Hey folks. I am getting an ec12 hull and I want it to be a pretty boat as well as a competent/competitive sailing boat.
I am hell bent on planking the deck. I have been seeing pictures of teh older 12’s and I like that look. I’m not going to go as far and put any cabins winches, ect…its till going to be a smooth deck
For a moment(breif) I was considering a wooden mast, but I’m not ready to take that kind of self handicapping…
to be differrent, I am going use bamboo I have a lot of leftover from my hardwood floor install.
Wihcmeans I’m going to have to cut the planks from larger peices.
My question. is ther in easy way to this. I was going to set up a jig on a band saw and start slicing. Should I soak the wood beforehand such that its a bit softer and as such won’t tear…ect any hints
My thoughs are to do the deck on a flat surface using wax paper or similar substrate once complete vaccum bag with fiberglass and resin to get a strong lightweight deck…
You can find out about the density of bamboo by doing a google search. I figured it might not be real light stuff and might be thick as well. I found:
It’s density runs 2 to 3 times that of pine and usually is more dense than oak. On density alone bamboo would be listed well up in the hardwoods–above teak …
Not a winner. I am a fan of very light homemade EC-12 decks. 1/64th thick plywood from Aircraft Spruce. balsa and 1/64th ply or balsa beams. balsa 1/64th ply king plank if you feel you can get away with it - perhaps basswood inserts at the fairleads. Perhaps just a basswood kingplank. Perhaps basswood beams at the cockpit and mast areas. Deck is covered with what I call sticky Monokote. It will get punctured if raced enough in regattas, but can be repaired/patched. Never as pretty as when new.
in some cases when they cut veneer they soak the wood. helps keep it from being ripped or torn by the saws/knives…I thought about setting up a hand plane and using that to slice off the strips. or do it dry in a band saw with a jig set up to maintain consistent strips…I also though about my miter saw. but then I’m getting more more saw dust than wood cut…
the site I looked at shows the density of dried bamboo is 3-400 kg/cum balsa is 170, bass is 300-600 pine is 500’s and teak is 650-900
so I’m going to be 2x as heavy as balsa, but comparable to bass, provided I can slice it thin enough…
i wonder if the deli down the street would let me use their salami slicer… or if the wife would let me use the cuisinart…
The band saw is the way to go. Hardly any waste with a thin blade. I played around trying to cut pine into 1/8" square strips and was going nuts till I got the 14" bandsaw. Now it’s my goto tool for nearly everything.
What’s the bamboo stock like? Will it need a lot of prep to make it into dimensional lumber or it it already cut into boards?
its 3/4" thick 4" wide and 3 foot long planks I figure if a cut a plank into 6" long rectangles it will make it a bit more managable…
we have 20" band saw at work so I’m going to bring some in tomorrow and give it a shot. I made my soling 1m mast out of 1 72" long bamboo “threshold” trim. that I ripped, cut and finished into a airfoil shape. it end up being 1/2 once heavier than the spruce 2 piece mast that came with the kit… i also made bamboo main/jib boom that were lighter than their spruce counterparts…
But no way Id consider it for a ec-12 wayto heavy. being that aluminum is allowed. too much weight aloft. it would look real sweet though thats for sure…
Hi Mark, I would leave it 3’ long & rip it to 3/4 X 2", then rip it 1/4" X2" ( I like 1/4" planks ) them paint each side the color you want the caulking to be, Then set your saw to .050" and start ripping planks. I have my saw set up with a 3’ rip fence & a 4’ run out table. This makes a nice plank when finished.
John
I took some scraps and started cutting I set up a fence out of some lumber and clamped it to the table
I was using a wooden coffee stirrer as a gauge. its 7mm X 1.5mm x180mm
using the actual floor thickness i got a plank cut at 15mm x 2mm x180mm
so if were to “rip” the plank i would be in the 7mm ball park and once I sand it would be down in the 1-1.5mm thickness…
I found that over 12" long i started to get some wandering of the blade, but the 7" length was easy to manage\
being that boats are in the 1":1’ scale a 7"/180mm x 1/4" 1.5mm gives you a scale plank of 7’ x 3" which is a “believable” size…as it would be if I went with a 12" plant woudl be 12 feet long again a “scale” size…
I did think about using the coffee stirrer as my decking… but the birch is boring. I like the look of the tight grain bamboo
I thought about painting the edges with a sharpie, but I also though about using black construction paper and gluing to the edges…then cutting with a razor
[I thought about painting the edges with a sharpie, but I also though about using black construction paper and gluing to the edges…then cutting with a razor]
Mark, thats why you paint the flat sides before you strip it into planks, then when you glue them together you will have a caulk line.
john
Shame you didn’t post this earlier last month since I live in the heart of bamboo country & would have been more than happy to bring you a box of raw bamboo strip that the local factories use to make flooring & panels. I was just in States a couple weeks ago & am using them for battens on my junk sails.
Just be sure you seal all the edges 100% or you’ll eventually have a gnarly black deck on your hands. This grass doesn’t like water once its been cut.
not a huge problem. i had really good luck ripping the bamboo planks from my leftover floor peices. I did leave a peice of scrap bamboo outside for a couple weeks after teh floor was done and it had not turned colors. I had heard that bamboo will turn color. No color change on teh floor scrap. I imigane the floor sicne its its peices of bamboo epoxied together it i a bit more resistant. but none the less I wilbe coating the deck.
Been on vacation in florida for the week the boat sits home collecting dust.
started the deck process. I am laying up on a 1/64 birch which will allow me to bend the deck over the supports…
I found it was easier to just leave a small a gap in the planks and use yarn as my “caulk”
I wont do any of the final caulking until the deck as been sanded. I think my kinkgplank and edges will be a touch darker when I’m done… i want more contrast…I’ve also been working the rudder. Pink foam to be glassed over…
I was interested to see the lack of EC-12 skippers of note that have weighed in on the deck situation. Anyway, previously discussed trends in decking for the class seemed to indicate a target total weight of 10 ounces was pretty well accepted. 14 ounce decks appeared with wood overlayed on closed cell foam and seemed to work well, but included wooden back up blocks for deck fittings such as chain plates, jib rack, mast step, backstay and main and jib sheet exit guides. A deck that is vacuum bagged and can be weighed off the boat is a good step. Decks built in place are pretty well guaranteed to wind up overweight. At least that has been my experience.
Rod Carr
EC-12 #2
I finished the caulking last night. no pics. I will probably brush some clear urethane into the thread “caulking” to lock it place so I can do my final touch up sanding. I weigh the deck tonight and see what it tips the scales at. having the 1/64 birch then topping with 1/32ish hand cut bamboo strips. it will probably be heavy… which means I may need to drill out some of my lead to keep the waterline where it needs to be…
I just need to decide if I’m going to glass the entire deck once its on, or just use some glass tape on the hull/deck transition all the way around…I just need to be careful that whatever I do so I don’t exceed the max beam at any given point…
I’m a sucker for over building. so all through decks/chain plates, ect will have some sort of backing…
Rod I have found that even on wind power with and the dedicated Ec 12 forum they seems to be a quiet group…
Only a guess here - but the EC-12 does have a very good and active web and newsletter. Perhaps most issues/questions may be posted on them instead.
With the internet, there is a proliferation of forums, and one can get writer’s ( errr - typist’s) cramps if posting the same information on every one.
If you haven’t - (or anyone else interested) my personal suggestion is to drop an email off to Rick West who is the current Class Secretary, and ask him to add you to his email newsletter.
Just a suggestion if you are not on the mailing list.
Hey Marc, some of us EC12 ers are happier just to observe and look in wonderment at the skills and imagination of others. We are all out here, all around the world, keeping an eye on progress and muttering away to ourselves, so dont despair mate, you have support and fans everywhere. Good Luck.
