C-Forum

i am to cheap to outfit my new mad river ME. i broke the gunwales clean though this time on my current ME. 16' ash sure is hard to find so i bought 2 4'ash gunwale sections fron harmony to splice into the broken area. i know a few of you are master boat builders and i would appreciate a pointers on how to do this right the first time. http://youtu.be/4T1DjtpKhHE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Harry I'm not a boatbuilder, much less an expert one, but I do have some woodworking experience. I would use modified shiplap joints to splice in the new sections of wood. There's a good photo of that joint here: http://www.edscanoe.com/14kndogusy.html

The flat sections of the joint, where long grain is glued to long grain, provide the majority of the strength. I would make the flats at least 3" - 4" in length. On the angled sections, use as steep an angle (within reason) as you can. The angle cut partially exposes long grain in those areas, which gives a glue joint that is much stronger than end grain to end grain.

You can use epoxy, but I wouldn't hesitate to use waterproof wood glue. Coat both sides of the joint, especially the angled surfaces where the partial end grain will soak it up. Use very firm but not excessive clamping pressure. You should have glue squeeze out of the joint, but don't squeeze all of it out with excessive clamping.

The strength of the joint will largely depend on how well you fit it, so put your time there. It will be very strong if the pieces fit together well. If you have a poor fit and you are expecting glue to fill in gaps, then don't expect much from the joint.

I would use West G-flex rather than their regular 105/205. G-glex has better adherence and better performance in the wet.

I would also put a screw through the midpoint of each scarf into the inwale. Can't hurt...

I'd tear off the gunnels and replace them with a cheaper wood lol. Check your local lumber yards for doug fir, oak, or cherry in 16 foot boards and then rip them to size with a table saw...if you has a table saw. Good luck either way.

Rob

i am not much of a wood worker but i know how to fit stuff up. what brand of wood glue is best? i am a user og g-flex on my left side. i do like goop for stopping leaks. not much left of my faithful ME.

More pictures of damage. ash splice sectoins on sale at austin canoe and kayak for $15

the other canoe seems to have less rocker? did i really add rocker everytime i loaded it on my car? i rachet strap that bad boy to the trailer hitch and the rear of my oler canoe has 3"more at the tail. same at the nose as the other.

hazardharry wrote:the other canoe seems to have less rocker?

Are the thwarts different lengths? Shorter thwarts narrow the boat & give less rocker, making a faster, better tracking, wetter boat. Longer thwarts widen the boat & give more rocker, making a slower, better turning, dryer boat.

yup the old boat has wider thwarts. thanks for that info mike.

I have not used the knockdown gunwale system that Ed's Canoe sells, nor have I used that type of modified shiplap joint, but I have a friend who used the knockdown gunwales from Ed's who was quite unhappy with the joints. He assembled them according to directions and the joints resulted in relatively pronounced "flat spots" on the gunwales.

This pdf file has a section near the end with instructions on how to splice in gunwale segments:

http://www.madrivercanoe.com/content/ma ... lation.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Note that they recommend using a scarf joint cut at an angle of 30 degrees. I would be inclined to try a steeper scarf but they can be harder to cut accurately. The steeper the scarf the stronger the joint. As indicated, try to stagger the joint locations on the inwales and outwales.

I'm sure you can use waterproof wood glue but I would prefer epoxy, and if you have G Flex I would use it.

It is just as hard to patch it together well just get a 16' plank of ash cut em fit em and be done with it. Make sure you measure the boat width and write it where the appropriate thwarts go. Work middle to the ends

fixed it!

well after sanding and oiling the gunwales i am very happy with ther fit and finish.

looks dam good my friend!