Im Building a Sailing Dinghy! Check it out!

[sailingandsuch]

UPDATE!!!!! I have since added more photos and posts to my blog! Check it out, the boat is coming along pretty good!

http://sailingandsuch.blogspot.com/


A few days ago I recieved the plans in the mail for a Prameke 7'8" sailing dinghy and I have started working on it. So far (one and a half days) I have the hull stitched and glued together! I think I am making pretty good progress.

There she is, finally took the shape of a boat today!

I am documenting the whole build with my video camera, kind of making a "how to" video. I am also posting about it in my blog where I talk about the build and post photos and videos.

Check it out here!
http://sailingandsuch.blogspot.com/

If you don't have a blog, start one, they are fun!

 

[Mike B]

She's looking good. Building a nice rowing dinghy is something I'd love to do some day. Preferably something in the 12 to 14' range. Currently no good way to transport one if I did so it's on hold for now. BTW not sure of you're married but if you are your wife get's the spouse of the year award for allowing you to build it in your living room. Enjoy yourself.
Mike

 

[Ross]

Very nice and very satisfying when you are done. I built a Payson Nymph. About the same size, rows well for a short boat.

 

[Ron20324]

So... the coffee table and sofa are... where???

 

[Jim Kolstoe]

Hey Ron, check his materials list.
Jim Kolstoe, h23 Kara's Boo

 

[jibes138]

Watching TV

I was sitting watching TV and my wife came in the room.
She asked "what's on the TV?"
I answered "Dust"
Thats when the fight started.

These stitch and glue dinghy's can be built amazingly fast. You may be unnerved the first time you get init wondering if it will sink, if you feet will go through the floor, etc. They won't.
You will also find that accessories cost more than the rest of the dinghy. Oar loacks, Oars, Hardware for the sailing rig.

One item you will be amazed at is building the mast. I made mine from laminating three knot free strips of pine togehter alternating the grains for strength. Then using a block plan you plan each corner until on third of the face width is gone, now your square mast is eight sided. Only takes a few minutes. Now you plane each corner to make it 16 sided. By the time it is 32 sided it is round. Then using a belt from a belt sander go along the mast like you are shining your shoes and it is perfectly round. Amazing how easy and fast it is.
Whne you decide to move up to a larger boat take a look at the Arch Davis Sand Dollar and his larger designs. Really nice boats and fun to build.

 

[Tim R.]

Nice job. I built one of these beasts a few years back. I think every sailor should build one. They are cheap, teach you some basic stitch and glue building techniques and are a great project for the winter. Sell it when you are done if you don't want to use it.

 

[Bill Roosa]

Oooooh, Aaaaah

Very nice!

You are going to love her once she gets in the water. I always get a little proud when I'm rowing from the dingy dock to the boat before and after a cruise. It just feels great to know that you built this sucker and it works great. It don't feel bad looking behind the boat and seeing her in tow either.

Welcome to the club.

BTW: it looks like your "living room" has a concrete floor. Probably want to leave it that way till after all the glassing and painting.

 

[Tim R.]

That looks like a pretty nice Man Cave to me ;-)

 

[DannyS]

I built the same boat a few years ago. She's a great little boat. I've made a few modifications to her that you may want to consider. I added holes through the center bulkhead on either side of the centerboard trunk and through both front and back bulkheads to allow water to collect at the lowest point in the boat. I also added one layer of fiberglass to the exterior of the hull to reinforce it. I feel better about beaching her now.
Another modification was to make a removeable wood slat seat in the back for storage.
She sails great downwind and across the wind but don't forget the oars so you can get back home!
I love that I can get our family of four to the beach and back in one trip. I added a photo of how NOT to let guests pack! but it sure shows how much gear you can get into her!
My only complaint is that she's a bit tippy while trying to get on board, once seated inside though, she rows very well for such a short little thing.

 

[Mike B]

Re: Oooooh, Aaaaah

I was showing my wife the picture when I realized it wasn't his living room. I was busted and didn't get over on her. Oh well. But it does look like a nice Man Cave doesn't it?

 

[Bill Roosa]

Nice man cave indeed

Yes he certainly does have a nice place to work.

I built my 8-ball pram in the gravel under the deck during the summer with the bugs and humidity. I know I have some bugs "stuck in the amber" in my epoxy layups.

 

[Ctskip]

Re: Nice man cave indeed

Looking at this being built, reminds me of the story about the guy that built a boat in his basement, when done, he couldn't get it out of the house. Where's the fridge?
Looks good

Keep it up,
Ctskip

 

[Hermit Scott]

That is the perfect dinghy. How much does it weigh?

 

[DannyS]

I'm not sure exactly how much mine weighs but it's probably around 85 pounds. It was a fun winter project.

 

[sailingandsuch]

Thanks everyone for the comments and compliments! It really is a fun project, I just got home from working on her all day, what a great day it was.

Well, I am not married and that is not my living room lol. The pieces of furniture are some that I have built out of antique heart pine. You can check them out here if you would like (http://www.sailingandsuch.com/mypage.htm). It is a great workshop to build the boat in, although it has a few leaks but I can work around them.

jibes- I have anticipated the cost of the hardware and it doesn't look like it's going to be too expesive. But it should be well worth it, having a sailing dinghy to meet everyone in the anchorage on! The mast should be interesting, I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to build it but thanks to you I have a pretty good idea now.

Danny- Your looks great! Thanks for the tips, I like the idea of cutting the holes to alow the water to find the lowest point. I am considering fiberglassing the bottom of the hull also.

One question Danny, could you elaborate on how you made the rear seat removable? Is it hinged some way or does it just sit in place? Do you have any flotation (foam) in the boat? If not, have you ever swamped it? How did that go?

I happen to be making my own oars so that exspence will not be to much, just one 8' 2x4 and a 10' strip of Fir. All I have left with them is epoxying the blades to the shaft and sanding, almost did it this afternoon but I decided to call it a day.

I will keep you all posted!

 

[Hermit Scott]

To you guys that are building or have built these things, do you cover the wood in roving mat or chopped fiberglass or are you just putting resin over the wood and then painting that?

 

[jibes138]

Glass and/or paint

I used it for a few years with just the resin coated plywood, I painted the exterior and bottom painted the bottom. After several years I glassed the bottom to prevent it from leaking as the plywood tends to crack with wet/dry cycles and constant flexing in use. It also swells when wet and seals itself. But the extra weight is not that much. Just one layer of glass and some resin. I only glassed the bottom to the water line and only the exterior. The inside needs some paint or other refinishing but I'm more interested in how it sails and rows than making it look perfect. The sand dollar is a flat bottom boat and downwind with a good breeze it will plane. Lots of fun when it does. Nothing like sailing a dinghy to feel every force on the boat, requires constant attention as you use shift weight constantly as wind speed varies and angle of attack changes. Great sport.

 

[sailingandsuch]

Scott,

Some people cover the hull with fiberglass some do not,I think I because I will be beaching the boat often and what jibes mentioned makes me want to even more.

jibes- I wouldn't really want the plywood to swell when wet, come to think of it, I wouldn't want it to get wet. How did yours get wet, the water doesn't seap through the epoxy does it? I wouldn't think so. Maybe through the cracks you were experiencing?

 

[Ross]

Depending upon the species of wood used to make the plywood it may check badly or it may rot if it gets wet often. it is best to seal it as completely as you can.