View Full Version : Selway Fisher Canoes
innocent bystander
20-04-2005, 18:29
Anyone had a go at building one of these before ? Any tip's you might have ?
Just got the plans for a 15'8" Prospector, for something to do when the weather's a bit more stable...
bothyman
20-04-2005, 19:34
If you join this group you will get all the answers as Paul will answer any of your questions, if not someone else will know the answer
>> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SFD_builders_sailors/?yguid=641194
Motorbike Man
22-04-2005, 21:55
How did this go in the end, any luck with it?
innocent bystander
22-04-2005, 22:08
Well the plans are sat on the desk at the mo. At the moment i'm working out what exactly i need to get, apart from the plywood. The plans look pretty straight forward though, so when all the bits are together, i dont think it'll take ages to build. I will of course photo the whole build, if anyones interested..
of the canoes on the selway site which would you say is best for solo canoeing trips, camps, on slow moving rivers. etc
the prospector seems to be the classic but there is the peterborough or the wren. are they the right length for solo, are the hulls rounded enough for final stability?
hope this is not off topic
cheers :cool:
here is the site http://www.selway-fisher.com/Opcan16.htm
innocent bystander
23-04-2005, 18:36
To be honest hootchi, without trying them all, i couldn't say. My main reasoning was ease of construction (stitch and tape versus strip plank) - this gives relative lightness. A simpler and shorter build time, and the length was long enough to be adaptable, and short enough (hopefully) for solo. That said it would be more fun two's up. Also being a bit of a lard ar$e i figured extra length for bouyancy. And the final reason - bit of a tight wad, so i figured a build would be about half the price of a second hand one, and more fun :D .
Having said that, the more planks in the construction, the more rounded the hull will be - the pete' and the prospector, would be quite similar in that respect - the wren from what i can see is 2 plank per side, so it would follow that it might be slightly less stable - and it's the longest of the three !!. Also the quickest to build.
I think the prospector is more of a known quantity. At least it's the only one with a website about it !!: http://www.webcdi.com/Prospector/
thanks IB. it seems the peter' has less rocker so may track better with only one person where as the prospecter may need some weight in it.
if i am remembering correctly i think someone here made on of these from plans. dunno which one it was but it was very nice indeed. :cool:
innocent bystander
23-04-2005, 21:54
it seems the peter' has less rocker so may track better with only one person where as the prospecter may need some weight in it.
Tha'll be me then :D
Roving Rich
23-04-2005, 22:27
Hi IB, A friend and I finished building one in febuary, they are beautiful boats, but take a helluva lot of time to build, but wellworth all the effort ! Unfortunately the second part built boat burned down last week along with the barn it was in :(
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/ROVINGRICH2/DSC_1438.jpg
Staining her (Midnight) was alot of hassle, I'm not sure iwill bother on the next one. And we used 4mm marine ply as opposed to 6mm which made it alot lighter. However it proved too flimsy, and looked like it would "tin can", so we reinforced the bottom with some thin ribs (see picture). Next time I'd use 6mm for the bottom 2 chines and 4mm for the rest.
The hull goes together pretty quickly, to form the shape of the boat, but taping,finishing and fitting it out take alot of time.
We used epoxy, but discovered it doesn't like cold or damp conditions.
Any questions give me a shout.
Happy paddling
Rich
any idea how much did the materials cost you all told Rich?
Roving Rich
23-04-2005, 23:07
Erm I can't quite remember.....
But I reckon it actually ended up at about £400 ish
I figured it would cost about half that :rolleyes:
I think I might have broken it down before on here somewhere...
Ply I think was about £80
Epoxy resin about £120 - £90 for 5 litres, then we ended up buying 2 more smaller kits.
Erm Ash for the fittings was about £50
Stain ended up costing £60 !!!
Varnish was about another £40 (We used Tonkinois - natural oil based yaght varnish)
Then all the other bits, brushes tubs, stainless steel nut and bolts, webbing for the seats, brass screws, sanders etc
It soon adds up.
Cheers
Rich
innocent bystander
24-04-2005, 11:35
She looks lovely mate -the ribs really give it a look too. If i time it right,should be able to spead the cost over a 2 pay months - and 400 quid aint bad for something as pretty as that, with the pride thing thrown in as well.
What would you say was the most awkward part of the build ?
really nice canoe rich. just a few questions. :rolleyes:
is that the prospector? why did you choose it over the others? is it for solo use and double sometimes? are the plans good?
cheers :cool:
Roving Rich
26-04-2005, 12:10
Hi
Yes it is a Prospector -We cut about 1&1/2" out of the "freeboard" and tapered it upto the ends. When the hull went together it looked a bit like a supertanker ! We may have improved the look, but I think I'd leave it in next time.
The prospector is a brilliant design of canoe, I have paddled various versions of it in plastic and roylex, and enjoyed them all. None as much as this wooden one which is a joy to paddle. It tracks (goes in a straight line) really nicely, so is ideal for cruising. I chose it as the ideal boat for touring -2 people + camping duffel + the dog, and still has load capacity to spare.
She also paddles really nicely solo. She is such a light boat, that it requires very little effort and just glides along silently.
The hardest part for us was definitely the epoxy. We had all sorts of problems with it. Tapes wrinkling up, epoxy going off exothermically like a volcano !, fillers turning white or pink (the second boat got nic named the pink panther) and the epoxy generally going cloudy/milky not clear. - Epoxy doesn't like cold or damp, and the best filler according to the boat builders I spoke to is clean saw dust.
The other tricky bit was the where the gunwhales and deck join, we tried to be a bit flash and blend one into the other with a nice curve. it proved very tricky, as the sides of the boat move until stiffened with the gunwhales, so the angles keep changing.
The plans are excellent, the description on how to put it together is er lacking to say the least. We think this is written for someone with experience of boat building (by someone with experience), not us complete novices. You will have to use your head, and be creative in a few places.
I hope that helps, any questions/advice feel free to ask.
I have lots of photos of the early stages of the build, so i'll try and put something together.
Cheers
Rich
That looks great, and I bet you had loads of fun making it! As it is made of marine ply, does that make it heavy? Have you any idea of the weight?
Also, can you scale it up and down to make larger or smaller canoes?
Spamel
innocent bystander
26-04-2005, 13:25
Spot on Rich, if you could perhaps show some of the pics through the build that would be brill !!
Now, where's my credit card.....Got some ply to buy....
Roving Rich
26-04-2005, 13:44
No Worries,
I see no reason why you couldn't scale it down. I believe that the Peterborough is pretty much just that, but there are other smaller and larger designs available too.
Weight wise I really don't know, I'd have to weigh it. Its the lightest canoe that I have paddled though, and that includes smaller solo boats.
IB (or IBS :p ) You aren't that far away if you want to come take a look/paddle ?
Cheers
Rich
bothyman
26-04-2005, 13:57
This website might give you an idea to what is involved in building one
> http://www.houseboatsnz.co.nz/tutorials/tutorial01/tutorial01.htm
With regards to weight the selway fisher site states a finished prospector in 4mm ply will weigh 30kg/65lb's. :cool:
innocent bystander
26-04-2005, 20:24
30kg, or about just under quarter body weight :eek: :eek: :D
arctic hobo
26-04-2005, 20:51
Half if you're a greyhound :D Half body weigh is a realistic limit for carrying all day - you could manage 20 miles/day like that. Not sure why I'm saying this as nobody suggested carrying it. I'll get me coat :rolleyes:
Roving Rich
06-05-2005, 09:46
Right - If anyone wishes to take a look or have a paddle of of my canoe, I'll be taking it to the meetup at the end of the month, and you can all druel over it and massage my ego :D or laugh :confused:
cheers
Rich
How about a picture for those unable to attend?
Post number 9 of this thread. :)
here (http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showpost.php?p=79156&postcount=9)
:cool: It looks really top.
Of course!!! :rolleyes: Sorry, didn't realise, I obviously saw it when the thread was new. That does look like a really well made and good looking canoe. How about some photos with it on the water then??!! :D
Squidders
06-05-2005, 20:57
I saw that before... it looks lovely!
I want one of these though ;)
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/standard-pod-wrapped.jhtml?id=0032441&navAction=push&navCount=3&indexId=cat21342&parentId=cat21342&parentType=index&rid=&cmCat=MainCatcat21276
Joe
Roving Rich
13-05-2005, 16:25
Here ya go :D
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/ROVINGRICH2/Shefloats.jpg
and
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/ROVINGRICH2/canoepaddling1.jpg
Cheers
Rich
Very nice indeed.:cool: Cheers Rich, I think those photos must be in the gallery because I recognise them.
Droool, sweet candy (in a homer simpson voice!!)
Looking very good, nice to see the life jacket too, sets a good example! I've got two on order for the young 'uns, and then they can accompany me on pleasant journeys on the many lakes around here, thus giving the missus a break!!
Canoes rock!!
Roving Rich
14-05-2005, 18:46
Yeah She paddles beautifully.
The photos were posted to the gallery some time ago. Unfortunately the disc containing the images of the build has got corrupted -It actually looks like its been attacked with a cold chisel ! So these images only survived as they were on the computer :(
Cheers
Rich
Madra rua
21-06-2005, 22:25
Hi guys,
I've just started building a 15'9'' Prospector and so far I've cut the timber and joined it to form the full length planks. I'm going to stitch them soon. So far I've been using fibre glass tape and resin that I've bought at the local hardware store which has been fine for joining the 8' lengths together, but I'll need longer fibreglass or polyester tape for joining the planks at the seams and epoxy in larger quantities to make it more economical. So, if anyone could tell me what materials (fibreglass and epoxy especially) they used it would be a great help. Also I was wondering if its necessary to fibreglass the whole boat (not just at the seams) to give it more strength and protection from moisture and if so what type of fibreglass sheath is needed. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. :)
Fintan.
bothyman
22-06-2005, 08:30
Fintan
Join this Group
>> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SFD_builders_sailors/?yguid=641194
Paul (The man you got the plans off) and other members of the group will answer your questions for you.
Its a Group set up for folks who are building Selway Fisher Boats and Canoes
Hope this is not old news :confused:
MickT
Minotaur
26-04-2010, 22:10
I saw that before... it looks lovely!
I want one of these though ;)
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/standard-pod-wrapped.jhtml?id=0032441&navAction=push&navCount=3&indexId=cat21342&parentId=cat21342&parentType=index&rid=&cmCat=MainCatcat21276
Joe
Link does not work for me. :o
New site from them just for canoes. (http://www.makeacanoe.com/)
check out my link if you want some tips, I made plenty of mistakes so you can avoid them, great canoe, really good fun to paddle
Chambers
27-04-2010, 17:17
Is there anywhere to get plans for the prospector or similar but cheap?
I have seen a few free plans on the internet but they tend to look very poor and shouldnt think the canoe will look anywhere as good as the prospector type
jdlenton
27-04-2010, 23:06
selways site is the place for their designs and at £50 there not as cheap as they could be
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Canoe-Canadian-Stripwood-Plywood-Plans-Maps-Resource-CD-/350336774081?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Sporting_Goods_CanoesKay aks_Rafts_SM&hash=item5191b2efc1
not a selway prospector , but i have e-mailed him for more images of the finished stripwood canoe - the plywood one `looks` a bit naff from the picture
i would have thought someone on here would have had a set of selway plans going cheap ???:rolleyes::D
i bought some plans from evil bay some guy offering a few plans on one disk all i can say is what a load of jank :rolleyes:most of them you can get free on the net and the others was so old and unable to read.. better off buying propper ones. iv just finished building my 16ft open canoe its a ply build and im very happy with it..
Chambers
28-04-2010, 22:32
Angelo do you have photos and a link to where you got/bought the plans, see if its the type Im after, also how much did it cost your roughly to build?
I didnt buy plans i got a few books from the libary and then worked out what i wanted. open canoes are all a basic shape so its just a case of how wide how long.iv paddle both open canoes and kayaks for years as an instructor and for joy iv also made a few over the years for my self and friends. Those plans on selway-fisher are good sets you cant go wrong from what iv seen and couple of friends have bought from there. You could always go half with a buddy on a set and build 1 each togther.http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m320/diabloblue/front.jpg http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m320/diabloblue/stab.jpg
Angelo do you have photos and a link to where you got/bought the plans, see if its the type Im after, also how much did it cost your roughly to build?
sorry forgot the build cost of the one here was around £110.0
Angelo do you have photos and a link to where you got/bought the plans, see if its the type Im after, also how much did it cost your roughly to build?
Chambers
29-04-2010, 08:26
Thats a fantastic price and looks really good. I would be tempted to not paint it though. Think I may have to go to the library see if I can get some books