Nearly finished with the finish on my Coho

[WestCoastPaddler]

Well, I'm finally putting the final finish on my Coho.

Today, I finished wet sanding the deck to 1200 grit and started buffing the area between the front hatch and the bow with Mequiar's Machine Glaze compound. When I saw how the finish was coming out I was just giddy with excitement -- if the rest of the boat turns out this nice, I'm going to be very pleased. So I'm here to brag a little bit on the bragging board:

I've still got a few more hours to go but I'm hoping that I'll be able to finish the job over the next week or so.

I can hardly wait to take her out to get that lived-in appearance that only a few scratches can achieve. :twisted:

 

[JEM]

beautiful work! 8)

 

[oldsparkey]

When you get done and out on the water , if you like your Coho as much as I like mine you will be a happy paddler. I call it my speed boat.

Looks to me like you got the Sapele ( Entandrophragma cylindricum wood ) Limited Edition Coho.

Chuck.
PS. I think I saw a finger print on it , better check. Not positive since it was shinning so bright.

 

[bearridge]

Friend Dan,

I see a big problem with the boats you fellas been buildin' lately. The law iz likely ta pull ya over, figgerin' ya'll stole 'em frum the museum. :wink:

an awed
bearridge

That all men are created equal is a proposition to which, at ordinary times, no sane individual has ever given his assent. Aldous Huxley

 

[Kayak Jack]

Going to be a heavy boat, Dan. That finish looks a foot deep!

Very nice work, and yes, "A well scratched boat is a well loved boat."

 

[WestCoastPaddler]

Thanks for all the kind words guys.

Chuck, I've already paddled this boat -- while on a ten day trip on the Bowron Lakes last August, so I do know how well it paddles -- and you're absolutely correct, it's a pretty fast boat. And yes, it is the Sapele version -- cost a few more bucks and will show the scratches more than Okoume, but it really does look nice.

Jack, the boat has weighed in at 46 pounds, which puts it in the general range of most kevlar kayaks.

 

[oldsparkey]

As Pygmy said....
Sapele is a denser hardwood and weighs almost twice as much as the top quality Okoume. This is why only the face veneer of these boats is the Sapele The other two plys are Okoume which adds about 5 more pounds to the Coho.

My Coho which is Okoume weighs 39 pounds so yours is right in the ball park at 46 pounds.

Chuck.

 

[hairymick]

Heya Dan,

:shock: :shock:

Congratulations mate. That boat is magnificent. Like Bear, I too am in awe of your skill and craftsmanship. I would be too frightened to put that one in the water for fear of marking your lovely finish.

Bloody well done mate. She is well an truly deserving of a humble Koori blessing.

May the spirits bless your beautiful boat.
and all who paddle in her.

May she allways track straight and true,
and the wind and tide be at your back

 

[WestCoastPaddler]

Thanks for blessing my boat, Mick. It's appreciated.

And thanks for the turtle too.

Managed to get a couple of hours of shop time today:

 

[paddlin4reds]

Mornin';
"...Gorgeous!" 8)

 

[BEARS BUDDY]

One awestruck WOW!

 

[dawallace45]

Dan

Absolutely beautiful finish , that is the sort of finish I've long wanted to achieve on my boats and will be aiming for near that on my next canoe ,

On another note a old shooting mate of mine many years ago decided to build a kayak , he was a hobby woodworker and did beautiful work but he was also a professional spray painter and used to specialise in murals and such on the sides of vans and on motor bike fuel tanks , used to get big money for it , truely a artist with a spray guy , so he went and built this kayak and it was beautiful , don't know how many coats of clear he put on it but it looked magnificent he reckoned the finish took almost as long as the kayak , the first time he took it down to the Brisbane river to try it out a guy who was loading a kayak onto his BMW come over and had a look at it , he was rapt , asked my mate how much he wanted for it , mate said it wasn't for sale but guy kept pestering him so finally he told the guy he could have it for $6000 , guy said done , asked if he would still be about in a hour as it would take him that long to drop his kayak off home and go to the bank , when the mate got back from his paddle the guy was waiting with the cash , guy also asked for his phone number as he though that some of his mates would want one too , 2 days later he had several guys ring wanting kayaks just the same as the one sold to their mate at the same price , that would have been about 20 years ago now , and when I left south east Queensland 12 years ago the mate was charging $10,000 per kayak and would only build 6 per year , he had some thing like a 3 or 4 year waiting list then and a buyer had to come up with half the purchase price to get on the waiting list , mate was getting the plywood CNC cut to save time as he preferred to spend most of his time paddling , hunting and fishing rather than working , he's never advertised , all his business comes from word of mouth and each one is signed and numbered and has the name of the buyer , he's had a fair number of return buyers who want one for their wives or children , most of them seem to go to people who are doctors , lawyers or stock brokers , way , way out of my price range

David

 

[oldsparkey]

Check this out ........ http://www.woodsongcanoes.com/ They are the Mona Lisa of wood boats.

Same thing , Phillip was not charging enough for his work and artistry.. Then at one boat showing a well know builder told him to increase the price for his work. Guess what .. his sales have increased and so has the cost of one of his creations.

Beautiful wood boats are something that can only be hand crafter and then appreciated by everyone. They are not boats they are works of art to be enjoyed , paddled or just looked at .... I think the last part is a total waste. Paddle them , that is when there beauty really shines.

Chuck.

 

[catfish]

outa my price range too, i can see me now telling my better half i paid #6000 for a what!!!!!!!!!!!! they are beutiful , but chuck u are right the only thing i could do with one them is look @ it. don,t believe i would want to run it up on no okee cypres knee. (cat)

 

[bearridge]

Friend catfish,

Think coffin. Once upon a time I seen this place in Colorado that made the ole time coffins like the one Little Bill Daggett had put Ned Logan in....out in front of Skinny's Saloon in Big Whiskey. However, they made shelf inserts so it kin be bookcase til yer time iz up. They had inserts fer wine bottles in case ya caint read. It wuz fine lookin' wood jest rite fer the livin' room.

I dont see why ya caint do the same with a pirogue 'er kayak. Ya buy what ya want, then tell her it jest saved $5000 at the undertaker.....less ya planned on bein' burnt up like me 'n most everbody I know.

It strikes me that it would be eazy ta pull some pall bearer handles 'n a top on a pirogue. Aye Laddie......

regards
bearridge

Lack of money is the root of all evil. George Bernard Shaw

 

[WestCoastPaddler]

I dunno Bearridge, saying "kayak" and "coffin" in the same sentence doesn't seem right to me. But making a kayak into a coffin seems just plain wrong. :shock:

Those Wood Song boats are gorgeous. I'd have a problem paddling one of those -- they really are works of art. My kayak is nowhere near the quality of those boats.

I'm going to paddle my boat like it's a boat. I built it for me with the intention of paddling it and not worrying about every little scratch. To me, it's a piece of equipment that gets me to places that I want to visit. In all honesty, I really don't think anyone doing any serious paddling needs a boat with a finish like this. It just happens that I really enjoy the woodworking element of the process and especially the finishing aspect of it. I find wood an amazing material to work with -- add some modern plastics to the mix and some phenomenal things can be achieved. I enjoy working the wood and epoxy until it turns into something that doesn't even resemble it's former form. But still, it's just a boat to me. A shiny boat, but a boat nonetheless.

Now if I paid $10,000 for a shiny boat like those from Wood Song I'm sure I'd be doing everything that I could to avoid even the smallest of scratches -- it's bottom would never touch a sandy beach. Or if it were a gift or something like that, I'd do everything I could to avoid putting a mark on it. But fortuntely for me, I didn't pay big bucks for it, nor did anyone give it to me -- I built it and I can always build another.

Maybe one day I'll build a coffee table, but for now I'm going paddling.

 

[JEM]

I dunno Bearridge, saying "kayak" and "coffin" in the same sentence doesn't seem right to me. But making a kayak into a coffin seems just plain wrong. :shock:

If you read the Messing About in Boats magazine, there's an ad in the back of it for hand made, "traditional" marine coffins.

 

[WestCoastPaddler]

Finished!

 

[oldsparkey]

Dan

That is one good looking lady , she has to turn some heads when she is and about.
The finish you got on her looks like glass and I bet when a person is next to her they can see themselves several miles deep in that finish. Just seeing her siting on those rocks makes me cringe.

Chuck.

 

[Kayak Jack]

Very nice job, Dan. Classy lassy.