Here's a quote that is popular in the boating world:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you do. So throw off the bow lines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

- Mark Twain

This applies to boating in so many ways, and obviously the nautical references to bow lines, safe harbors and sails just draw us to it even more. Mr. Twain's quote can be applied to many aspects of boating, from the desire to buy a boat to quitting our jobs and sailing to the South Pacific. I have tended to apply it to the building of a boat, and the process that entails.

There are several sticking points in building a boat, I've found:

"¢ You have to decide to do it

"¢ You have to figure out how to afford it

"¢ You have to have family support (or you better, anyhow)

"¢ You have to choose what you are going to build. This step alone can lead to severe analysis paralysis, as I have learned all too well

"¢ You have to choose materials/methods for the build

It is this last point that I'm mainly addressing today. Often the materials and methods are specified by the designer in the general sense. I find this still leaves a lot to decide on your own. What brand of epoxy? What type of framing lumber? What type of plywood? What type of propulsion? On and on it goes.

As I've mentioned, I have made some decisions on several of these that don't match what many of the boat building world accepts as "what you do." It seems so many are building top-notch, no-expense-spared, floating works of art. These are great!

But that's not what I'm doing. I hope my boat looks nice. I intend for it to be safe and tough and usable for my desired goals. It also needs to be affordable and will be built with more easily obtained materials than some.

For framing lumber, the designer, Mark Van Abbema, recommends SYP, or Southern Yellow Pine. Many seem to scoff at this choice, while others have been pleased with its performance. Mark and builders of his designs have been satisfied. The lumber actually rates fairly well on rot resistance, it's readily available at the local home center and it is inexpensive. Being available literally right down the street means I can easily swing by and buy a few boards when the money allows, instead of saving up larger amounts for a big purchase.

For sheet goods, I'm going with ½-inch, pre-primed MDO. This gives a reasonable quality of wood (mostly Douglas Fir, although you can never be 100 percent sure what's in there), with an industrial rosin/paper coating bonded to both sides. Over that is a factory-applied primer coat.

MDO is well thought of by some builders, and others say that unless you are using the very best BS1088 rated marine ply, you shouldn't bother. Both opinions have some merit, but I've decided to "just do it." Again, availability and cost are factors. I also feel that the coatings, along with the epoxy and paints that I will cover it with, will make for a good, solid boat.

All boats require maintenance, and will fall apart in some length of time without it. Mr. Van Abbema used A/C exterior-grade ply (another product that some scoff at) that he happened upon, and was pleased with the results. His only comment when questioned was to not use pine ply, due to its much higher weight, which I can understand.

Bruce Dillahunty

I've gotten much of the 1x4 framing cut, and began cutting the plywood/MDO sections for the frames/bulkheads. I hope to get several more done soon and glue some together.

For background on the project, read my story: First Time Boat Builder Begins.