Building instructions for Salish
These instructions assume that you have basic strip-building skills.
Materials list
One and a half sheets or 1/2 inch plywood for forms
100 cedar strips, I use 22mm by 5mm(or ¾ by ¼ inch) of these, 58 full length at 18 feet, and the rest 16 feet.
1/8 inch doorskin plywood, either two 3X7 or 1 4X8
½ sheet 6mm marine ply
two 7 foot 1X1 yellow cedar (can sub fir or spruce etc)
17 foot fir 1X1 (clear for keel)
4 feet of fir 2X2 ripped into 1/8 inch strips for outer stem
4 feet of yellow cedar 1X2 ripped into 1/8 inch strips for inner stem
21 inches of 1X6 material for transom. Some hardwood or yellow cedar would best.
One 2X8 sheet of 1 inch styrofoam insulation board
26 yards of 4 oz fiberglass cloth
3 gallons of epoxy (my epoxy comes in 3 gallon kits, and is more than enough, but 1.5 gallons is insufficient)
the rigger will require 8 pieces of yellow cedar, 2X3/8, and 12 feet of 2 inch fiberglass biaxial sleeve.
Latanzo rowing parts is a good source for rowing components. You will need:
aluminum tracks with end stops,
undercarriage complete (get 11 inch)
Nylon seat supports
pair of nylon scull locks with keepers
pivot pipe with ends (12.75 long).nylon heel cups
pair of notched channels
smooth channel (one needed but are sold in pairs)
3 pcs stainless steel square bolts with wing nuts (1.5 inch)
you may also want to order a seat, instead of carving your own, (get the sweep one), and sculling oarlock pins and foot straps.
100 cedar strips, I use 22mm by 5mm(or ¾ by ¼ inch) of these, 58 full length at 18 feet, and the rest 16 feet.
1/8 inch doorskin plywood, either two 3X7 or 1 4X8
½ sheet 6mm marine ply
two 7 foot 1X1 yellow cedar (can sub fir or spruce etc)
17 foot fir 1X1 (clear for keel)
4 feet of fir 2X2 ripped into 1/8 inch strips for outer stem
4 feet of yellow cedar 1X2 ripped into 1/8 inch strips for inner stem
21 inches of 1X6 material for transom. Some hardwood or yellow cedar would best.
One 2X8 sheet of 1 inch styrofoam insulation board
26 yards of 4 oz fiberglass cloth
3 gallons of epoxy (my epoxy comes in 3 gallon kits, and is more than enough, but 1.5 gallons is insufficient)
the rigger will require 8 pieces of yellow cedar, 2X3/8, and 12 feet of 2 inch fiberglass biaxial sleeve.
Latanzo rowing parts is a good source for rowing components. You will need:
aluminum tracks with end stops,
undercarriage complete (get 11 inch)
Nylon seat supports
pair of nylon scull locks with keepers
pivot pipe with ends (12.75 long).nylon heel cups
pair of notched channels
smooth channel (one needed but are sold in pairs)
3 pcs stainless steel square bolts with wing nuts (1.5 inch)
you may also want to order a seat, instead of carving your own, (get the sweep one), and sculling oarlock pins and foot straps.
Setting up
I build on an 18 foot box-beam strongback, like Ted Moores describes in Canoecraft or Kayakcraft but any 18 foot long flat and stable platform will do.
Strike a centreline the full length of your strongback to align your forms later.
Strike a centreline the full length of your strongback to align your forms later.
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Forms
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You will need one and a half sheets of ½ inch plywood for the forms and risers.
Start by printing the station drawings full size. They are pdf files on Arch D paper. Cut each station out slightly oversize so they can be glued to plywood.
One sheet of plywood will do all the stations.
You will also need 19 plywood risers 8 inches wide by 12 high with a vertical centreline (i use a saw kerf) cut from the remaining half sheet.
The last drawing is the bow form. Cut it out slightly oversize, and glue it to your plywood, and cut it out to the 2 foot mark and to the dotted line at the bow and bottom (for a ¾ inch inner stem). Drill some holes just back from the leading edge of the form so that you can clamp the inner stem to glue it.
I used 1/8 inch strips of yellow cedar, and steamed them to make the tight curve at the bottom of the bow. Let them dry on the bow form and then glue them up with wood glue.
Start by printing the station drawings full size. They are pdf files on Arch D paper. Cut each station out slightly oversize so they can be glued to plywood.
One sheet of plywood will do all the stations.
You will also need 19 plywood risers 8 inches wide by 12 high with a vertical centreline (i use a saw kerf) cut from the remaining half sheet.
The last drawing is the bow form. Cut it out slightly oversize, and glue it to your plywood, and cut it out to the 2 foot mark and to the dotted line at the bow and bottom (for a ¾ inch inner stem). Drill some holes just back from the leading edge of the form so that you can clamp the inner stem to glue it.
I used 1/8 inch strips of yellow cedar, and steamed them to make the tight curve at the bottom of the bow. Let them dry on the bow form and then glue them up with wood glue.
Find the drawing marked Station 18. It will become the transom so glue it to a nice bit of 1X6, 24 inches long and cut it out to the line. Cedar will do for this, but it is very fragile in a couple of places until it is mounted. Save the offcut from the top of the transom as you will need it to mount to the riser.
Cut the forms from the plywood sheet to the lines on the paper patterns.
We will need to notch the top corners of the forms for these stringers so make up a little jig that aligns with the side and top of the form. Make the jig so that the top edge of the stringer will be just above the level of the decks. Mark and notch the forms.
Take each of the forms and screw the risers to them, lining up the centreline on the drawing with the centreline on the riser and the top of the riser with the “alignment mark” line on all of the forms.
Start by attaching the bow form to a pair of risers and mounting it to the strongback so the form is centered on the line. Screw a cleat to the strongback so it’s forward edge is 1/2 inch back fr0m the rear of the bow form and so it is perpendicular to the centerline on the strongback. From the front of this cleat, attach 15 more cleats, perpendicular to the centerline at 1 foot intervals.
Now you can attach form 2 to the strongback and the bow form. Make sure that the centerlines of the risers and the strongback line up and that the centerline of the form lines up with the center of the bow form. Drive a screw through form two into the bow form to keep it centered.
Attach the rest of the stations 3 to 17 to the cleats on the strongback, making sure all the centerlines line up.
Mounting the transom requires attaching the off cut of the transom opening to the riser board, as there is not enough space above the alignment mark for screws. A couple of screws through the offcut and into the edge of the transom will be hidden by the planking of the deck.
You can put the inner stem back onto the bow form. Attach it at the back end with a small screw through form 2 into the end of the stem and clamp it at the second hole up from the top (now on the bottom) of the stem.
You can put the inner stem back onto the bow form. Attach it at the back end with a small screw through form 2 into the end of the stem and clamp it at the second hole up from the top (now on the bottom) of the stem.
Now fasten the 17 ½ foot sheer clamp strip into the notches on all the stations. I used some staples to be removed later.
This is also a good time to taper the edges of the bow form so strips will lay flat on inner stem edge. Just remove enough to make a flat gluing surface, you don't want to make the inner stem narrower. Use a scrap bit of strip held on the first couple of forms to get the angle right.
Tape the edges of the forms and the outside of the sheer clamp strip so that you don’t glue the hull to them.
This is also a good time to taper the edges of the bow form so strips will lay flat on inner stem edge. Just remove enough to make a flat gluing surface, you don't want to make the inner stem narrower. Use a scrap bit of strip held on the first couple of forms to get the angle right.
Tape the edges of the forms and the outside of the sheer clamp strip so that you don’t glue the hull to them.
Striping
Attach the first strip to each side of the boat using 1inch #6 screws through the strip, the sheer clamp strip and into the edge of the forms. Glue this strip to the inner stem and the transom.
I build placing the strips bead up, so I attach a couple of holders to the forms to put the glue in the coves.
I build placing the strips bead up, so I attach a couple of holders to the forms to put the glue in the coves.
Put glue on the strip and a dab on the inner stem and transom; take it out of the holder, and place it tight above the previous strip and staple at every form and the stem and the transom.
Continue in this way until you reach the top of the stem and the middle of the transom. Now you will have to trim the ends of the strips so they closely line up with the centerline. This doesn’t have to be perfect, as we will cut a slot out of the bottom of the hull later for a centerline filler strip.
Continue in this way until you reach the top of the stem and the middle of the transom. Now you will have to trim the ends of the strips so they closely line up with the centerline. This doesn’t have to be perfect, as we will cut a slot out of the bottom of the hull later for a centerline filler strip.
Continue until the hull is completely stripped.
Mark the hull 3/8 of an inch on either side of the centerline and cut it (I use a pull-saw)
This will give you a ¾ inch gap down the bottom of the hull that you will fill with a block. If you are using ¼ inch strips just glue three of them together, to make a ¾ inch square filler block. You can trim the sides of the gap with a rabbet plane on it’s side, to get the best fit on the filler block. At the bow cut a notch in the strips to expose the rear end of the inner stem, so the block overlaps the inner stem by about 2 inches.
Remove screws holding the hull in place at the shear, then use thickened epoxy to glue the center block in place, pulling the hull up tight using rachet straps.
Once the epoxy is cured, plane the block until it is flush with hull, and then sand everything fair and smooth starting with 60 grit. Fill any minor cracks or gaps in the strips with epoxy and sawdust and sand one last time with 120 grit.
Cut the ends of the strips at the bow so they are flush with the front of the inner stem, and taper the center strip down to the inner stem.
At the stern, cut the strips flush with the transom, and sand flat.
At the stern, cut the strips flush with the transom, and sand flat.
Glassing the outside of the hull
Now you can apply glass and epoxy to the hull. 4 Oz glass is perfect, and two coats of epoxy to fill the weave of the cloth.
I like to bring the glass down over the transom at the stern, the transom is small enough that the glass will lay down without a dart. Let the hull cure while you cut the keel and skeg.
Keel and Skeg
For the skeg, use a ¾ by 2 1/2 inch cedar board about 4 feet long. Scribe the skeg to the bottom of the hull so it tapers to nothing at the forward end and is about 2 1/2 inches at the transom.
Glue the skeg to the hull with a couple of dabs of thickened epoxy. Make sure it is straight and vertical!
Glue the skeg to the hull with a couple of dabs of thickened epoxy. Make sure it is straight and vertical!
For the keel you will need a 16 foot long ¾ inch square piece of wood. I like to use fir, it is less likely to dent than cedar. It should be run through the tablesaw to put about a 7 degree bevel on either side.
