The
Bark Canoe Store
15 East Sinto
Spokane, WA 99202
(509)327-7902
(office & fax)
(509)327-1850 (shop)
barkcanoe@dc4pc.net
www.barkcanoe.com
John Lindman
proprietor/builder
Copyright (c) 2006
All Rights Reserved
IN THIS ISSUE
1. News -
- The "Build Your Own Class"
2. Building Tips -
a. Questions and answers on building
b. More on Miniatures by Ted Behne
News -
Build Your Own Canoe Class for 2006
The "Build Your Own Canoe Class" just completed last weekend. Four canoes were built. One was completed, two virtually completed - just some finishing details - and one was almost completed but modifications will be done at home. All students now know how to build birchbark canoes.Much was learned in this class both by the students and the teacher that will be valuable for the future. That's the way classes go.
Originally the "Build Your Own Class" was the "Advanced Class" where only those who had attended a "Basic Class" could attend. The idea being that students from the Basic Class would be pretty much up to speed in building and the Advance Class would be a class where I would supervise their building rather than teach, build and supervise. I thought students could get by with just doing the Home Study Program before doing the Advanced Class and see now that this is not workable.
The students in this year's class were very bright and capable. All did the Home Study program but their demands and expectations were not consistent with this original concept of a supevised opportunity as opposed to an actual teaching, building and supervising activity. Therefore I am going back to the original concept where the pre-requisite to the Advance Class is to have taken a Basic Class from myself or any other teacher. Students will have gone through the building of a full size birchbark canoe and then know before arriving just what to expect of themselves and me.
I realize this may be difficult for some to do but it is still a far cry easier than picking up a copy of Adney's book, trucking off to the bush for materials and then building your first canoe on your own. Now that would take up some serious vacation time.
Not all of the pictures are in yet but you can go here to see a few photos of the class.
New Item in the Store
We now carry two styles of "Grey Owl Paddles", the Voyageur and the Ottertail. Both are of solid cherry. You can see them here.
Building Tip - More on Miniatures by Ted Behne
Unrolling and Raising the Bark - Part One
Note: In the previous article Ted explained how to set the sheerline however that article should have followed the article
that is shown below. This was the result of a misunderstanding on my part. I hope this dispells any confusion if there
was any.
This article outlines the process for setting up the bark and beginning the process of assembly. The assembly process
constitutes about 50 percent of the work in making a canoe, so at this point you are about half way home. Previous
articles outlined other basic steps: Selecting a canoe to model; making a quarter-scale "blueprint"; constructing a
reusable building platform; making a gunwale frame; making and installing thwarts; making ribs, splitting cedar, splitting
spruce roots for lashings and making sheathing to line the interior of the hull. To review previous articles, go to
www.barkcanoe.com/home.htm. Then select "Tips," then "Building Miniature Canoes."
Begin by laying out the gunwale frame onto the ¾" thick or more building platform. Center the frame using centerlines
on both the thwarts and the platform. Place heavy weights (I find that bricks work nicely) on the thwarts to hold the
frame in place. Use a felt-tip marker pen to draw the outline of the frame onto the platform. Next, mark positions
for stake holes every two to three inches along the outer edges of the frame outline, being careful to avoid positioning
stakes and thwarts together. At each end of the gunwale frame, mark positions for three pairs of stakes, each pair
extending an inch or so farther from the gunwale frame tip, tightly spaced on opposite sides of the centerline.
Next, remove the bricks and the gunwale frame. Using a 7/16" drill bit, drill vertical stake holes to a depth of
about ½", being careful not to drill through the platform. To ensure uniform depth, attach a strip of masking tape
to your drill bit, ½" up from the tip.
Cut enough 3/8" diameter dowels to fill all the stake holes, noting that the dowels in the center will be shorter
than the ones at the ends. The height of each dowel must be at least an inch above the gunwale line of the canoe.
Test fit all dowels. Re-drill any holes that bind. Remove the stakes and set them aside in like-size groups, held
together with rubber bands.
Next, make wooden support planks for the bricks that will hold the gunwale frame in place during construction.
Using the gunwale frame as a template, trace the outline of the frame onto a piece of ¼" plywood. Cut out the
outline, then cut it into smaller sections spanning from gunwale to gunwale.
Now it is time to roll out the bark. To make the bark friendly and pliable, apply very hot water to the roll,
saturating all surfaces, inside and out. I boil water and pour it onto and into the bark roll while it is standing
upright in a sink. The hot water warms the natural resins in the bark, making it temporarily pliable, minimizing the
danger of splitting or cracking. Carefully unroll the warmed bark onto the building platform, white side up. Mark
the centerline at both ends, then draw a line connecting the two ends. Trim the length of the bark to make it no more
than three inches longer than the gunwale frame at each end. Line up the centerline of the bark with the centerline of
the building platform. Next, lay the gunwale frame onto the bark, lining up the centerlines of the bark and the
frame tips. Place wooden support planks onto the gunwales, making sure they are well supported by the gunwales at
each side. Put bricks or other heavy weights onto the support planks to hold the gunwales and the bark firmly in place.
Next, we will cut gores in the bark, lift the sides of the bark to form a rough canoe shape, trim the gores to create a
smooth, fair hull and crimp the bark at the ends to form the bows. That process was described in last month's newsletter.
If you have questions about any of the above, just send an email to
tedbehne@comcast.net.
You can view Ted's work here.
To remove yourself from this list, simply reply to this email with the word "REMOVE" in the subject.
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