# Yay! My homemade wooden boat floats! And it doesn't leak! I'm so proud! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 8, 2012, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576 "2012-07-08T03:11:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/21 "2012-07-08T17:04:09Z")
There is nothing quite like a wooden boat. She’s beautiful. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/22 "2012-07-08T19:14:48Z")
That’s really well done. Is it a Whitehall design? Who’s the kit designer? Are you going to try building your own wooden mast or just try to acquire one? I’ve been working on a cedar strip kayak for the longest time, but I lack a heated garage, so the time of year when the weather is warm enough to work on the kayak essentially overlaps the time of year when my interest in woodworking diminishes to zero. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2012, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/23 "2012-07-08T20:42:07Z")
Looks great! I am so jealous. Tell us some stories about building it, please. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2012, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/24 "2012-07-08T20:52:53Z")
Well done. In my youth a friend of mine constructed one from plans that he got out of the back of Popular Mechanics. It sank like it was made of paper. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2012, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/25 "2012-07-08T20:58:17Z")
Nice. Coincidentally I took out my kayak today. It is a plywood stitch-and-glue from a kit. Doesn’t look quite as nice as a strip built model, but I still get compliments. Brian ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/26 "2012-07-08T21:11:25Z")
Awesome work Frosty. If that’s your first. Great job! Love to see pics of it in the water. ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/27 "2012-07-09T01:09:30Z")
It’s absolutely beautiful! The trailer is too. I was wondering why there were so many pictures of the rusty trailer and then all of a sudden there was a shiny new black one! ---
**Author:** ![Not\_From\_Here](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/2acd7d/32.png) [@Not\_From\_Here](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_From_Here)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/28 "2012-07-09T03:04:11Z")
Congratulations! The boat looks beautiful! ---
**Author:** ![Frosty\_Camel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c67d28/32.png) [@Frosty\_Camel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frosty_Camel)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/29 "2012-07-09T11:33:05Z")
Thanks to everyone for the compliments! > [@FairyChatMom](#): > > I am most definitely impressed. that’s a gorgeous boat! Our one and only boat building attempt was a nutshell pram, which is made from marine plywood, so it went together a lot faster and more easily than yours. Plus we just slapped paint on it, because while we love the look of bright wood, we used to own a vintage wooden boat and we know what’s involved to keep the wood looking good… Sorry, got off on a memory tangent. > [@Finagle](#): > > I’ve been working on a cedar strip kayak for the longest time, but I lack a heated garage, so the time of year when the weather is warm enough to work on the kayak essentially overlaps the time of year when my interest in woodworking diminishes to zero. > [@N9IWP](#): > > Nice. Coincidentally I took out my kayak today. It is a plywood stitch-and-glue from a kit. Doesn’t look quite as nice as a strip built model, but I still get compliments. > > Brian Wow! I had no idea there would be other people who had built a boat on here. I would love to see pictures of all of yours! > [@Merneith](#): > > She’s a beauty! What are you calling her? > [@fifty-six](#): > > Yea, What is her name? I’m qoing to name the boat after my late wife, which was the plan all along. She was the one who encouraged me to begin the project, and from time to time talked me into continuing when I was ready to throw up my hands and give up. > [@PlainJain](#): > > I’d love to see it on the water! > [@Ibanez](#): > > Love to see pics of it in the water. I’ll try to remember to get some pictures next time I have it out. I was so excited to actually be getting it in the water that I didn’t even think to bring a camera on Saturday. > [@FairyChatMom](#): > > Are you going with a wooden mast and boom? Tanbark sails? > [@Finagle](#): > > Are you going to try building your own wooden mast or just try to acquire one? I’ve been keeping an eye on craigslist and ebay for a mast. I’ll probably salvage one from somewhere, like the trailer. The trailer was sitting in a guys yard for years and he just gave it to me when I asked. As far as the sail I don’t know yet. It will be whatever I can find. > [@Seldom Seen](#): > > Always been a dream of mine to tackle a boat-building project (specifically a McKenzie Drift Boat), but haven’t had the right combination of resources - time, tools, money etc,). I say go for it!!! It took me seven years to build that boat. Most of those seven years it sat untouched while life intervened. You can build as you have the money or time. You do need good tools though. But the feeling of pride when I look at the boat and say to myself, “I did that! I built that beautiful piece of floating art!” is like nothing else! I would estimate that if I had treated the project like a full time job I could have had it done in about 9 months. > [@Finagle](#): > > Is it a Whitehall design? Who’s the kit designer? The boat is very loosely based on plans that I bought for [this](http://www.archdavisdesigns.com/davis_penobscot17.html) boat. The plans for the Penobscot call for lapstrake construction. However, I really like the look of strip planking and decided (after I had already bought the plans) to go for it! Rather than buy a whole other set of plans I just modified the design accordingly. The difficulty of doing so was severely underestimated. EVERYTHING had to be modified. The finished boat resembles the original plans in overall shape only. In many cases, a total redesign was necessary, especially for the seating and bulkheads. [Here](http://www.williammaloney.com/Canoeing/Sassafras/OnTheWater/pages/10SassafrasLapstrakeCanoe.htm) is a good example of lapstrake construction if anyone is curious. Note the hull and how different it is. I think I made the right choice, although lapstrake construction would have been much easier. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/30 "2012-07-09T13:16:34Z")
Hey, whatever floats your boat. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/31 "2012-07-09T14:22:50Z")
Beautiful work! Congratulations. I’ve always wanted to build a strip canoe or kayak but I don’t know I could ever use it out in the wild. You do know you’ll run into a massive barnacle covered rock within a month don’t you? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Atomic\_Mama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5ac83/32.png) [@Atomic\_Mama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Mama)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2012, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576/32 "2012-07-09T14:24:31Z")
Gorgeous! Your construction skills are awesome! Hearty congratulations. As a newbie Belfast, Mainer, I also hope to float a boat this season. It’s a 14’ O’Day Widgeon sailboat, fiberglass hull. We’re patching it; hope to re-paint soon, and get it in the water without mishap. I’d post a photo, but I don’t know how :smack: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yay-my-homemade-wooden-boat-floats-and-it-doesnt-leak-im-so-proud/627576.md?page=1)