2011: Post 43 – The Disko Strongback

Continued from previous post number 42..........

No folks, the Disko Strongback is not a dance from the seventies; I was much too young in the seventies to know about the whole disco thing... Anyway...

Yesterday (Saturday) Sean, Dave, Gary, and myself paddled from St. Philips to about a kilometer past Topsail Beach.  We did not have the wind that was forecasted but there was enough to make paddling against the shore a bit of fun.  I forgot my camera so I don’t have any pictures to share.  But it was a nice paddle into a bit of wind going and a nice following sea coming back.

After I came home I put my gear away, showered, and headed to Home Depot to find something suitable for a strongback.  Dave Gentry’s plans suggest a straight 2x4 is adequate…but I opted for a piece of SPF 2x6 x 12 feet long that looked decently straight to my eye.  I figured there is less chance a 2x6 will warp compared to a 2x4.

After supper I set to work.  I marked the locations of all the frames on the 2x6 and struck a chalkline down the length.  I marked out  and cut out the support for the kayak’s first and last frames and secured them to the 2x6 in their proper locations.  Here are some pictures of the strongback with the frames attached.

...looking from the bow end

Frame 1

other side of Frame 1

That's just a little bit more accomplished...  it's slow progress I know but I am in no particular hurry and I have limited knowledge of what I am actually doing so I have to take my time and think things through to try to do things at least reasonably right...