strong back!

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rodt

strong back!

Post by rodt »

I am starting in on my first canoe. I am just ready to lay out the strong back. the directions sent in with the Bear mountain 17' nomad show a strong back made from two 85" length pieces of material. Shouldn't this length be closer to 102"??
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mtpocket
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Post by mtpocket »

rodt,

Some models have to be built on strongbacks shorter in lenth than the finished canoe. My 17'7-1/2" Redbird was built on a strongback 16' long. The stem molds hang over on the ends.
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Glen Smith
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Post by Glen Smith »

That's right. It is easier to work on the ends if they extend a bit beyond the strongback. However, the stem molds must have enough bearing on the strongback to be solidly attached. You could make the top of the strongback so that the stems extend 6" to 10" beyond the surface.

The Nomad has high stems (25") so when you get ready to cut the molds don't rip the mold material at 24" as suggested in Canoecraft. Your molds will be more like 27" high.
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davidb54321
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Post by davidb54321 »

rodt, Glen made a good point regarding cutting out your molds. Be sure you measure your station molds before cutting your plywood in half! It will work for the stations that are less than 24 inches tall. (go ahead.......ask me how I know this?)

Good Luck, Dave
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Riverrat
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Post by Riverrat »

I noticed that Glen said the stem height was 25 inches on the Nomad. I just finished drawing mine out on the board and found that from the highest point of the stem mold to the base line is 22.5 inches. It's 17 inches from the top to the sheer line. Did I miss something? Also, if I add say, 1 inch to the existing sheer line so that I can add one extra strip, do I also make the base line an inch further down? Can the one inch be added as a one inch straight line down from the original sheer or is there a curve I have to follow?
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Glen Smith
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Post by Glen Smith »

The 25" I referred to is taken from the dimensions given by Ted Moores who says the Nomad bow is 25" high. This measurement is in comparison to the lowest point of the boat which would be the keel line at the center station. So, the top of the stems is 25" above the ground when the hull is resting on a level surface. The stem molds themselves will not be 25" high because of the rocker.

If you want to add 1" hull depth, just add 1" to all of the molds following the original sheerline.
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