It was a year ago that I wrote the first part of this saga, and it seems time for an update.

We have made lots of progress on our boats, Someday and Trinkel. It has been a challenge and a lot of fun as well. We had hoped to get the Micro Trawler done in time for the Minnesota Mess About last year, but did not make it. Lots of things come up when you are building a boat. Things like the wedding of the eldest child. These sort of things take time, and money, that could be used for the boat. Not that I am complaining, you understand, just a comment!

Trinkel

Emily and her mom in the pram click images to enlarge

Emily finished her pram in July of ’06, and entered it in the county fair as 4H wood working project. There were days that I was not sure we would ever see the pram done, but she stuck with it. For those of you that did not see the first story, Emily has Ataxic Cerebral Palsy. This type of CP affects muscle tone, balance, depth perception and hand eye coordination. I must confess, I am VERY proud of her and her pram, and the fact that she stuck with it. This is in no small part due to the encouragement she received from other boat builders on the internet. Some of you have been to the web site, www.messing-about.com, and the folks there were a big part in her finishing her boat.

Emily sanding her pram

Emily and I sanded the inside of the pram, painted the out side, and varnished the inside. We put a gunwale that allows for water inside the boat to be poured out. A piece of oak was ripped into strips first. Emily cut 2” blocks out of one strip, a ½” wide, and a ¼ strip was fastened to the outside of the hull, then one of the blocks, and another strip on the inside. We left a gap of 2” between each block, and any water we get in the pram can just be poured out between the blocks. The out side strip is the rub rail and adds a fair amount of stiffness to the hull. She wanted a small dry storage area, so we put a hatch in the front flotation area. This pram will not be used with a sail, due to her CP, but a set of oars or paddles work just fine.

Emily cutting blocks for the pram gunwale

When she told me that she wanted to enter the pram in the fair, I was a little nervous about the judging. Unfortunately, it went about like I was afraid it would. The judge did not look at plans, photos or ask questions about how she made her boat, or how long it took. But the folks that have built boats know what it is all about, and told her so. Thanks again to Frank, Doc, Alda, Oyster, Barnacle Jim, Doug, Barry, Charlie, Jeff, and any others that I missed for the encouragement and support.

Emily and her pram

We splashed the pram on July 31, 2007. I asked Em where she wanted to launch, and she wanted to go right to the big lake, Lake Superior. Talk about confidence! We did, and it was great. We paddled around the bay with no problems at all.

Someday

Well, Emily got her boat on the water in 2006, and my goal was to do the same. I did not make it there however.

The hull in the garage, upside-down on saw horses

In March I asked a bunch of folks to come over to the house for some lunch, and to help with the hull. The hull was in the garage, upside down on saw horses. It needed to come out of the garage, be flipped over and put on the trailer, and then be pushed back into the garage. Once back in the garage, the wheels were pulled off the trailer, it was leveled, and I put plastic up around the hull and started to work on the bulkheads and decks. The plastic allowed me to put a propane heater in the garage and work with some comfort in the winter.

Carrying the hull out of the garage

Flipping the hull onto the trailer

Pulling the hull and trailer back into the garage

We installed the bulkheads, filleted them in place, and put the sheer rail on. Then the decks on the sides of the wheel house and on the bow. We also put a lot of foam in any area that we could for flotation. I added 4’ to the length of the hull, so another bulkhead was needed. That was installed, and them the aft deck supports and deck were put on.

Fitting bulkheads

Side deck being glued in place

Fitting foam in the bow of the MicroTrawler

Rear deck area

Holding deck down with weights and PVC clamps while gluing

Once all the decks are on, we started on the sides of the wheel house. I put the sides on as full sheets, and then positioned the windows and cut the holes. The windows came from an RV supplier, and are a vertical slide open design, with screens to keep the bugs out.

Starting on the wheelhouse sides

Putting the roof on the wheelhouse

I scarfed two pieces of plywood together for the roof, and with the help of a couple friends, we got that on and in place. Once the roof was in place, and the window openings were cut, we started to paint. I took a lot more time to paint the inside with all the little nooks and crannies then I ever thought it would.

Primer and paint on hull and wheelhouse

Windows and door in place

After the priming, we put the galley counter in. I have a two burner propane stove from an old camper, and a small sink too. The steering is a Tele Flex system, and Emily chose the wheel.

I am spending my time now routing and pulling wire, touching up the paint and trying to get all the little stuff done. The goal is once again the Minnesota Messabout, June 1-3 on Lake Pepin. I hope I make it this year.

Stephen Collins