Done (?)

Two hours of work today redrilling the holes, fitting the webbing for the hatch straps and bungies and rigging the bungies. It still needs a rope handle on the stern and the pad eye on the bow and it will be ready to take out of the living room. No pictures until the formal unveilling at halftime on Sunday.

Total Construction Time: 69 hours.

Almost Done

While this boat will surely always be a work in progress, it seems like the major construction work is almost done. Last night when we flipped it over, we decided to put another (6th) coat of varnish on the deck. About 1/2 hour of work. Then tonight we began the process of outfitting and rigging her. First we installed the foot braces. Then the back band. The next step was to drill holes where the bungies and hatch straps will attach to the deck. The holes were drilled larger than the screws in order to fill them with epoxy and redrill holes for screws. This is to keep water from reaching the wood in the holes. After that came the nerve-wracking drilling of a hole through the stern for a carry handle. We decided to attach a padeye at the bow (still need to find one), so no hole through the bow. Finally, we filled the holes with epoxy. About 2.5 hours of work.

One more session should have her ready to hit the water. We will need to see a substantial warming trend before we can take her outside, but I think the pool on Sunday should be a go.

Then of course the unveiling at Super Bowl party at Rick's.

Total Construction Time: 67 hours.

Last Varnish (?)

Tuesday night we put the fifth coat of varnish on the underside of the boat. While it will probably require some touching up, this will be the last full coating. .5 hours of work. What remains to be done is the deck rigging, carry handles and cockpit outfitting. While I am sure that it will always be a work in progress, it is looking good for a test float this weekend.



On the naming front, Martha's submission "Wandering Rage" (courtesy of a pirate ship name generator) has emerged as the front runner in keeping with Rick's pirate theme for the boat.



Total construction Time: 64 hours.

Fifth and Final Coat of Varnish/Another Call for Names

Tonight we did a final wet sand of the boat, first with 320 grit, then 400 and finally 600. We spent the extra time of the sanding because we hope the fifth coat of varnish will be the last. Then after wipe downs with water and laquer thinner, we put a fifth coat of varnish on the deck. About 1.5 hours of work.









The earlier call for names (link here) has not resulted in any submissions, so I again ask if anyone has any suggestions. I think Old Weller is also a good choice as I found a bottle in the back of Rick's cabinet when the Buffalo Trace ran out one night. Hmm, Buffalo Trace is a good name too. Any way, we need a name, so we welcome submissions and the winning entry will be rewarded and possibly announced this Sunday at the unveiling/Super Bowl party. Don't forget to RSVP.


Total Construction Time: 63.5hours.

Morning at the Pool and Varnishing in the Afternoon

This morning I went to the pool in Ann Arbor to paddle with the RSCK. I tried out my new waterproof camera. (See video below). Then in the afternoon, Rick and I spent about half an hour finishing off the fourth coat of varnish. We anticipate a test paddle at the pool next Sunday before the formal unveiling at Rick's Super Bowl party in the afternoon. RSVP and request directions at detroitkayaklaw (at) gmail.com.

Total Construction Time: 62 hours.

More Varnish Again

Today saw the begining of the fourth coat of varnish. Rick did the wetsanding on his own this morning. This afternoon Rick wiped the boat down, first with water then with laquer thinner. I worked to get the front hatch cover smooth around the patch. Then we applied varnish to the deck. It doesn't look much different in the photos, but in person one can see the difference each coat of varnish makes. About an hour and a half of work today.

Total Construciton Time: 61.5 hours.

More Varnish

Tonight we spent 1/2 an hour finishing the 3rd coat of varnish on the boat, the second on the rear hatch cover and touching up the epoxy on the front cover.


Total Construction Time: 60 hours.

More Wet Sanding and Varnish

Tonight we wet sanded the second coat of varnish, sanded the rear hatch cover, applied more epoxy to the front hatch cover (it is having a fabric patch applied under fiberglass so more epoxy is need on the glass), and applied a third coat of varnish to the bottom of the boat and the first coat to the rear hatch cover. About an hours work with a 45 minute break to allow the laquer thinner (used to wipe it down before the varnishing) to evaporate fully.

Total Construction Time: 59.5 hours.

What's in a Name

Rick and I have been kicking around how to choose a name for the craft. We would like to have some kind of contest with a formal christening and award to the best submission at the official open water launch. We are welcoming submissions in the comment section or send them by email to detroitkayaklaw (at ) gmail.com for those who might have problems with the commenting section.

I personally like the good ship ipse dixit for a name.

Long Weekend, Little Work

Saturday saw us applying epoxy to the exterior of the hatch covers, wet sanding the boat and applying a second coat of varnish to the bottom. About 2 hours total work. Then Rick got the flu and construction stopped until today when we put more epoxy on the covers and second coat of varnish on the deck. About 1/2 hour of work.

Total Construction Time: 58.5 hours.

Floating Coffee Table

After Rick sanded down some varnish drips on the deck, we applied the first coat of varnish to the deck. The boat is now starting to look like the "floating coffee table" described in the manual. .5 hours of work tonight.

Total Construction Time: 56 hours.

Doggie Playdate

No work on the boat last night due to the extra-long commute because of the weather. Daisy the dog came over for a playdate with Jake. They both tried out the boat and can't wait to get on the water.

Varnishing and Tech Support

Yesterday we put another coat of epoxy on the interiors of the hatch covers and touched up the boat some more. About 1/2 hour of work. Also we unpacked Rick's new computer and tried to connect the internet service.

Tonight we sanded the touched up spots, wiped the hull down with laquer thinner, and trimmed the glass of the hatch covers. As we were getting started, Jake the dog got dropped off for Rick to dogsit for the next few days.

Jake tries it out.

While waiting for the lacquer thinner to dry, I checked the phone line we tried to get the DSL on and found it was wired as a second line. Rewiring the line in the basement and about 1/2 an hour on the phone with sbc tech support got Rick online at home. Then we applied a coat of Interlux Schooner Varnish to the bottom of the hull. 2 hours of work on the boat.

Rick can check the blog at home.

Total Construction Time: 55.5 hours.

Building the Hatch Covers and Cleaning Up

Rick takes it in.








This morning I went out to Ann Arbor to paddle in the pool with the RSCK. In the afternoon Rick and I spent about 2 hours putting together the hatch covers, touching up the boat with epoxy on spots that had been sanded too thin and cleaning the living room.





T0tal Construction Time: 53 hours.

Final (?) Sanding

After two days off, today we finshed sanding the boat. It is now smooth as a baby's bottom. (Rick insisted I put that in the post.) 1.5 hours of work. Now we need to get the living room as dust free as possible so that we can start varnishing.



Total construction time: 51 hours.

More Fun Sanding

Back at the Sanding for 2 hours tonight. The boat is looking very smooth now that all the epoxy drips have been taken down and the glass seams mostly evened out. Still more to go with 100 grit before we move to a final 220 grit.

Total Construction Time: 49.5 hours.

Sanding is Still Fun

Tonight we began sanding the hull in anticipation of varnishing it. Rick, working on his own applied the last of the epoxy last night (Monday). He also stained the hatch covers. About 2.5 hours of sanding to cover the deck and half of the hull with 80 grit.

Total Construction Time: 47.5 hours.

Final Glass on the Hull.

Today at noon we trimmed and sanded the the hatch rims and coated them with epoxy. We also put down extra strips of glass along the keel at the front and back to provide protection while launching and landing. This is the last of the fiberglassing of the hull. We went back to it at 8 p.m. to add more coats of epoxy to the hatch rims and the new glass. About 1 hour of work on the boat.

Rick spent some extra time on his own trying out stain for the hatch covers.



Rick also realized the door in his living room had never been opened in the 2 years he's lived in the house. Closer inspection revealed that the door is painted shut. It is unclear if it is also locked and, if it is, where the key is.

Total Construction Time: 45 hours.

Trimming the Coaming

After removing the clamps, today we trimmed and shaped the cockpit coaming and attached the hatch rims. The cockpit was coated with epoxy and we added a strip of glass to the forward port deck/hull joint where for some reason we didn't get coverage. 2 hours of work. All of the wood parts are now attached to the hull (save for optional hip braces in the cockpit).

Total Construction Time: 44 hours.

Attaching the Coaming

Today we removed all the clamps, then attached the cockpit coaming and then reapplied the clamps. We also coated the inside of the hatch stiffeners with epoxy and applied epoxy and wood flour to the joints where the deck meets the bulkheads. About 1.5 hours of work.

Total Construction time: 42hours.

New Year's Day on the River

No construction on January 1, 2009. Rick decided stay indoors and watch football while I went kayaking on the Huron with the RSCKC. The Ann Arbor News coverage can be found here: http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2009/01/kayakers_welcome_new_year_with.html#more