CR13 build...I have altered the plan.

[Corvidae]

But I don't think I'll need to alter it any further.

This is more of a historical post than a build log, the boat was finished and launched a few days ago. Mainly I wanted to pass on the differences and atrocities that were committed during construction. First off, I figured out after making the V12, that once I have a completed boat in my garage, I don't have the room to make the rudder and daggerboard. So, I started with that first this time. Also, since the guy I sold the V12 to, found out that the daggerboard was not impervious to rocks at full sail, I made him a new one as well. Along with what turned out to be a great improvement.

First, both daggerboards, made to plan, clear epoxy, and a layer of 4oz. glass. The glass helps with abrasion resistance and adds a bit of weight, which is needed because they both still float. I later added some 17oz. glass to the upper body of the V12 daggerboard just to weigh it down some.


Next step was hacking off the leading edge at the tips of both boards and making a flexible mold out of the hacked off bits.


The mold was sprayed with pam, then filled with epoxy/graphite. Using a drill, small holes were peppered through both the resulting pieces and the daggerboards, giving a strong physical bond.


A bit of sanding/shaving and then a few coats of spar varnish later and we end up with this:


The smaller V12 board has had a lot more 'testing' than the CR13 board. However, we can say for certain that it will hold up to serious rock abrasion and impacts. At around 4 knots the V12 was brought to a complete stop by an immovable rock. The resulting scratch in the graphite epoxy is hard to find if someone doesn't point it out. So the extra work of molding and replacing the tips of the boards does seem to be worth the effort.

Next up, building a boat!

[Corvidae]

Ok, so on to the actual boat. For the most part it's the same as other CR13 builds, lofted the plans to Okoume, cut out all the pieces, glued on the butt blocks, and bent everything around the first couple frames using a couple of drywall screws to hold the frames in place. I used zip ties instead of wire to hold things together this time. For the most part, easier to use, however I think for the transom, if doing this again, I'd go back to wire. At some point epoxy touches the zip ties and they end up permanently embedded in the hull. It's harmless, and easy to cover up or even drill out, but the wire was easier to simply yank out.

Initial frame up:


Flipped and framed up the seats:


And then we go off plan a bit:


I was using the temporary crossbars to double check the measurements against the mast box that I had already made. The goal is that it hangs freely and is able to swing up all the way, without hitting any frames.


Once the size was figured out, the shaped boards were mounted and epoxied in:


At about the same time I cut the hole for the daggerboard trunk and slipped it in there. I didn't see anything in the plans about what to cap the trunk with, so I used a 2x8 with a slot cut in it.

Also just because I could, I cut holes in the sides of the seats for storage areas with some limber holes for drainage. The front and back sections of the seats are still sealed as on the original plans.

Next up was sealing up the front section around the tabernacle. The extra floatation is nice, but mainly I just wanted to make it a more usable space.

[Corvidae]

And onward we plunge to the next change. I didn't like the way the frames broke up the floor space, mainly because I'm clumsy, but also because the plans showed the back frames as both solid pieces and as three separate pieces each. So rather than fuss about which way way right, I made my own way. And my own floor.

Starting with some simple framing.


Which I epoxied in while doing the rub rails and other framing:


Which ended up being oak rails with mahogany inlay:


A few coats of paint later, and we have an interior!



Next up, the horrors of the flip side.

[Corvidae]

These next images might be highly offensive to wood workers and shipwrights. Proceed with caution.

As was mentioned in another thread, pulling the nose together on the CR13 involved some extreme acts of persuasion. Not only was a large bolt used at the forward point, but also a series of holes were used to bolt some scrap wood where needed to provide leverage.



Now that interior is done though, it's time to try cleaning that mess up. A bit of sanding to get started:

A quick coat of epoxy:


A strip of 17oz matt backed fiberglass along the keel and overlapping 6oz fiberglass for the rest of the bottom:
Also popped on the backer for the bow hook.


Cast a spell of invulnerability on the entirety of the bottom of the boat:


And then painted it green:


I'm happy with the green, not my first choice of color, but it works. If I get tired of it, it's easy enough to sand and cover next year, which I probably will once I've put enough scratches in it. At this point though, it's ready to flip and install that floor I framed out earlier.

[Corvidae]

I think the internet is going to force me to stop here for the day. Been fighting the image host because of the ddos attack that's hitting the eastern US. Here's the last pic I was able to get cropped to size:



Once I upload more I'll show the rigging and some floating shots.

[peter-curacao]

Bravo very nice boat

[Jeff]

Very nice work!! Looks really nice!! Jeff

[seaslug]

Wow!! Super clean job, and a beautiful finished product. A boat to be proud of for sure.

[Corvidae]

Thank you all, it's been a fun build. I would have posted and documented as I went, but with the tabernacle changes I was keeping it a secret until I knew if it would work as planned. And it does work. Not only can I raise and lower the mast while on the water, it's also very easy to step the mast on land.

I know somewhere around here I have a better picture of the boat rigged without some fat guy sailing it. In the mean time, here's the one I do have:



Hopefully this weekend I can get a good video of raising and lowering the mast. And I still need to finish the gunter rig I have started. The mast and spars are shaped, but need to be trimmed down to size and coated.

[bateau-webmaster]

Very cool. Curious how well the paint will hold up. It looked like there was no primer after the graphite layer? What did you use for topcoat?