Building question

I have built one strip canoe in the past and am now interested in possibly building either a Square stern or a double ender Wrangeley or an Adirondack Guide Boat using strips and my question is. which of the two would be the easiest to build overall. I don't want to get in over my head if there is a big difference in the skill or problems that would be required for these two boats. I know that there a lot of people here with a lot of experience and i value your opinions beings i am just a beginner in this. Thanks

 

Hello Do n & welcome to the forum. I have built a Strip Adirondack Guide Boat & I am Legally Blind. If you have already built a strip canoe I think either boat would be a great project for you. If & when you start it just make sure that you post the progress in here for us to watch. The way I built my boat was to read the book Building an Adirondack Guideboat: Wood Strip Reproductions of the Virginia by Michael J. Olivette (Author), John D. Michne (Co-Author)
I have befriended John and he is a great guy to chat with about the book and the boats. He is very knowledgeable about both. If you have any questions he will be glad to help or I may even be able to. Good luck with the choice and the project. Lance

 

I have now completed my second canoe which is a 16 foot white water so I think I am ready for a guide boat. I haven't started yet but I have gotten the material together to start a guide boat and I have the book Building an Adirondack Guide Boat and the boat patterns, but my question is this. I believe that the dimensions for the 16 foot boat has a width of approximately 38 inches. BUT I want a boat that is 41 inches in width. I have also considered an 18 foot boat that has a width of 46 inches. How is the easiest way to scale the width of the ribs out to 41 inches so that it is fair and dimensional for a 16 foot boat or 46 inches for an 18 footer. I have thought of taking the existing patterns and extending them on out to get the extra width but I don't know if that would work either.
I don't have a CAD so I can't do it on a computer that I know of. I know some might say that I don't need an 18 footer but it is not a matter of need it is a matter of want, so I just need to know how or what I should do or if it can be done. Thanks Don

 

Hey Don, Glad you came back. I would just add the difference to each rib at it's foot. That way the shape stays the same. Make sure that you also widen the bottom board to except the wider ribs. I think I explained it simple enough for the width. As for the length just add ribs to the center of the boat to reach your desired length. Hope that helps. If you have any other questions feel free to get in contact with John Michne @: jmichne1@nycap.rr.com
He could answer these maybe better then I but I think I did pretty good. Tell him what I suggested and see if he agrees. Let me know
Thanks, Lance Chase

You could email me at
adirondackbuilt@gmail.com