This book is included in the Self Reliance Transportation section.
Preface
THE character and object of this book are set forth on its
title page. It is a manual designed for the practical assistance
of those who wish to build their own canoes
The number of boating men who find pleasure merely in
sailing a boat is small compared with those who delight not
only in handling, but as well in planning, building, improving
or "tinkering" generally on their pet craft, and undoubtedly
the latter derive the greater amount of pleasure from
the sport. They not only feel a pride in the result of their
work, but their pleasure goes on, independent of the seasons.
No sooner do cold and ice interfere with sport afloat than
the craft is hauled up, dismantled, and for the next half
year becomes a source of unlimited pleasure to her owner
and a nuisance to his family and friends. We know one
eminent canoeist who keeps a fine canoe in his cellar and
feeds her on varnish and brass screws for fifty weeks of
every year.
This class of boating men, to whom, by the way, most of
the improvements in boats and sails are due, usually labor
under great disadvantages. Their time for such work is
limited; they have not the proper outfit of shop and tools,
nor the practical knowledge and skill only acquired by the
professional builder after years of careful and patient labor ;
and the latter as a class are unwilling to communicate freely
what they have acquired with so much difficulty, and are
seldom willing to assist the amateur, even with advice. His
only other source of information is reading, and while there
are books treating of the construction of large vessels, and
others of the use of boats, there are none giving precisely
the instructions needed by the beginner in boat building.
Having experienced most of the trials and mishaps that
fall to the lot of the tyro, we offer in these pages such help
as has proved of the greatest value to ourselves. To the
professional builder, some of the instructions may seem elementary
and unnecessary; but it must be remembered that
we are not writing for him, who by long practice has acquired
an accuracy of eye and dexterity, that enable him to
shorten, or to dispense altogether with many of the operations
described. We are writing for the amateur who, in
default of this training, must make up for it by extra care
and patience, even at the expense of time, and the methods
given are those which have proved best adapted to his peculiar
requirements.
Canoe building is treated in detail, as the processes involved
are common to all boatbuilding, only requiring greater
care and skill than ordinary work; and the principles, once
mastered, may be applied to the construction of any of the
simpler craft, such as rowboats and skiffs.
It has been impossible to give due credit to the originators
for many of the devices and inventions described; but to all
such we return thanks in behalf of the great army of amateur
builders and sailors, in which we claim a place.
Contents INTRODUCTION DESIGNING MODEL MAKING LAYING DOWN METHODS OF BUILDING TOOLS AND MATERIALS BUILDING WELLS APRONS PADDLES SAILS AND RIGGING CENTERBOARDS RUDDERS TABERNACLES TENTS AND BEDS STOVES AND LAMPS CANVAS CANOES BOAT BUILDING APPENDIX DESCRIPTION OF PLATES
INTRODUCTION.
THE word canoe has two distinct meanings, having been
applied, for how long a lime no one knows, to boats of
long and narrow proportions, sharp at both ends and propelled
by paddles held in the hand, without a fixed fulcrum,
the crew facing forward. The members of this great family
vary greatly in size and model, from the kayak of the Esquimau,
to the long war canoes, 80 to 100 feet long, of the
islands of the Pacific. Within the past twenty years the word
has been applied in England and America in a more limited
sense, to small craft used for racing, traveling and exploring,
as well as the general purposes of a pleasure boat, the main
essentials being those mentioned above, while sails and a deck
are usually added, the double paddle being used exclusively.
In Canada the term has for a long time been applied to a
similar boat, used for hunting and fishing, without decks,
and propelled by a single paddle. The following pares will
refer only to the second meaning given, as the one of most
importance to the amateur builder, and as the instructions
given will apply equally to the simpler and less complicated
Canadian open canoe.
The modern canoe which, although in use for some years
previously, may be said to date from Mr. MacGregor's
cruises and books, 1865, 6 and 7, was in its early years
divided into two distinct classes, Rob Roy and Nautilus, to
which a third, Ringleader, was afterward added, but the
many changes and improvements have so multiplied the
models, that such names as Nautilus, Pearl, Shadow, Jersey
Blue, etc., convey no definite idea of the boat's model or
dimension. There are now no less than nine widely different
models named Nautilus, SLX named Pearl, the Jersey
Blue has changed entirely, and half a dozen builders each
offer a different Shadow, while dozens of other models have
sprung up, so that such a division is no longer possible.
Modern canoes may, however, be classed in a different
manner, according to the relative proportions of their paddling
and sailing qualities, thus:
Paddling Canoes - Propelled solely by paddle.
Sailable Paddling - Sail being used as auxiliary, as in the early Rob Roy.
Sailing and Paddling - Both qualities being about equal, as in most cruising canoes.
Paddleable Sailing - Fitted mainly for sailing, as the later English boats, the paddle being auxiliary.
Sailing - Larger boats for two or three, using oars as auxiliaries, as the Mersey canoes.
For racing purposes a different classification has been
adopted here, which, with the English, is given in the Appendix.
The first point in building a canoe is to decide on the
model and dimensions, and this each man must do for himself,
considering carefully the purpose for which he will use
his canoe, the water she will sail on, the load to be carried,
and similar details. The designs given cover all the different
classes of canoes, and from them one can be selected as
a basis for modification and improvement, to suit the builder.
The following general directions will aid the novice in deciding
on the main features of his craft:
For small streams and rivers, where portages have to be
made, and sailing is of but little importance, a canoe
14 ft. x 27 in. is most commonly used. She should have a flat
floor, little or no keel, ends well rounded, little sheer. For
general cruising work under sail and paddle, a canoe 14 ft. x
30 in., with flat floor, good bearings, sternpost nearly upright,
model full enough to carry crew and stores easily, a keel of
2 to 3 in. or a centerboard. For large rivers, bays and open
waters, a canoe 14 ft. x 33 in. or 15 ft x 31 in., fitted with a metal
centerboard of greater or less weight. The tyro will be safe
In following either of these types, according to his purpose,
as they are the ones usually preferred by canoeists.
Any object floating in water will sink until it displaces a
weight of water equal to its own weight, thus with a canoe,
if the hull weighs 90 lbs., fittings 13 lbs., sails and spars 15 lbs.,
crew 145 lbs., and tent, stores, etc., 50 lbs., the total weight
being 313 lbs., it will sink until it displaces 313 Ibs. of water, 313/62.5 = 5
cubic feet, as one cubic foot of fresh water weighs
62.5 lbs. If in salt water, the divisor would be 65, a foot of
the latter being 2 lbs, heavier than fresh.
Now, if that portion of our canoe which is below her proposed
waterline contains less than 5 cu. ft., through being
cut away too much, the boat will sink deeper than was intended,
diminishing the freeboard and increasing the draft.
This fault is found in some of the smaller canoes with fine
lines, as when loaded to their full capacity they sink so deep
as to be hard to paddle, and unsafe in rough water. To
guard against it, a rather full model is desirable for cruising,
where stores, etc., must be carried, it being hardly necessary
to calculate the displacement, as is done with larger boats.
If, in making a model, a block of wood be taken 14 in.
long, 2-1/2 in. wide and 1/2 in. thick, or one-twelfth as large each
way as the portion of a 14ft. canoe below water, it will contain
17.5 cu. in., and if our model, when cut from this block,
contains but 5 cu. in., it will be 5/17.5 or .28 of the original block.
This fraction, .28, is called the coefficient of the displacement,
and expresses the proportion between the bulk of the
boat below water and a solid whose dimensions are the
length on loadline, the beam on loadline, and the depth from
loadline to the outside of the bottom next the keel. In
yachts it varies from .25 to .50, the former being called
"light displacement" and the latter "heavy displacement''
boats.
The displacement can be obtained, if desired, by first
weighing the entire block, and after cutting out the model
weighing that also, the ratio of one to the other being the
coefficient of displacement mentioned above.
In the first class of canoes referred to, it is important to
have the draft as light as is possible, as they are used often
in very shoal waters. If built with a flat floor they need not
draw over 4-1/2 or 5 in., the keel adding about 1 in. more.
Canoes of the second class usually draw Gin. exclusive of
keel, which varies from 1 to 3 in., the latter being the extreme
limit allowed by the Association rules. The larger
canoes are mostly centerboard boats, and draw from 6 to
7 in. with no outside keel. The draft should be decided on
and the position of the waterline fixed in the design, and the
canoe trimmed to it as nearly as possible at first, changes in
the ballasting being afterward made if they seem necessary.
The freeboard is the distance from the water to the deck,
and in most canoes it is less than it should be. The "least
freeboard," or the distance from the water to the lowest
point of the deck, may be 4, 5, and 6 in. respectively for each
of the classes.
The curve of the gunwale from the bow downward to the
middle of the boat, and up again at the stern, is called the
sheer. The height of the bow above the point where the
freeboard is least, is usually 3 in. in the first class of canoes,
and 6 to 7 in. in the latter two, the stern being about 2 in.
lower than the bow in each.
The rocker is the curve of the keel upward from a straight
line, and should be about 2 in. for a 14 ft. boat.
The midship section is a section across the boat at its
greatest beam, and on its shape the model of the boat largely
depends. As a canoe must carry a comparatively heavy
load on alight draft, and must sail with little ballast, a flat
floor is desirable. The sides should be vertical or slightly
flaring, the "tumble home" or rolling in of the upper streak
detracting from stability, and being of no use.
The round of deck may be 3 in. in a 27 in. boat, and 3-1/2 in.
in a 30 to 33 in. boat, as a high crown adds greatly to the
room below, frees the deck quickly of water, and no valid
objection can be made to it.
End of Preview.
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