GF 16 Progress

[Cracker Larry]

A couple more days work by Capt. Sam and myself got all the dry fitting finished, the bow and stern transoms glued in, all the seat cleats installed, and all 3 laminations of rubrail completed. That job was a gooey mess, complicated by working late one night and somehow not mixing hardener in the last batch of glue A mistake we hope not to repeat!

http://gallery.bateau2.com/displayimage.php?pos=-3680

Then we trimmed and sanded the rubrails and flipped the boat to install the bottom. My Porter Cable RO sander made quick work of fairing the rail. Sam is proud of his work!

http://gallery.bateau2.com/displayimage.php?pos=-3681

The bottom panel fits perfectly with no more than a 1/8 in. gap anywhere.
Yall have done a great job with these plans! No surprises yet.

http://gallery.bateau2.com/displayimage.php?pos=-3682

[UncleRalph]

There are two Captain Sam's in the one picture!!

Ralph

[fishingdan]

Remind Capt Sam to where rubber gloves while working with epoxy.

Its a bitch to get it out of the fur. Just ask my dog Libby .

[Cracker Larry]

There are two Captain Sam's in the one picture!!

Ralph

LOL. The other one is Sam's (actually Sampson's) first mate Delilah. She comes by occasionally to check on progress but offers no help at all.

Its a bitch to get it out of the fur. Just ask my dog Libby

Delilah knows too. She went to sleep and woke up glued to the concrete. Kinda freaked her out. I had to cut her loose Since then she's kept herself at a distance.

[Cracker Larry]

Another week or so of work and still moving along. We got the boat flipped again and filletted and taped all the inside seams, chines and frames. I started in hidden areas to practice, I sure needed it. I'm a far better carpenter than fiberglass man! By the time I got to the public areas the results showed much improvement.

http://gallery.bateau2.com/displayimage.php?pos=-3890

I added an additional frame in the bow to support the large deck area (some of my friends weigh 300 lb.) and to create a watertight compartment at the bow to be foam filled. The front block is to back up the bow eye, yet to be installed. The small block is to backup the forward spray rail bolt.

http://gallery.bateau2.com/displayimage.php?pos=-3891

We finished all the seat tops, hatches, hatch supports and backing plates for future seat pedestals.

http://gallery.bateau2.com/displayimage.php?pos=-3892

And completed the greatest hurdle so far, installing the spray rails. This is hard to do alone and Capt. Sam wasn't much help. I used 1X2 red oak and it did not bend easily. I made the mistake of starting at the stern and by the time I got to the bow it was a bugger to bend. Took all kinds of clamps and cawls. Once it was finally in place, I was concerned about the tension on it. I countersunk holes for 1/4 SS bolts on each end and fabricated backing plates for the nuts, just for peace of mind. It looks good though, I think. Sam's glad that part is over. He learned some new words.

http://gallery.bateau2.com/displayimage.php?pos=-3894

The next step will be to glass the entire bottom inside. I wonder what new lessons that will bring?

[Dane_Ger]

Larry, your boat is looking very good! I also can't belive the progress you are making! Nice!

[Cracker Larry]

Thanks Dane. Capt. Sam is a hard worker! We should be catching shrimp in a month if all goes well.

[BluffBuilder]

Hey Larry, how's your GF 16 progress? Got it painted yet?
Love to see some pics. Just started mine and I'm already customizing slightly.

[Cracker Larry]

Yep Bluff, she's finished! It took Capt. Sam and I 90 days from plans to completion and we are extremely happy with it. A very fine and sturdy boat, better than anything I could buy.

The only things left are rod and gun racks, and to purchase a motor. I'm going to borrow a couple from friends first, to try different horsepowers.

We painted it inside and out with 2 coats of Easy Poxy and she looked great. Then we used 5 colors and 15 cans of both Krylon and Rustoleum camo spray paint. The seat tops and decks are coated with Evercoat Skid-No-More, a rubber based non skid.

I just posted some pics to my gallery, check them out.

I'd like to commend Jacques for a great design, the whole crew at BBC for all their good service, advice and support, and to everyone here who offered advise and moral support Now I've got to decide what to build next. Thanks to all yall

I've been working in Blufton all week, I'd like to drop by sometime and check out yours if you don't mind? And you are welcome to do the same

What have yall done to that place anyway? Jeez the traffic is terrible!

[jasonmcintosh]

Fantastic job. Thanks for the pictures.

What are the "rollers" for at either side of your benches?

Jason