It's about time I shared the reason for my lack of postings this spring. I've become a yachtsman ... or rather a dingy driver. In late February, 2007, I began building a plywood sailboat, and "finished" on Saturday, May 12. 

Quickly, the major details, then the minutia after the break. Click the pic for a larger one. 

 Design: Piccup Squared ... designed by Jim Michalak 

Sail kit from Polytarp sail. Dave is a super-friendly small business operator.

Mostly 1/4" plywood with PL Premium construction glue 

Rudder hardware and deck plates from Duckworks Boatbuilders Supply.

Maiden voyage: May 12, 2007 on Crooked Creek Bay of Lake Barkley (the Cumberland River in western Kentucky).  

So, why build a boat? Ah, long story -- for another day perhaps. 

I began with the goal to build an inexpensive plywood boat. Since Lowes is a customer of mine, and the local store is within 4 miles of my house, I set the secondary goal to purchase all of hull parts from that retailer. So, unless I specify, you can assume that's where I got the materials. Tools? I don't have many. During the project, I purchased a belt sander to accompany my 7" skill saw, an almost worn-out 3/8" electric drill, and a Black & Decker jigsaw. Jim Michalak includes with his plans crude instructions on building a "homebrew" tablesaw from a circular saw, but I ripped all my boards on sawhorses with the circular saw. If you're curious, I'll gladly share the method.

Which boat? Firstly, I determined that I would not buy (or build) a trailer, so, the vessel must be cartoppable -- or truck-beddable -- and easily handled by one individual. That requirement kept me in the "under 12-foot" range. I liked what I saw in the economy of Jim Michalak's and Phil Bolger's designs. Stitch and glue was the preferred construction method -- just for the experience, if nothing else. In the end, I chose the Piccup Squared due to it's six-foot, unobstructed cockpit.

She was hatched on the back porch, and moved to the yard as the weather improved. Here are the hit-and-miss details on how she may differ from Jim's plans:

Bulkheads are of 15/32" plywood instead of the specified 1/4" framed by 1 x 2's 

The vessel has minimal fiberglassing. In keeping with my goal of buying hull components from Lowes, I substituted polyester resin for epoxy. While it worked well for butt joints, I could not get the adhesion I wanted on the corners and chines. Most of the mess was sanded away and it's safe to call this vessel a plywood boat with paint as the only finish.

Paint - The bottom has two coats of the cheapest enamel porch paint Lowes sells; these were leftovers from a shed I built last winter. The "orange" hull color is 'Flamenco' and was the result of 3 coats of the least expensive exterior latex from Walmart. (OK, I hear ya!  I had to acquire toilet paper on this run to town and didn't want to make a second stop at Lowes.) 

The mast is obviously not round. It's a laminate of poplar and 1/2" plywood. Ugly, but very functional. It's coated with spar varnish.

I used PL Premium Glue for all joints and laminating. Super-strong, but I suggest something a bit thinner for laminating items together, or using hundreds of very hefty clamps to squeeze out the excess. I had some of the concrete blend of the glue leftover from a previous project, but I did not take David's suggestion to try it. 

 
Plans for the hull were very precise and workable. In the time crunch near the end of the project, I deviated from the plans on the sail rig. My leeboard installation is a combination of what was drawn up and what I felt was the best minimalist approach. The rudder does not use lead weights, but is a bungee design adapted from one shared by Steve Bonham, a Banshee driver.

The leeboard fluttered at hull speed on the maiden voyage. I got aggressive with the belt sander and placed some camber (like an aircraft wing) into the leeboard to force it against the hull while under way and have not encountered the flutter since.

The ship's second and third outings were on Bon Secour Bay (off Mobile Bay) in Alabama during the Memorial Day weekend. I spent 3 or 4 hours trying to tame the beast in 20-knot winds and 1-1/2 ft chop, but the conditions were obviously beyond my capabilities. If one enjoys the pounding of a flat-bottom boat on a choppy bay, I'll suggest he see a therapist.

Trips four and five were along the eastern bank of the Tennessee River in the Land Between the Lakes. I launched from a bay protected from steady 12 to 15 knot west winds in the month of June. She performed rather spiritedly and I gained some experience sailing on all points of the wind. Lastly, my wife joined me as we launched from Colson Creek Hollow for trip 5 on July 4th. In a 10 knot wind, the ship performed admirably, but when the wind died, we pointed downwind back to the truck and called it a day.

That's all I've got to say about that (for now). Anyone have any ideas for my next project?