making things and lobster buoys

Listmates: The latest /WoodenBoat/ magazine has a piece on the restoration of the Charles W. Morgan at Mystic Seaport. It includes some mini-profiles of the shipwrights working on the project. One was a young guy who said he was amazed at how none of his friends know how to make things, and they were equally amazed that he does. This gets back to my rant about shop class (or the modern lack thereof). As a kid I was lucky because my father and neighbors all knew how to make things, and I learned by watching and by doing. I had friends who were completely clueless. Their dads did not have or use tools and they had no chance to use them either. I've also subscribed for a long time to a magazine called /Old House Journal/. Years ago it was about how to do things: "here's how to replace a window sill in a double-hung window." Now it's about style and what your contractor should do. "Have your contractor replace those nasty sills with Honduras mahogany." I prefer doing things myself, if they seem feasible. This weekend I tried lobster buoy paint on the vinyl rubrail on my Cal 20. The paint is from Hamilton Marine. I'll report on effectiveness later (my brother asked, "Is it going to peel off the first time you slide against a piling?). It was a bit picky--the solvent evaporated quickly, making it hard to keep a wet edge. It's not exactly a high-gloss outcome, but if it keeps the chalk off of me and my clothes, it will be an improvement. I couldn't find the MSDS on the manufacturer's web site so I've e-mailed them about it--adding some solvent on warm and windy days might be helpful for application. Chris Campbell

For a deeper insight, see Shop Class as Soul Craft, by Matthew B. Crawford (check your local bookstore or Amazon if you prefer). Crawford makes an argument that the interaction of materials and tools with the human brain is an important component of inner growth.

On 4/16/2012 11:52 AM, geobarlow wrote: > > For a deeper insight, see Shop Class as Soul Craft, by Matthew B. > Crawford (check your local bookstore or Amazon if you prefer). > Crawford makes an argument that the interaction of materials and tools > with the human brain is an important component of inner growth. > I've got it and read it. Those who have been on the list may remember that I just sent my 91-year-old grade-school shop teacher a letter with a page of photos of my 8th grade wood and metal working projects. Between the teacher and my dad and neighbors (Mr. Phillips, Walter MacLean) and the Oldsmobile mechanic who let me watch him work (Jim Dinsmore), I figured out how to work on things. It is hard to imagine feeling completely disconnected from the material things that surround us in our lives, but some people are. > > > > If you can't or won't work on things yourself, you will be > yard-whipped out of boating. I wouldn't recommend boat ownership to > anyone who isn't prepared to enjoy the hours spent tinkering with a boat. > Actually, no. The marina is happy to do it for you, for a price. And they don't care if your boat looks bad as long as you pay the storage and dockage bills. You can tell pretty quickly who attends to their boats and who doesn't. You can walk down the dock and see the boats that are secured with a rat's nest of line making a mound on a cleat and the ones that haven't had attention to finish or detail in years. Those of us who are judgmental (and I'm judgmental as hell when it comes to boats) will judge, but the marina lets you stay if you pay. The marina actually discourages DIY more and more. There are "no sanding" rules in the buildings and a new rule about shore power cords being store-bought marine grade. I can understand that (incompetence can affect safety, and some people were heedless about the sanding mess) but I grumble that I'm paying the price for the incompetent when I am not (usually). Every year my time spent in the boat barn is rewarded by the oohs and ahs of dock-walkers who admire my other boat, with lots of varnished mahogany and spruce. The Cal 20 lies on a mooring and is a bit harder to appreciate at a distance, but I want observers to see a boat that shows that her owner wants things right. People who keep the boat pretty usually also keep the boat's systems functional and the boat safe. Chris Campbell

My goal this week was to paint the bottom 1 inch of hull. It is the white under the blue boot stripe just above the waterline. I taped it off but was told that I would not be able to sand just that area so I should tape above the boot stripe and the yard would add back the boot stripe before launch. I did that but found that, when removing a bit of the tape, paint came with it. So I took off the tape and am sanding up about 18 inches on the hull. Doing that I also found a couple of splits. I take a small saw and cut the seam, then glue in a thin piece of Mahogany. I am 4 days into this project and 3 days behind. I started out to paint 1 inch of the boat and am going to paint half the hull instead. Boats! Allen On Mon, Apr 16, 2012 at 9:50 AM, Chris Campbell <cc… [at] lsnm.org> wrote: > ** > > > ** On 4/16/2012 11:52 AM, geobarlow wrote: > > > > For a deeper insight, see Shop Class as Soul Craft, by Matthew B. Crawford > (check your local bookstore or Amazon if you prefer). Crawford makes an > argument that the interaction of materials and tools with the human brain > is an important component of inner growth. > > > I've got it and read it. Those who have been on the list may remember > that I just sent my 91-year-old grade-school shop teacher a letter with a > page of photos of my 8th grade wood and metal working projects. Between > the teacher and my dad and neighbors (Mr. Phillips, Walter MacLean) and > the Oldsmobile mechanic who let me watch him work (Jim Dinsmore), I figured > out how to work on things. It is hard to imagine feeling completely > disconnected from the material things that surround us in our lives, but > some people are. > > > > If you can't or won't work on things yourself, you will be yard-whipped > out of boating. I wouldn't recommend boat ownership to anyone who isn't > prepared to enjoy the hours spent tinkering with a boat. > > > Actually, no. The marina is happy to do it for you, for a price. And they > don't care if your boat looks bad as long as you pay the storage and > dockage bills. You can tell pretty quickly who attends to their boats and > who doesn't. You can walk down the dock and see the boats that are secured > with a rat's nest of line making a mound on a cleat and the ones that > haven't had attention to finish or detail in years. Those of us who are > judgmental (and I'm judgmental as hell when it comes to boats) will judge, > but the marina lets you stay if you pay. > > The marina actually discourages DIY more and more. There are "no sanding" > rules in the buildings and a new rule about shore power cords being > store-bought marine grade. I can understand that (incompetence can affect > safety, and some people were heedless about the sanding mess) but I grumble > that I'm paying the price for the incompetent when I am not (usually). > > Every year my time spent in the boat barn is rewarded by the oohs and ahs > of dock-walkers who admire my other boat, with lots of varnished mahogany > and spruce. The Cal 20 lies on a mooring and is a bit harder to appreciate > at a distance, but I want observers to see a boat that shows that her owner > wants things right. People who keep the boat pretty usually also keep the > boat's systems functional and the boat safe. > > Chris Campbell > > >