A Dinghy For Our 19

[Greene]

Yup, there is a little skeg on her.  Guess I just didn't post any pic's with it visible.  I figured it would tow better if it had at least a small skeg.



Mike

[Bob23]

Mike:
   You mean your'e NOT making your own spoon shaped oars? I am truly disappointed. Geez...you probably have enough scrap lying around to make 'em.
   I bought a set of seven footers for my Chesapeake Light Craft Annapolis Wherry, which I sold last year. They were not Shaw and Tenney but similar...Barkely Sound rings a bell. Anyway, what a difference between them and some old WM type standard oars.
   I have 9 1/2' old wooden ones for my Alden Ocean Shell...thinking of buying some carbon fiber oars for the up coming rowing season.
   C'mon, man, get that band saw hummin'!!!!
bob23

[Greene]

Bob you big bully.  Now I have to make the oars myself.  Oh well, it is supposed to snow a bunch up here again anyway.  I might as well play in the "potting shed".

Since I don't own a bandsaw (Brenda doesn't let me play with sharp toys), I had to look for simple to make oar designs.  I found this link;   http://www.bateau.com/free/simple_oars.html

They go together pretty quickly and don't cost a dime to make.  I've epoxied them together and roughed out the paddle shape.  Next I have to round the handle stock and form a hand grip shape.  Then a trial fit to decide how much to trim off each end.  Finally I'll epoxy about 5" of fiberglass mat to the tips and coat the rest with epoxy as well.   I'm not sure if I'll paint them up or stain them before I epoxy them.

Here is what they look like at this stage.  You can also see that the dinghy is starting to get "purteed" up with paint.





Thanks for the guilt trip Bob - maybe I'll truck it out to NJ and race you in your little dinky rowboat.  You really think at our age that carbon fiber oars will make any difference?  Geez,  if we just cut back to one or two Twinkies and Snickers a day we'd gain more rowing speed.

Mike

 

[Greene]

Getting the painting wrapped up.  I've finished the hull bottom, primed the inside and am just laying on a little blue above the water line. I will finish epoxy coating the oars tomorrow and then it won't be long before I'll be able to take it for a test run.





Mike

[kickingbug1]

   i knew that you would do a first class job mike. better lock that little guy up good or someone will steal it when you guys are asleep. hey if you get a chance do some measuring on you 19 for me mainly the complete length trailer included and the height when shes on the trailer. although i wont be getting an eclipse or 19 anytime soon im curious to know if it will fit in the garage. gas prices being what they are, the fishing boat might be on the block (although i still love to fish) . again suuuuuuper job on the dink. if you watch the old movie "father goose" you will learn how to letter her.

[Bob23]

MG:
   Anytime you're ready to race, you c'mon out to NJ. We'll race for beer! Of course, I'll have to use my Alden Ocean Shell to make sure I win...the Walker Bay wouldn't stand a chance!
   The boat and oars look great...geez...with all your spare time, you could make each one of us a dink just like yours! Thanks in advance, MG-what a guy!
Bob23

[Greene]

  hey if you get a chance do some measuring on you 19 for me mainly the complete length trailer included and the height when shes on the trailer. although i wont be getting an eclipse or 19 anytime soon im curious to know if it will fit in the garage. gas prices being what they are, the fishing boat might be on the block (although i still love to fish) .

Kick,  The boat on the trailer measures approximately 25' without the motor mounted on back.  I leave the motor on in the garage so I need about 26'.  We made our "Potting Shed" 28' deep to leave 2' in front of the tongue to walk around it.  The height is 94" with the mast laying on top of the stern rail and bow pulpit.  You can set the mast below these two points to reduce the height to about 90".  The width appears to be the beam of the boat unless you have any kind of guide posts on the trailer.  I'd say about 90" wide.  
Our overhead doors are 9' wide x 8' high and I clear vertically by about 2-3".  This does depend upon the hitch height of your tow vehicle.   Once the boat is inside the garage and it is cranked up to release the ball, it is actually too tall to roll out of the garage.  So not a lot of vertical clearance, but it works just fine.  If I were to build B another "Potting Shed" I would go with a 9' high door.  

C'mon Kick - spend the money.  You can always fish from a 19.

Mike

[skip1930]

OOOooooouuuuuuuuu, very pretty!

skip.

[Greene]

Lil Miss B is just about ready for sea trials.  Well, at least a quick dunk in our local mud hole called a lake.  We'll see if she floats and the leaks are manageable.  The oars are roughed out and I want to play with them a little to see if they need to be shortened up or adjusted before I do the final finish on them. 

We'll report tomorrow on how she rows. 

Mike and B

[Bob23]

Very nice dink, Mike. And you even have time to cut the grass! Any idea of total construction costs? Did you use regular a/c plywood or something more fancy-schmancy?
Bob23

[Greene]

Thanks Bob.  She is a big-bucks mega-yacht to be sure. The plywood is just a Baltic Birch which has exterior glue $25, eight pieces of mahogany shoe for the gunwale $25, adhesive $12, miscellaneous pine/plywood for braces (free), two 1x4's of clear pine for the seats $10,  hardware (oarlocks, screws, u-bolt) $35, 2-part epoxy and glass $150, and primer/paint $44.

You certainly could do it cheaper if you skip the 2-part epoxy.  Most of the others who built them just coated the wood with preservative and then used regular exterior house paint on them.  That saves almost half the cost of the dinghy, but I wanted to coat the hull with cloth and epoxy to make it last a bit longer.  

The oars are just scrap and leftover epoxy, so no cost there.

The weather up here in Wisconsin has been so lousy that B is finally starting to warm up to the idea of selling this big ol' house and moving down to the condo in Orange Beach.  

Mike  

[Greene]

Very nice dink, Mike. And you even have time to cut the grass! Any idea of total construction costs? Did you use regular a/c plywood or something more fancy-schmancy?
Bob23

Hey Bob -This is Brenda.  Why are you giving him credit for cutting the grass?  Who do you think has been keeping the house running while he has been playing with his dinghy (OK Bob - it's all yours now!).  B

[Bob23]

   Y'know, come to think of it- it looked a little too neat. So great job on the dink, Mike and very nice lawn manicuring by Admiral Brenda Greene! Lets have a round of applause...for Brenda! Mike- you just go on playing with your dinghy. Er, your little boat.
   And to think that on the previous post, Mike does not even place the credit where it's due. Man, that is low. They say the damage the epoxy fumes an cause is cumulative and irreversable. Maybe skip the epoxy on the next boat, MIke.
   No wonder she wants to move to the condo. you make her cut the grass!!!! Well, so do I. Actually, my wife 1st Admiral Linda enjoys the yard work but just barely tolerates my boating habits.
Bob23

[Greene]

Well at least I named the dinghy after her.  Brenda was called Lil Miss B as a youth and the dinghy was little and cute.  Seemed like a fit. 

 

    No wonder she wants to move to the condo. you make her cut the grass!!!! Well, so do I. Actually, my wife 1st Admiral Linda enjoys the yard work but just barely tolerates my boating habits.
Bob23

B enjoys the yard work, loves my boating habit and tolerates me.  Sorta the same?

Mike

[Salty19]

Very nice indeed!

Does the paint color foreshadow what Puppy Luff II will look like?