Outwales and Sculling Notch

Very satisfying progress over the last few weeks on the Acorn – getting some good work done!

The transom got a sculling notch cut in, for an alternative to a pair of oars. The outwales are coved to receive a rope as a bumper, to avoid scuffing the mothership.

The breasthook was cut to thickness, and some creative use of furniture as circle template, to get the right curve. The seat risers have been steam-bent and rivetted in place.

Admiring the good work, and planning next steps.

The shed has had the barnacles scraped off, a regular bit of maintenance – thanks Dylan!

A new addition to the dock (for the moment) is this partially completed kayak – the builder’s family has donated it to the club after he passed away. We are going to look for a suitable outcome for it, whether finishing it as a club project, or selling it to someone who wants to complete it. In the meantime, we’ll get it into dry storage off-site. Let us know if you’re interested!

This dock will soon be home to a tent – we’re getting one to expand our workspace for the winter, so that we can work on some of the much-neglected maintenance work on our fleet of boats. And as we get into winter weather, our shed is just a bit too small to accomodate as many people as we’d like. We are also putting a temporary hold on new Boat Users Group members until spring-time.

Here is a photo from the field trip last Wednesday to the VMM Archive room to view some ship plans. Five lucky OLAS members met with the Librarian Ashlynn Prasad. She pulled a few plans those members wanted to see. The really good news is that she is open to doing it again on a Saturday so that more of our members can participate. We’ll let you know when that is coming up!

We heard from Ingrid over on the Island – she’s working on making her Gartside 14′ more managable, planning on coming over some time to trim a bit off her mainsail. She’s also been involved at Cowichan Bay Maritime Centre, and their rowing and sailing program, enjoying time in the Zachary Mudge, a replica of George Vancouver’s cutter. Always great to hear from our distant members, and what they’re up to!

Off Center Harbor is a great source of videos about boats and boatbuilding – check out this wonderful video of schooners dancing a tango in Maine.

Eastside Culture Crawl is happening now – this weekend is by appointment only, and next weekend is the free-for-all. If you haven’t attended, DO!! It’s an amazing opportunity to visit artist studios, see their work, and be inspired. Our Oarlock & Sail club members Valerie and Arnt Arntzen were among the founding members 25 years ago, and they’d love to have you drop by Panaficio Studios! Check out Valerie’s great interview on CTV Morning.

Thanks Brent for the photo of the lovely Button Swan doing her thing!

Stem & Knees

We as the Oarlock & Sail Wooden Boat Club board members are working on communicating more with the rest of our club members. Please watch your email for some upcoming info on how you can get more involved, and be informed about upcoming work at the shop.

Work on the Acorn is progressing nicely – today she had her outer stem installed, and some templates cut for her stern knees and breasthook.

Before that, the boat got an oil bath, and then all ribs rivetted in place.

A couple of weeks ago, we modified a sail cover to fit Button Swan – we added a bit to an existing one that wasn’t quite long enough for that long boom. Thanks Tom for the use of your sewing machine, heat knife (which cuts the material so nicely!) and your expertise. A bunch of members got to try their hand at sewing, and we got a great new cover!

Meanwhile, the boats are giving much enjoyment to OSBUG members!

Hope to see you at the shop sometime!