The Case of the Daggerboard

It took me a while and lots of questions on the John Welsford Builders forum to work out how to fit the daggerboard case. That was several months ago. Today someone’s emailed me asking what I did in the end – I can’t remember the details, but I’ve taken some photos and posted them here. Not saying this is the right solution, but it’s what I did. If anyone has other thoughts, please leave a comment!

My problem was that if I cut the bottom board (to which the bottom stringers are glued) as the dimensions on the plans implied, I’d cut right through the stringer. This didn’t seem right. But apparently it is.

Here’s a photo looking aft and up from below the boat:

Click the image to go to more images, with descriptions, on flickr (See ‘The daggerboard case – (set)).

Progress of a different kind

Glorious day on Saturday – and I joined around twenty others to help clear the ground for the future Portobello Sailing and Kayaking Club. 

 

The dinghy park cometh...

We have some progress

Got a bit of time in the garage over the last couple of weekends and made some progress. The sun was shining through the open door so here’s a photo:

The garage is a little cramped, but I’m managing OK so far. The building frame is on castors so I can move it and get to the other side.

In the beginning

Just now my boat is a skeleton of plywood frames and stringers in my garage. She’s a ‘Walkabout‘ design by New Zealander John Welsford.

One day we’ll sail and row on the Firth of Forth – a few minutes walk from my house in Portobello, Edinburgh. She’ll be finished soon before the launch date. Launch date is shortly after she’s finished.

To keep me inspired Gerry L's Walkabout is my screen saver.

No blow by blow account of the boat building; no photos of how I solved problems along the way, or designed clever gizmos to make things easier. Firstly, I’m not actually very good at wood working, so there’s not much to learn from me. Secondly, if I have the time, I’d rather be building than blogging about it – just now it’s too cold to use epoxy, which is my next step. (To see how it should really be done, take a look at Gerry L’s blog.)