Category: Palm Beach 22

Building a Palm Beach 22 mahogany runabout designed by Nelson Zimmer

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Fitting the Mechanicals on the PB22

With sole pieces in place, it’s easy to check the fit of hoses, battery boxes, etc.
Here’s a look at some of the sole pieces I talked about patterning in an earlier post.

I’m trying to get ready to coat the inside of the boat before I begin construction of the deck.  It’ll be much easier this way with an open boat to work in.  But before I can do the coating (clear coating on the sides and white paint in the bilge), I need to make sure all the pieces that make the boat go will fit.  In the process, I’ll drill some more holes, glue in backing blocks, fabricate platforms, etc.  As usual, what seems like a straightforward process requires many steps. Continue reading “Fitting the Mechanicals on the PB22”

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The Strut, Shaft, and Shaft Log

Getting the engine in the proper position requires a lot of test fitting to establish location of engine beds and all the other items.

When you’re building an inboard boat, getting the engine and propeller shaft in perfect alignment is an interesting process.  It’s a logical process that involves aligning the engine and transmission, shaft, shaft log, and strut.  It starts with the strut (the piece that holds the shaft in place just forward of the propeller).  There is a tube the shaft passes through that gets glued into a hole bored through the keel.  Getting that tube, called the shaft log, glued in line with the shaft and engine is the aim of this process. Continue reading “The Strut, Shaft, and Shaft Log”

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Back to the Palm Beach 22

Making a pattern for the irregular shape of the engine compartment platform.

It’s been a long time since I posted anything about the Palm Beach.  I haven’t forgotten it, and I haven’t stopped working on it.  But there have been some intervening projects like the Riva, shoulder surgery, a trip or two… Continue reading “Back to the Palm Beach 22”

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Flipping the Boat

The boat is at rest in a sideways position. Notice the cradles under it ready to receive it.

I’ve done all I can to the hull from the outside.  So it’s time to flip the boat upright so I can start working from the inside.  To prepare for this, I’ve made 3 cradles to hold the boat in position once its upright.  I used the patterns for some of the frames with one placed directly under where the engine will be mounted.  Using the waterlines on the patterns, I was able to set up the cradles so the boat will sit level and plumb. Continue reading “Flipping the Boat”

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Bummer Dude!–Redoing the Topsides Again

Fiberglass print through
You can see the fiberglass print through here. I’ll have to take a class in this to learn how to get it right.

I never did get the fiberglass to work to my satisfaction on the topsides.  I tried again with smaller batches in cooler weather, but still got the fiberglass veil I spoke of in my earlier post.  So I stripped it off again, decided not to stain the boat but just let the natural woodgrain show, and moved on.

A man’s got to know his limitations.
                                                                                           –Dirty Harry

 

 

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Fiberglass Setback

Peeling fiberglass off wooden boat
Peeling 6 oz. fiberglass cloth off the boat with a heat gun

I have not failed.  I have just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.                 — Thomas Edison

Adding a layer of fiberglass cloth to any wooden boat will add an enormous amount of toughness to it.  And if you do it right, the fiberglass is invisible.  That’s right — invisible.  The problem is in the “doing it right” part.

Okay, let’s step back a bit. Continue reading “Fiberglass Setback”

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Cutting the Flat

You can see the exposed end grain in this picture of the flat cut most of the way with a power plane.

Last time, I talked a little about cutting the flat along the keel so I could put a cap over it to keep from having exposed end grain there.  My friend Steve asks, “Well, exactly how did you do that?” (or words to that effect).  It did, in fact, take a little bit of doing.  So I decided to explain myself a little better in a follow-up post. Continue reading “Cutting the Flat”

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Steaming the Bottom Plank Blanks

Here’s a good look at the steaming bag and the clamps I used to hold the blank in place while steaming and then cooling.

The twist in the bottom planks at the bow is pretty extreme.  When it becomes impractical to clamp enough twist or curve into a plank to fit it properly, it helps to be able to get it closer to the final shape before you pop a blood vessel in the struggle. Continue reading “Steaming the Bottom Plank Blanks”

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Final Topsides Plank and a Patch

Topsides planking finished
The topsides planking is finished. Next will be the transom and then the bottom planks.

The final topsides plank is fit and glued in place.  Huzzah!  It took a long time to get here because I elected to vacuum bag each plank individually.  I wanted the tightest seams I could get.  And in order to do that, you need to know the plank you’re fitting against isn’t going to move, even slightly.  Without locator screws, which you can use in traditional boat building, you don’t know things will go back together exactly as they did during the dry fit.  The topsides gets a lot of scrutiny on any boat–perhaps not as much as the deck, but it’s what people notice first. Continue reading “Final Topsides Plank and a Patch”