Hartley TS14 Construction

Collapse
X
 
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • Geary
    Senior Member
    • Jun 2009
    • 177

    Hartley TS14 Construction

    I finally got the plans for the Hartley TS14, a 14ft sailboat. The plans took over a month to arrive from New Zealand. I'll use this thread to keep people up to date on my progress and ask questions. Search this forum and you will find other Hartleys. The most popular being the TS16.

    This is my first boat build and I know nothing about sailing, so suggestions and advice are welcome.



    I'm also starting a blog to keep my family up-to-date. Feel free to follow it, as it will be more detailed than this thread.

    Building a small wooden sailboat in my garage


    So far I've cleaned out my garage and made the strongback frame, as shown in the pic. I got a bunch of scrap 2X3 from my job for free. Not boat quality lumber by any means, but it makes a good strongback I think.



    I'm going to buy lumber this week. Buying lumber has proven confusing, since I don't know much about boat building or lumber. The plans call for 6mm marine ply (9 sheets), 9mm marine ply (2 sheets), and a lot of lumber for the frames, etc. I'm thinking about building the entire boat out of CVG Doug-Fir lumber. Do you think DF would be good or would white oak be a better bet for the frames, keel and stem? The frames are glued and nailed 1x6 (with plywood gussets). The stem is 3 layers of 1x6 lumber (glued and screwed). The keel is two layers of 5/8" thick lumber.
    Last edited by Geary; 08-03-2009, 11:42 AM.
  • JimD
    Senior Mumbler
    • Feb 2002
    • 29704

    #2
    Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

    Douglas fir, provided it really is df and is decent quality, will be an excellent choice for frames. Plenty strong and glues well. Glued and screwed/nailed plywood over sawn gussetted frames is a method that has produced thousands of strong, long lasting boats, including my own. If you've never sailed you might want to hitch a ride on a similar boat. It will give you a better understanding of what all the parts of a sail boat do and why they are the way they are, which will in turn give you insights about the building process. Its very important that the strong back be very true and strong as a crooked, warped strongback often results in a crooked warped boat. I think you will find the TS14 a well regarded boat with plenty of fans on the forum.
    There is no rational, logical, or physical description of how free will could exist. It therefore makes no sense to praise or condemn anyone on the grounds they are a free willed self that made one choice but could have chosen something else. There is no evidence that such a situation is possible in our Universe. Demonstrate otherwise and I will be thrilled.

    Comment

    • Geary
      Senior Member
      • Jun 2009
      • 177

      #3
      Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

      I'm currently looking for someone with a sailboat similar to mine. I'll definitely need to take a ride in one before I get too far along in construction. You can only get so much information from a book or website.

      I spent a whole weekend making the strongback. The peices of scrap I used were straight and everything. I kept adding braces to it to make it level, flat, square, etc. I'll have to double check it before I start ... I definitely don't want a crooked boat. Building the strongback from scrap isn't ideal and took me longer, but it was free! Why? Does my strongback look crooked to you?

      Comment

      • JimD
        Senior Mumbler
        • Feb 2002
        • 29704

        #4
        Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

        Originally posted by Geary
        ... Building the strongback from scrap isn't ideal and took me longer, but it was free!
        Free is my idea of ideal.
        There is no rational, logical, or physical description of how free will could exist. It therefore makes no sense to praise or condemn anyone on the grounds they are a free willed self that made one choice but could have chosen something else. There is no evidence that such a situation is possible in our Universe. Demonstrate otherwise and I will be thrilled.

        Comment

        • Brian Palmer
          Amateur wood butcher
          • Sep 2003
          • 4069

          #5
          Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

          Welcome. I really like that design.

          I would take the time to learn how to sail now and you will have a much better understanding of what your boat is intended to do, and this may help guide you in its construction.

          Brian

          Comment

          • Candyfloss
            Senior Member
            • Apr 2009
            • 2072

            #6
            Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

            You ain't done nothin' wrong so far. Keep up the good work.
            Keep It Simple: KISS it better.

            Comment

            • 44xt
              Member
              • Nov 2008
              • 85

              #7
              Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

              I wouldn't worry about not knowing how to sail before building a boat. The fact is if you are clever enough to decide you want to build and you are clever enough to finish the boat then you are certainly smart enough to figure out the basics of sailing. Start with calm sunny days with no time pressures and take a friend with some sailing experience and in a couple of days you will know about 90% of what you need to know to sail.The rest can come over time with desire and by reading about advanced topics. I really look forward to watching you build this boat, I think it is one of the more attractive home-built small sailboats. Good luck!

              Comment

              • donald branscom
                Senior Member
                • Nov 2004
                • 5197

                #8
                Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                Pssssst.... Use the PL Premium plus glue and you will have a very nice experience and no sticky mess with epoxy and waiting for it to set up and getting rid of the sticky amine blush and waiting for it to dry when it gets cold.
                Comes in caulking tubes at the hardware store which means you can always get more EASILY. AND CHEAP compared to epoxy.

                You will be able to keep working when it is cold too.

                Save the epoxy and cloth just to cover the finished hull.
                I love the smell of fresh cut plywood in the morning.

                Comment

                • Randall Dedrickson
                  Member
                  • Nov 2003
                  • 48

                  #9
                  Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                  I am in the process of building a TS-16 and am painting the interior. One thing that I did on mine which turned out to be a lot of work was to epoxy coat all the frames and stringers and the inside of the hull ply on assembly. When it came time to paint I had to sand and clean all that with solvent before primer and paint. If I had to do it again I would sand/seal/primer and paint and not use any epoxy on the interior. I agree that only the exterior of the hull should glassed and epoxy coated. I am using Interlux sealer on all the rest of the boat before primer and paint. Good luck on your build.

                  Comment

                  • Randall Dedrickson
                    Member
                    • Nov 2003
                    • 48

                    #10
                    Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                    Hey Geary. I realized as i was signing off that you are in Portland area also. I live in Milwaukie if you need advice feel free to call me .503-659-1894

                    Comment

                    • WX
                      Uki NSW Australia
                      • Feb 2002
                      • 35916

                      #11
                      Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                      Personally I would have gone for the TS16 but the 14 is a good boat, so good luck with it. The advantage of full size plans makes construction a lot easier and quicker.
                      Without freedom of speech, we wouldn't know who the idiots are.

                      Comment

                      • Larks
                        Larks
                        • Jul 2007
                        • 16793

                        #12
                        Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                        You may have already seen this site but in case not, have a look here, there is an image gallery and a Hartley TS forum:

                        Larks

                        “It’s impossible”, said pride.
                        “It’s risky”, said experience.
                        “It’s pointless”, said reason.
                        “Give it a try”, whispered the heart.

                        LPBC Beneficiary

                        "Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great!"

                        Comment

                        • Geary
                          Senior Member
                          • Jun 2009
                          • 177

                          #13
                          Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                          I've been cutting the patterns out for the frames and stem. Pretty easy ... just trace the pattern and cut with a jig saw. (I could use some practice with the jig saw though.) The wood is CVG Doug-Fir.





                          Next step: make the plywood gussets and start gluing and nailing the frames together.

                          I also got the metal shop at my job to make a center plate. I just had to pay for the "scrap" metal. It'll be sitting in the corner of my garage for awhile sadly. It's 5/16" thick and about 85 lbs.



                          I was debating among the TS12, TS14 and TS16 for some time. I decided to build the TS14 because it'll store in my garage and I can haul it easily with my tiny car. (I'm sure I'll get funny looks from the SUV crowd still though.) I'm hoping this boat will be big enough for my needs. This was an upgrade from my first choices, the TS12 and various other smaller dinghies. Isn't there some sort of negative correlation between the size of the boat and its frequency of use? I have dreams of building a 20ft+ boat when I near retirement in 30 years, but this boat will do for now. Anyway, lets not get into a design choice discussion, as its too late for me now!

                          Question: What glue would you recommend for the plywood hull to the frames? Epoxy? Some sort of glue in a tube? I think epoxy would cure too fast before I could finish nailing/screwing the plywood in place. And I would have to thicken it probably, right? Is PL Premium glue that brown polyurethane glue? Donald, are you suggesting that I can use this for all frame and hull construction?

                          Randall, I may want to come by and look at your boat some day soon if you are willing. I'm in SW Portland. When are you going to finish it? One thing that the plans don't specify ... how is the floor attached to the frames? Is it glued and screwed permanently in place? (And therefore the bilge area is not accessible). Is your cockpit sealed and self draining?

                          -Ryan

                          Comment

                          • Candyfloss
                            Senior Member
                            • Apr 2009
                            • 2072

                            #14
                            Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                            I would not use any glue except West System epoxy thickened with colodial (sp?) silica. They invented the stuff & it is well proven. I never nail anything together. Use "drywall" screws & remove them next day. Then throw them away, do not re-use them. Always remove them next day, you don't want to break them trying to get them out. Then fill the holes with glue. If you must leave screws in, use stainless screws, well countersunk so you can fill over the heads. Use only square drive screws: Phillips, Posi etc. are no where near as good. You have chosen an excellent first project. Take your time, work carefully, think ahead, ask lots of questions. As Elsewhere said, "The only dumb question is the one you didn't ask"
                            Keep It Simple: KISS it better.

                            Comment

                            • gert
                              Senior Member
                              • Jan 2001
                              • 2419

                              #15
                              Re: Hartley TS14 Construction

                              I spent a whole weekend making the strong back. The peices of scrap I used were straight and everything. I kept adding braces to it to make it level, flat, square, etc.
                              Check for "twist" from end to end in your strong back too. Don't rely on your level for this.

                              Get the CB plate galvanized.

                              And have fun building;it's almost as satisfying as sailing
                              Last edited by gert; 07-20-2009, 06:29 PM.
                              the wall on which I keep hitting my head is getting harder

                              Comment

                              Working...