January 20, 2022

Steam Launch Blog #60 & #61

Remaining molds are removed and our ultra light-weight "canoe" emerges...

Update #60

Remaining molds are removed and our ultra light-weight "canoe" emerges.

Last picture shows the condenser. Neat!


Update #61

Early July 2019

With boat right side up, first order of business is to fit the fore and aft deck beams in place which will hold the fore and aft ends together at the sheer. First up is to install clamps at the sheer on which the deck beams rest. (one solitary mold is holding the bow in shape at this stage.) Deck beams are cut to length per plans and screwed in place, Bar clamps ensure everything held in place according to measurement at the sheer. 

At this point the crew went on summer vacation while I travelled to Flensburg Germany to set up the Reliance model as part of an America's Cup display. See you in September!

First Three Weeks in September 2019

First week in September: Forward compartment is finished with primer coat drying. Forward bulkhead of the steam system compartment is built up to height and after bulkhead is ready for double planking

Second and Third week

Completing after compartment bulkhead and installing the oak sheer clamps. These clamps really pulled the ribs into uniform shape. Protruding rib tips were lopped off to conform to the shear, and both ribs and clamps sanded to profile of camber such as it is along the gunwales. 

The ultra-light weight canoe emerges!

The boat gets more rigid with each additional component. Importantly, we start to see how NGH used skeletal features to complement each other for a  strong yet fairly rigid ultra-light structure. L. Francis Herreshoff notes that NGH's launches, unlike bulkier heavy launch competitors, still maintained sufficient flexibility to absorb the knocks of hard service,