clinker boat under construction, dragon with new cedar deck, solid cherry unit, large solid cherry

clinker boat under construction, dragon with new cedar deck, solid cherry unit, large solid cherry
We handcraft beautiful wooden boats and furniture.

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Returning to Happy Return

It's been such a busy summer, that it was difficult to even think about those longterm projects waiting in the yard. But now the quiet autumn days have set in, it is definitely time to focus once again on the return of Happy Return.In our last teaching workshop here, the deck structure was prepared, including hanging knees and deck beams. We have now got out all the timber for the decking: some beautiful mahogany stored away for many years. We machined it to 45mm x 17mm thickness. The previous decking was 12mm marine ply, but this mahogany comes in at a lower density than the ply - so we can afford to go that little bit thicker, giving more structural strength. Caulking seams were machined on at 2.5mm each side.
Coamings being fitted on Happy Return



Preparing the king plank requires careful planning - the whole deck has to planned out before the joggles can be cut into it correctly. There is very little room for play when fitting the deck planks afterwards: every little mistake and asymmetry is easily noticed...
Notice how the padding for the windlass has been built into the king plank - this detail will look amazing when the deck is finished!