Canoeyawl
03-05-2009, 02:28 PM
The Forum being a little off key this time of year I was thinking of the good things that come from Wooden Boats.
First boat – Sigrid
Aside from childhood projects including some attempts and failures at boats, the very first boat I built was a plank on frame model of the William and John Atkins Pemaquid, a 21 foot Banks Dory from the 1940’s “How to Build” series by Popular Mechanics.
True to scale I lofted, and faired the lines (surprising those little mistakes in the original plan) then set up a strong back and built it. One inch equals one foot.
This was a great experience as I tried to build exactly to scale and became familiar with lofting, set-up, scantlings, steam bending, layout and fits, and finally, interior details like seats, knees, and floorboards, rudder construction, spars, sails and finally paint and varnish.
This little project consumed most of a year in my spare time (no TV) and I realized that I might never be able to finish the full sized version. So with my tail between my legs and model in hand I drove out to Davenport and asked the local boat-builder (Aeolus Boats, Bill Grunwald) if he would quote me a price on a boat “just like the model…”
I left the model with him for study.
Returning a few weeks later and expecting a price that I could not afford, Bill who came off as rather an old curmudgeon said “I can’t build a boat for you...
“The model is too precise and you will not be satisfied. Why don’t you come out here and build it yourself? "There", he said (while pointing over at the wall with about a thousand feet of clear Philippine Mahogany leaning against it) is the material”, “And you, (waving his hand generally in a southerly direction) can use this space" (a 20x30 space in the corner of the shop! The shop was about 10,000 sq ft) "and, (pointing again) the band-saw and table-saw are right there"
Whoa – what to do next?
Well after discussing this with my lovely (long suffering) wife Sally, I decided to take him up on this suspiciously generous offer.
Afraid to ask how much the rent may be or the cost of materials, another week went by until I finally did approach him and asked the questions.
Almost embarrassed (the curmudgeon thing was a carefully scripted act), he waved his hand over his head as if shooing away a fly and said, “Sure, Sure - Just get started before you get sensible” then carefully avoiding the question, he grabbed a scrap of plywood and suggested that I keep my own record of materials and fastenings noting what I used on this plywood scrap. And that was it - I was off and running. Starting down a path I knew not where.
After the boat was finished and it was time to settle up, the subject of rent came up again and he looked down at his feet and said “One dollar a foot, is that OK?”
Today, Thirty years later Bill and others from the boatshop are long gone, and I am a very different man because of that experience.
How often in life do you find that much generosity?
Pemaquid
http://www.boat-links.com/Atkinco/Sail/images/Pemaquid-1.gif (http://www.atkinboatplans.com/)
First boat – Sigrid
Aside from childhood projects including some attempts and failures at boats, the very first boat I built was a plank on frame model of the William and John Atkins Pemaquid, a 21 foot Banks Dory from the 1940’s “How to Build” series by Popular Mechanics.
True to scale I lofted, and faired the lines (surprising those little mistakes in the original plan) then set up a strong back and built it. One inch equals one foot.
This was a great experience as I tried to build exactly to scale and became familiar with lofting, set-up, scantlings, steam bending, layout and fits, and finally, interior details like seats, knees, and floorboards, rudder construction, spars, sails and finally paint and varnish.
This little project consumed most of a year in my spare time (no TV) and I realized that I might never be able to finish the full sized version. So with my tail between my legs and model in hand I drove out to Davenport and asked the local boat-builder (Aeolus Boats, Bill Grunwald) if he would quote me a price on a boat “just like the model…”
I left the model with him for study.
Returning a few weeks later and expecting a price that I could not afford, Bill who came off as rather an old curmudgeon said “I can’t build a boat for you...
“The model is too precise and you will not be satisfied. Why don’t you come out here and build it yourself? "There", he said (while pointing over at the wall with about a thousand feet of clear Philippine Mahogany leaning against it) is the material”, “And you, (waving his hand generally in a southerly direction) can use this space" (a 20x30 space in the corner of the shop! The shop was about 10,000 sq ft) "and, (pointing again) the band-saw and table-saw are right there"
Whoa – what to do next?
Well after discussing this with my lovely (long suffering) wife Sally, I decided to take him up on this suspiciously generous offer.
Afraid to ask how much the rent may be or the cost of materials, another week went by until I finally did approach him and asked the questions.
Almost embarrassed (the curmudgeon thing was a carefully scripted act), he waved his hand over his head as if shooing away a fly and said, “Sure, Sure - Just get started before you get sensible” then carefully avoiding the question, he grabbed a scrap of plywood and suggested that I keep my own record of materials and fastenings noting what I used on this plywood scrap. And that was it - I was off and running. Starting down a path I knew not where.
After the boat was finished and it was time to settle up, the subject of rent came up again and he looked down at his feet and said “One dollar a foot, is that OK?”
Today, Thirty years later Bill and others from the boatshop are long gone, and I am a very different man because of that experience.
How often in life do you find that much generosity?
Pemaquid
http://www.boat-links.com/Atkinco/Sail/images/Pemaquid-1.gif (http://www.atkinboatplans.com/)