by JimConlin:
Ask at a genuine lumberyard for staging planks or ledger boards. In these parts, they'll be 2x12 and 1x8 rough spruce, respectively. They're not clear, but not expensive either, so if there's 50% waste, you're still smiling.The last time I looked at rough spruce "staging boards" (the won't call them that any more for liablity reasons) around here they were so full of knots that very few boards would have yielded any clear pieces of a size that would be useful. And this was at the best commercial lumberyard in town... :(

[Bruce Hooke]

Originally posted by DavidS:
The planking is to be 1/4" mahogany but I've only found 4/4 boards or thicker. Where would I be able to get these cut down to size?Not so many lumberyards are willing to do this sort of resawing. Anyone with a decent bandsaw could do it, so it is just a question of finding someone who is willing or finding a friend who will let you use their bandsaw. A tablesaw could also be used but you do end up turning a bit more of the wood into sawdust. It is just possible that with careful work on a bandsaw you could get three 1/4" pieces out of a 4/4 board, whereas with a tablesaw you would be certain of only getting two. It would probably be worth running the math to figure out if it would be more cost effective to, say, get 5/4 stock.

[shellback]

If you're going to take the time to build a boat like RASCAL don't buy material from a home center. The framing material should be Sitka spruce. It is light (real important in this boat) takes glue and fastenings and is strong for the weight. Call Ken if you think you could use something else. As for the mahogany, the first two layers on the topsides are mahogany plywood,occume is the best and only the top layer is true mahogany. Find a mill shop that can resaw boards for you and then run them through a thickness planer to get the finished 1/4" dimention. I built RASCAL several years ago. It is a great boat but the speed comes from light weight. I have a second set of frames and am comsidering building another with a jet ski power plant instead of the outboard. Good luck

[Speedboy]

I am 3.5 years into the building of my Rascal runabout. I also spent a considerable amount of time looking for white spruce but was unable to locate in the Connecticut area other than the twisted 2x4's at the Home Center. I also wrote Ken Bassett and asked if he meant Sitka spruce but he said no. In the end, I used Honduran mahogany for the frames and battens. I recommend you do the same. When you consider the many hundreds of hours required to build this boat, the additional cost of the mahogany is insignificant. There is a weight increase but the use of mahogany IMHO results in a better looking finished product. Good luck with the project and feel free to contact me with any additional questions. The plans are good and the general specs are very helpful. I highly recommend you get the video that shows assembly of the boat so you see how Ken recommends approaching the fabrication process.

Speedboy

[Wiley Baggins]

I'd be surprised (but not shocked, as I don't have any familiarity with your locale) if you can't find scaffold planking. With regard to re-sawing, it may be worth it to invest in a decent bandsaw to do that work and whatever other bandsaw work is associated with the project. The net cost if you sell the bandsaw when you are finished should be less than what you spend for re-sawing. It's been a while since I've priced either the planking or a bandsaw, but someone with more recent experience will either support or correct my assertion. Good luck with your project.

[pcford]

I'd use oak for the battens and African mahogany for the planking. Maybe doug fir for frames.

Ken Bassett is a fine designer and a great guy. Met him somewhere....maybe we had him out here for an ACBS meeting.

However, I can not imagine that wood available in a "Home Deport" or normal lumberyard would suffice.

[DavidS]

Thanks to everyone who has replied to my questions. I took Bill Perkins' advice and made a visit to Randall Bros. in Atlanta. They do have what appears to be good quality spruce in various widths and up to 16 ft. long. I took a walk back to the warehouse to have a look for myself. The boards are mostly clear with only a few very small knots.

Regarding the 1/4" mahogany planking, I have another question: what are the dimensions of the boards needed to make single side plank? The plans mention the use of 10" wide boards to start with when planking the sides. Is this necessary? If so, then a bandsaw is definitely needed.

[Speedboy]

If you plan to install the planks in 16' foot lengths, you will need 10" wide boards. I used two pieces for each strake and staggered the butt joints 2', an option mentioned in the general specifications. This does allow you to use boards that are less than 10" wide. I did this because it was difficult to find 16' lengths of pattern grade 4/4 mahogany in my area. I used 12' lengths which were also easier to resaw. If you strategically place the butt joints, you can put them in places where they will show less (behind the registration numbers, for example). You will find it easier to handle the 12' lengths when spiling as well. If you haven't started to build the boat yet, focus on the frames and battens for now. I would not recommend buying the planking material until you need it, which may be many, many, many months from now. You are wise to identify what will be required for planking and try to identify places where you can buy it, but it can become a storage problem if you don't need it soon. I tried to spread out the expenses for the boat materials rather than buying a lot of material that won't be used for quite a while. With $8,000 to $10,000 required to purchase all the materials, I recommend you review the order of assembly and purchase only materials you will need for the next four months or so. Best of luck.

Speedboy