Building the Hvalsoe 13

[Rich Jones]

I've just started building Eric Hvalsoe's 13' row/sail boat. His HV 16 is better known, but the HV 13 fits my needs better.
Eric designed it for traditional lapstrake, but with his blessing, I'm converting it to glued-lap. This is a method I've really enjoyed building with ever since I read Tom Hill's book on ultra-light boatbuilding. I built his 11'6' Charlotte solo canoe, then built three Rushton designs that I converted from plans obtained at the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake using his method.
Since I'm converting the design myself, we'll blame any lumps, bumps and other funky things to me, not to Eric's excellent design.

I lofted the boat and built the jig from 3/4" ply and set things up as Tom Hill does. First thing I did was spring a batten around the sheer lines and produced that lovely sheer that drew me to this design in the first place. The offsets were spot on and needed no adjusting.

The backbone is made of American Black Cherry, as will all the other solid wood parts except the gunwale, which will be oak. The cherry is available locally and should be rot-resistant enough. The boat will also be sailed off a trailer and stored indoors.

Planking is 6mm Okoume ply. The plank patterns will be made using the ladder, or lattice, method. I had to drive about 250 miles round trip to get the ply, as I live in the sticks in the middle of Vermont. After a long thread on varnish or oil finish for the inside, I've decided to play it safe and go with varnish. The exterior will be white paint with a stained and varnished sheerstrake.

The design calls for a sprit rig and I'll stick with that. Eric has converted his HV 16 design to a balanced lug, but I'm going to keep it as simple as possible. The sprit rig has no boom to wack my wife in the head on the rare days she'll sail with me! Plus, I'm not looking for performance. Just lazy sails around the small mountain lakes that I enjoy. My "Squeeze every ounce of speed out of her" days are long behind me.

This build will take me all winter and hopefully splash in the spring. Please don't look for "Jim Ledger Perfection"! I'm confident that it'll look great from ten feet away and sail and row like a dream.

I'm leaving for Boston for a couple of days, so I won't be able to reply to any questions until Friday night.

Wish me luck with this build!

[bott]

Excellent! Looking forward to seeing this progress!

G'Luck

[csmead]

Can you describe how you decided on varnish for the interior instead of oil? It seems popular, I just wonder why.

[Rich Jones]

Can you describe how you decided on varnish for the interior instead of oil? It seems popular, I just wonder why.

After a long discussion on a thread about whether to use varnish or oil, I couldn't find any evidence that supports using oil on okoume plywood and I don't want to be the first one to try. It seems that varnish will offer much better protection.
If I were building in traditional cedar, I would oil the interior

[Eric Hvalsoe]

Cool! I'll keep an eye on this one, but no back seat driving.
Richard, did you use the 'adjusted' sheer (little bit lower at the stem, little higher aft)? Original or adjusted will both do the job. Good to hear the offsets in general worked out.

The 13 has always been built with a sprit rig for some of the reasons suggested by Richard. Mast step location is usually locked in with the construction of the backbone, stem and cheeks. I think a standing lug could also use that same mast step position with a touch more mast rake to maintain nearly the same CE. Just another idea. The 13 is a sweet little boat and nicely balanced with current sprit plan.

[Rich Jones]

Cool! I'll keep an eye on this one, but no back seat driving.
Richard, did you use the 'adjusted' sheer (little bit lower at the stem, little higher aft)? Original or adjusted will both do the job. Good to hear the offsets in general worked out.

The 13 has always been built with a sprit rig for some of the reasons suggested by Richard. Mast step location is usually locked in with the construction of the backbone, stem and cheeks. I think a standing lug could also use that same mast step position with a touch more mast rake to maintain nearly the same CE. Just another idea. The 13 is a sweet little boat and nicely balanced with current sprit plan.

I used the "adjusted sheer". I'm also retaining the original 10 planks instead of the newer 9 plank idea. I prefer the look of narrower planks, plus the clamps I've got will span the narrower planks when gluing things together.


Just got back from Boston an hour ago. Volunteering in a soup kitchen tomorrow and have to start cutting next years' firewood next week.
BUT, I will get this boat built!

[Rich Jones]

This was my last project, a 15' Rushton pulling boat.

[Eric Hvalsoe]

pretty!

[James McMullen]

Rock on, Richard! You're gonna love her!

[BBSebens]

This is great! I love Eric's boats, and it will be great to watch one come together.


Can't say I'm surprised the offsets were spot on....

[Durnik]

This was my last project, a 15' Rushton pulling boat.

Beautiful.. And I'll be enjoying your new build!

enjoy
bobby

[Rich Jones]

OK, firewood is cut and I've got to stop procrastinating. I've now got the transom done and will be attaching the skeg tomorrow. Have to fine tune the rolling bevel on the transom and will start planking next week. This build will probably take longer than I thought, but I'll savor the experience.

[JayInOz]

[QUOTE=Rich Jones;This build will probably take longer than I thought, but I'll savor the experience.[/QUOTE]

Could be right there Rich- it took you more than three months to cut the firewood JayInOz

[Rich Jones]

Could be right there Rich- it took you more than three months to cut the firewood JayInOz

It would be a big help if the wife ran the snowblower today during the blizzard so that I'm free to work on the boat. Wish me luck with that!

I promise to speed up work on this build!

[xflow7]

I'm really looking forward to following this. I've been a lurker for a while, but HV16 is on my shortlist for a build (along with Arctic Tern, Penny Fee, or Sjogin Jr if I feel especially ambitious).

Dave

P.S. Whereabouts in VT? I'm in Fairlee.

[Yeadon]

How do you like having your stongback on wheels? Does it seem squirrely?

[Rich Jones]

I'm really looking forward to following this. I've been a lurker for a while, but HV16 is on my shortlist for a build (along with Arctic Tern, Penny Fee, or Sjogin Jr if I feel especially ambitious).



Dave

P.S. Whereabouts in VT? I'm in Fairlee.

I'm a bit south of you in Mt. Holly

[Rich Jones]

How do you like having your stongback on wheels? Does it seem squirrely?

I've used them on the last few builds. With a limited width shop, the casters are nice to have, not only to move the boat around, but to see it at different angles to sight plank lines, sheer, etc.
The casters lock, but still, the thing does tend to move around a bit when you don't want it to.

[Eric Hvalsoe]

Rich,
Curious why the (I assume) line off battens do not extend to the stem. Maybe that is why some of them look a little goofy between the first and second molds.

[Rich Jones]

I think that picture was taken before I replaced those battens. I had split them down the middle up to the second mold so that they would take the twist better. I noticed things looked a little funky, so replaced them. It turned out the twist wasn't that bad after all.
The planks were laid out bow to stern with a thin batten first, then the shorter ones installed on the marks. I didn't run them to the bow or stern because there was no way to attach them without leaving permanent marks.
I learned the system from Tom Hill's Ultalight Boatbuilding and it's worked fine for five boats so far.

Since my last post, I made and installed the transom and skeg. Not being a professional, figuring out the bevel on the transom was time consuming. I've also got the garboards on and will be doing some more planking this week. I'll get some pictures up soon.

[Rich Jones]

OK, finally a few pictures.


Picture #1 Transom skeg and garboards finally in.
Picture #2 Showing how the lattice template is done.
Picture #3 Showing how the plank bevels are done.
Picture #4 Showing plank template on workbench, ready to be transferred to ply.

The interesting one is #3, which shows where those battens really come in handy. With a little homemade do-hicky bolted to the side of the plane, beveling is made easy. Draw a line along the length of the existing plank the width of the plank (3/4"). Simply rest the plane on the plank and the batten and shave up to the line. Instant, no hassle bevel. The batten also makes a firm base for clamping, no floppy planks. Note, the battens have to be waxed so that any oozing epoxy doesn't adhere the boat to the mold.

[Rich Jones]

I've got a really bad head cold this week, so the best I could do for the project is post pictures.
Drove my brother to Boston last week for his monthly cancer (treatable) treatment and the bum gave me his cold. Boy, ain't that graditude for you?

[John How]

I did my battens in a similar fashion but let them run right up just short of the stem and hang in the air till I put the planking on. Then just clamped them to the plankas I installed it figuring that it would lend a little support to the plank as it passed over the 1st station toward the stem. it all worked out. Very nice looking boat ya got going there. I think one of these days I'll build a traditional lapstrake boat but it will probably be a scale model or something. It looks like it would be fun to do but like yours, my current project is glued lap. I look forward to more pics.

[Eric Hvalsoe]

Here you go Rich, HV 13 #1
Tacoma Washington 1981

[Rich Jones]

That reminds me, Eric. What hull # will mine be? Do you know how many have been built?

[Yeadon]

I'm secretly hoping Rich's will turn out to be No. 13.

[Rich Jones]

A milestone of sorts. The 10th plank glued in place, so the planking is now half done.
It takes me about three hours per plank. That includes beveling and cutting the gains on the previous plank, making the plank template, cutting it out, fitting it, cutting the scarfs, than gluing up and installing. I scarf the planks together on the boat rather than on the bench. One plank a day is plenty for me. Besides, I wouldn't have enough clamps to do more than one. I'd like to get the planking done this month. It would be no problem, but we have to take a short trip this month, plus other things always get in the way.

[BBSebens]

Such a pretty boat.

Nice work.


Do you have a sail rig chosen?

[Rich Jones]

Such a pretty boat.

Nice work.


Do you have a sail rig chosen?

I'm sticking with the original sprit rig. It fits my needs and I don't have to re-design the mast location for a lug rig. I'm presently getting quotes from sailmakers.

[Yeadon]

I'm sure you've already considered it, but Sailrite is a great choice. If you can build a Hvalsoe 13 you can assemble a sail kit.

Also, you're boat looks great.

[Rich Jones]

I'm sure you've already considered it, but Sailrite is a great choice. If you can build a Hvalsoe 13 you can assemble a sail kit.

Also, you're boat looks great.

As Dirty Harry said, " A man's got to know his limitations.". I don't have access to a sewing machine, anyway.

[John How]

Very tidy build, she's gonna be a looker!

[Eric Hvalsoe]

Nice job Rich. Planking is 6 or 9 mm? I'm not sure a fella would reach a 3/4 lap width through the turn of the bilge with 6 mm. Glad you are posting, interesting to see her go up this way. Impressive clamp density!


. . . Rich went with the minimum plans package, lofting the boat and figuring some of those radical bevels on is own. Looks like he did a great job. There is a more elaborate plans package available which provides a bit more information,
scantlings for cedar on oak. 10 strakes will look very nice on this boat, in fact the first couple 13's I built (including that old snapshot from Tacoma) used 10 strakes, at some point I went to 9. Number of 13's built to date by myself, my students, or other home builders I'm guessing in the neighborhood of 15. I believe there are a of couple plank on framers currently in the works.

Cheers,
Eric

[Rich Jones]

The planking is 6mm. I'll let you know what happens when I hit the turn of the bilge. It'll be coming up in a couple of days!
I went with 6mm because I didn't think the 9mm would take the twist at the bow for the first few planks. I'm definately thinking of installing ribs to stiffen her up since she's only got the 6mm. The only decision is to steam bend or laminate the ribs.

[Breakaway]

Very nice, Rich. Thanks for sharing.

Kevin