Not only is this guy an absolute expert at what he is doing, he is also incredibly good at clearly explaining exactly what he is doing, and why. Two completely different skills, and a master of both. What a great video.
Have you ever taken data from a design like Lou's and done fluid dynamic s test/simulations and been able to make tweeks for optimization (recognizing traditional designs are arrived at through years of real world trial and error over infinite real world variables/operating environment and ware, with available materials/methods... I.e. planing & high speed turning (with that following sea Lou spoke of when building his flattie work skiff - divert'n) slow trolling, static mooring and trailering)... I imagine radical shifts for optimization could render the method unworkable... But it would be interesting if application of technology to design would impact it appreciably.... Or just guide a few optimizing tweeks here and there within tolerances of the traditional/Lou method and materials???
Thanks for the mention! Throughly enjoy your videos and find what you do fascinating. Keep up the good work and take some time to put some miles on that panhead! Ride safe!
I am absolutely obsessed with this boat build Lou! By far my favorite project on RU-vid. I wish someone would put together a round table with You, Wintergarten (marble machine X) , Torbjorn the blacksmith, Essential Craftsman, etc etc for a live Q&A.
Lou you always deliver great information and videos. Thank you very much. The view of the bottom from the bow really shows the wonderful curves and shape of the bottom. This is going to be another beauty. Take care.
Great video!! Because of Lou I've bought a few planes and chisels, using hand tools on wood is so satisfying. The old quality tools are getting hard to find and very expensive. Better get yours soon.
I'd have to disagree, it takes more work to build a crapper or anything else with bad materials. Encouraging quality and expertise is what will keep traditional skills alive.
Wow, the shape is even more beautiful and more fair than I was picturing. This is set to be a gorgeous boat. I loved the flat bottom skiff, but I think this is shaping up to be my new favorite small boat on YT. I'm loving this build, and enjoying each video, but I am really looking forward to the Orca recreation too. 😀
She is coming right along and looking great! One thing I noticed as you laid on the planking is how big the skiff is for a 23 foot boot. Looking forward to your next video.
My grandfather grew up building boats and ships near Dundee Harbor in Scotland. He came to the states as a teen, doing carpentry, wheelwright, and as a teamster. Out of large old growth cedar and california oak, he built river work boats and wagons, furniture and buildings and mills , etc. My dad had a boat for years, that was one he helped his dad make when he was 10. By the time I came along it was still water worthy but only on lakes, and powered by a 20 horse hand steered outboard. It was kind of like your work skiff design. I remember it had a keel about 6 inches below the stern and tapered up to the stem. Every spring he would "scuff it up" and re-varnish and/or oil. It was built in 1929-30. I learned to swim and fish in that boat. It was destroyed in 1964 when that side of the storage shed burned. Watching your videos is like a connection to the days of craftmanship, and pride in the work. Thanks Louis!
Look for a apprenticeship... write Lou..mot too many young folks are willing to work hard..a real craftsman is looking for a young person willing to work hard..put those two together. Show yourself above all others..you will stand out and will have offers coming after you!
AJ Lewis what part of the world do you live in? I am 85 and have always loved boats and boat building. It is great for a young man to have a direction when he is your age. My hobby now days is model building.
Fun to watch! Why wouldn’t you coat the backside of the planks and all the internal structure with epoxy or varnish? It will obviously be getting wet in there.
I am intrigued into your thought of the bilge, with a deck that drains to bilge depending so much on a bilge pump. Traditionally fast water that enters, should exit the boat just as fast(via a wave or heavy rain), do you plan on having gravity drains also? Seems scary to depend soley on a pump to remove water from the boat.
This is not meant as criticism. Original work is amazing and so meaningful. My question is how do you try to match the angles of the two sides of the curved bow section? From the camera, the port side of the bow does not appear as sharp at the keel as the starboard side.
I hoping for a plywood boat that my Boy Scouts can build while following you on you tube. Maybe that can be another project and make the plans available. Say a 12 foot boat that can be rowed or powered with a small motor.
The old single-planked skiffs of this shape, needed all those forward cross-planks to be laboriously carved down from much thicker stock, to finish in the twisted orientation each plank ends up with. Only with this scheme of two much thinner layers of wood planking, can this hull shape be achieved by dry-bending/twisting them into place as shown here. He spoke of his reasoning for adapting to this modern layered process, including the need for the fiberglass to enhance stiffness, stability and water-tightness, in an earlier episode. I don't think you will ever find Lou advocating "always" using fiberglass. But the scheme has clear advantages in this case. Another case in point, was the modernized composite-construction version of a traditional-shaped dory he did on this channel, a couple years ago. He explains his reasoning for the similar adaptations there too. That turned out a particularly beautiful little dory-tender, of surprisingly fast performance for a short, lightweight rowboat. And even more so than that dory, this power-skiff being built much lighter than the original working boats of this type, should show major improvements in performance compared to its ancestors.
How will the wood in between the two waterproof layers dry, after the outer layer has got some scratches and punctures and water starts soaking the wood?
It's a technique for boat construction that cannot be simply explained. If you're truly interested, then read the book, "The Gougeon Brothers on Boat Construction." I have had a hard copy version for 30 years, but I think you can now find it online as a PDF. If you read that book it details how the construction ensures the boat is waterproof.
she will be a better ride in a big sea i have a tri hull stable /wet- better for intercoastal waters the previous flat bottom inside an out, was a great work boat =stable w/gunnels
How do you intend to paint the underside of those bottom planks (inside bottom when the boat's righted) with that floor platform permanently installed over it?
Hey Lou, I might have missed it in the video, but why do you do the first layer of fiberglass and then cover that up with another layer of planking? Is that just a strength thing?
The shape is sea worthy, but should the second layer of planking be replaced with honey cone, or a sheet of foam? It's going to be sealed all the way around anyways, so why use wood? Wood still can't handle confined places, it's only going to spoil the fiberglass bond by sucking moisture and swelling and rotting between the sheets, so why use it? Just but some synthetic material between the layers of fiberglass, and save some weight and add stability in the process.
EXCELLENT point!, I watch Parley Revival channel and Colin repairs hurricane damaged catamarans with hull damage. The balsa core always soaks up water and rots. He always tears out the damaged core and replaces with synthetic material.
@@paulhollyfield6044 Thanks! Wood is still very much alive material, no matter when it's cut, what type of wood or how small is the cut piece. It hosts bacteria and fungi, and expands and contracts with the seasons. When it's concealed it can't breathe, and therefore the bacteria and fungi can thrive with no hindrance. Wood is good material when it's saturated and ventilated, but when it's concealed with epoxy, latex, or similar material, it just rots every time.
Hi my names squid I'm from nz ive got myself a project to my belief its a 1920 50ft kauri wood pilot boat, At the moment I'm striping all the paint off it now my question is wots the story with corcking? Should I recorck it with cotton then use some sealer then paint? Or do I pull out the cotton and epoxy some wood strips in-between the planks then sand them back flush with the planks then glass up to the waterline or do I leave wot cottons in there and use like 3m permanent filler to seal the planks then paint it. Also ive been told I should fill the hull with salt water I'm sorry but I don't understand ive got people giving me advice that don't build boats wot would u or anyone suggest i should do any help would be much appreciated thankyou in advance
What's the benefit to having fiberglass between the layers rather than just laying up the next layer bonding it down with epoxy and making the outer fiberglass layer that much thicker? From my understanding of the physics, the inside part will mostly just get sheer stresses that epoxy will handle just fine while the outside will get most of the tension and compression forces and abrasion which the fiberglass will hold up better to.
@@jwilsonhandmadeknives2760 I've done a little reading on cold molding, a boat making process where thin planking is laid in different orientations saturated with epoxy, a bit like he did the transom that handles those sheer stresses well, then putting all the cloth that's laid on the outer surfaces.
hey just a heads-up, Orca is a character in the Jaws movie. Someone holds the copyright to that and may have grounds to sue if you continue to use that name when you're building your next boat. Don't make the same mistake as the "B is for Build" channel when they tried to replicate Eleanor - their car got repossessed!
Seems like it's going to be overbuilt. Why is that hull going to be so thick on a relatively small boat? I am not understanding the logic. Modern boat building is all about keeping it light to make it easier to power.
It's not modern boat building it's traditional boat building. On choppy water I would get in one his boats before I would get in one of yours. It's clear you don't understand what he is doing.
Anyone that has “issues” with the way you built this boat really needs to remember. Opinions are like........... so. Don’t be a turd. This man has forgotten more then 99% of the people watching. Just remember that people.
It seems your starboard side is deeper or higher than the port! It doesnt seem to be the result of the viewing angle either! Could there have been a boo boo Louis?
Ooh, did you here that noise Steven? It was the sound of a collective intake of breath at that comment. I would put my money on a perspective anomaly, rather than this guy making such a howler.
