Wimpy Moose - Introduction and New Boat

[Wimpy Moose]

Hello,
I am a new member to the WoodenBoat Forum and have just started my first boat build. I've done quite a bit of boat travel here in Alaska including many wonderful trips by raft, riverboat, and a sprinkling of coastal travel in Prince William Sound. My open water experience is almost exclusively in aluminum boats. A friend who lives in VA owns a mahogany launch and runs it on Chesapeake Bay. That boat, plus a trip he and I took to Mystic, CT for the Wooden Boat show, sparked my interest in building a boat. I purchased the plans for Jeff Spira's new design, the Anacapa. I like the dory look and it appears to be a perfect first time build. Jeff is extremely helpful but I don't wish to over burden him with newbie questions because I have a sneaking suspicion that I am hooked - this won't be the last boat. I found this forum and have spent the past couple of weeks researching ideas. I wanted to introduce myself because I know I will have questions for forum members in the future. What I've seen is great camaraderie and a helpful cadre of regulars. Congrats to all of you. If you have an interest in Alaska, please PM me. If I don't know the answer, I will find out where you can get it.

Thanks,

Dave - my non-nautical screen name comes from my daughter and is a reference to my lack of trophy status as a moose hunter - I'm effective, just not picky.

[Tom Freeman]

my non-nautical screen name comes from my daughter and is a reference to my lack of trophy status as a moose hunter - I'm effective, just not picky.

At least it's not coming from your wife. Welcome to the forum.

[Thorne]

Welcome to the Forum! You might as well start out with the hard part - posting photos, images of plans, etc. Give it a a try! Many of us are not familiar with the Anacapa design.

Here's how to post photos on this forum:

FIRST - Don't attach photos. Only a tiny version will display.

SECOND - Post the photos on the web. Use your own website or a free image hosting service like www.flickr.com, picturetrail, photobucket, etc.

Once posted on the web, right-click the photo to "Copy Image Location", or drag the photo to another browser window, then copy the URL (web address). You can test by pasting the photo URL into the location field (http://* ) of a web browser and see if the photo displays. Remember that this process will not work for photos only located on your computer, or uploaded to members-only Yahoo groups.

(In Flickr - You usually have to first click the photo to bring up the black-framed viewer, then click the "View All Sizes" link near the top right. Then you can get the URL by right-clicking the image. If you don't want the largest size (displayed) you can then click another option in the "Available sizes" links above the image.)

THIRD - ONE TIME PROCEDURE TO SET UP ENHANCED INTERFACE:
1. Click the "Private Messages" link in the browser window in the top left of the menu bar.

2. Click the "General Settings" link about 2/3 down the left column under "My Account".

3. At the bottom of the next page in "Misc Options", select "Enhanced Interface - Full WYSIWYG Editing" from the Message Editor Interface options. Click the Save Changes button.

FOURTH - DO THIS EVERY TIME TO POST IMAGES IN THREADS:
A. Once the above Enhanced Interface has been set up, in any "Reply" window you can click the "insert image" icon --> a little yellow square icon with a dot at each corner, a tiny tree in the center.

Depending on browser version and Reply/Edit status, this may bring up a simple window to paste the URL into, or the "Add an Image" window described below.

B. If the window titled "Add an Image" comes up, click the "From URL" tab, paste the URL of the photo in the field, deselect the box for "Retrieve remote file and reference locally", then click the "INSERT IMAGE" button. The Forum software will resize some large images, so look at your post to see the actual displayed images.

YouTube video on how to select the image URL in Firefox, navigate the "Add an Image" tabs and paste the image URL -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkfB_...layer_embedded

[botebum]

Welcome to the forum Wimpy Moose!
Jeff Spira is a member here, jspira, I think. I doubt he would be much bothered by any "newb" questions you have. He seems like a really helpful guy.

Thorne- You are so predictable (and helpful)

Doug

[TerryLL]

Welcome,

There are several Alaska and ex-Alaska members on the Forum. The Spira dories look to be quick and easy builds and a good place for a new builder to get started. Don't be shy about asking for advice.

[JimD]

A big, simple design. Should be a very straightforward build (Edited to add - Except for as TerryLL mentions below those side panels are not going to take that tight bend at the bow without a struggle). Looks like it will require a good sized power plant.

Pacific power dories differ from other dories in that they have wide transoms with little rocker in the stern. This makes them better as power boats, getting up on a plane easier than other types of dories. They're able to mount bigger engines than their East coast cousins. Want a good, sturdy boat that'll handle heavy loads in any weather? Well, a Pacific Power Dory just might be the boat for you.

Although my personal preference would be toward the vee bottom and finer entry of the Carolina dories:

[Thorne]

Looks a bit like some of the Brockways we've seen here recently -- big and functional!

[TerryLL]

One thing I'll mention right off the top about building that boat, you'll need help getting those side panels on.

[Wimpy Moose]

Thanks to all of you for the welcomes and shared advice. Jeff has been incredibly helpful and I can see from the replies that helpfulness is a common trait in the boat building community. Special thanks for the advice on how to post and the heads-up on the side planks. I'll just loan my raft out to a few people for trout fishing and nab them as a work crew when they show up. I have a friend who has build one boat and he answered my first question already - to thicken or not to thicken epoxy resin when lapping the boat frames. I will go with thicken - I am stopping by a local supplier in the morning to pick up some wood flour (correct term?).

Thanks again,


Dave

[jerry bark]

the best way to glue those laps is to brush on some unthickened epoxy first and let it soak intot he wood some, then take the rest of the epoxy and thicken a bit with wood four to use as the glue. clamp firmly but not really tightly.

good luck with your build,
Jerry

[Baltimore Lou]

Wimpy,
I'm going to go off on a tangent here, but you get high marks in my book for mentioning "Chesapeake Bay," not "The Chesapeake Bay." One of my favorite rants is the number of people who insist on saying "The" in front of C.B. Even radio announcers, who my parents taught me were the authorities on correct speech and usage (maybe in their day). Right next to Ukraine and those who insist on "The Ukraine." Anyway, welcome to the forum. It is an amazing resource.
Lou
Near Chesapeake Bay, but far from Ukraine