Sunday, January 27, 2008

Bubble Boy

The plastic tent, aka The Bio-Hazard Quarantine Area, has been completed. Again, the purpose of this construction is to create a build-area that is not only protected from the elements (leaky garage roof) but to have a warmer place to work. I'll use a small space heater that will hopefully generate enough heat over time to warm the air inside the tent. 
I need to do this to not only be more comfortable, but also it is critical for the air temp to be warmer for the epoxy to cure. 

I'm getting closer to cracking open the big box and starting the actual build. Next steps 
include getting a space heater and building two saw horses that 
will be used extensively 
through out the project. Regardless, things are moving along. I realized this week that my motivation to hang out in a cold, fluorescent lit garage, inside a plastic tent is not high on my list of fun. I reminded myself that it's only January and I have a lot of time before summer rolls around. Besides, it's suppose to snow tomorrow in Portland!


Friday, January 18, 2008

The kayak has landed











Today the kayak arrived. I had to call UPS to get them to schedule the delivery, but once I did it took them only a few hours to get out to my house. I was not expecting the big UPS semi-truck that rolled up to the house, though. Uh-oh, I thought. Must be big boxes, but to my surprise the shipment looks smaller over all than I expected. From those three boxes will come my kayak. wow. 

Now everything is in the garage except for the instruction manual, plans and overview DVD on building the boat. I already watched the 60 minute tutorial which has simultaneously excited me and almost daunted me on the task at hand. There are definitely a lot of steps and some clever clamping in my future. I feel confident, though, in the instructions and my ability to be patient. 
My next immediate steps are to finish setting up the garage for the construction. Of the top of my head,  here's what I need:

• Fluorescent shop lights and small space heater
• Wood saw horses
• Plastic sheeting for warming tent
• Some plywood to make a long table to layout and assemble wood parts
• More clamps.

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Almost Here!


The 85 pound UPS shipment is in Portland!! I'm waiting to hear the distinctive drone of the UPS delivery truck.....

Monday, January 14, 2008

Project: Building a Kayak


I'm going to build a kayak. It's in my blood. My grandfather was a wooden boat builder all his life. Now it's my turn. I'm going to construct a 17' sea kayak purchased as a kit from Chesapeake Light Craft. These boats are made from mahogany plywood in the "stitch and glue" method. I suspect the project will take me 2 months to complete, but of course, it might take a lot longer. Who knows.

I have chosen to build the Chesapeake 17 LT. Here are some stats from this boat:
• Length: 16' 10 3/4"
• Beam: 23 1/2"
• Depth: 12"
• Weight: 45 lbs
The shipment from Baltimore, MD is schedule to arrive this coming Thursday: eight-five pounds and three boxes, which includes everything that I need to build.



At this point I have decided to build the kayak in my garage, which I have discovered during thunderstorms, is not the most weather proof structure. For this reason, and also for the fact that I am starting this project during the winter, I have chosen to build a warming tent within my garage, made out of 3/4" pvc pipe and heavy plastic. This will serve two main functions: firstly, keep the kayak protected from the elements and secondly, keep the kayak area warm during the epoxy gluing and drying steps.





















I purchased all the pvc pipes and joints that I needed at Lowes and with some trial and error engineering I squeezed this thing in to the garage. The tricky part was to make a notch out the end that allows for the garage door to swing closed.