Sorry I haven’t posted anything here in a while. I just checked and saw that I hadn’t written anything since I went for a hike on New Year’s Day. Time flies by when you’re having fun!
I’ve spent a lot of my time this week working on one of the cedar strip canoes I bought on behalf of the Pathfinder Club back in August. This one will be named “Miss Nancy” after Nancy Nichols, a much-loved member of our church who died a couple of years ago. The other three will be named “Miss Emma” (after Emma Haggett), “Miss Sally” (after Sally Machia), and “Miss Margaret” after Margaret Meyers. All of these women are deceased members of our church, and all were connected with the Pathfinder Club to some extent or another. I like having them named this way.
Anyhow, here’s what I found when I stripped the glass off Miss Nancy’s stem:
Miss Nancy’s Stem
She was a mess! I wiggled the stem to see how sound it was, and snapped off a six inch section. I will have to fashion a new one. It might be tricky getting it installed, as that normally happens before the planking goes on (the planks are attached to the stem). But I think I can manage. I’m going to try to heat it up to get the rotted stem out. I’ve already traced the shape onto a piece of cardboard which I will transfer to a piece of particle board. The new stem will be formed around that. Then I’ll have to add a rolling bevel. I’m going to also make an outstem while I’m at it, so this canoe will have a proper and complete stem!
Doesn’t that look so much better?
Once the glass was off, I still had lots and lots of epoxy on the hull. I’ve been working on getting that off too. If it were just a light layer of epoxy, I’d leave it alone, but it’s a quarter inch thick in places! So off it comes. My preferred tool for that is a spokeshave, and that will be followed by a random orbit sander. Unfortunately, the velcro on my sander’s foot pad has lost its grab, so a disc stays on for about a minute. I have ordered a replacement part.
The problem I had with using the spokeshave is that this canoe is unsupported. Thus, when I apply pressure to the spokeshave, the canoe gives, so I can’t really press the blade into the wood without just pushing the wood out of the way. Normally when smoothing (or fairing) the hull, the canoe is still on the form so it doesn’t do this. But I don’t have a form for this one. But I do have my own canoe, and since Miss Nancy has her seats, gunwales, thwarts, and decks removed, she fits nicely inside mine. So I lowered mine from my garage ceiling and found that it made a pretty decent mold. By doing this I was able to spokeshave off a lot of epoxy (and smooth the planks so they are no longer offset from one another).
I have to be careful in doing this, because a spokeshave is a lot like a hand plane, and a sharp, well-tuned hand plane is my favorite tool. When I built my canoe I enjoyed the planing a little too much, doing so with what Alan Greenspan at the time would have called “irrational exuberance”. The net effect was that I reduced the thickness of the hull to zero in one spot. I ended up replacing that plank, but the lesson was learned – don’t overdo it on the planing!
I got my car back from the shop on Monday. It’s nice to have it back, but somebody put a canoe in its parking place! Since I’m waiting for a part for my sander, I decided to just hoist Miss Nancy and my own canoe up to my canoe’s regular parking spot.
My canoe embraces Miss Nancy
Now I won’t have to scrape the frost on my windshield in the morning. Speaking of which, at least until my employment situation changes, I will be teaching computers (and programming) to the grade 6-8 students at our school starting tomorrow. This is a volunteer position.
I guess I need to prepare a lesson!
Jomegat's Weblog 
January 10, 2013 at 10:36 pm
I’m glad that old canoe found a good home with someone who really appreciates it!
I think those are pretty lucky kids, for as long as it lasts.
January 10, 2013 at 10:48 pm
My original strategy was to save Miss Nancy for last, since she was in the worst shape. I didn’t want to discourage myself by probing her condition. But since she’s going to need the most time, and time is a gift I have been given of late, I moved her up on the priority list.
As long as these boats are well-cared for, they should last for a very long time.
January 11, 2013 at 12:42 am
It looks like you have your work cut out for you, but it’s fun work. I too love using hand tools for woodworking, I found them to be more accurate than power tools, and a lot more fun to use.
January 11, 2013 at 10:40 am
When I first started woodworking, I found power tools to be more accurate than hand tools. But when I got better at it, I found the opposite. The other thing I like about hand tools is that it is pretty hard to cut off an arm or a finger unless that’s what you’re trying to do. With power tools, zip! and it’s gone.
January 11, 2013 at 6:01 am
It sounds like your experience building your own canoe is coming in very handy now, showing you the way to what and what not to do. I can’t wait to see it when it’s finished-I’m sure it will be a beautiful thing.
January 11, 2013 at 10:41 am
It certainly is. I had been wanting to build another one, and this project satisfies that desire threefold.
January 11, 2013 at 9:07 am
I want to learn computers and programming too!
January 11, 2013 at 10:42 am
Friday mornings from 8:20-9:20. You’d have to talk to your aunt and to Mrs Tunnell though.