Swamp Girl construction question

[Mullet_Key]

Matt, is there only one temporary "Outer" panel to cut and spaceout the side panels? Is the finished boat symetrical from stem to stern? I think the plans mention adding a gunnel or a interior sheer clamp. Any recommendations on material or the finished look? And lastly, how low or how high should the seats be placed and still be stable? MK

[jem]

Whoops!

The Swamp Girl is symetrical. Cut 2 of those outer frames, one for each end.

For the gunnels (Or you could go with exterior rub rails) you could go install something siple like a 1x 2. You could go as low as 3/4 x 1 1/2. Install as one solid piece or laminate strips as you go along.

If you want to go fancy, then I'll simply refer you to http://www.neilbank.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=748 . Good discussion on how Chuck, the Swamp Girl originator, does his.

For seats, 2-3" off the floor should keep you plenty stable. That's kind of a relative measure though. Depends on your build and what you're comfortable with. Take her out seat-less and bring some blocks of wood or phone books with you and try different heights. See what works best for you.

To make some nice seats, 2 resources:
http://jemwatercraft.com/proddetail.php?prod=DKTour . Check out the seat files.

-Or- check out http://unclejohns.com/boat/seat/default.htm . That's a nice folding seat.

[Oldsparkey]

I sent this to Matt about the construction of the Swamp Girl when using the inexpensive plywood and I made her out of 1/8 th inch wood.

I am sure he is pulling out what hair he has after getting this letter from me. (I do make some changes when I build a boat )

Matt

I did find out one thing from all of this nasty weather we are having.

A person can use the inexpensive Luann plywood to build a waterproof boat. All you have to do is make sure it is epoxy saturated and glassed really good for it's and your protection.

The Swamp Girl is made this way and the sides are 10 inches, which had water flowing over then during the last storm. I was using the boat as a water catcher so we would have water for flushing the john and washing dishes. Not a glamorous use for the boat but just practical ... the weight of the water kept it from flying away and if that one tree hit my shop then it was not in there.

No damage to the boat except for a thwart that pulled loose because of the water pushing out the sides of the boat. The thwarts were epoxyed in and not screwed then epoxyed. One held and one came loose and will be reattached.

Besides ... Who in the heck said that the JEM boats are just for paddling. LOL.
Think multi purpose boats........ count to 10 backwards really slow ........Matt.............. OK felling better???????

Chuck.

For you folks that don't know me I have built a Peterborough Canoe , four Uncle John Pirogues out of the same wood and one Coho from Pygmy boats , the kit one.
The seat from Uncle Johns is also one of my inventions.

By the way here on Matt's forum it is serious business (which is the way it should be) and if you want to see the lighter side of Matt then take a look at my forum http://www.southernpaddler.com/ and sometimes we do get serious , anyway about building boats , but the rest of the time we just have a good time as long as the language is clean and not offensive.

The format for both forums are the same , the color was changed to protect the guilty. No , not Matt's ... mine.

Sorry about the ad for SP Matt but you know me.

[jem]

I sent this to Matt about the construction of the Swamp Girl when using the inexpensive plywood and I made her out of 1/8 th inch wood.

I am sure he is pulling out what hair he has after getting this letter from me. (I do make some changes when I build a boat )

......

Sorry about the ad for SP Matt but you know me.

Chuck you're forgiven your indisgretions because you're a member of the executive design review committee.

[Oldsparkey]

Matt

I do really thank you for the honor or being a member of the Executive Design Review Committee, now just remember indiscretions is or should that be are ..... what the heck ... it is my middle name and I am just to darn old to change.

Besides , someone has to go way outside of the box on some things and I am good at that, as you know.

Reminds me of this guy I know named Matt Langenfeld or something like that and he is not scared to step out of the box, when it is necessary to create a new design for a boat that someone really wants.

Chuck.

[Mullet_Key]

Matt, Chuck, James or new builders. I'm trying to decide whether to just tape the seams or glass the entire hull. The boat (at this time) is planned for just light family use.

Any thoughts? I will test the boat with just taped seams. I'm thinking I can glass afterwards before adding the rub-rail if I think I'll need to.

[jem]

Warning: The rub rail/gunnel is a structural part of the hull.

What I think you should do is tape the seams, install the gunnels, build to spec, and then test it. You don't have to fair it all out or paint it. Just make sure you have complete epoxy coverage over all wood.

After you try it out, do a light sanding and either add your fiberglass cloth or just finsish it off with 2 layers of epoxy.

Doing it this way will make applying fiberglass cloth to the interior a little more of a chore, but on the Swamp Girl, don't paddle without a rub rail or gunnel. You could do a test paddle without a gunnel or rub rail on a design that had more chines near the shear line. I did it on the Cape Fear kayak. But it's not a good idea on the Swamp Girl.

Another option: You could do a temp gunnel by just screwing it to the hull. 1 screw every 6". But don't go without it. You'll ruine your boat.

[Mullet_Key]

Yes, good idea. I'll have a gunnel installed at that point. I just found my grandfather's 16' push pole made from 2x2 old growth cypress. I'll rip & dress it and use it as my gunnel. I think he'd be pleased. I'll float it off of the sheer using 3/8" x 1.5" blocks of mahogony spaced about 2" apart. Later, CK

[Kayak Jack]

Mullet_Key,

Matt's advice is sound. I'm not at all sure what kinds of water you paddle. More appropriately, I don't know what lays UNDER that water.

I paddle in the Canadain Shield country around the Great Lakes. Lots of sharp, igneous rocks underwater (and above) here. (A well scratched boat is a well loved boat.) They can gouge the bottom side of a boat pretty easily. After advice from Chuck Littleton, who built the 1st Swamp Girl, I started applying graphite-enriched epoxy below the waterline.

RAKA sells the stuff. They recommend adding about 20% by volume of powdered graphite. I applied three layers. This resulted in two things. First off, it's a bit more slick & slippery going through water lillies and weeds. Secondly, when I encounter rocks, the scratches are WAY less deep.

Once in a while, a scratch will travel from the graphite up onto the "normal" epoxy. What happens then, is a scrape or a rub becomes a scratch or a gouge as it traverses up onto the normal epoxy. The graphited stuff is much harder.

Also, I'm a strong believer in applying fiberglass all over a plywood hull both inside and out. I use only 1/8" (4 mm) Okoume plywood, so the fiberglass is a real reinforcement. I misuse my boats by putting them onto rocks, over beaver dams, lifting loaded boats by the end toggels, etc. NEVER a crack or a problem.

[jheger]

Mullet_Key:

I plan to use my swamp girl for fishing the flats around Port O'Connor. There, you are constantly being exposed to oyster reefs and they can be very damaging to the bottom of a boat as you well know. So I intend to glass both the outside and inside of my girl. If she performs as well as expected, and that is real high, I will probably even graphite the bottom. Also, I intend to have gunnels and rub rails as plans require and probably two, three or four thwarts depending on how she test out with some ruff handling. If she is going fishing with me I don't plan to baby her.
By the way, I have the seams glassed on the inside and can't wait to turn her over and glass the hull. Good luck on yours.