Thinking about a canoe

[bubbles]

The process is described in one of the "naked in the wilderness books" I think. Can't remember if its the first or 2nd.

[lostarrow]

Unfortunately I'm too far north for cypress trees. but pine is common around here. The biggest problem for me is figuring out how to move a log that size back to my house. I had a great idea for a cheap sealant when the boat is finished. Cooking Oil!!! I'm going to buy a few big jugs of it and paint it on with a brush.

 The cooking oil will likely go rancid and start to smell quite bad. Makes a very good bait for bears however! I'm not sure if you have a problem with bears where you are, but I've seen them rip the  boards off of a wood shed wall to get the used cooking oil  inside.( city man moved to the country,neighbour of my folks).  I'm just passing on some info , of course .

   I've also seen where holes were drilled from the outside after it was shaped. The holes were small  3/8" or smaller ,strategically placed and they were plugged with coloured pegs of precisely the length that corresponded with the wall thickness desired,+ a little for finish shaping. Something like walnut would contrast well with pine.  When you  are shaping the inside , and come to the peg, you know exactly how thick the wood is. Make sure you keep it in the shade to slow the drying. Cracking will be your worst enemy. Seal the ends right away.

Good luck with the canoe.!

[NeolithicMan]

On a documentary call "Happy People" a master boat builder hollows out a log and heat bends it into a sweet shape. cant find it right now but it is WICKED kool!

[Zuma]

You are going to need a small Navy or a strong dollie to move that canoe. 25-30 feet, even hollowed out will tip the scales close to 500 LBS...Might want to start small and work your way up. How many people are going to be helping?

I am with Mohawk. !6 feet perhaps, add outriggers untill you get the hang of it.
Convection (wind is not good for drying). You may want to consider covering the canoe with a tarp with buckets of water under the tarp also. Slow dry. The hole drilling may help with cracking and provide space for the wood to shrink into.?
I wonder if fire hardining the interior helps cure the wood?

[Scallorn]

I might cut it down to about 20-25. I will have a group of five that will all want to be in the canoe with me, so I'm sure all 5 of us could lift it. and i want it to be long enough that all five can sit in it and it still float. i guess cooking oil is out. what would y'all recommend for finish? Btw, the depth peg idea is awesome! I would have never figured something like that out

[RBLusthaus]

If my memory serves, there is a kind of build along for a dug out canoe posted a few years back on the wooden canoe heritage association site.  I am sure you could find it easy - - wcha.org.

Good luck with a large project - - and make sure you go slow and protect them elbows from tennis elbow........ and be sure to count your toes both before and after the adz hollowing sessions . . . . .

Russ

[lostarrow]

 Had my curiosity piqued so I looked on Youtube. Lots of vids from around the world. lots of different techniques.Looks a lot like bowbuilding ,in the sense that after a whole lot of work ,you could get screwed in the end  with one false move or an uncooperative piece of wood.

[Mohawk13]

Yeup. Well stated. Spent 6 months helping some friends from the Squaxim Nation build a 50 foot cedar sea going canoe. After hundreds of hours of work, decoration, blessing....It rolled over and sank. This even after float testing it and "tillering" the hull...

On a Side note, may want to try Thompson's Wood Sealer...I hear tell it works wonders on waterproofing wood canoes...(Hint)

[mullet]

My understanding is you don't need to seal it if you are using pine. The resin keeps it sealed and if you burn the center out like most of them were done it helps the resin get into the pores better.

[Scallorn]

That's what I was thinking Mullet. Even in the winter time you can break a pine tree and watch the resin ooze out. I think it should be sealed fine. I plan  on building it with a flat bottom that's slightly thicker than the sides. This way it's heavier on the bottom and should float upright in the water. Thank you RBLusthaus for bringing up the tutorial.

[Mohawk13]

Ounce of Prevention/ Pound of Cure.....Consider sealing it..Heck even put another coat of pitch and bees wax if You are so inclined....Works wonders....Keep the weight in the bottom of the canoe, gives it spine keeps it upright. Keep the sides 3/4-1"....and don't be drilling holes in it to check thickness, use calipers or a measuring string/stick...Why put a hole in a boat that can wind up being a leak or an issue later on....

[bubbles]

Could seal with pine or birch tar, isn't that what they used to seal ships with?

[seminolewind]

Theres a show on Netflix also on Youtube called "The Happy People of The Taiga" its about trappers in the expanse of the eastern Russian wilderness. There is a part on there where the native people build a dugout canoe but have some really interesting methods of doing it. These are short dugouts that are hollowed out from a narrower opening on the top of the log. Once it is completely hollowed out they flip it over on sticks and heat it up from underneath with a fire allowing them to bend out the sides with heat. Really cool method...FYI the whole show is amazing !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvrNqyX7XPQ

[Zuma]

Just watched the vid seminole. That was awesome. I like the cow recycling and the kitty.
The pups couldn't have been of much help hunting? Maybe bait. lol
Thanks for posting
Zuma

[Pat B]

Cool video, Elijah. Those guys sure did make that boat thin.