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Mahogany boats...
By:Dan Caouette (CSFW)
Date: 11/12/2007, 8:48 am
In Response To: Strip: Wood Thickness (Trey Decell)

I'll add a counter-post.. sort-of.

Yes, in theory you COULD use your gorgeous mahogany boards (no... planks) for a stripper. Several kayaks have been made out it. It IS a very traditional boat building wood. I'm building a BTD Njord out of Honduras mahogany this winter for a customer in Spain. That said it'll be built out of certified plantation grown lumber. The Njord has about the same square footage as the Guillemot (about 48 sf) and will use about 25 board feet of lumber using 3/16" thick strips. Mahogany has a specific gravity of about 0.45, compared to WRC at 0.32. The weight of wood alone for a 48 SF boat using 3/16" strips comes to 24 pounds (about 5 pounds more than WRC). The wood is harder and denser so it will be harder to work with but being more rugged less epoxy and fiberglass would be required offsetting some of the extra wood weight.

You're Guillemot would need about 25 BF of lumber. One of your boards is over 40 board feet. You COULD use 1/2 of one and build a boat of it. I stress COULD. A BETTER use for those boards would be to sell them like others have said and build a boat out a wood from your local lumber yard. Before you sell the planks, I would rip off a few inches of material and use it for the deck. You'd still be using some of your mahogany on your boat. The deck would be the best place to show it off.

Before you jump on the western redcedar bandwagon, remember all WRC comes from old-growth forests. The trees that we get are WRC from are just as big, old and magnificent as the mahogany. We're losing them just as fast. When my current stock runs out I'm not going to order any more. I've switched to local softwoods (white pine, spruce,fir, etc) and hardwoods (like basswood, cherry and walnut and yes, plantation mahogany).

Dan

: OK, after having plans for a year and a half to build a Guillemot, I'm
: finally getting ready to start milling wood. (Restoration of a small
: British car got in the way..) I have two 8' long, 30" wide, 2"
: thick mahogany boards that I've thought about using. Due to the increased
: weight of Mahogany vs cedar, could I use 3/16 thick strips and still have
: enough strength? Should I use 6oz cloth or 4oz?
: Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Messages In This Thread

Strip: Wood Thickness
Trey Decell -- 11/9/2007, 4:54 pm
Re: Strip: Wood Thickness
Bill Hamm -- 11/19/2007, 1:41 am
Mahogany boats...
Dan Caouette (CSFW) -- 11/12/2007, 8:48 am
Re: Mahogany boats...
Trey Decell -- 11/12/2007, 12:42 pm
Re: Mahogany boats...
Dan Caouette (CSFW) -- 11/12/2007, 3:02 pm
Re: Strip: Wood Thickness
J R Ackley -- 11/11/2007, 10:31 am
Re: Strip: Wood Thickness *Pic*
Trey Decell -- 11/11/2007, 8:31 pm
Re: Strip: Wood Thickness
Paul G. Jacobson -- 11/11/2007, 10:39 pm
Re: Strip: Wood Thickness
Trey Decell -- 11/11/2007, 11:50 pm
Re: Strip: Wood Thickness
PatrickC -- 11/11/2007, 12:39 am
You either have a fortune, or a typo !
Paul G. Jacobson -- 11/9/2007, 6:41 pm
Re: You either have a fortune, or a typo !
Trey Decell -- 11/9/2007, 6:51 pm
Re: You either have a fortune, or a typo !
Paul G. Jacobson -- 11/9/2007, 7:08 pm
Re: You either have a fortune, or a typo !
Trey Decell -- 11/9/2007, 7:12 pm
Re: You either have a fortune, or a typo !
Bryan Hansel -- 11/10/2007, 7:06 pm
Don't waste it
kent LeBoutillier -- 11/10/2007, 11:05 am
Re: Don't waste it
Mike Braun -- 11/10/2007, 1:51 pm
You won't believe this. *Pic*
John Monroe -- 11/12/2007, 5:25 am
Re: Don't waste it
Rob Macks / Laughing Loon -- 11/10/2007, 4:24 pm
Re: Don't waste it
Mike Savage -- 11/10/2007, 5:56 pm
Re: Don't waste it
Kurt Maurer -- 11/10/2007, 6:47 pm
Heavy boat
Jay Babina -- 11/11/2007, 9:34 am