Rebecca Daugherty

"The Art of the Boat" at Penobscot Marine Museum

2011-05-26T16:30:00.003-04:00

Stephen Taber with Peapod, oil on canvas, 30" x 30"

I'm pleased that The Penobscot Marine Museum has included my painting "Stephen Taber with Peapod" in their new exhibit "The Art of the Boat" . The museum is right on Route One in Searsport and is housed in a dozen historic buildings containing everything from classic boats to historic photographs. The show is displayed in the Main Street Gallery and opens in conjunction with "75 for 75" - 75 Choice Items From 75 Years of Collecting. The opening reception is tomorrow, May 27 at 5:30, and runs to October 23rd.

CMCA Biennial, New Roadwork Paintings

2010-05-31T15:21:00.004-04:00

Roadwork: Cleaning Up 10" x 10" oil on panel (on loan for the show from a private collection)

I am quite honored to have a painting hanging in the 2010 CMCA Biennial Juried Exhibition at the Center for Maine Contemporary Art in Rockport. The opening reception was Saturday and stays up until July 17 . The painting (above) is of our local roadcrew in Stonington. To view the show on-line visit CMCA's website.

Roadwork: Discussion, Route 1, Ellsworth 10"x 15" oil on panel

Here are a couple of new roadwork paintings. The first is from Ellsworth, on the Route 1, Route 3, main drag. The motel sign is a familiar landmark in that area (made from fluorescent light tubes). The second painting is a view from my studio looking at Main Street and the Town Hall driveway from the paving of Route 15 last summer. I spent about four days following those guys around and I'm grateful for their patience. In this painting they are uncovering the manhole covers that get paved over.

Roadwork: Raking and Shoveling 10" x 10" oil on panel

Today, in the studio.

Michael took a few photos of me in the studio. I'm working on a new boat painting. Over the winter I did several small paintings as studies for these bigger versions. The little one is on the wall. Charcoal studies for landscape are on the wall behind. My winter studio in the gallery has shrunk, as we need the wall space for the new work arriving for the summer. I'll be moving to my smaller home studio at the end of the week.

RED

2010-02-11T11:16:00.008-05:00

Tea & Kisses, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Here are few paintings that were in the RED(again) show at Isalos Fine Art this last week. In the middle of winter I love painting red and orange things so I had a few paintings for the show. The painting above is actually kind of a collaborative piece. I had a conversation at a New Years party with a friend who is a potter and she mentioned she was thinking of doing some red pieces for the show but hadn't been in her studio lately. I mentioned I had been painting red boats but didn't think I would have a red "Tea" painting for the show and we decided if she would make a pot, I would put it in a "Tea" painting, so Tea and Kisses is the result. The actual cup, saucer and dish are by Carole Ann Fer. These pots, as well as a few others of hers, are in the RED show at Isalos. She is one of the owners, and shows her work, at the Dow Studio in Deer Isle.

Lifejackets, oil on panel, 10" x 15"

Well, one boat is red. I liked the orange life jackets is each boat. I've never actually seen anyone wear one of these in Stonington Harbor, ever.

Red Boat Study #4, oil on panel, 6" x 6"

Red Boat Study #2, oil on panel, 6" x 6"

Red Boat Study #3, oil on panel, 6" x 6"

Asia Keene Study, oil on panel, 6" x 6"

This is a little peapod in Stonington. It's often kept in a place that doesn't get the afternoon light that I like, so while it's caught my eye for years now, I haven't painted it until now. I liked the gray reflections with the red.

3 White Boats, 3 Red Buoys, oil on panel, 7" x 5"

Yes, one of the buoys is really a reflection.

Blue Boat with Red Tire, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

This is actually a painting from last year when I was in B.C. Very nice tire fenders painted red.

Happy Valentines Day and thanks for looking.

Windmills and Contrails

2010-01-05T17:13:00.005-05:00

Second Island, Windmills, Dark Clouds, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Sand Beach, a favorite spot for residents and visitors to Deer Isle, is where we go to see the sunset. The distinctive profile of the leaning tree on Weir Island is easily recognizable in paintings, photographs and prints by dozens, if not hundreds, of artists. Sadly, the tree fell down last winter, changing the profile of this popular ‘motif’.

Windmills & Contrails, Second Island, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

This summer a new landmark appeared on the horizon: the three windmills on Vinalhaven. Painters have the option of editing man-made objects out of their landscape paintings, or celebrating them, as they often do with lighthouses or bridges. I haven’t really formed an opinion of the windmills yet.

Windmills & Contrails I, oil on panel, 5" x 5"

I haven’t decided if I like seeing them there or not, but there they are. They tower hundreds of feet above Vinalhaven, but are low on our horizon, inches from where the sun sets in winter. Bathed in orange, their red lights pulse on and off as it gets dark.

Windmills & Contrails II, oil on panel, 5" x 5"

Often the windmills are surrounded by brightly-lit contrails or lines of purple clouds. In the snow and fog they fade in and out or disappear altogether.

Second Island from Sand Beach, oil on panel, 10" x 8"

On Weir island a new tree is beginning to lean towards the water.

Weir Island, Sunset, oil on panel, 7" x 5"

Artists of the Working Waterfront

2009-04-01T14:36:00.004-04:00

I was just included in an article by Carl Little in Maine Boats, Homes, & Harbors Magazine. The article is titled Artists of the Working Waterfront and is in the April-May issue of the magazine. It's a nice article and I'm in very good company, check it out if get a chance.

The painting in the article has sold, but other paintings of boats, both available and a small archive of paintings in private collections can seen on my website rebeccadaugherty.com. Posted below is a new small boat painting, and I have a couple of larger ones on the easel now. I will post them here and on my website as I finish them.

Rebecca Daugherty Rowing Boats oil on panel 10 x 17.5

Grapefruit & Geraniums

2009-03-21T10:02:00.003-04:00

Tea: Grapefruit & Geraniums, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

I "Heart" Donuts

2009-03-18T13:06:00.003-04:00

I Heart Donuts, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Distractions

2009-03-12T20:03:00.004-04:00

I woke up this morning ready to start a painting of a grapefruit. Why a grapefruit? It's the healthy eating version of a donut painting; who knows where that could go? Just when I was thinking there could be an end to the Roadwork series, look what appears outside my studio window! I snapped a bunch of photos, only to find Michael taking mine. -Thanks guys from On Target Utility Services.

Reliance & Miss Kassandra

2009-03-09T19:07:00.002-04:00

Reliance & Miss Kassandra, oil on panel, 10" x 8"

From the Buick

2009-03-06T22:48:00.004-05:00

Roadwork: From the Buick, oil on panel, 10" x 17.5"

Since I haven't posted for awhile, I'll catch-up with a few new paintings. "From The Buick" and "Patching the Bridge" are the most recent Roadwork paintings. The Buick was a car I inherited from my grandmother, and served us well for a few years.

Roadwork: Patching the Bridge, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

New Show at Isalos

2008-07-13T11:44:00.002-04:00

Yellow Float, oil on canvas, 24" x 24"

Check-out my new show at Isalos Fine Art

Newer Roadwork Paintings

2008-02-21T23:09:00.003-05:00

"Roadwork: Bridge, Day" oil on panel, 10"x 10"

I know it's been a while since my last blog. I am trying to think of an excuse.....there isn't one. But here's some new paintings from my Roadwork series. There's more I'm still working on, (Roadwork: Bridge, Night !) and other paintings too, I'll post soon. Promise.

"Roadwork: Picking Up Cones" oil on panel, 10"x 10"

"Roadwork: Paving The Fish Pier" oil on panel, 10"x 10" (sold)

"Roadwork: Road to Fort Knox" oil on panel, 10"x 10"

New Roadwork Paintings

2007-10-13T16:50:00.001-04:00

Roadwork: Maintain Spacing, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Rebecca's off on another painting trip. This art thing really cuts into her blogging time. She'll be back in a few days, but in the meantime, here's her three new Roadwork paintings.

Roadwork: Supervising, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Roadwork: New Pavement Ahead, oil on panel, 10" x 10"

Kayak Building Update

2007-09-19T10:32:00.000-04:00

Nobody asks how I am any more.They ask "Is the kayak done yet?" So here is an update.

Bulkhead installed

I installed the bulkheads. This was by far the most difficult part of building the boat, not really difficult, just a hassle working in such a small space half upside down.

A friend checks out my sanding job.

Then there was the sanding. This should take up more than one sentence but what really is there to say. It feels like it goes on and on.

I borrowed a friends garage. Here is second or third coat of varnish.

Varnish on the deck. OK, I have to honest here, after all this work, and getting used to seeing the boat all scuffed up from sanding, I almost cried when I saw how pretty the first coat of varnish looked.

I did feel some anxiety drilling more holes on the boat. These are for the deck bungee
cords. I drilled the hatch tie downs at the same time.

It's getting there. This is the gasket to seal the hatches.

And on top of the car! It's not quite done yet, I still have to install the seat. I will paint the hull orange in another week or two after I try it out on the water.

Adventure While Delivering Art

2007-09-18T14:31:00.000-04:00

Pink Peapod, 20"x 16", oil on canvas

Stephen Taber with Yawl Boat , 16" x 20", oil on canvas

New Work! I've been having a hard time lately finding the time to do all things I have to get done, like deliver these two new paintings to the Camden Falls Gallery. So when my friend Valerie called to see if I could go out on her boat for the day I was really disappointed I couldn't go, unless she wanted to go to Camden??? She said she would go anywhere as long as there wasn't any fog because her GPS was being fixed. The weather report looked great.

Camden Harbor.

It took about an hour to get there. Camden was beautiful and sunny. I like going there because there are a lot of boats. Here is a photo of Mistress with a small boat tied under the bow. We dropped off the new paintings and found some really good food for lunch. A few clouds in the distance made us think it was time to head back. About ten minutes out of Camden Harbor we ran into this.....

Yup, that would be fog, really thick fog. Lucky we knew exactly where we were when we suddenly couldn't see where we were. Too bad about that GPS. Fog is very disorienting. Sounds seem to come from different places, it's wet, and kind of creepy, but mostly you just can't see. We managed to find the entrance to the thorofare between North Haven and Vinalhaven and right there we left the fog.

Leaving the fog, for now.

On the other side of the thorofare, however, it was completely foggy. If you don't know what it's like to enter a fog bank it looks about like this....

Schooner American Eagle about to enter the fog bank.

We didn't really want to go back into the fog and Valerie remembered she knew some people who lived on North Haven. We found the dock and wandered up to the house but nobody was there. We found someone working on one of buildings who told us the family had indeed left for the summer. We got permission from the caretaker to take shelter there for a while. From the big front porch of the old summer house we watched the fog close in, then swirl away, then come back. The weather was supposed to be getting worse: wind later, then rain into the next day. Just as we were going to walk into town to find some food we saw a break in the clouds and fog and made a run for back to Stonington.

And that was good, because we got back in time to watch The Simspons Movie at the Opera House that night. :)

Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors Show

2007-08-09T15:30:00.001-04:00

Once again, this is Michael with an update. Rebecca is in Rockland at the Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors Show, which runs Friday through Sunday.

The painting above is one of her new paintings she'll be showing there. It's called Susan Traci, Bow Reflection II, and measures 58" by 32".

Gone Painting

2007-07-20T16:26:00.000-04:00

Rebecca is off on a painting excursion and promises to post a new blog this weekend. She'll be back with several new paintings, which we'll post here or on her website.

Hatches and Clamps

2007-06-13T00:55:00.000-04:00

My anxiety over cutting the hatches out began while I was reading the instruction booklet, before I even started building the boat. Our jig saw is rather old and vibrates. The guy at the large off-island hardware store tried to talk me into buying a different saw blade than is recommended in the instruction manual. I borrowed other saws and practiced on bits of plywood. Finally I settled on the instruction manual's recommendation to hold a saw blade in a vice grip and hand cut it out. I used a scroll saw blade instead as it cut easier.

I waited to fill the shear seam from the inside until the hatches were cut so I would have better access.

Attaching the cockpit coaming.

Smaller clamps are recommended.

And the hatch spacers.

The incredible shrinking boatshop

2007-06-12T23:06:00.000-04:00

The gallery is open, and it's still a boat building shop! I was supposed to relocate after the student art show, but it's still fairly quiet here in town and I don't have anywhere convenient to go. But the boat's space is very small. And I can't make dust.

Boat shop in a box.

Kayak draped

I made my first mistake on the boat at this point. I draped the cloth over the boat to measure it, then I thought it was fitting over it so nicely I would I leave it and start cutting. After I started cutting I remembered I was only measuring and there is a special way the cloth has to be laid out and cut so there will be enough to do the other end. Darn. Then I was looking at patching three or four pieces together. I've read on other coho builders websites that they almost all order extra cloth so they don't have a seam at all. Four seams on the only part of the boat that isn't going to be painted? Lucky I live in a town with a lot of boats. I called around and the auto parts store, the hardware store, and the boat building shop all had fiberglass. The only problem is that all the boats around here are bigger and all the fiberglass cloth was too heavy. So I lost a couple of days driving around checking the fiberglass and then having it shipped from the marine store. The photo above is the new one piece cloth.

Friends and visitors stop by to check my progress.

The fiberglass is saturated with epoxy.

From Boatshop to Gallery

2007-05-14T00:49:00.000-04:00

Taping the deck to the hull, again.

Back home, to the kayak
My boatshop time is running out. Spring is here and we need the gallery back. For a couple of years now we host the Deer Isle - Stonington High School student art show. It's a good way for the community to see what the students are up to in their art class and nice for the students to see their work in a gallery setting. It's a good time for us to paint the walls and rehang the gallery with new work for the season. ( The art teacher does most of the work, hanging the show, and keeping the gallery open.) But it means I have to move the boat out for a few days. I really wanted to get the deck fiberglassed before moving it, so it would be stronger, but had to settle on getting the deck attached.

In the top photo I am taping the deck to hull. This is it, if I don't get it lined up correctly, I'll have a crooked boat. Luckly, I spent a long time getting it lined up the first time I taped the deck to the hull, when I epoxyed the deck, so it wasn't too difficult this time. Just few extra push pins and clamps this time.

Then I epoxy the seam, later filling any gaps.

Now it's really a kayak.

Time to move out. Removing the cradle.

I have to admit there was something a little sad about taking the table apart. I had grown fond of the old crate table, splinters and all. The boat is far enough along that I should be able to finish the rest on saw horses. I have to say that although the boat is taking longer than I thought, it has been very enjoyable.

The boatshop dissapeared for a few days and my studio has moved back home. Within several hours it was a gallery again.

Deer Isle - Stonington High School Art Show Opening Reception

This Old Shack

2007-05-13T22:39:00.000-04:00

B movie?

This isn't a still from a bad movie but a shot of our week "vacation". This is me trying to break up some concrete. We spent almost a week in New Hampshire working on this little shack. The place is beautiful, we spent time with my parents and a friend, but the weather was so windy and cool it was hard to be outside. I did get a couple of paintings done. And the cat had a blast playing outside.

We replaced the old mossy roof. We, being Michael and my dad; I was wheelbarrow girl, carting off the shingles and going on hardware store and donut runs.

The new roof.

It looks like we will have to replace the sill, and more. But that will have to wait until the fall.

So you may be wondering what this construction project has to do with "painting, art, boats, and living on the coast of Maine" but it does indirectly. This little shack will be a sort of studio/work/storage area. It is tiny, but can get paint on the floor...... and it needs us.

The day we left we had beautiful weather. Here is my mom in her Chesapeake Light Craft Mill Creek that my dad build for her a few years ago.

links for this blog
CLC Mill Creek

Fiberglass inside of hull

2007-05-12T10:46:00.000-04:00

We've been away for a week but here are a few photos of the boat before we left.

The inside of the hull is fiberglassed using two pieces of cloth. The cloth starts a couple of inches below the edge of the hull. The green and blue in the photo is tape that holds it in place until I am ready to saturate the cloth with epoxy.

The excess cloth from one end is used on the other.

I was worried that the cloth wouldn't fit and I would have to patch some pieces together, but it worked out perfectly, with less than an inch to spare.

I somehow forgot to take photos of saturating the cloth with epoxy (could be because I had my hands full of epoxy) but it looks about the same as the other parts of the boat that have been fiberglassed. I am getting better at this fiberglassing by now, and didn't put on a saturation coat of epoxy first. I was running out of time and I seem to have the problem of putting too much epoxy on rather than too little.

Most of the fiberglassed areas on the boat have a couple of fill coats over the fiberglass cloth. The inside of the boat doesn't need it, but I put an extra coat on the area where my feet will be so it's not as rough. But I do wonder if the roughness of the cloth will be a problem to clean or be rough on items stored in the boat.

Fillet in the bow

2007-04-27T08:02:00.000-04:00

Busy studio, messy too!

The studio is feeling a bit small as I am trying to get this painting finished while working on two boats. The one in the front here is a nutshell pram my dad and I built four years ago. I realized when we moved to Stonington, that if I wanted to do paintings of boats, I needed to have a boat to get out into the harbor to see them. It's been a couple of years and a few knocks around the dinghy dock and is now time for new varnish and paint.

The kayak
I removed the temporary frames from the hull. I was wishing I had used a lot less hot glue to attach them when I realized that epoxy had come through the wire holes and was holding them in place too. It took quite a while to get those frames out of there, still could have used a lot less hot glue. Then I cleaned up the inside of the hull, removing blobs of epoxy that came through the wire holes (next time should tape them up), rough wood, and gummy hot glue.

Fillet in bow

Then I filled any wire holes that didn't get filled with epoxy and put a little in the seams so the fiberglass will lay flat. I also added the fillet on the keel in the bow and stern. This makes the ends stronger and smoother for the fiberglass cloth to lie on. And put a couple of layers of fiberglass strips over the bow seam to reinforce it. Today I will fiberglass the interior on the hull.

Pots in progress, kayak too

2007-04-25T21:49:00.000-04:00

New pots

Today I had my clay class with Frank Pitcher. Here are a few pots I am working on. These are dry but not fired yet. They are made on the wheel then cut, shaped, and grated.

Here's Frank (with his cups in front) talking with Maureen.

Spring is here. You can tell, not by the weather, but how busy everyone has gotten. Summer is our busy season in coastal Maine, whether your work is tourist based, fishing, construction, whatever. Most meetings aren't held in the summer, the potluck dinners end, adult ed classes and dancing lessons are all on hold while people concentrate on their work and businesses, gardens, and visitors. So spring is preparation for summer, the boats are painted, the brochures go to the printer, the plans for summer festivals and events are finalized. Monday I worked on a t-shirt layout, poster design, had a Lupine Festival meeting, Chamber of Commerce meeting (only went to half of that one), and Deer Isle Art Association dinner meeting. I also varnished my nutshell pram, worked on the kayak, and managed to get a bit of painting in too. Why didn't I have time to write my blog?

Even though I have a tight time frame for getting the kayak done, I like the quiet directed work that it takes to put the boat together. There are some parts that just can't be rushed. The kayak continues....

The deck is remove from the hull and turned over for reinforcement. I add three layers of fiberglass tape to the seams of the butt blocks.

A layer of fiberglass will be laid down over the recessed deck to give it strength. First I fill in any area that might keep the fiberglass cloth from lying flat or might trap air.

Fiberglass tape is used the strengthen each seam. Then a layer of epoxy is used to coat the whole underside of the deck. Then another layer.

Back to building a kayak

2007-04-22T00:31:00.000-04:00

The building of my coho continues on, through the storm, power outages, and taxes. I have now fiberglassed the outside of the hull and am ready to assemble the deck.

First I trim off the excess fiberglass cloth from the hull. Then the hull is turned right side up and the pieces that form the deck are wired together.

The deck panels are wired together.

About this time I am beginning to wonder about the estimated 70 hours that it is supposed to take to build this boat. The simple directions call to align the deck panels to the hull panels and tape in place. It took hours. I don't know if it was my need for perfection, the fact these panels are several years warped, I don't know, but hours later, and with lots of extra wires, pins and yards of tape.....and clamps.....

IT LOOKS LIKE A KAYAK!

tape, pins, wire, and clamps

Next, epoxy is filled in the seams. The green is tape to keep the deck from getting messy. I have to admit I am getting kind of fond of green on this boat. I am still thinking of painting the hull, maybe orange, maybe a green stripe....

A few more storm photos

2007-04-21T23:48:00.000-04:00

People drive around to view the storm and check on boats.

Big waves in the harbor, (this boat is not sinking)

Boats, Stonington through the rain in the background.

It's very difficult to photograph a storm. The waves look smaller in the photo, the color is different, and you really can't see how windy it was or cold it felt, and there's no sound. Most people I've talked to made it through the storm just fine. There were a few washed out driveways and some dock damage, and the power and phone lines were down. Being on an island, we don't get flooding like so many others had with this storm. And we get enough wind here that the fisherman have figured out how to keep their boats secure.

And then today was beautiful, that first perfect day of spring.

Storm in Stonington

2007-04-17T00:36:00.000-04:00

Here are a few photos of our quiet harbor today.

Stonington Prepares for Storm

2007-04-15T18:18:00.000-04:00

We are expecting the storm that has hit the rest of the eastern part of the country to arrive in the night. I know we are in for some heavy weather when the boats are tied up to the fish pier like this. We are expecting winds of 30-40 MPH with gusts up to 65.

Main Street is really quiet.

Fill coat

2007-04-15T10:21:00.000-04:00

second epoxy fill coat

The boat gets two coats of epoxy to fill in the weave of the fiberglass. Also a strip of fiberglass tape is added to the keel. I had a couple of long days painting in my studio and worked on the boat late into the night. I think it is taking me longer than it should to do everything. Maybe I am trying to be too careful in my work. Even though I am careful there are few rough spots as seen in the photo below. I just could not get that fiberglass tape to lay down. I used pins and poked at it but it kept coming up. I cut off the high parts with a utility knife before applying the second coat of fill epoxy.

all is not neat and tidy

I have a time limit for how long it can take me to finish the boat. The high school will use the gallery for their art show and need the space by the 8th of May. And we are planning on going away for a week for our last get away before the summer gallery season starts. So I marked up a calendar to see if I can get it done. It will be very tight. The sanding, painting, and finishing will be done after the epoxy has cured, probably outside, later. I made up my schedule three days ago and am already a day behind.

boat, painting, view of harbor

But I had to spend some time painting. I am trying to avoid working in the studio with fresh epoxy fumes so I work on the boat at the end of the day.

Michael and Todd went out kayaking yesterday. Even though it is April, it is still winter here in Maine. Here they are getting their gear on. That's a lot of yellow. I am thinking of painting my boat..... orange....

Check out the Stonington seakayak blog Sea Kayak Stonington

Fiberglassing

2007-04-13T08:20:00.000-04:00

Isalos Fine Art/Boat Shop

Putting the fiberglass on. This is the part I have worried about the most. I've helped my Dad fiberglass one of the boats he built and it was exhausting and frustrating work. But his boat was built outside in the summer so it was hotter so the epoxy cured faster, there were leaves and bugs, and it was a bigger boat. I read all I could first, but words aren't the same as actually seeing how much epoxy to use and what the fiberglass should look and feel like. After the first coat of epoxy that embeds the fiberglass, you add two fill coats that fill the weave of the fiberglass. The fill coats have to go on within 72 hours for epoxy to bond, and the boat has to stay clean.

My favorite quote about this whole epoxy process is from Kayaks You Can Build , "And, if you can, keep fondling to a minimum between the critical layers." This is really funny because it's almost impossible to be in a room with a boat that's being built out of wood and not touch it. Everyone that sees the boat has to touch it. I have my hands on it constantly.

Here I am smoothing the fiberglass cloth out, not fondling the boat - it feels like smooth dry snake skin, nice.

To roll....
or brush? Once again, I had different recommendations and so I tried them both. The rolling was faster but left extra epoxy on the seams, the brush slower and neater but not always as even. Or so it seemed at the time, looking at it this morning the rolled areas don't look all that even.

The stern is tricky, you have to cut the fiberglass and wrap it around the edge. The first side was beautiful, the second a bit messier, with little strings fraying off.

Michael helped me by mixing epoxy so I had a never ending supply ready. Even so, I felt like this picture he put together.

So the dreaded fiberglassing went OK. I took a look at it this morning. Not too bad, there are some shiny spots with a bit too much epoxy, I should have squeegeed a bit more in some areas but I was also worried about starving the fiberglass too. And it was starting to set up on me. Now I know, for the next boat....

It might seem like I spend all my time working on the kayak, and admittedly it has taken over my studio as well as my time, but I am working on a few other things as well. Here is an ad I put together that will be in the June/July issue of Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors magazine.

Links:
Rebecca's website
Isalos Fine Art
Pygmy Boats
Kayaks You Can Build
Maine Boats, Homes, & Harbors magazine.

Injecting epoxy

2007-04-11T23:48:00.000-04:00

Injecting epoxy

Work continues on the kayak. The next step was to fill the seams with epoxy. Once again I had to decide between the directions in the construction manual or the Kayaks You Can Build book. I decided to try both and see how it went. The book calls for taping off the seam and putting a putty thick epoxy in the seam. (You can see that in the back with the blue tape).The manual calls for a thinner epoxy that is injected in the seam. The putty was neater, the injected was faster, in end, I ran out tape and used a combination.

After the epoxy cures, I remove all the wires. I actually got a blister from that.

After all the wires are removed I went over the hull removing lumps of epoxy where the wires were, refilled any low spots, and rounded the keel area. I love my cabinet scraper!

Next I put on a saturation coat. This is to saturate the wood so it doesn't suck epoxy out of the fiberglass layer and "starve" the fiberglass. I actually called Pygmy Boats to see if I needed this because, once again, the book and manual differ. But the guys who wrote the book have more experience fiberglassing and probably know just how much epoxy they need to keep the fiberglass full. I don't, so I thought I would add this extra step.

Hull half saturated.

I am planning on painting the hull of this boat, but you can see here why most people who build these boats just can't bring themselves to cover up this pretty wood.

Tomorrow I fiberglass. Hmm, maybe I better do some painting too.

Links for this post:
Pygmy Boats
Kayaks You Can Build

Building a kayak in an art gallery

2007-04-09T21:49:00.000-04:00

Hi, welcome to my blog about painting, boats, art, and living in a small town in coastal Maine. I meant to start this blog some time ago, before I started building my kayak. Now I have a lot of people asking how the boat building is going so I thought I'd really better get the blog going so they can check it out.

I am building a Pygmy Coho kayak. I'm building it it our art gallery because it's the only large heated area I have to work in. The gallery, Isalos Fine Art, is open, but this is a slow time of year for us in Downeast Maine. The first step to building the boat was to get the gallery moved around, build a table, gather tools and set up the boat building area. Lucky for me, our neighbor had a huge crate he was taking to dump that just happened to be convertible to a seventeen and half-foot table (the kayak is just over 17 feet).

Here's Michael taking the crate apart.

We put paper down to protect the floor.

The table looked like such a good work surface that I had to spend a few days stretching canvases.

With a good stock of canvases ready I can now start building the kayak. The Coho is a kit that comes from Pygmy in two boxes. One box containes the epoxy and small bits, the other forty pieces of wood that will become the kayak. I am the third owner of the kit and it is now five years old. I was a little worried that the epoxy might be too old or a few pieces missing. But a phone call to Pygmy assured me the epoxy would be OK, and an inspection of the box found all the bits and pieces there - and evidence that a mouse had inspected it at some time too.

Just out of the box.

All accounted for.

The first step is to epoxy the panels together. The hardest part was finding enough heavy things to weigh it down.

In addition to the constuction manual, I am looking at Kayaks You Can Build by Ted Moores and Greg Rossel. It's a great book and has good photos. They build three kayaks and one is the Coho. But they do put it together a little differently than the construction manual, so at each stage I read both and decide which way I am going to put it together. I did take the book's suggestion to build the cradles for the boat to rest on. I 'm really glad I did this even though it took me an extra day.

The first panels sitting in the cradle.

After glueing all the panels together I drilled holes every six inches. My parents came to visit around this time; my Dad, who really wants to build this boat, got a few hours of helping time in. We built a jig to measure the holes (using the metal strapping from the crate that became the table), drilled some holes and cut and bent wires in preperation for stitching it all together. Unfortunatley, one of the panels broke apart and had to be reglued so they weren't here for the exciting part when it starts to look like a boat.

More panels and temporary frames that help direct the shape.

The hull from the stern looking foward.

Our cat, Wendell, checks it out.

The hull gets turned over. At this point the whole thing is held together by wires. I check to make sure it is straight and the panels line up before the epoxy is put in the seams.

Wow !