Workshop on the Water: Moving along and getting a head

The WoW crew is getting closer and closer to completion of our first Beetle replica whaleboat. Interior work is nearly complete, hardware installation is finished, and the first coat of glossy gray paint is being applied. Once the interior painting is finished, all that remains is to flip the boat for caulking and exterior painting. She will surely be ready for the water this spring.

Newt completed the grueling task of installing the second lifting rod. He needed to work beneath the boat with a heavy ball peen hammer to mushroom the ends of the 5/8 inch bronze rod to capture a large washer that actually holds the weight of the boat when it is raised or lowered from the ship.

Lifting rod secured, and first coat of gray paint applied.

Charles spent the day working on the rudder, primarily fitting the cheeks, riveting them in place, and fitting the tiller to the tiller slot. The rudder parts, including 5/16 inch bronze rivets, were fabricated last year, but needed to await arrival of the pintles prior to final assembly.

Rudder cheeks get a coating of Dolphinite prior to assembly.

Cheeks in place awaiting rivets.

After a whole lot of hammering -- Done!

Meanwhile, Nick was providing the Wooden Boat Factory kids with a lesson in spiling planks. Good progress has been made planking the second whaleboat, with two planks already in place on each side, and looking very good. The bottom two planks are lapped, so the next bit of construction will be the first batten.

Nick spiles the next plank with Jeff at the far end.

Two planks in place, and the first batten being fitted.

Bob is continuing his work on the L.F.Herreshoff Meadow Lark, Suzy. He has completed the new mainmast compression post, and finished the frame for the forward hatch cover. The hatch cover frame, made of teak like the rest of the house exterior, is a tricky assembly, but came together beautifully. Gluing the sides together required special care, due to the difficulty of gluing teak. First, the pieces were wiped thoroughly with acetone, then dampened with water. Gluing was accomplished with Gorilla glue, which dries to a color close to teak and, more important, bonds well with teak -- not an easy thing to do.