...and on...
Don't you do it; paint your boat. Your waggon too if you like.
I feel that, as this is a boat-building blog, I should impart some specific knowledge gained through my experience of building the Flapdoodle so far. So with regard to the stitching:
I used 80lb-test braided fishing line, not because I needed line that strong (the plywood would fail long before the line) but because I wanted a thicker braid and the best abbrasion resistance I could get. I also enjoy the philanthropy of giving the tackle shop owner wads of cash - £30 - good grief.
On my second attempt I made a better fist of wiring the panels together in the first place, then I started stitching from the middle of the panels, where the stress from the bending plywood is least, and worked my way out towards the ends. This was such an obvious thing to do that I can't believe I didn't try it from the outset.
I generally only ever loaded the needle with about six feet or so of line. Any more and I found the length of line following the needle through the holes was enough to make it start knotting itself up.
After about two feet of stitching I went back and fixed the start and end knots of each run of stitches with a small amount of epoxy resin. I also fixed the line in the holes every three inches or so. I made sure that I fixed the line in the holes and didn't allow the line to stick to the sides of the panel. The epoxy I used was cheap and effective. Even though the setup time was very short (4 to 6 minutes) the epoxy remains easy to remove for half an hour or so after it has initially "set".
I used pliers to pull the stitches tight; taking good care not to damage the line by slipping.
The stitched hinge seems good so I'm happy.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
As much as I am riveted by your flapdoodle and stitches and varnish tales, I can't help but feel a smidge disappointed that your clever '..tion' titles did not continue ..
My trouble is that I’m only good for about four similar suffixes before I start to panic; if it hadn’t been for the tornado (precipitation) I’d have been struggling to manage that.
Anyway, I think that to seek adulation and acclamation through linguistic distinction inevitably results in overexertion, neural malfunction and mental exhaustion, which is just a blatant provocation of an adverse reaction such as alienation or demoralisation in my reading population. Or something.
Actually, thinking about it, most of those '-tion' words would have made good titles for an entry describing the living torment that is a tin of varnish - they may yet get used in anger.
Yes I did have to get the dictionary out.
And the thesaurus.
Post a Comment