Preliminary Setup...

According to the Senior Project outline, I should have all my materials assembled for a picture, however, my project is an exception. Not being a oil painting, or stain glass window my project is a multi-stepped, in which, one phase must be completely finished before moving on. Therefore, obtaining  all the materials for all the phases is not recommended due to the fact that procuring my materials now will mean higher probability of being damaged and lost (especially with the fiberglass). Also, since I do not like to purchase items without thorough research, it would not be wise to start buying items and then realizing they were the wrong size. (I felt bad for the worker at Home Depot who waited for a good ten minutes to restock the wood glues as I debated with myself which wood glue to buy) The next items to purchase are the ones with fiberglassing. Doing research on the internet, I found the best source of West System Epoxy to be from http://www.jamestowndistributors.com, I have decided to buy my materials from them. Yet, seeing that my advisor has not been home, I have not been able to talk with him for his advice on fiberglassing and which hardener to use 205, 206, or 207? After I come to final decision and my advisor approves it, then I will place my order in. If you can't tell already, I am hesitant on fiberglassing, seeing that my expertise is in watching "How to" videos on Youtube and reading "How to Fiberglass Boats." Not the true expert... Also two more pieces of white oak have to be purchased from Rockler, but that step is needed after the interior has been glassed, which is not for a few weeks. The final step would be to buy medium cane for the seats, but that can be bought at Hobby Lobby and Varnish which can be bought from either Lowes or Home Depot. Not wanting to drop a few hundred dollars just yet, I have decided to further research as I start and continue to strip the canoe giving me a bit more time to think. However, I have reached a point in which I am almost ready to glue my first strip, all that needs to be accomplished is fine carving on the bow and stern and making small adjustments with the mould. I am so excited for my project even though I am beginning to grow nervous hoping I have not messed up and have to redo a section. However, that is my preliminary setup and action plan. Also included are the 62 finished 17'-18' cedar strips... and the wood glue.... =)

Routing the Strips

 After ripping the strips, the next step in the process was routing the cove and bead into the strips. The cove and bead can be accomplished by either a router or a sharpener, and since my dad only owned a router I was not going to complain. The difference between using a router and a shaper is the bead on the router is done with two pulls through, while only one pull is needed for the shaper. This process was time consuming and tedious, yet it was exciting actually envisioning how the planks will fit together. However, this step also produced a lot a of saw dust, so again out came all the equipment as pictured below. When routing the cove and bead, we used a feather board to help assist the applied pressure on the router bit, which was purchased from Rockler. The next step was scarfing and gluing the strips together to have 17 ft long board that I will need for stripping the hull of the canoe.

Ripping the Cedar Strips

It seems like a reoccurring theme to always be writing late, so I may as well keep with it. Over the past week I have converted 5 (1in x 12in x 12ft) Western Red Cedar boards into strips (the picture only shows four...) , routed both edges, and cut the scarf joint. I have decided to save the reader from one giant blog post, so I have decided to split it into three: ripping the cedar strips, routing the strips, scarfing the strips. The first step produced a lot of sawdust, and therefore the respirator mask came in handy. Each strip ideally was cut to 1/4in. by 7/8in. I originally had wished that the strips were 3/4 in, but since they came from McCabe Lumber that way, I did not want to sand and plane them down an eighth of an inch. Since we do not live in a perfect world, no piece of wood was perfect, and by this I mean... full of knots. Knots, as interesting as they may look on the cedar plank, made having 12 ft. strips a little harder, since they had to be removed due to weakening the frame. However, I would not have been able to have rip the boards were it not for the help my dad. He was in charge of placing the weight against the guider board on the table saw, and I was to pull the board through the saw and place them on the table. I eventually after watching his position was able to stand next to the table saw and switch jobs for some good minutes. It was very helpful for not only using a table saw for one of my first times, but learning how it worked as well. At the end, the knot-filled strips were strewed across the table, and I spent a couple hours chop sawing them out. and thus I moved to the next part...