Thread: Goat Island Skiff

Paulie,

If you do decide to steal or modify the hoop system... there are some additional components we use. First - I do string a cord fore & aft to supply a ridgeline to help support the canvas. A trucker's hitch - cinched down tight - tensions the cord, and also helps hold the hoops down. Second - I rigged a spacer that fits in the tiller slot. The spacer holds the canvas out away from the transom a bit, and allows some circulation. That way, any moisture that accumulates has a chance to evacuate, instead of being turned into a rot-promoting steam bath under that dark blue cover.

G'luck

Hi Nemo here.

I have a dory which i store outside. A cheap and nasty but very effective cover was knocked up in ten minutes (some including Mik may recognize cheap nasty and nemo in same text, grin)

I had an offcut of ply that was rounded tombstone size and shape about a metre tall and half a metre wide. Put a small notch top dead centre and stood ply up along side centre seat, athwart boat, ran a line (the very long launching painter) from bow across notch and to transom. draped two el cheapo tarps over this "frame" and used spring clamps (every boat builder has heaps) to fasten the tarps to the underside of the trailer guards and to pinch excess tarp at bow and stern. Dory has high prow and high narrow transom so steep slopes mean rain and leaves, dunno about snow, just glide off. So far very windproof.

Works a treat: with green side of tarps out, boat disappears into the jungle that is our garden (She who must be obeyed likes this touch) and the long skirt protects the trailer.

It is NOT a mobile cover but all collapses into the boat when towing if you need to.

About that long painter. I launch single handed three - four times a week so at the ramp just unfasten the boat from trailer, fasten bitter end of painter to launch jetty, and reverse quickly and stop suddenly. Boat bunks are lubed with dishwasher liquid so dory launches like Apollo IV and floats well away and I have dry feet and only one get in-out of truck.

"for efficiency's sake always have one lazy person on the team"
"the technical term for gardening without using petrol is 'aintgunnagetdone'"

captn Nemo

Thanks, Nemo. That's sort of what I was thinking about before I saw arbordg's hoops, except that I had envisioned something rigid instead of rope along the top. I don't know why. Anything rigid would be heavy and difficult. I like the idea of using rope better.

Now that I have a couple of ideas, I will have to dig through my scrap pile and see what I have to work with. I like the hoops, but I'm sure I have more scrap plywood. We'll see what I come up with.

As for a dolly, I really want something more lightweight than a road-ready trailer. The ramp is only 100 yards from my house. I'd rather not have to hook the boat to my car to move it that far. I want something light enough that I can drag the whole affair back up to the house by myself.

There exist commercial aluminum dollies which would be just right, but they run $500 (US) new. I'd like to build something out of scrap wood and lawn mower wheels if I can. Time to start experimenting.

If storing the boat for a fair amount of time it can be best to store it upside down with bricks or something in the corners to hold it up off the ground and covered.

Beware of kittens or possums accumulating in buoyancy tanks though.

It has happened.

MIK

Goat on Facebook?

There was a great deal of Goat interest at the Woodenboat show.

Clint brought his part complete yawl down - some bare timber and some epoxy. Pauli brought his "rowing version as the last stage before sailing" version along - all black and varnish. Christophe was helping Clint with his boatbuilding class.

Through the weekend I met another five builders or owners of Goats, including a couple from below the radar. Was great to have a chat with Davlafont and his dad and be photographed by his brother!

Additionally the boat seems to have really good recognition with several saying "so this is a GIS". Excellent. Maybe we can have one sailing around next year?

Anyway, I thought that considering that lots of people know what one is that I would start a facebook page for goats and add news and info to that as well as this forum.

At the moment I have to "accept" new members before they can post. But if I can get some more lieutenants I will probably open it up.

Have a look at
Goat Island Skiff on Facebook

And join up if you like the idea.

MIK

My plan is to volunteer in Family Boat Building next year. I can't imagine that the organizers would prevent me from parking my Goat (which will have a working sailing rig on it by then) near the tent so I can keep an eye on it. And if I happen to have a spare hour or two at some point, who could blame me for taking it for a little spin around the lagoon?

Great plan Paul!

I am beginning to understand that it might have been better to build the spars first, before building the hull. I've got oars -- crappy ones, but they work -- and the weather has been beautiful. So every time I have a spare hour I've been out on the water rather than working on the mast. If it doesn't start raining, I won't finish the sailing rig until winter.

Hmmm... who should be checking up on whom?

Yep, I'm happy I got the mast and foils out of the way first. I wish I had built the rudder case/tiller then also. I built it last and still have only one coat of epoxy on it so it's usable but can't seem to find the time to finish it

Oh and no oars yet.

Yeehaw! My friend Tom just left his thickness planer in my garage. I had cut my mast staves over the weekend and the spacers yesterday. I'll plane the staves to the right thickness tonight. If I can carve a little time tomorrow and Thursday for gluing, I just might have something vaguely mast-shaped by the weekend.

Getting closer. I can almost taste it.

Staves planed. Ladder frame glued and taped up. The glue will set fast in this heat. I might be able to get the other two staves on tonight.

[Okay, I'll admit it: I played hookey from work for an hour this morning to glue up the frame. But that's what working from home is all about, right? Having the flexibility to handle emergencies? And doesn't this qualify as an "emergency"? I think it does.]

But I have a bone to pick with the collective here. Why didn't anyone warn me that gluing up the frame is really a 2-person job? Why don't the plans have red writing saying, "Do not attempt this alone unless you want to get epoxy EVERYWHERE and repeatedly shout words you can't say on the radio!"? Yeah, I got the job done. But it sure would have been easier with a helper.

Yeah, I think boat-related items qualify as Emergencies.

As far as a two-man job with the ladder, you're doing it wrong. It should be relatively easy. I wish you had video-taped it so we could watch the wrastling with the epoxy 'gator!

Now on the other hand, gluing up the hull is pretty much a two man job (though I did it almost all solo with lots of swearing and tool throwing and my wife walking in just as I was about to tack on the last corner of the transom-- which led to much less swearing and a completed boat).

Paul, I want to commiserate, but I didn't run into such difficulties. I will recommend that you do the two wide staves individually. That way, you're clamping and taping to a rigid object (the ladder) not another squishy object (the opposite wide stave).

Anyway, the cursing and gnashing of teeth is good therapy and makes the product that much more meaningful to you (or so my yard and boom experience has taught me)!