tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7734790758918740494.post3183014933012921588..comments2024-02-26T20:19:53.194-05:00Comments on Gary's Outdoor Wanderings2: LEARNING CHEROKEE LAKE AND A CHANCE FOR SHADE/one last thought about DouglasGARYhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01217590514589042011noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7734790758918740494.post-37779913757861975602011-07-18T09:24:18.343-04:002011-07-18T09:24:18.343-04:00It's okay to put my name by my picture--though...It's okay to put my name by my picture--though come to think of it, I suppose you will have to hear that from me in person, since it could be anybody typing :-)<br /><br />Thank you for your kind words about my canoes--such is the way to a builder's heart. I understand that the house has to come first, and that's okay. I moved a few years ago myself and the, uh, "surprises" are fresh in my memory, and I realize they can eat up time and financial reserves.<br /><br />I have family coming next week anyway (part of why I was pushing so hard to finish the one with the double stripe, and why I was so pleased about being done) and I will be pretty booked until they leave about mid-August. (Contacting me during that time would be fine, but I won't be able to actually start work on anything.)<br /><br />I will see what I can find out about Bill Mason's Pal canoe. What I will need to actually start building is station drawings: full sized cross-sections of the canoe, taken about a foot apart, from one end to the other. (If the Pal is symmetric, I will only need from the middle to one end.) If I can find a "table of offsets" (think of it as a set of numbers to let me plot each of the station drawings on graph paper) I can make the station drawings in a day or two. If station drawings or offset tables can't be found (and a lot of commercial canoe companies don't like their design work floating around for other people to use), but we can lay hands on an actual Pal, I know, in theory, how to make station drawings off the canoe itself. Not having done that before I'm not sure how long it will take me, though, or how accurate it will be.<br /><br />Also I don't work in wood-canvas myself but I had the impression that the final shape of the canoe involves the stresses in the curved ribs balancing the stresses in the curved wooden "skin" and that each boat sort of adjusted itself as these stresses balanced when it was taken off the forms, which means that, though two Pals will be pretty similar, they won't be exactly alike. <br /><br />When I have time I will look into it a bit more and see what I can find. I don't want to discourage you prematurely--we may find that someone is selling drawings for the Pal and hey! Problem solved, fast and easy. But I do want to be straight with you about what is and is not possible.<br /><br />If worst comes to worst I can probably find / modify drawings to come up with something very like a Pal in hull shape. But I prefer to do things *right.*<br /><br />Also we should talk about possible minor modifications that might make it easier for you to use the canoe your way. For example I notice you seem to paddle alone a lot; if you would like a middle seat, or (less obtrusive) a place or two where the scupper holes are reinforced so you can run a strap from gunwale to gunwale to prop yourself on to take the weight off your knees while you kneel in the center, we could certainly do that.<br /><br />Also, give me a call if you just want to paddle the boats--I love taking them out, and would be happy to let you try the models I have already. Again, frantic cleaning for guests this week (plus I need to move the seat on Constance), guests here next week and week after--probably after mid-August would be best for any meet-ups but I *am* interested.<br /><br />Your posts about Douglas made me weep. He sounds extraordinary, and I am sorry for your loss. I am very glad you are starting to heal. You are a fine pack leader; it always takes time for pack dynamics to settle down after a big change like this. I am glad Shade did so well on her first day as "boat dog." She seemed happy and well-behaved; I would not have known it was her first day if you hadn't mentioned it.<br /><br />Yours-- Cat FaberAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com