Q: Is pine a suitable wood for a strip canoe
Robert MacKinnon
cedar stip canoe because I won't be using cedar). The most common wood
available to me is either pine or spruce. Exotic woods (!) such as ash,
cedar or mahogony are very hard to come-by and expensive if you do
locate a source for them.
My question is:
Is pine (or spruce, a distant second choice) a suitable wood to use for
building a strip wood canoe? The variety most commonly available here
is "Pinus sylvestris" a.k.a. redwood, Scots pine, or Norwegian fir.
On a similar vein of questioning, can I use lime (Tilia vulgaris) a.k.a.
basswood, or linden for gunwales or is ash the best choice?
Thanks
---
Rob.
Chuck Leinweber
Basically any clear light Pine or Spruce should work. I would not use southern
yellow pine because of the weight. Why not use basswood for the strips? It's
light and even grained, and would certainly take epoxy. I would, however,
splurge for oak or ash for the gunwales. These need strength.
Hope this helps.
Chuck
Bob Peritsky
>
> I'm in the planning stages of building a strip wood canoe (can't call it
> cedar stip canoe because I won't be using cedar). The most common wood
> available to me is either pine or spruce. Exotic woods (!) such as ash,
> cedar or mahogony are very hard to come-by and expensive if you do
> locate a source for them.
>
> My question is:
> Is pine (or spruce, a distant second choice) a suitable wood to use for
> building a strip wood canoe?
Yes, you can use either pine or spruce....basswood also...the main
difference will be in weight (slighly heavier) and the grain will not be
as apparent. The boat, however, will work just fine.
Like the other poster, I would recommend using a harder wood for the
gunwales. Not so much because of strength, but since they tend to take a
beating with paddles, etc. and a soft wood like pine or cedar will show
the dents. (I have seen canoes with cedar rails used to save weight.)
Bob Peritsky
Rochester, NY
PS My third stripper (a small tandem) is currently 12 strips away from
being closed up. Good luck, and have fun building!
Varleys
Pine would probably work out fine. All you need is a pliant wood for filler
between epoxy skins. You might check your local lumber yard for cedar stock
though. I find it as lumber for housing, trim etc. Tight knots are also no
problem. I also built one from cedar edging for lawns. It comes in rough thin
boards (1/4") three or four inches high in long lengths and it worked out fine
fine.
I'd stay away from hardwood except for trim. Ash seems to work the best because
the gunwales take an awful beating in use and getting on and off the car.
Good luck!
Robert MacKinnon
>Hi, Rob
>Pine would probably work out fine. All you need is a pliant wood for filler
>between epoxy skins. You might check your local lumber yard for cedar stock
>though. I find it as lumber for housing, trim etc.
Thanks to everyone for the advice.
I _know_ I will not find cedar at any local wood supply because cedar
is not an indiginous species in Europe (I live in Norway). It has been
planted in the UK but it woule be far too expensive to import even just
across the North Sea. I'd therefore like to stick to domestic species.
So my choices are Norwegian fir or European spruce. I've been reading
and absorbing alot of information about strip boat construction since I
posted this question and I've changed my mind about using spruce. From
what I've read, it is a fine wood for boatbuilding.
As suggested, I'll use a hardwood like oak or teak for the trim
(gunwales, decks, etc.). Teak is my preference -- it doesn't really
matter since both these species are the same linear metre price here
(arrgghh! can you believe it?).
FYI, I picked up Ted Moores' book recently and have decided on a Redbird
design.
---
Rob.
---
Rob.
John McCoy
>Hi, Rob
>Pine would probably work out fine. All you need is a pliant wood for filler
>between epoxy skins. You might check your local lumber yard for cedar stock
>though. I find it as lumber for housing, trim etc. Tight knots are also no
>problem. I also built one from cedar edging for lawns. It comes in rough thin
>boards (1/4") three or four inches high in long lengths and it worked out fine
>fine.
If you're getting your lumber from a construction supply place, or from the
likes of Home Depot, be aware that much of that lumber is relatively poorly
dried, and may be sappy or have sizable pitch pockets. Choose the
wood you're going to use carefully.
John
THOMAS BARRIE
choose, it will help if you put one coat of epoxy on the trim first, then
varnish.
Tom in Minnesota
Robert MacKinnon <r...@doglover.com> wrote in message
news:37ac4d48...@news.online.no...
> (arrgghh! can you believe it> Rob.