1–2. Frame templates completed. The half-plans were expanded to full size 3/8" plywood templates. This reduced layout and cutting time and increased accuracy and symmetry.

1–2. Full size mockup bottom frames 0 through 4 completed. Mostly scrap lumber (spruce, pine, plywood) was used to build the mockup frames.

1. Installing mockup frames 0 thru 4 on motor stringers.

2. Work has come to a halt as we had to undergo eye surgery. Expected recovery time is about 5 weeks.

1. Vision is fully restored now. No excuses for wavering on the cutout lines !! Frame #7 completed.

2. A quick trailer was built to bolt to the motor stringers. Now for the stem and frame #8...

3. Chevy small block anyone ?? It's at this stage of the project where you (and everyone else) begin to doubt your sanity.

4. A quick set of temporary motor mounts was developed to provide up/down and side to side adjustment.

5. The beginnings of a motor plate to anchor the front of the motor.

The templates for the bottom frames, laminations and floor timbers were screwed to Douglas Fir stock and cut on the bandsaw to within 1/8" of the template. Pieces were then trimmed on the router table using a trim bit.

All pieces trimmed on the router table equipped with a top-bearing flush trim bit.

1. Carlings.

2. It's starting to look like a boat...

Wiring the dash.

Dash installed. Hooking up temporary terminal boards. The terminal boards will be installed on a swing-out panel under the dash. The wiring is left on the long side to enable removal without undoing any wiring.

Finished dash. Time to start thinking about a steering system . . .

Dash installed. Carlings completed.

The stem, frames # 7, # 8 and a mockup 350 CID Chevy motor were installed.

A set of truck headers was inverted and bolted on as a prank.

A Chris Craft exhaust system was trial-fitted. Lighter, more compact components will have to be located . . .

The rebuilt motor was installed and wired. A temporary automotive cooling system was installed so we could run the engine and break it in.

A custom bracket was fabricated to relocate the alternator to the lower left side of the engine.

Custom pipes were bent to exit through the bottom of the hull.

The pipes feed into twin turbo mufflers which exit at the transom.

A master disconnect switch (large solenoid attached to the transmission mount) was installed between the battery and the starter motor. A dash mounted toggle switch must now be toggled 'on' to power up the starting circut.

1. Frame and floor timber assembly completed.

2. Assembling transom.

3. Epoxy barrier coating frames #1 and #2...

4. #3 and #4...

5. #6, #7 and #8. A total of three coats was applied with wet sanding between coats to remove any amine blush from the epoxy.

6. Laminating motor stringers.

7–8. Laying out the motor stringer frame notches.

9. Cutting the motor stringer frame notches.

10. Laying out motor stringer bevel.

11. Cut completed.

12. All frames completed.

14. Since the hull is only 28" deep, the setup jig height was increased so that the top of the frames were 16" off the floor. This raises the boat to a more convenient work height and provides increased clearance for cutting the frame sheer notches and fairing the sheer clamps.

15. A third leg was added between frame # 4 and # 5. This prevents stringer and frame movement when the chine and sheer are sprung in.

16–17. Frames fitted to motor stringers.

We'll be building the Glen-L 2100 series inboard boat trailer using a single 3500 lb. capacity 4" drop axle equipped with hydraulic brakes. A pair of 14" 4-hole Dodge rims were sandblasted, primed, and pressed into service as 'roller' wheels.

The first engine we built for the HOT ROD project was originally a 283 cubic inch Chevrolet marine unit salvaged from a 1968 Chris Craft cruiser. It has since been upgraded to a more potent 355 CID V8.

2. The Chris-Craft engine was oufitted with a Paragon 2:1 reduction transmission, a gear driven camshaft and a large capacity cast iron oil pan.

5. Certainly not the lightest engine package to power our boat, so we tore the engine down and replaced most of the parts with beefier and lighter performance parts.

6. The engine was hot-tanked, magnafluxed to check for cracks and bored out.060". Brass freeze plugs, block petcock drain valves and a set of flat top pistons were also installed. The crankshaft, rods and cylinder heads were also reconditionned.

1. The engine mounts, brackets and pulleys were sandblasted, primed with DuPont 2580CR urethane primer and topcoated with DuPont Imron urethane enamel.

1–2. Frame clips were fabricated from 1-1/2" angle iron. The floor timbers were bolted to the frames which were in turn bolted to the motor stringers.

3. To ensure assembly accuracy, the transom pieces will be overlaid on the transom template.

4. All pieces ready for lamination.

5–6. Filling the screw holes.

7–8. Drilling holes for the transom brackets.

9. Transom brackets were fabricated from 1/8" flat stock.

10. Bracket top was flared to allow the installation of two bolts instead of one.

11–12. Three coats of epoxy complete the transom.

13. Transom bracket painted and installed. Prior to installation, the brackets and frame clips were sandblasted, primed with DuPont 2580CR self-etching urethane primer, base-coated with Imron Urethane white and topcoated with Imron Urethane metallic silver.

The engine was installed in the fullsize mockup. Motor mounts were fabricated, the wiring system was completed and an automotive cooling system was hooked up so we could fire up the engine. The intent is to break in the motor before it's installed in the finished boat. A cam driven water pump and marine exhaust will be swapped in at a later date.

Power upgrades include a mild marine hydraulic camshaft and lifter kit, a Crane Powermax H-266-2. Cam specs are as follows: - Advertised duration (Intake/Exhaust): 266/272 degrees - Duration at.050" lift (Intake/Exhaust): 210/266 degrees - Valve lift:.440"/.454" - Lobe centerline: 112 degrees The original Carter 3660 four barrel carburetor was rebuilt. To save weight and increase performance, the stock cast iron intake manifold was replaced with a much lighter and better flowing Edelbrock Performer intake manifold. The compact Velvet Drive bellhousing requires the installation of a 12-3/4" 153 tooth flywheel and a marine starter to match the smaller diameter flywheel. The original Chris-Craft motor mounts were retained.

1. Transom bracket painted and installed. Prior to installation, the brackets and frame clips were sandblasted, primed with DuPont 2580CR self-etching urethane primer, base-coated with Imron Urethane white and topcoated with Imron Urethane metallic silver.

2. Fitting the sheer clamps to the breasthook. The breasthook was bulit up using two pieces of 1" x 3" mahogany stock and 3/4" marine plywood. The strips will provide a stable landing for the sheer clamp screws.

1. Installing the sheer clamps. Two strips of 5/8" x 1-1/4" mahogany will be used per side.

2–3. Although not detailed in the plans, the chine blocking was made from two pieces of 3/4" marine plywood. The sides were bevelled at 30 degrees and a notch was cut to fit around the stem. This is definitely a trial and error project. Much time will be saved when fitting the chine logs to the blocking.

4. Glued...

5. Screwed...

6. Installed.

7. The chine log was wrapped with waxed paper to prevent it from being glued to the blocking.

Fitting the chine.

1. A large crescent wrench and a ratchet strap was used to twist the top of the chine inward towards the keel. Laying a straightedge from the sheer to the chine will indicate when sufficient twist is attained.

2. The second sheer clamp laminations are yet to be installed.

The second sheer clamp laminations are yet to be installed. Notes on fitting the chine Photo courtesy of Glen-L Marine Designs The photo above illustrates a plywood fixture we have found helpful to determine the position of the chine on the stem side. Keep in mind what has been stated in the foregoing. The bottom and side must mate to the stem and chine on a continuous surface. The chine can't be located on the stem so that the stem/chine junction cannot be faired to a flat plane. Take small pieces of plywood and simulate the side and bottom joining on the stem to help visualize what the finished junction will look like. Source : Designer's Notebook: Fitting the chine - WebLetter 49

Fairing the stem and chine using the 'Rabl' method. The method is depicted in the following plate : From the book Boatbuilding with Plywood by Glen L. Witt For a complete description of the fairing method, follow the links below : Designer's Notebook : Fairing by the "Rabl Method" : Article by Glen L. Witt. Boatbuilding with Plywood : Book by Glen L. Witt.

1. The second sheer clamp laminations are yet to be installed.

2–3. Created: Revised:

4–5. Compare the unfaired side (left) to the faired side (right).

6. Here you can see unfaired frame # 7 (background) and the faired frame (foreground).

Installing the battens and fairing.

Remove the clamps and trim to size. Several methods for handling thickness variations between side and bottom planking at junctions over the chine log are depicted in the following diagram. We chose to recess the first layer of bottom plywood into the chine. See the bottom right drawing labelled Double planking forward portion recessed chine. Methods for handling thickness variations between side and bottom planking at junctions over chine log. Drawing courtesy of Glen-L Marine Designs

1. We'll be sheeting with the optional 1/2" botom in the flatter aft area and two layers of 1/4" in the forward section. A template for the first bottom layer is being fitted.

2. The chine was covered in masking tape and the bottom/side planking junction was marked with a pencil. Using a pneumatic die grinder outfitted with a 1/2" deburring rasp makes quick work of cutting a series of 'mouseholes' every six inches or so along the panel's edge. Trim the slots back until the transition line is visible.

3–4. Note the cleft to the right of the last slot. From this point aft, the bottom planking will be faired flush with the side of the chine.

5. A thin flexible batten is sprung and clamped along the panel's slots before marking with a pencil.

6. Remove the clamps and trim to size.

7–8. A router was used to recess the forward portion of the chine.

9–10. A simple jig made from a piece of 1/4" plywood is used to form a steady base for the router.

11. Fairing the stem with the 'Rabl' method. The following link explains how it's done: Fairing by the "RABL Method" by Glen L. Witt

12. The keel must also be recessed to accomodate the thickness of the plywood. A router is used (freehand) to fair the surface.

13. The depth of the recess is decreased as it approaches the keel (1/4" deep from mark #1 to #4, 3/16" at #5, 1/8" at #6, 0" at the keel). Install the panel and determine how much should be faired from frame #8.

1. The first bottom template (1/4" fir plywood) is screwed to a piece of 1/4" marine plywood and trimmed to size.

2. Trial fitting the first bottom. Once installed, it fits flush with the chine from the stem to a point between frames 7 and 8.

3. A second layer of 1/4" plywood is tacked on to check for fit.

4. A 26" wide piece of 1/4" marine plywood is scarfed to the first bottom piece. Total length is 8'-6". Click here to see how the scarf was made.

5. Glued and clamped...

This section depicts the plywood scarfing operation using a 10" radial arm saw. Click here for a technical overview of the various plywood joining methods and instructions for building a simple circular saw scarfing jig.

1–2. The work table behind the radial arm saw's outer fence must be relieved to accomodate the saw spindle. A piece of 3/4" x 4' x 8' plywood is temporarily fastened to the saw's apron. A guide strip is clamped under the piece to be scarfed (in this case a piece of 1/4" x 31"x 96" plywood). The strip runs along the leading edge of the 3/4" plywood apron and keeps the stock perpendicular to the saw's fence.

3. If your stock's length is less than the width of your apron, butt a square piece of plywood to the right of the stock and push it against the saw's fence. This will square up the stock as you feed it into the saw. Shown above is a narrower apron with a guide strip clamped to the stock.

4. The saw is raised several inches, rotated to a horizontal position and tilted to a 5 degree bevel. A pair of spring steel hold downs are used to keep the stock firmly planted on the saw's apron.

5. Since a blade guard can't be used on this setup, don't get too close to the exposed blade and watch your fingers ! Note that the leading hold down is positioned so as to prevent kickback as the stock exits the blade.

6. The maximum scarf length is only limited by the length of your saw's runoff apron.

7. The finished product.

8. Scarf width is 2-1/2". A thin-rim 72 tooth carbide finishing blade was used to get a clean cut. The scarf's leading edge is paper thin and can be quite ragged. It can be squared up and trimmed with a sharp utility knife running against a large framer's square.

9. An 8' section was bolted to the router table to make up a 16' long table.

10. A strip of plastic film was placed on the table at each seam before laying out the scarfed panels. Pictured are two pieces 31" x 96" being scarfed to a piece 31" x 26" which will make up the side plankng.

11. The seams were adjusted and witness marks were scribed on the panels to facilitate re-assembly.

12. The joints being epoxied.

13. Line up the witness marks, clamp the panels to keep them from moving, cover the joint with a strip of plastic film and a piece of plywood about a foot wide and apply weights. Excessive weight will squeeze too much epoxy from the joint and lead to an unsound joint.

14. Check to make sure the panels are aligned properly.

15. Once the epoxy has cured, the joint is ready for finishing.

16. This 18' long side planking panel was built up from three pieces of 1/4" plywood.

17. Closeup of a scarfed joint using 1/4" marine plywood.

18. Sample epoxy-coated joint.

19. The epoxy should be left to cure for several days before subjecting the panel to severe bending stresses.

1. While we're waiting for the bottom panel to fully cure, the side planking template (31" wide x 18' long) is clamped in place.

2. The two scarfed joints are located midway between frames and in relatively flat areas.

3–4. Trimmed.

5. The tumblehome is quite severe at the transom. The fir plywood is barely making the bend. The marine plywood should be much easier to work with.

1. Fitting the scarfed first bottom panel.

2. Since the required panel length is 8'-6" and adding a 6" strip ahead of the butt block is close to frame #4, the scarf joint was moved forward 24" and centered bewteen frames #5 and #6. A butt block between frames #4 and #5 will join the two layers of 1/4" plywood to the aft piece of 1/2" plywood.

3. Closeup of the epoxied scarf joint.

4. The panel is left oversized, marked and trimmed.

5. Screws are driven through plywood spacer washers to spread the screw's clamping force to a larger area.

6. The port side chine and keel must now be recessed and lowered before fitting the keel junction.

1. Port chine recessed for first bottom and battens glued.

2. Port first bottom scarfed and glued. Joint epoxied to check for finish.

3. Closeup of the finished joint.

4. First bottom panels ready to be installed.

5. Side sheeting template.

1–2. First bottom panels dry-fitted.

3. Panels are butted along the stem centerline.

1. Installing the second sheer clamp lamination. We didn't use any screws to secure the stock, so 29 clamps were needed to do the job.

2. Prior to gluing, the second sheer clamp lamination was aligned with the first lamination and clamped. Finishing nails were used to hold the pieces in alignment. When the laminations are glued, the nails register both pieces to their dry-fit position and prevent the stock from sliding around when clamping pressure is applied.

1. Gluing the second starboard-side sheer clamp lamination.

2. Gluing the third sheer clamp laminations.

1. Gluing the third sheer clamp laminations.

2–3. Transom plywood (3/8" marine) installed.

1. The propeller shaft hole will be drilled prior to sheeting the bottom. Two pieces of scrap plywood were screwed to the keel. Once the strut mounting holes were drilled, a stack of washers under each mounting hole was used to determine how much material had to be removed.

2. A jig was rigged up to flatten the strut mounting area. The router is run on two parallel lengths of angle iron.

3. Depth of cut is adjusted to remove enough material so that the strut sits flat on the plywood.

4. A block plane can now be used to finish the job.

1. A 1/8" masonite spacer was fabricated and slipped under the strut to simulate the thickness of two layers of fiberglass cloth which will eventually cover the hull. The strut was bolted into position and an 8' long piece of 1" round bar was fed through the strut to simulate the propeller shaft.

2. A guide block was loosely clamped to the keel. Click here to see how the guide was made.

3–4. Push the shaft through the guide block until it contacts the keel and mark the point. Shim the shaft until it's centered in the guide block and mark the holesaw entry point. Clamp the guide block.

5. Remove the shaft and insert the boring bar, coupler and holesaw into the guide block. Use an inclinometer to verify the shaft angle is correct before drilling.

6. Click here to see how the boring bar was made.

7. The finished shaft hole.

This section describes how to build a boring bar which can be used to bore the propeller shaft hole.

1. The 1" boring bar consists of a 1" round bar, a slip-on connector and a standard holesaw fitted with a 1/2" x 18" extension bar.

2. The drive end of the tool is fitted with a 1/2" drive impact socket.

3. A 1" ID pipe sleeve is used to connect the 1" bar and the impact socket.

4. The coupler consists of a 1/2" drive 7/16" impact socket welded to a 1" ID pipe sleeve.

5. The pipe sleeve is drilled for a 1/4" x 2" through bolt.

6. To get the shaft hole started, a guide block was cut from a piece of 4"W x 4"H x 9"L stock. A 1-1/2" holesaw was used to drill a hole along the stock's length.

7. The piece was then cut on the bandsaw at a 12 degree angle to suit the propeller strut. To locate the point at which the holesaw will start cutting the plywood bottom, insert the holesaw into the big end of the block and push it in until the teeth are flush with the underside of the block. Transfer the mark to both sides of the block.

8. Insert an 8' long 1" bar through the strut. A scrap piece of 1/2" plywood is slipped under the strut to simulate the hull planking thickness. A piece of 1/8" masonite simulates the fiberglass thickness.

9. Push the bar through the guide block. Push until it contacts the keel and mark the point. Using shims, center the guide block on the shaft and mark the holesaw entry point. Clamp the guide block.

10. Remove the shaft and insert the boring bar, coupler and holesaw into the guide block. Use an inclinometer (angle finder) to verify the shaft angle is correct before drilling.

11. The finished shaft hole.

1. A fiberglass tube was inserted into the shaft hole. Click here to see how the tube was made.

2. This is a view from inside the boat. An 8' long shaft was fed through the strut and shaft hole. A 1" hole was drlled in frame #4 to position the shaft at 12 degrees.

3. A 1" ID x 1-5/8" OD rudder shaft collar inserted into each end of the tube will center the shaft in the tube until the epoxy cures.. When the boat is righted, the tube will be ground flush with the keel. Two laminations of fiberglass cloth will be applied to the keel before installing the shaft log.

This section describes how to cast a fiberglass tube which will be used as a lining for the propeller shaft hole.

1. A piece of 1" pipe is clamped in the vise. Wrap the pipe with a piece of cardboard sheet...

2. ... until you get the desired inside diameter.

3. Wrap the tube with duct tape.

4. Add a layer of waxed paper.

5. Laminate with two layers of fiberglass cloth. When fully wet out, wrap tightly with waxed paper and tape the whole tube to maintain even pressure on the tube.

6. The finished tube. Both the inside and outside surfaces are nice and smooth.

1. After the engine was run for several hours, we removed it from the mockup and dropped the oil pan to check the bearings. Even though we had the block hot tanked both before and after cylinder boring, there was clearly some scale in the pan.

2. The engine was disassembled and sent out to the machine shop for inspection. While we were at it, we added a Moroso windage tray and an ARP stud kit. Since switching from main cap bolts to studs affects the bearing clearances, the main caps were installed and align-bored to restore the clearances.

1. Since we were running short on time, the trailer was built by a welding shop in Merickville, Ontario. I asked them to fabricate the bare-bones trailer so I could finish the winch stand, brakes, fenders, bunks and wiring myself.

2. The craftsmanship is readily visible: nice welds, clean joints, gently bowed side rails and lots of little details add up to an excellent job. We increased the tongue length by 3' and substituted a piece of heavy duty 3" square tube for the 3" C-channel called for in the plan.

3. We increased the rear crossmember to 2" x 6" rectangular tube. This beefs up the rear and will provide more surface area to recess the rear lights.

4–5. You might want to increase the side rails to 4" C-channel. Although this will increase overall weight, it will stiffen up the trailer considerably.

6–7. 20 bunk support brackets and swivel assemblies were fabricated to support the bunks.

8. When the bunk boards are added, this should provide fully adjustable support for the hull.

1–2. Glenwood header manifolds, 15 degree elbows, aluminum front cover, cam-driven water pump and a custom stainless steel alternator bracket complete the engine.

3–4. Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video.

5. Closeup view of the alternator bracket. It extends back to the engine mount for added support.

1. A jig was set up on the welding table to bend the stock required for the fender steps.

2. 2-1/2" x 3/16" flat bar was heated and bent around the jig.

3. The stock was cut to length on the chop saw.

4. We mocked up the fenders to the fender steps and loaded up the mockup to check for fit.

5. If you click on the picture to enlarge it, you'll see how well the bunk beds conform to the hull.

8–9. Chrome 8-spoke rims shod with ST205/75R15 rubber finish off the package.

10. The trailer wiring was completed with 4" LED stop/turn/tail lamps.

1. The trailer wiring was completed with 4" LED stop/turn/tail lamps.

2. Sealed red clearance lights were mounted to the fender steps.

3. Sealed yellow clearance lights were mounted at the tongue/side rail junction and on the fender steps.

4–5. An ID light strip was fabricated using a length of 1" aluminum square tube. Three 3/4" x 3" red clearance lights were mounted to the tube which was then bolted to the trailer. A two prong plug will connect to the wiring harness and permit quick and easy removal of the light bar.

6. An inner fender skirt was fabricated from 16 gauge steel. A 1" flange on the bottom of the skirt will provide support for a step filler panel.

1. The trailer was disassembled and body filler was used to smooth out the frame rails.

2. A self-etching primer and a urethane primer-surfacer were sprayed on the worked-over areas.

3. The primer was block-sanded and prepped for paint.

1. To provide a solid base color for the metallic silver to follow, a full round of Imron white urethane was applied. Two rounds of Imron metallic silver were applied once the white had flashed off.

2. With the main body of the trailer completed, it's time to finish up the inner fenders.

3. The seam was brazed with an oxy-acetelyne torch and ground smooth.

4. Body filler was applied to the inner fenders and air-filed smooth.

5. Fenders get a prime coat of Dupont DTM urethane etching primer.

1. Fenders get a prime coat of Dupont DTM urethane etching primer.

2–3. Primed fender steps.

4. A white base coat is applied to kick up the topcoat color. Several rounds of Imron metallic silver complete the job.

5. We detailed the bunk supports as well.

1–2. Here's the finished product. The fenders and tongue will be painted at a later date since they'll likely get scratched up when the topside of the boat is being finished.

3–4. For added safety, boat/trailer packages exceeding 2000 pounds require electric or hydraulic brakes. The hydraulic unit shown is equipped with a reverse lock pin to prevent brake actuation when backing up the trailer.

1–2. Two layers of 3/8" thick by 2" wide mahogany stock were laminated to the inside chine log surfaces. This will restore some strength to the members, lock the frames into position and provide additionnal fastening area for the first plywood bottom screws.

3. A 3/8" thick lamination was added to the rear battens. We'll be cutting 3/8" deep limbers (drainage channels) so additional material must be provided to maintain the batten's integrity.

4. Here's the view from inside the boat.

1. A quick and accurate method of fairing the frames so they'll sit 1/8" below the battens involves running a router over two strips of 1/4" plywood clamped to the battens.

2. This prevents 'hard spots' from forming on the hull where the frames contact the bottom planking.

1. The strut was reinstalled and an 8' long piece of 1" round bar was slipped into it. Two 1" ID by 1-5/8" OD bushings and the fiberglass tube were slid onto the shaft.

2. Here's a closeup shot of the tube and bushing.

3. The bushings were slid into each end of the tube. This will ensure that the tube is centered on the shaft.

4. The assembly is pushed into the shaft hole. It should be a loose fit. Enough clearance for a coat of thickened epoxy around the tube will be required. If the fit is too tight or if the tube binds in the shaft hole, roll and tape a piece of coarse sandpaper around the tube and rotate it in the shaft hole.

5. Here's the view from inside the boat. The 1" shaft rests in a 1" diameter hole drilled into the frame at a 12 degree angle. You can also see the fiberglass tube bushing.

6. The shaft tube is ready to be epoxied.

1. Sheer fairing nearing completion. To span from chine to sheer, we've welded two 30" long pieces of 1/8" by 1" flat steel bar to each side of an old jack plane. This speeds up the fairing process and is very accurate.

2. Chine was faired from frame # 4 to the stem.

Most of the first sheer lamination was faired away.

1. Since the Bill Of Materials call for a single layer of 1/4" sheeting for the sides, we'll be using 1/4" 5-Ply Meranti marine grade plywood. Five sheets were ripped into 31" wide strips and scarfed on the radial arm saw. Click here to see how the saw was set up to make the cut.

2. Scarfed sheeting was stacked and will be finished with an air file. This will roughen up the joint and provide a better bonding surface for the epoxy.

1. Here's a shot of the last side planking scarf joint being epoxied.

2–3. Several bricks are used to clamp the joint. Excessive weight will squeeze too much epoxy from the joint and lead to an unsound joint. In the background, we're fitting the douglas fir side planking template to the side of the boat.

1. The frame sides must be faired so that they don't project against the plywood planking. This would cause a 'hard spot' which could cause the panel to fracture. Our trusty router jig was clamped to the side of the frame.

2. The router bit depth was set to cut 1/16" below the chine surface.

3. The operation was repeated at the sheer junction. A block plane was used to fair the remainder of the frame.

4. Starboard side planking installed. The port side is being fitted.

5. Two scarf joints fall between frames #4 and #6.

6. View from the starboard rear. The tumblehome is quite severe but the 5 ply marine plywood conforms to the radius quite easily.

1. Laminating the fender steps. 1-1/2" wide by 1/4" thick mahogany strips were epoxied to two pieces of 1/4" marine grade plywood which were previously fitted to the fender steps.

2. Plank spacing was 1/4". Wax paper strips were used under the hold-downs to prevent them from sticking to the lamination.

1. Side planking was fastened with 1" #8 screws spaced 3" apart at the chine and 4" apart at the sheer.

2. Screws will be spaced 2" apart at the stem and transom.

1. To prevent the white expoxy from marring the narrow strips, we applied a base coat of West epoxy (207 clearcoat). Once cured, we taped the edges and horizontal surfaces before applying the white epoxy.

2. The epoxy mix consisted of West 105 resin, 404 high density filler, a touch of 403 microfibers and a spoonful of white epoxy tint. The tape was pulled after the epoxy had cured for 30 minutes.

3–4. The fender steps are ready to be installed and final-clearcoated.

1. Drainage limbers were cut into the rear battens. Router depth was set at 3/8".

2. Setting up the radial arm saw to cut a 3" wide by 1/4" deep rabbet on the leading edge of the 1/2" bottom plywood. A 'wobble' dado blade set at 11/16" wide speeds up the process. A 1" x 2" guide batten is clamped to the stock and runs along the saw table apron.

3. Closeup view of the rabbet.

4. Both 1/2" panels installed.

5. The first 1/4" front panel butts to the rear ply. The second 1/4" panel overlaps the rear ply by 3".

6. 1/2" plywood butt blocks will be fitted between the limbers. A jigsaw was used to trim around the shaft hole. A 1-3/4" diameter hole saw makes quick work of cutting the rudder port hole.

1. Butt blocks epoxied and clamped.

2. To enhance drainage, we've left a 3/4" wide limber between the butt block and batten.

1. Plywood washers were used to increase the screw's clamping pressure. The mating surfaces were checked for gaps from inside the boat.

2. Shorter screws were driven into the butt blocks.

3. Prior to panel removal, keel, chine, batten, and butt block locations were traced with a pencil from inside the boat. Areas not to be covered with epoxy were taped off. The taping is extra work but saves a lot of cleanup time ! Epoxy was applied to both mating surfaces and allowed to set for several minutes. West System 403 adhesive filler was added to the catalyzed epoxy and spread over the mating surfaces. To aid fastener removal from the panel once the epoxy cures, strips of plastic film were slid under the plywood washers.

Prior to panel removal, keel, chine, batten, and butt block locations were traced with a pencil from inside the boat. Areas not to be covered with epoxy were taped off. The taping is extra work but saves a lot of cleanup time ! Epoxy was applied to both mating surfaces and allowed to set for several minutes. West System 403 adhesive filler was added to the catalyzed epoxy and spread over the mating surfaces. To aid fastener removal from the panel once the epoxy cures, strips of plastic film were slid under the plywood washers.

Second bottom panels (1/4" marine grade plywood) were cut, scarfed and epoxied. Joint was set 6" aft of the first bottom's joint.

Port side first bottom ready to be epoxied.

Port first bottom.

1. Starboard side.

1. Port side.

2. Panels are butted in forward section, lapped in aft.

3. Transition point.

4. Butt joint detail.

1. Fitting the port second bottom.

2. Transition point.

3. Butt joint detail.

4. The second bottom's scarf joint is staggered 6" aft of the first bottom's joint.

1. Both second bottom panels installed.

2. Bow detail.

Since this boat will easily exceed 50 MPH, a Teleflex NFB Dual Cable steering system will be required. A used unit was scavenged from a junked SeaRay cuddy cabin cruiser. Two 15' cables and clevises will be needed to connect the cables to the rudder's tiller arm.

Screw holes were puttied with Interlux Watertite YAV135. It's a two-part, fast drying epoxy compound for filling holes, repairing scratches in gelcoat and fairing fiberglass. It can also be used below the waterline to fill gelcoat blisters.

1. On Friday night we fiberglassed the starboard bottom. We feathered the panel edges on Saturday afternoon and applied the port bottom late Saturday night. Starboard side was applied late Sunday night.

2. Notice the starboard side overlap at the bow. The digital camera is having a rough time rendering smooth, shiny surfaces. Time to upgrade to a better quality unit !!

3. Side overlaps the transom.

4. Port bottom will have to be feathered before applying the side.

1. We're applying the fiberglass cloth using the 'dry method'. 6.5 oz. cloth is draped over the hull and taped in position. Panel overlap is 5". This allows for sufficient overlap and a 1-1/2" wide strip for feathering.

2. Stretching the cloth diagonally eliminates wrinkles. Spring steel paper clamps and masking tape are removed after the cloth has been saturated with epoxy.

1. Took Friday off to feather the overlaps and sand the hull with 40 grit sandpaper. Straight-line and orbital air files saved a lot of time on this job. We splurged on a DeWalt commercial duty 6" variable speed orbital sander for feathering the overlaps. The hull was rinsed with water, scuffed with a 3M scotch pad and allowed to dry overnight. Three rounds of epoxy spaced about two hours apart were applied on Saturday.

2. Filling and fairing is next !

Over the long weekend, we laminated three strips of fiberglass cloth on the chine and transom edges and ground them to a crisp profile.

1. A strut pad was laminated from 3 layers of 1-1/2 ounce fiberglass mat. The idea is to build up the pad and grind it level so the strut can be bolted to a solid base.

2. A 4-foot level was laid on the pad and leveled with two hardwood strips laid on the hull. Duck tape was used to hold the strips in place.

3. A 4-foot long sanding board was used to level the pad.

4. Detail shot.

1. The shaft tube was epoxied and trimmed. Click here to review how the strut and tube were fitted when the keel was installed.

2. View from inside the hull. The plan is to fiberglass the keel before installing the shaft log.

3–4. Strut and shaft installed.

5. Viewed from the top.

1. An extra layer of cloth was applied to the keel and the bow area. If the keel is nicked or abraded, the extra lamination will take the abuse instead of the underlying layer.

2–3. Since this is a 'wear' layer, sanding will be restricted to feathering the sides.

4–5. A test batch of white pigmented epoxy was mixed and applied. It would take quite a bit of pigment or several coats of epoxy to produce a truly opaque finish.

We epoxied a fiberglass rudder port tube into the rudder port hole. It's a little more work, but if the rudder port sealant fails, water will not be in direct contact with the keel.

1. We applied the last three epoxy barrier coats on Saturday.

2. The first two coats were catalyzed with West System 206 Slow Hardener. Each coat was tipped off with a squeegee made from a 7" foam roller cover split lengthwise. Instructions on how to make the tool are printed on the West System roller cover packaging. The epoxy was allowed to cure for three hours before recoating.

3. The last coat was catalyzed with West System 207 Special Coating. Normally used in clearcoat applications, it flows out better than the 206 hardener since it's mixed at a 3:1 ratio instead of the usual 5:1 ratio for 205 and 206 hardeners.

4. The 207 flowcoat should reduce the final sanding to a minimum. Once fully cured, the hull will be sanded with 40 grit sandpaper to prepare it for primer.

5. On Friday night, the hull was washed with water and scuffed with a Scotch pad to remove sanding sludge. On Saturday morning, the hull was cleaned with DuPont Plas-Stick Plastic-Prep 2319S. It's a ready-to-use unprimed plastic parts cleanner designed to remove mold release agents and other surface contaminants and eliminate static. Click here for a product usage guide. The substrate was wiped with a 2K tack rag (made for plastics and urethane finishes) before applying the primer. A medium wet coat of Polyval Polyur 559 Black Epoxy Primer was applied with an HVLP spray gun. This industrial 2 component coating is rated for immersion service (very rare for primers) and is available in red, gray, white, yellow and black. We chose the black because it highlights surface imperfections better than the other colors. After curing for 4 hours, we blocked out the hull with 100 grit sandpaper on a 24" flexible sanding board. The primer did a great job of filling most of the 40 grit sanding marks left from the initial sanding. Low spots (mainly along the chine at the fiberglass overlap) were filled with System Three QuikFair epoxy filler. Other lighter-colored spots are sanding break-throughs or high spots. Two rounds of DuPont 4007S 2K Ultra Productive Primer-Filler were applied to the hull and block-sanded with 100 and 180 grit sandpaper. This was followed up with a coat of DuPont ChromaPremier Sealer which was then sanded with 240 grit sandpaper. -

On Friday night, the hull was washed with water and scuffed with a Scotch pad to remove sanding sludge. On Saturday morning, the hull was cleaned with DuPont Plas-Stick Plastic-Prep 2319S. It's a ready-to-use unprimed plastic parts cleanner designed to remove mold release agents and other surface contaminants and eliminate static. Click here for a product usage guide. The substrate was wiped with a 2K tack rag (made for plastics and urethane finishes) before applying the primer. A medium wet coat of Polyval Polyur 559 Black Epoxy Primer was applied with an HVLP spray gun. This industrial 2 component coating is rated for immersion service (very rare for primers) and is available in red, gray, white, yellow and black. We chose the black because it highlights surface imperfections better than the other colors. After curing for 4 hours, we blocked out the hull with 100 grit sandpaper on a 24" flexible sanding board. The primer did a great job of filling most of the 40 grit sanding marks left from the initial sanding. Low spots (mainly along the chine at the fiberglass overlap) were filled with System Three QuikFair epoxy filler. Other lighter-colored spots are sanding break-throughs or high spots. Two rounds of DuPont 4007S 2K Ultra Productive Primer-Filler were applied to the hull and block-sanded with 100 and 180 grit sandpaper. This was followed up with a coat of DuPont ChromaPremier Sealer which was then sanded with 240 grit sandpaper. -

1. The shop was cleaned up, the painting tarps were hung on the walls and furnace filters were slipped into the rear screen door. The hull was washed with plain water, dried with Torx wipers, prepped with Plastic-Prep and tacked with a 2K tack rag. A medium coat of DuPont ChromaBase Basecoat (white) was applied and allowed to flash for 15 minutes. If this was an ordinary boat, we'd clearcoat the white and we'd be done. Since this is a Hot Rod, it's gotta look hot !!

2. We'd normally use DuPont Imron as our topcoat, but the pigment required to mix the Corvette Yellow was no longer available. Switching to PPG solved the problem. Three coats of PPG finish off the job. This is a single stage, two-component acrylic urethane topcoat which should provide maximum scuff resistance.

5. The hull was left to cure for 4 days after painting.

1. A heavy-duty mobile dolly was fabricated for the hull. Four 10' lengths of 3" C-Channel spaced 12 incches apart provide ample support. Righting the hull was accomplished with minimal fuss. Seven friends showed up for the roll. The hull is so light they lifted it off the setup jig, rotated it and placed it onto the dolly without even resting the sheer on the ground. Many thanks to Jack, Dave, Big John, Brian and the Chelsea lads.

2–3. We fabricated adjustable bunks similar to the ones used in the trailer.

4. The dolly is quite narrow. We can still access the sides and bottom which wouldn't be the case if the boat was simply loaded on the boat trailer.

5. The horizontal crossmember was cut to allow installation of the rudder, strut and propeller shaft.

8. The plan is to barrier-coat the interior with two coats of epoxy and apply a two-component urethane clear topcoat.

9. A temporary dash and a Teleflex NFB Dual Cable helm were installed. A 20' cable was fed into the helm and laid out to measure the length of cable required. Also visible are the driver's seat track and the 2 gas tank enclosure panels (between frames # 3 and 4).

10. Frame # 4 has to be cut to make room for the stuffing box.

11. A 3/4" strip is left on either side of the keel. A frame brace will have to be fabricated to reinforce the frame.

1. Photo quality should improve drastically from this point on. We bought a new Canon PowerShot SD600 digital camera. Hopefully the closeup and white color balance issues I had with the old camera are a thing of the past ! The rudder and rudder support bracket are back from the machine shop. 3-1/2" stainless steel pipe stubs were tig-welded to the Gibson Transom Mount mufflers. We also picked up a 1350 series Center H Yoke which will replace the torque tube.

2. These performance mufflers should be legal at idle. Can't wait to hear them when that 283 comes to life !

3. A bare-block 400 cubic inch V8 was bolted to the Velvet Drive transmission and hoisted into position.

4. Temporary motor mounts provide up, down and side-to-side adjustment.

5. Found some vintage transmission mounts at Ayling's Boat Yard. They're stout pieces and fit better than the previous ones I had. A new set of stringer brackets is being fitted.

6. A 1350 series Borg Warner power takeoff (Glenwood Part # 90-797) is bolted to the Velvet Drive transmission's output shaft. Ratio is 1:1. The used Casale 12 degree v-drive with 15% overdrive was equipped with a 1350 series V-drive flange takeoff (Glenwood Part # 90-865).

7. Cutting into the oil pan (adjacent to the frame) moves the engine back far enough to install a 6-1/2" long H joint instead of the 10-1/2" long torque tube (Glenwood Part # 90-835) we initially thought would be used. This also drops the engine down 2" closer to the keel. To provide more oil capacity, a front sump and kicked-out sides will be added to the pan.

1. Time to do some plumbing ! Stainless steel hose liner and chrome hose ends were added to the top of the engine. What a difference a new digital camera makes !! Compare this photo with the previous five photos...

2–3. Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video.

1. The H joint was bolted up to the transmission flange. The v-drive was pushed back and down until the propeller shaft coupler rotated freely on the propeller shaft.

2. An inclinometer (angle finder) was used to set the H joint at 0 degrees. The v-drive mounts can be now be welded in their final location.

The oil pan sump was cut to move the engine 1-1/2" aft and 2-1/2" lower. This will obviously generate quite a bit of work... A simpler solution would have been to either install the frame timber on the aft side of the frame or move the entire frame 2" aft. If the latter is done, the frame outline would change (frame would not be as wide) so you'd have to loft frames #0 through #5 to pick up the new chine and sheer points.

The oil pan sump was cut to move the engine 1-1/2" aft and 2-1/2" lower. This will obviously generate quite a bit of work . . . A simpler solution would have been to either install the frame timber on the aft side of the frame or move the entire frame 2" aft. If the latter is done, the frame outline would change (frame would not be as wide) so you'd have to loft frames #0 through #5 to pick up the new chine and sheer points.

1. The bottom of the rear sump was cut and replaced with a kicked-out pan bottom. This mod will increase oil capacity by 3 quarts.

2. The ledge around the bottom of the sump should inhibit oil movement. We want to ensure that the oil pickup doesn't run out of oil when the bow rises while accelerating.

3. We've left just enough clearance between the pan flange and kickouts to clear the starter.

4. A full sump will also be added to the front of the pan.

1. Side panels were joined with a flanged center section.

2. An air-powered panel flanger makes a neat joint between the pan and the newly grafted material.

1. After much mig welding and grinding, the pan is starting to take shape...

2. Corners were cut back and rounded by adding hand-formed 1-1/2" radius sheet metal corner pieces. The joints were metal-finished to hide the welds.

3. View from inside the pan.

4. Front sump kickouts are 3/4" narrower than the rear.

5. Much grinding and cleanup is required on the inside of the pan.

6. Two 16 gauge bottom panels were cut and fitted.

1. Work on barrier coating the interior of the hull continues. We're going with a bright finish consisting of two rounds of West Epoxy catalyzed with 207 Special hardener. This will be followed with two or three rounds of two-part urethane clear.

2. The second coat of epoxy is still a little rough. Epoxy is not self-levelling like paint. Visible in this photo are the side panel scarf joint and the bottom panel butt blocks. Switching to a spray gun for the subsequent varnish coats will minimize sanding between coats and flatten out the surface !

A template for the top frame lamination was traced onto a piece of 1/2" Black Joe building board.

A jigsaw was used to cut the stock 1/4" oversize. The piece was then fastened to the 3/8" thick template with 3/4" screws and trimmed on the router table.

Closeup of the top-bearing trim bit.

The screws were removed from the stock.

A duplicate piece was produced.

The two pieces were installed on each side of the frame and taped to hold them in position.

Once the foam has been poured and has cured, the inner piece will be extracted first. This will allow easy removal of the outer piece when the foam core is unmolded.

Here's a shot of the two 1/4" plywood panels which will be installed on the bottom of the frames. They were coated with contact cement and covered with aluminum foil. A plastic autobody filler squeegee was used to apply the foil and remove air pockets and wrinkles. We'll be laminating one layer of 6 ounce fiberglass cloth on this surface before pouring the foam. In the winter, the shop is home to many snowmobiles in for maintenance or repair. This is my 2003 Rev 600 HO waiting for its regular maintenance. Due to the lack of snow this year, we've only been out once this year (2 day trip, 450 km). I guess we'll keep working on the boat until the trail conditions improve !

We're currently fabricating removable foam flotation panels which will be installed under the deck battens. Click here to see what we've done so far. ( a new window will be opened)

The cloth was wet out with catalysed polyester resin. A second coat of resin was applied after the initial coat had cured. In the background, resting on the transom, you can see the piece we molded for the bow section. A single 8 liter pour foam kit wasn't enough to do the job. We're 1 quart short . . . We'll have to order more foam on Monday !

1. The frames were wrapped with plastic before installing the bottom mold pieces. Support for the plywood was provided by clamping scrap lengths of spruce 1" X 3" to the underside of the ply.

2. Wood shims were jammed between the plywood and strapping to minimize gaps between the center part of the mold and frames.

3. Two 1/2" Black Joe side spacers were installed along the sheer and covered with plastic film. Duct tape was used to seal all the seams.

4. 6 oz. fiberglass cloth was dry-fitted to the mold.

1. The second kit we ordered last week was picked up this afternoon. Four small batches (10 ounces Part A, 10 ouces Part B) were mixed and poured into the molds to complete the job. An old crosscut handsaw was used to trim the expanded foam flush with the frame tops.

2. Once the foam was fully cured, the spacer blocks were removed from the sides of the mold.

3. This view shows the one inch gap between the sheer and foam.

4. The surface quality of the molded fiberglass lining on the bottom of each billet was quite good. Very little filling will be required prior to finishing.

5. Total of 5 cubic feet will support up to 300 pounds.

1. We laminated a layer of 7-1/2 ounce fiberglass cloth to the topside of each billet. In an effort to cut costs, we switched to polyester resin. Overall, we might have saved a few dollars over the more expensive epoxy resin, but we didn't save any time. It didn't stick too well to the foam so the fiberglass cloth kept lifting and creating air bubbles.. Once cured, we applied 2 coats of resin, sanded the billets and applied several rounds of polyester autobody filler. We sprayed two medium wet coats of Feather-Fill polyester primer-surfacer.

2. The billet in the foreground was blocked with 100 grit alumide paper. A round of polyester finishing putty was applied to the low or blemished spots.

1. We've added kickouts to the rear sump and added a new sump at the front. Click here to see how the pan was fabricated. ( a new window will be opened)

2. The ledge around the bottom of the sump should inhibit oil movement. We want to ensure that the oil pickup doesn't run out of oil when the bow rises while accelerating.

1. The breasthook was notched to a depth of 3/8". The strongback was taper-notched from 3/8" at the leading edge to 1/8" at rear.

2. The tip of the strongback is flush with the breasthook's leading edge.

3. The sheer can now be faired.

1. Two 16 gauge bottom panels were cut and fitted.

4. Trial fitting before final welding.

1. Trial fitting before final welding.

10–11. Now that looks a lot better !

12–13. Before we modified the oil pan, the rear sump straddled a frame. When viewed from the side, it stuck out quite a bit above the carlings. By altering the pan, the engine sits 2-1/2" lower which should lower the boat's center of gravity and improve handling.

1. While we're waiting for the last wood order to arrive (Douglas Fir for the carlings and intermediate deck beams), we prepped and painted the Velvet Drive transmission.

2. The transmission was stripped of old paint, sanded to bare metal, metal conditionned, degreased with DuPont Wash & Wipe, primed with DuPont DTM Urethane Primer and topcoated with Dupont Imron urethane.

1. Welded joints were silver-soldered and the oil pan was tested for leaks. Several rounds of aluminized body filler (Evercoat Metal-2-Metal) were applied and smoothed out. The pan was prepped and shot with two coats of DuPont 2580CR DTM primer.

2. The two plugs at the top of the pan will be used to insert a hose into each sump. A rotary drill pump will make short work of oil changes. Several rounds of primer surfacer and block-sanding will be needed to get the substrate ready for paint. We're thinking of going with Corvette Yellow...

3. Pan interior will be chemically cleaned and have all seams sealed with multiple coats of DTM primer.

Welded joints were silver-soldered and the oil pan was tested for leaks. Several rounds of aluminized body filler (Evercoat Metal-2-Metal) were applied and smoothed out. The pan was prepped and shot with two coats of DuPont 2580CR DTM primer.

The two plugs at the top of the pan will be used to insert a hose into each sump. A rotary drill pump will make short work of oil changes. Several rounds of primer surfacer and block-sanding will be needed to get the substrate ready for paint. We're thinking of going with Corvette Yellow . . .

Pan interior will be chemically cleaned and have all seams sealed with multiple coats of DTM primer.

1. At last ! The finished product... Pan was shot with Dupont Uro-Prime primer-surfacer, block-sanded with 100 grit, reprimed, puttied, blocked with 180/220/320 grit, sealed, topcoated with white basecoat followed by Corvette Yellow basecoat and finished with several rounds of two-part Urethane Clear.

2. Pan interior was previously sealed with multiple coats of Dupont DTM primer.

We've modified the stock oil pan extensively by adding kickouts to the rear sump and adding a new sump at the front. Click here to see how the pan was fabricated ( a new window will be opened) . The oil pan was shot with Dupont Uro-Prime primer-surfacer, block-sanded with 100 grit, reprimed, puttied, blocked with 180/220/320 grit, sealed, topcoated with white basecoat followed by Corvette Yellow basecoat and finished with several rounds of two-part Urethane Clear.

Pan interior was previously sealed with multiple coats of Dupont DTM primer.

Over the weekend, we installed the oil pan, remote oil filter relocation kit, dipstick tube and the newly painted alternator bracket. This engine is ready to install !

At last ! The finished product . . . Pan was shot with Dupont Uro-Prime primer-surfacer, block-sanded with 100 grit, reprimed, puttied, blocked with 180/220/320 grit, sealed, topcoated with white basecoat followed by Corvette Yellow basecoat and finished with several rounds of two-part Urethane Clear.

Pan interior was previously sealed with multiple coats of Dupont DTM primer.

1. Over the weekend, we installed the oil pan, remote oil filter relocation kit, dipstick tube and the newly painted alternator bracket. This engine is ready to install !

2. The stock stamped steel alternator pulley and fan were upgraded to lightweight aluminum billet pieces.

Over the weekend, we installed the oil pan, remote oil filter relocation kit, dipstick tube and the newly painted alternator bracket. This engine is ready to install !

The stock stamped steel alternator pulley and fan were upgraded to lightweight aluminum billet pieces.

1–4. Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video.

1. The transom drain plugs were cut out with a hole saw. Fiberglass tubes were fabricated and epoxied into the holes.

2. A hole saw makes quick work of cutting out the exhaust outlet holes.

3. Interior view of the transom. A 3/4" marine plywood backing plate was fabricated and epoxied to the transom.

4. The inside lip was waterproofed with one layer of 6-1/2 ounce fiberglass cloth. The hole was drilled 1/8" oversize to allow a thick bead of sealant around the exhaust tip's circumference.

5–6. The Gibson Transom Mount Power Tip mufflers look sweet ! Click here to see the muffler specifications.

7. We reduced the 4" OD stainless pipe to 3-1/2".

8. The rough-cast aluminum Velvet Drive bellhousing was brought back to life with many hours of sanding and polishing. We fabricated a torque tube guard adapter which mounts to the transnission's end-cover.

9. The cap bolts were replaced with hex head bolts in an effort to gain more clearance. The base was cut from a piece of 1/4" steel plate. A 1-1/2" wide slice from a 6" well casing was welded to a larger pipe which was in turn welded to the mounting plate.

10. With the transmission hub installed, there's just enough room to insert a hex key to tighten the end-cover bolts.

11. Slots cut into both sides of the part allow access to the hub bolts. I wasn't able to find a manufactured adapter, so like many parts on the boat, you have to build your own. It won't be a real Hot Rod unless it's got a bunch of homegrown parts on it !

Here's the last of the interior epoxy barrier coating. Round 2 will be followed up with a sprayed urethane clearcoat.

Once the clearcoat has been applied, we can start the carlings and deck !

1. We've upgraded from a Teleflex NFB Dual Cable system to Seastar hydraulic steering. Running two hefty cables through the stringers to the tiller would have compromised the stringer's integrity, so we'll be running 3/8" copper lines instead.

2–3. Visible in this photo are the two fiberglass drain plug tubes. A brass sleeve will be slipped into the tube and sealed with 3M 5200 sealant. If any water leaks past the tube, the fiberglass tube liner will protect the frame from water damage.

4. In order to mount the cylinder within the stringers, we fabricated a second tiller which will connect to the central tiller arm via an adjustable tie bar. The tiller arm was flame-cut from a piece of 3/8" steel plate.

5. A piece of 3/4" ID schedule 80 steel pipe was fitted through the tiller arm pivot point and bushed with a bronze bushing. The pivot rod is a 9/16" x 2" machine bolt captured between the top and bottom plates. We'll post more photos when we finalize some of these parts...

1. We fabricated a frame truss plate to span the stuffing box at frame # 4. It's made from 3/8" thick T356 aluminum plate. The v-drive and transmission mounting plates were bolted to the stringers with 3/8" stainless steel machine bolts. Also visible in the top left corner of the photo is the carling. We'll have more pics of this after it's been all glued up.

2. We'll be installing a stainless steel pop-up bow light in the strongback. This will require routing out a rather large hole which will seriously affect the member's integrity. We therefore laminated three pieces of 1/4" 5-ply marine grade plywood to the douglas fir strongback. This will retain it's curved shape.

1. We'll be installing a stainless steel pop-up bow light in the strongback. This will require routing out a rather large hole which will seriously affect the member's integrity. We therefore laminated three pieces of 1/4" 5-ply marine grade plywood to the douglas fir strongback. This will retain it's curved shape.

2. Two douglas fir 1" x 2"'s were laminated to the plywood strips. A 3/8" dado was cut into the stock and the breasthook was routed to a depth of 3/8" to receive the two pieces.

3. Initial deck fairing completed. Now we'll have to lay out and cut an opening for the pop-up bow light.

1. Steve at Ayling's Boat Yard has been busy in the machine shop refining the steering components. The slave tiller arm bushing housing was welded, the pivot pin was upgraded to 3/4" diameter stock and re-bushed to tighter tolerances. Nice work, Steve ! Click here to see more detailed photos. ( a new window will be opened)

2. Work on the boat will continue over the holidays, but we'll also make some time to enjoy the snowmobile trails. Can't be working in the shop all the time ! I'd like to wish all our visitors a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year !

1. Under-deck flotation billets were cast and installed. Click here to see more detailed photos. ( a new window will be opened)

2. For a sleek contemporary look, we've chosen a stainless steel pop-up bow light. When not in use, it's flush with the deck...

3. ... and pops up when needed.

4. The bow light is housed in a plastic receptacle which can be equipped with a hose barb and drain hose. This unit was purchased from Marine Toys in Delta, British Columbia. See our Links Page for supplier information. ( a new window will be opened)

For a sleek contemporary look, we've chosen a stainless steel pop-up bow light. When not in use, it's flush with the deck . . .

. . . and pops up when needed.

The bow light is housed in a plastic receptacle which can be equipped with a hose barb and drain hose. This unit was purchased from Marine Toys in Delta, British Columbia. See our Links Page for supplier information. ( a new window will be opened)

1. The flotation billets can't be installed under the deck battens unless they're cut into two pieces.

2. A long shank 1/4" drill bit was used to drill through the billet.

3. The two piece billets are held in place by 6" lengths of 1/4"-20 stainless steel threaded rod.

4. Here's the finished product.

5. Here's the under-deck view. Mounting the foam up high will ensure that the hull doesn't 'turtle' over when swamped. We could have increased the thickness somewhat, but we wanted to minimize the amount of weight (and weight moments) in the bow section. Total weight is approximately 12 pounds. To offset this weight and balance the hull, more billets will be cast along the gunwales, intermediate deck beam and transom.

6. To ensure adequate ventilation and prevent rot issues, we installed 1-1/2" diameter 3/4" marine grade plywood spacers between the deck battens and foam bilets

7. The deck battens where counterbored to accept stainless steel barrel nuts.

8. Once installed, the recess will be filled with epoxy and ground flush.

9. To promote air circulation between the foam billet and deck battens, we fabricated 1-1/2" round spacer washers from 3/4" marine grade plywood.

To complete the assembly, we fabricated a hydraulic cylinder mounting bracket and stainless steel tie bar. At a later date, we'll be replacing the tie bar with two tie-rod ends and a length of threaded rod.

A Gil offshore sea strainer filters raw water before feeding it into the cam-driven water pump and oil coolers.

1. More parts came back from the machine shop. The slave tiller arm bushing housing was welded, the pivot pin was upgraded to 3/4" diameter and re-bushed to tighter tolerances. Nice work, Steve !

2. Visible in this photo are the two 3/8" annealed copper tubing hydraulic steering hoses. They're retained by bulkhead fittings bolted through the stainless steel transom support uprights. The hose barb thru-hull fitting located above the copper lines is for the bilge pump exit hose.

1. Time flies when you're having fun ! It's time to get back to the boat and get her finished up... First order of the day was to prime the Menkens 2-blade propeller we picked up before Christmas. It's an 11-1/2" diameter by 15" pitch forged steel unit which should allow the engine to spin into the stratosphere... The part was etched and cleaned with DuPont Metal conditionner. This was followed by two rounds of DuPont 2580CR DTM Urethane Primer.

2. Here's a photo of the fuel tank platform we molded several months ago.

3. A piece of 1/4" marine-grade plywood was sandwiched between multiple layers of 6-1/2 ounce fiberglass cloth and 2 ounce mat. The radiused edges were built up from several cloth laminations.

4. The cradles are bolted to frames # 3 and # 4. A 3/8" gap was left between the cradle and bottom battens.

5. Spacers will be fabricated to space out the cradle from the frame. This will ensure adequate drainage and ventilation between the two parts.

6. The rear jump seat's front panel is being fitted. The intent is to bolt the jump seat supports so they can be easily removed in the future.

1. Here's a good friend of mine, Colin, rebuilding the v-drive. It's nice to have a Class A mechanic in the shop ! He's rebuilt the engine and is our ace fabricator / welder. He enjoys working on the mechanical components of the boat but is quite emphatic about staying on firm ground on launch day...

2. Before you know it, the v-drive is fully assembled. The v-drive plate was painted before final assembly. The plate was pretty rough, so we blocked it out with several coats of epoxy primer. This was followed up with Dupont 280CR DTM primer, Dupont Uro-Prime urethane primer-surfacer and topcoated with Dupont Imron urethane enamel.

3. It's important to note that the gasket mating surfaces should not be painted as the paint film buildup will change the v-drive's internal tolerances. Related Links: Casale Direct Drive Dimensional Drawing Casale In-Out Dimensional Drawing

1. Here's the last of the mechanical components being painted. H-joint assembly, v-drive shifter, transmission mounts, v-drive flange takeoff, torque tube guards and transmission takeoff adapter.

2. The transmission mounts were installed with grade 8 bolts.

3. The old soft rubber bushings were removed...

4. ... and replaced with custom Delrin bushings. These are more of Steve Flewitt's handiwork !

5. The solid mounts will prevent the engine and transmission from flexing under heavy torque loads.

6. The custom torque tube guard adapter is being installed.

1. Here's the day I've been waiting for ! Engine, transmission and v-drive installed with very few issues.

2–3. We don't have enough clearance between the torque tube guard adapter and the v-drive take-off hub. The hex-head bolts used to retain the guard will have to be swapped out for flat head machine bolts.

6–7. Here's a close-up of the oilpan straddling frame # 2.

8. Oil capacity has been expanded from 4 quarts to 12 quarts.

9. The custom oil pan lowered the engine by 3-1/2". A lot of work, but the engine is horizontal and nicely nestled into the boat.

10. The intermediate deck beam straddles the carlings at frame # 4.

1. It's been a while, but we've finally finished up the fender steps.

2. Edges were capped with mahogany veneer. Several coats of West System Epoxy catalysed with 207 hardener were applied and block-sanded.

3. Final topcoat consisted of three rounds of two-part Nason Urethane Clear applied with HVLP spray equipment. It feels good to chuck up a spray gun after using bristle and foam brushes for so long !

1. The intermediate deck beam straddles the carlings at frame # 4.

2. Coaming corners were radiused with plywood veneer. We ran some 1/8" marine- grade mahogany plywood through the planer to remove one face. This makes it much easier to bend !

3. Transom deck beam is 9" wide.

4. The bottom edge of the beam was molded to a width of 3-1/2".

5. View from the transom.

6. Here's my friend Colin finish-welding up the v-drive mounting plate. We spent the day finalizing the transmission mounts. With all components bolted in, we measured for the propeller shaft.

Seat tracks from a GM van are mounted to a set of custom fabricated brackets. One side bolts trough a sole support and the other bolts to the side of the motor stringer.

1. Normally we'd build the seat frames with 3/4" marine grade plywood. We had several leftover pieces of 1/4" plywood, so we chose to create a template, cut multiple pieces and laminate 3 layers to the required thickness.

2. Rotating the 'C' shaped corner pieces 90 degrees for each layer produces a very rigid rectangular frame free of fasteners.

3. The 3 layers were epoxied and clamped.

4. Here's the top layer after curing.

1. Rubber webbing will ultimately suspend the seat foam. The webbing slots were laid out on the stock. A 1/4" drill bit was used to drill the slot end points. Most of the material was removed with a jigsaw.

2. Jigging a hand-held plunge router was too complex, so we mounted a 1/4" straight-cut router bit in the drill press. Moving the stock back and forth while lowering the router bit 1/8" at a time did the trick.

3. Here's the finished piece. No, we won't be using regular lawn chair webbing ! We've ordered a stretchy UV-resistant rubber webbing commonly used in the upholstery trade.

4–5. Since we're trying to launch ASAP, a local upholstery shop will be commisionned to produce removable slip-on cushions. They'll be fastened to the seats with straps and snaps. More traditionnal full uphostery can be completed over the winter months.

One of many trial fits.

1. The second layer was built up from 4 laminations of 1/4" marine grade plywood. A template similar to the one employed in the first layer was produced.

2. The second layer was epoxied to the first layer.

3–4. We splurged on a 5"x6" industrial duty dual-swivel metal bandsaw. It walks through 1/4" steel or aluminum plate with ease. What a difference a tool makes !

5. These aluminum corner plates will bolt to the seat rails.

6. We fabricated a steel backing plate to which we've bolted the seat back tilt mechanism.

7. Here's a close-up view of the tilt mechanism.

8–9. The seat rails provide 6" of horizontal travel, 3" of vertical travel at the front of the seat and reclining backrest.

Front corners were radiused and the top edges were rounded-over before applying the first coat of epoxy.

The driver's seat is nearing completion. The rails provide 6" of horizontal travel, 3" of vertical travel at the front of the seat and reclining backrest. We've also started the passenger seat base. Click here to see how the seat was made. ( a new window will be opened)

1. 1/4" diameter holes were drilled through the 7 layers of plywood to retain the aluminum seat mounting plates. 1/4"-20 stainless steel nuts were set into 1/2" counter-bore holes.

2. To prevent the bolts from bonding to the epoxy, the nuts were drawn down with lightly-greased bolts and capped with an epoxy mixture consisting of West resin and 403 / 407 fillers.

3. A passenger seat base was laminated over a buck built from scrap 1"x6" stock. Dimensions are 22" wide by 36" long.

Two coats of Nason Clear applied with an HVLP spray gun finish up the driver's seat.

1. At the bottom of the photo, we see the passenger side seat base after routing for webbing. At the top of the photo, we're laminating the bottom half of the seat base.

2. The two pieces are epoxied and clamped.

We could have built the passenger seat base supports from plywood, but aluminun will last forever. Our new horizontal metal bandsaw made quick work of cutting the 3/16" aluminum plate. Hope to install the seat base over the weekend.

1–2. All mounting plates were sandblasted, primed and painted before final assembly. We've added triangular webs along the v-drive's thrust centerline to stiffen up the v-drive plate.

3. The stuffing box was installed with stainless steel hanger bolts.

4. The frame truss plate was cut down to conform to the bottom of the transmission.

5. The front engine mount stringer bolt holes were bushed with fiberglass bushings.

6. The tubes were epoxied into the bolt hole bores and allowed to cure.

7. Bushings were fabricated from 6-1/2 ounce fiberglass cloth.

8. There's no limit as to what can be done with epoxy and fiberglass !

9. We fabricated adjustable front engine mounts using flat plate and tubular steel.

10. Vertical travel can be adjusted by turning the 1/2" nut located beneath the strut.

1. The Hardin Marine thermostat housing required us to re-plumb most of the engine plumbing.

2. A Glenwood oil cooler was mounted to the stringer. This should reduce engine oil temperature and increase engine life.

3–4. Yet another Glenwood oil cooler was installed below the Velvet Drive's fill plug level. This adds extra capacity to the system and ensures that the trans is at its maximum fill level at all times. An MSD billet aluminum marine distributor, digital ignition box complete the engine installation.

5–6. Last of the hydraulic steering components were installed. A Gil offshore sea strainer filters raw water before feeding it into the cam-driven water pump and oil coolers.

Lately, a hot topic on Glen-L's Boatbuilder Forum has been automotive engine conversion for marine use. If you've been dreaming about building an inboard powered boat but are intimidated by the installation process, this article may answer a few of your questions such as 'where do I start' and 'what are my options'. A good place to start is by reading the book Inboard Motor Installations written by Glen L. Witt and Ken Hankinson. This reference book covers all aspects of engine conversion and installation and should provide the insight and inspiration to tackle the job yourself. You'll also need a repair manual covering general overhaul procedures for your specific engine. Haynes Publishing Group offers a well written book that's easy to follow. One option for many boatbuilders is to purchase a ready-to-run marine engine. For a lot of builders this solution may be out of reach. Another more afordable option is to purchase a good used truck or auto engine and convert it for marine use. Lastly, a more economical option is to find a recent take-out marine engine with most of the marine parts already installed. Depending on engine condition, engine rebuilding may be required to ensure reliability and restore performance. Several Mail Order companies provide complete marine engine rebuild kits for many popular brands (Chris-Craft, Crusader, Indmar, Mercruiser, OMC, Pleasurecraft). You can either order the parts or have the machine shop quote you the parts and assemble the engine yourself. It's a good idea to have them quote the assembly labor. This way you know exactly how much you'll be saving by providing the labor. In this article, we'll present the first installment (engine disassembly) of Bruce Dow's engine rebuild. A future article will cover engine assembly and include a video of the engine break-in. Glen-L Monaco 283 Rebuild

Glen-L Monaco 283 Rebuild

1–2. In February 2007, another Glen-L builder, Bruce Dow from Toronto, Ontario acquired a reasonably priced 1962 Chris-Craft 283 HO engine complete with transmission. It too was salvaged from a twin engine cabin cruiser that had been damaged beyond repair. Bruce installed it in his Glen-L Monaco, completed the boat in July 2008 and launched in August 2008.

In October, we towed both of our boats to Glen-L's Boatbuilder Gathering in Guntersville, Alabama. Unfortunately Bruce had some major drivetrain issues that will require some attention. After we got back from our trip, I offered to rebuild his engine and transmission over the winter. The following photos chronicle the rebuilding process.

3. We loaded up our portable gantry crane and left Chelsea, Quebec at 8 AM. Picked up Colin, (our Chief Class A mechanic) in Franktown, Ontario at 9 AM and arrived at Bruce's place at 2 PM. Bruce had already prepped the driveline for removal, so we had it plucked and loaded in record time. After soup and sandwiches we headed back to the shop.

1. First step was to drain the engine oil and remove the transmission.

2. The Paragon HF7 1:1 ratio hydraulic transmission was slipping badly so it will also be rebuilt.

3. The transmission's splined input shaft mates to the crankshaft-mounted drive plate hub.

Moving the boat from its cradle to the trailer went extremely well. The 6" wide x 12' long I-beam is supported by jackposts which adjust from 7' to 9' in height. The 3" C-channel base is supported by 8" steel casters. Note the freshly carpeted trailer bunks.

We designed and built a portable gantry to move the boat from its cradle to the trailer. The 6" wide x 12' long I-beam is supported by jackposts which adjust from 7' to 9' in height. The 3" C-channel base is supported by 8" steel casters.

Time spent building the gantry was well worth it. Any failure at this stage would be catastrophic !

1. The sling consists of 1/4" thick flat steel plates mounted to each side of the stringer. The 1/4" plywood spacers prevent marring the finish.

2. The bolts mount in double shear e.g. the two parallel plates distribute the load across the whole bolt shank. If the bolts were to shear, they'd be broken into three pieces as opposed to two pieces if bolted to a single plate.

3. The schedule 80 pipe bushings carry the load. The 1/2" bolts keep the plates snugly against the stringer.

Time spent building the gantry was well worth it. Any failure at this stage would be catastrophic ! The boat's on the trailer... We've loaded up the truck... We've got a full tank of gas... We're off to Alabama !

These photos depict how the front and rear cover support brackets were mounted to the engine stand. In the background you'll see that the boats and engines have to share the shop with other toys. That's our Snow Hot Rod , a 2003 Rev 600 HO. Two cylinder, 597cc two-stroke, 114 HP, 8000 RPM, 90+ MPH ... On a nice day like today we really should be riding the trails but we have to get these boats up and running for next Summer ! A compression test was run before disassembling the engine. Here's what we found : Cylinder # Compression PSI Cylinder # Compression PSI 8

Overall, we're looking at a very well used engine ! Normal compression pressure readings should be 140 to 150 PSI. The really low numbers indicate serious problems with the valves or worn piston rings and cylinder bores. A rebuild should restore the engine back to it's former power level. If the cylinder walls are badly scuffed or scored, or if they are out of round or tapered beyond the limits given in the specifications for your engine, the engine block will have to be rebored and honed at an automotive machine shop. If a rebore is done, oversize pistons and rings will be required.

1. Industrial duty paint stripper was used to strip several coats of paint from the transmission. The next day, we took the unit out to Steve Flewitt at Ayling's Boat Yard in Merrickville, Ontario for rebuilding.

2. We've always wanted to build an engine break-in stand, so we took the time to build a custom unit for this engine. We'll be able to hook up and test run the engine after it's rebuilt. Breaking in a new camshaft requires running the engine at 2500 to 3000 RPM for half an hour or more, so we decided to fabricate removable caster wheels to ensure that the unit doesn't start walking away on us while it's running. The casters are bolted to a flat plate welded to a short length of pipe inserted into each leg.

3–5. To accommodate steep propeller shaft angles, the Chris-Craft engineers produced several proprietary parts to reduce the length and height of their drivetrains. Notice that the engine has been turned 180 degrees so that the flywheel is facing the bow and the distributor, which is usually mounted ahead of the flywheel, has been relocated to the front of the engine. To provide adequate engine hatch clearance, they produced a low-profile intake manifold which incorporates a built-in 15 degree carburetor mounting flange. The Chris-craft engineers also used gear driven camshafts to reverse the engine rotation on selected models. They didn't use standard Chevrolet cylinder numbering schemes preferring to use their own numbering scheme and firing orders. Your best bet is to refer to the appropriate Chris-Craft Service Manual for application specific information. To order these manuals, see the link under Service Manuals in the Related Links and References section at the end of this article.

6–7. These photos depict how the front and rear cover support brackets were mounted to the engine stand. In the background you'll see that the boats and engines have to share the shop with other toys. That's our Snow Hot Rod, a 2003 Rev 600 HO. Two cylinder, 597cc two-stroke, 114 HP, 8000 RPM, 90+ MPH... On a nice day like today we really should be riding the trails but we have to get these boats up and running for next Summer !

8. It's 9 AM, Saturday, February 7 2009 and we've got a lot of work to do ! First step is to remove the exhaust manifolds.

9. We're running out of room to store all these parts, so we'll spread everything out on the shop floor and pick up the pieces later !

10. We lifted the engine from the engine stand and set it on the floor to disassemble the flywheel and front cover. Note that this is a flywheel forward engine, so the Chris-Craft Part Book refers to it as a front cover and support bracket.

11. The flywheel and front cover have to be removed simultaneously because of the starter and water pump mounting 'ears' on each side of the cast aluminum cover.

12. With the front cover removed, we can re-install the engine onto an engine assembly stand.

13. Valvetrain components were removed and placed in a parts organiser tray. Another homebuilt tool ! This will ensure that the components are returned to their original location. Increased wear on these components will occur if they're just dumped into a box and re-installed in no particular order.

14. Knowing which cylinder the part was removed from is helpful. While inspecting the parts, you can relate any lifter wear patterns to the corresponding camshaft lobes and lifter bores.

15. No major issues with the cylinder heads. We had to resort to using a 6 foot long breaker bar to lever them off the cylinder block ! Nothing about this procedure in the engine assemply book...

16. Here's what's hiding under the rear cover. The Chris-Craft Part Book refers to it as a rear cover and support bracket.

17. Gear driven reverse rotation camshaft. The small spur gear on the end of the camshaft drives the distributor. The large disc at the bottom of the photo is press-fit onto the crankshaft. The transmission drive plate bolts to this disc.

18. A few more bolts and the oil pan can be removed. Note the large inspection cover bolted to the side of the pan. In an effort to prevent oil pump cavitation when getting the boat on plane, the flywheel forward Chris-Craft engines have relocated the oil pickup assembly to the front of the pan. The side cover will have to be removed to disconnect the flexible braided stainless steel hose connecting the pickup to the oil pump.

19. We've added the rear cover (bottom of photo), oil pan and cylinder heads to our parts pile.

20. Here's another photo of the crankshaft-mounted camshaft drive gear and transmission drive plate disc.

21. The piston / connecting rod assemblies can be pulled from the engine once the connecting rod cap bolts have been removed.

22. To ensure that the connecting rods and caps don't get mixed up, a numbered punch set is used to emboss the cylinder number for each connecting rod and rod end cap.

23. Numbers are pretty faint but legible.

24–25. Once the main bearing caps are removed, the crankshaft can be lifted from the block.

26–27. The forged steel crankshaft will require some machining to remove minor scratches on the connecting rod and main bearing journals. The gear-driven camshaft is a reverse-rotation solid lifter design which requires valve lash adjustment every 100 hours of use. We may replace it with a hydraulic lifter unit which will require less maintenance and run a little quieter.

28. We're finally down to the bare block !

29. A rough estimate of cylinder bore wear can be derived by removing a top compression ring from one of the pistons and inserting it into the cylinder bore. We've chosen to measure the cylinder which posted the lowest compression pressure (# 4 at 35 PSI).

30. Photo 1

31. Photo 2

Measure the piston ring end gap by first squaring the piston ring within the cylinder bore by turning a flat-top piston upside down in the bore ( Photo 1 ). The ring gap should be measured at 90 degrees to the piston pin ( Photo 2 ). The piston 'slap' face side of the bore receives more wear than the area adjacent to the piston pin. Measure piston ring end gap with a feeler gauge. Start small and use progressively thicker gauges until a snug fit is obtained. Normally you'd measure the cylinder bore at several locations namely 1/2" from the top, middle and close to the bottom. The feeler gauge method only reports piston ring end gap so any variance will correspond to the amount of cylinder bore wear. Comparing your measurement to the piston ring end gap specification will tell you how much the rings and cylinder bore have worn.

32. Although not required for this type of measuring, a telescopic gauge and a digital caliper will speed up the measuring process.

33. Once the piston ring is squared up in the bore, the telescopic gauge can be dropped into the bore until it contacts the ring. Tightening the gauge's knurled stem mechanism locks in the measurement.

34–35. The digital caliper is used to measure the telescopic gauge. This is much faster than messing around with feeler gauges ! We didn't have to measure too many cylinder bores to come to the conclusion that the engine block will have to be rebored, honed and fitted with new oversize pistons and rings. All cylinders were worn well beyond the manufacturer's taper limit. We'll ship all the parts to the machine shop and wait for an estimate.

36. It's 2 PM and we're done for the day on this particular job. We'll stop for lunch and get back to finalizing the Hot Rod 's transmission shifter linkage. Remember all those parts on the floor ? We'll have to scrape all the gasket surfaces and clean the parts thoroughly. Too bad Bruce wasn't here to share in the fun... come to think of it, now I know why he's smiling in that photo of us pulling the drivetrain from his boat ! That's all for this installment. I hope you've enjoyed the photos. We'll see you in a few weeks when we reassemble everything !

1. Several days (and kilometers) later... It's Saturday, October 25, mid sixties and we're lined up in the Guntersville Lake State Park, Alabama parking lot. Gayle Brantuk, Vice President of Glen-L Marine Designs takes a break on the Hot Rod's trailer fender step. She and her husband John flew in from Bellflower, California to attend the event. Click here to see some photos of the event and our boatbuilder interview.

2. We've been working away at the boat over the winter but haven't much to show so far. Work on the cockpit continues. Over the next few weeks, we'll be laminating several layers of.100" veneer over the carlings. This will give a nice smooth radius to the inside corners. Click here to see how it was done.

Back from the machine shop.

1–2. Block primed with DuPont 2580CR urethane primer.

3–4. Engine Clearances

5. Pressure washing the engine block.

1. Prepping the block for paint.

2–3. Engine Clearances

1. Pressure washing the engine block.

2–3. Intake manifold has a large hole in the bottom of the plenum. It will have to be replaced.

4–5. Engine Clearances

1. We've been working away at the boat over the winter but haven't much to show so far. Work on the cockpit continues. Over the next few weeks, we'll be laminating several layers of.100" veneer over the carlings. This will give a nice smooth radius to the inside corners. Click here to see how it was done.

2–3. We fabricated a custom support bracket for the remote dual oil filters.

4. A bulkhead fitting connects the bracket to the oil filter head assembly.

5. The two holes on the right of the photo mount to the v-drive mounting plate.

We've been working away at the boat over the winter but haven't had much to show so far. Over the next several weeks, we'll be laminating two layers of.100" veneer over the carlings.

1–2. We ran 6" strips of 1/8" marine grade plywood through the planer to produce.100" veneer.

3. First lamination at Port gunwale clamped.

1. First lamination at Port gunwale clamped.

4. Completed.

2. Cut and place a strip of plastigauge on a main bearing cap.

3. Torque the main bearing cap bolts to 65 ft/lbs.

4. Determinine the clearance by matching up the compressed plastigauge strip with the plastigauge kit's ruler. Crankshaft main bearing clearance: 001" -.004"

5. Coat the camshaft running surfaces with assembly lube and install it in the engine.

6. Install rear oil seal.

7. Locate the camshaft gear's timing mark and mark it with some Liquid Paper.

8. Install the crankshaft and main bearing caps. Ensure that the crankshaft and camshaft timing marks are aligned properly.

9. Measure piston ring gap. Reccommended clearances are usually included with the piston ring set.

10. Install piston without rings to check bearing clearances. Stock cast pistons were upgraded to forged units (.030" oversize).

11. Cut and place a strip of plastigauge on the connecting rod cap bearing.

12. Torque the cap bolts and measure the connecting rod side clearance (two rods):.008" -.014"

13. Connecting rod bearing clearance:.001"-.004"

1. First lamination at center Frame # 4 clamped.

2–3. Completed.

4. Custom clamp for rear corner.

5–6. Completed.

7–8. Second lamination at transom clamped.

9. Second lamination at starboard gunwale clamped.

10. Completed.

1. Second lamination at port gunwale clamped.

2–3. Time to see what the radiused corner is going to look like !

4. Second corner lamination at Frame # 4 clamped.

1. Installing the piston with a piston ring compressor.

2–3, 8–9. Engine Clearances

4–5. Installing the connecting rods.

6–7. Short block completed.

1. Second corner lamination at Frame # 4 clamped.

2–3. Another custom clamp was fabricated to smooth out the radius.

4. Corner at Frame # 4 completed.

5. Second lamination at center Frame # 4 clamped.

1–2. Normally the deck fiberglass would overlap the deck-sheer junction with a two or three inch overlap on the sheer. This would entail refairing a two or three inch wide strip of fiberglass along the complete length of the sheer. This is a lot of extra work ! We've laminated two 3/4" wide strips of 2 ounce fiberglass matt to the sheer to form a 'shoebox' flange to which the deck fiberglass will be draped over. Total area to be sanded is reduced to a 3/4" wide strip along the sheer. The flange is wide enough to receive a stainless steel rub rail.

Exhaust manifolds and other painted parts were chemically stripped and sandblasted.

1. Parts were primed with DuPont 2580CR DTM urethane primer.

2. Aluminum oil pan was etched with DuPont Metal Conditioner prior to priming. This promotes paint adhesion on bare aluminum parts.

3. Flywheel.

4. To stabilize the color and kick up the topcoat, we sprayed a white basecoat. Paint is DuPont Imron urethane.

5. We couldn't get an Imron color match to the Chris-Craft blue, so we used a Nason acrylic enamel which was custom mixed using DuPont's Kodak color match system.

1. Rebuilt heads. New valves, valve guides and valve seats.

2. Marine head gasket.

3. Cylinder heads torqued to 65 ft/lbs.

4. We completed the valve train by replacing the old solid lifters with a Comp Cams solid lifter kit. The original pushrods and rocker arms were in good shape so they were cleaned and reused.

1–2. Frost plug holes were scuffed to bare metal.

3–4. Brass frost plugs installed with a socket used as a drift.

5. Oil pump, pickup hose and pickup screen assembly installed.

6. Oil pan installed. We prepainted the block's front face because it will be partially obstructed when the rear cover is installed.

7. Rear cover installed.

8. As soon as the engine is buttoned up, the cylinder heads will be primed, remaining non-blue parts will be painted white and then topcoated with blue paint.

Water pump bead blasted.

Bare sandblasted/bead blasted parts.

Parts primed with DuPont 2580CR DTM urethane primer.

Base coat of white Imron urethane.

Nason acrylic enamel custom mixed to match Chris-Craft Blue.

Engine block painted.

Assembly begins.

Water pump sprayed with Nason Urethane Clear to protect the raw aluminium and bronze parts.

Polyester body filler applied to the valve covers.

Primed, base-coated white Imron and topcoated with blue acrylic enamel.

Paragon HF7 transmission bead-blasted and chemically stripped.

Primed.

Base-coated.

Top coated.

Mounted on the engine run stand and re-assembled.

Second lamination.

The original Carter 3660 carburetor was upgraded to a Holley 600 CFM marine four barrel carburetor. The Hardin Marine flame arrestor uses a K&N air filter capable of flowing 30% more air than a stock flame arrestor. Also visible in the background is a steering wheel connected to a Teleflex hydraulic SeaStar Pro Tilt helm. Click here to see more detailed engine photos.

We're finally trial fitting the deck panels. Click here to see more photos.

Work on the front cockpit carlings and dash continues. We've snapped a lot of pictures to describe the process. Click here to see how it was done.

1–2. We encapsulated the inside dash surface with one layer of two ounce mat followed up with one layer of 6 ounce fiberglass cloth. This will prevent the exposed plywood surface from checking with exposure to the elements.

1. The original Carter 3660 carburetor was upgraded to a Holley 600 CFM marine four barrel carburetor. The Hardin Marine flame arrestor uses a K&N air filter capable of flowing 30% more air than a stock flame arrestor.

2–4. Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video.

2–3. The finished product.

1–2. The tilt helm is a very nice feature.

6. We quickened the steering action to 3 turns lock-to-lock by using a SeaStar 2.0 Sport Tilt Pro Helm displacing 2 cu.in./rev. and a SeaStar BA125-7ATM cylinder. The tilt option was well worth the added expense !

7. An aluminum backup plate was fabricated to mount the hydraulic helm to the dash.

Second lamination, Starboard corner.

1. Second lamination, Port corner.

2–3. Laminating pieces for the speedometer and tachomater instrument cluster.

4. Laminating veneer over the instrument cluster.

5. Gauges installed.

8. Dash and front cockpit carlings received three rounds of epoxy (block sanded between coats) and 2 rounds of Perfection 2 part varnish.

12. We fabricated an aluminum backup plate to mount the hydraulic helm.

1. Gauges were installed over the weekend and are ready for wiring. The helm is a SeaStar Pro Tilt hydraulic unit. 5" Monster GPS speedometer and tachometer are made by Livorsi. The water temperature, oil pressure and volt meter gauges are vintage VDO units salvaged from a Chris-Craft cabin cruiser. The fuel level and hour meter gauges are Teleflex Heavy Duty gauges. Rocker switches are fully waterproof. GPS speedometer recall/reset toggle switch is located to the left of the helm. There's still another layer of mahogany veneer to apply on the dash before applying the final finish clear coats.

2–4. We extended the radiused corner coamings to the the rear jump seat backs. Since this photo was taken, the seat supports have been veneered and topcoated with several coats of epoxy and automotive clearcoat We're holding off on final assembly until the fuel tank cradles and battery box are installed.

The following photos depict construction details for the rear jump seats. A custom-built ten gallon aluminum fuel tank will reside under each seat.

1. Building a form consisting of a piece of 3/4" plywood over the starboard-side seat frame.

2. Pieces of scrap 1" x 6" spruce lumber were slipped into place to define the vertical surface.

3. A 1/4" gap was left between the seat vertical and bottom edge of the carling. Side piece was inset 1" from the carling's outside face. In the foreground, you can see our custom-built transmission shifter arms and linkage. More on this later !

4. Several pieces of 1" x 6" stubs were used to define the shape.

5. Building this form reminds me of when, as a kid, my Dad and I used to build HO model train tables. With a bit of fiberglass screening, plaster of Paris and paint, this would make a great railbed for a river trestle approach !

6. We produced 1/4" plywood templates to accurately reproduce the required parts.

7. The mold was affixed to the router table and covered with 6 mil plastic before applying the laminates.

8. First lamination was a.100" mahogany veneer followed up with 1-1/2 ounce chop strand mat and topped with a layer of 8 ounce woven roving.

9. The flanges on either side of the lamination consist of woven roving topped with a 1/4" plywood flange which was used to compress the fiberglass and impart some strength to the flange.

Casting was a success ! The piece fits like a glove and conforms nicely to the carling's lower edge.

1. Here's the part after we've pulled it from the plug. Total weight is less than one pound.

2. Edges were trimmed and the part was given a light sanding before coating with West Epoxy catalyzed with 207 Special Coating hardener. Aluminum clips will be used to retain the top flange to the carling. The lower flange will bolt to the seat bottom.

3. Ends were left long so that they can be trimmed after installation.

4. The starboard seat base was installed.

5. Front partition was bolted to the frame clip at frame # 3.

6. Rear partition was bolted to the motor stringer with an aluminum angle.

We extended the radiused corner coamings to the the rear jump seat backs. Since this photo was taken, the seat supports have been veneered and topcoated with several coats of epoxy and automotive clearcoat We're holding off on final assembly until the fuel tank cradles and battery box are installed.

Fuel tank cradles are ready to install. Click here to see the fuel tank cradle and jump seat construction photos.

1. Port side seat support completed.

2. Aluminum angle clips were bolted through the rear cockpit carling to carry the seat support. Bolts were countersunk and epoxied to prevent the heads from turning. Wood plug bungs conceal the bolt heads.

3. The aluminum clip mates to the seat support flange. We've inset the seat support 3/4" from the carling's inside edge. This will allow room for padding and upholstery.

4. We didn't want the upholstered panels to have any exposed fasteners, so we drilled the clips for aluminum Sert-A-Nuts. These are similar to blind rivets, but they're threaded to take machine bolts.

5. #10-20 machine screws are fastened from the bottom so they can be removed from the bottom.

1. The fuel tank cradles were built from 1/4" marine grade plywood sandwiched between a layer of 2 ounce chopped strand mat and 10 ounce woven roving laminated to both sides of the plywood. Building the cradles from aluminum stock would have been way quicker but the added weight would have required more flotation. Parts are lighter than aluminum and they float !

2. Loaded fuel tanks will be quite heavy, so we laminated two 1-1/2" ledger strips to the side of each cradle.

3. Fuel tank weight will be distributed to the top of the frames.

4. Parts were barrier coated with several rounds of West System epoxy, prepped with Dupont UroPrime 2K primer surfacer and topcoated with Dupont Imron urethane.

Parts were barrier coated with several rounds of West System epoxy, prepped with Dupont UroPrime 2K primer surfacer and topcoated with Dupont Imron urethane.

1–2. The electric fuel pump and fuel and water separator filter were fitted to the starboard seat base partition.

Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video. Hot Rod Sea Trial 2 - Ottawa River Run [HD] (CyberNick)

1. One of the last interior jobs is to finish up the front cockpit seating. Click here to see our work in progress.

2. Time for some serious finishing ! Dash and front cockpit carlings received three rounds of epoxy (block sanded between coats) and 2 rounds of Perfection 2 part varnish. This is not the final veneer layer for the dash and carlings. We'll be adding a more exotic veneer over the Winter months !

Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video.

Glen-L Hot Rod - First Startup

3. Glen-L Hot Rod Sea Trial Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering, Guntersville Alabama, October 23-25 2009 We haven't been updating the website for awhile because we wanted to get the boat ready for the third annual Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering, held at Guntersville Lake State Park, Alabama, October 23-25. We came up short on the decking and upholstery, but neither were needed for the Hot Rod's Trial Launch. Gayle Brantuk, Vice President of Glen-L Marine Designs and her husband John flew in from Bellflower, California to attend the event. They were accompanied by Allyn, the man responsible for crafting Glen-L's frame kits and test boats. Last year, Gayle was happy to visit us in the Park's parking lot where all the 'Work in Progress' boats were displayed. This year, she got to drive it !. Needless to say a good time was had by all who attended the get-together. It just doesn't get any better than this ! Click here to see Glen-L Gathering photos and videos.

1. Passenger seat back hardware layer.

2. Passenger seat back webbing layer.

3–4. Both pieces are glued and clamped.

5–6. Passenger seat back folds to horizontal position.

1–2. Driver's seat back webbing layer.

3–4, 6–7, 10–15. Passenger seat back folds to horizontal position.

5. Parts were trimmed and fitted.

8. Driver's backrest is fully adjustable.

9. Seat back tilt mechanism was taken from a GM van.

1. Block was stripped to bare metal, prepped and masked to ready it for paint.

2, 4. Hydraulic roller retrofit The early style non-roller block was upgraded to a hydraulic roller setup by using a Comp Cams hydraulic roller retrofit kit (Comp # 12-417-8, Grind Number XM 270HR). Cam specs are as follows: Gross valve lift:.495 /.503 Duration @.006 tappet lift (Intake/Exhaust): 270° / 276° Duration @.050" lift (Intake/Exhaust): 218° / 224° Lobe separation: 112° Intake Centerline: 110°

3. Block was primed with DuPont 2580CR DTM urethane primer.

1. Prior to painting, the block was sent out for hot tanking, magnafluxed to check it for cracks and fitted with an ARP main stud kit. When switching from main cap bolts to studs, clamping force and tolerances will change. The main bearing caps were installed with the new studs and the block was align honed to restore the clearances.

2. Topcoat is Dupont Imron black urethane.

Brass freeze plugs were coated with thread sealant and installed with a drift.

1. To check the main bearing oil clearance, we cut a plastigauge strip and placed it on the crankshaft journal.

2. The main bearing cap was lightly oiled (to prevent the plastigauge strip from sticking to it)...

3. ... and torqued to 65 ft/lbs...

4. ... The cap was removed...

5. Clearance is determined by matching up the compressed plastigauge strip with the plastigauge kit's ruler. Crankshaft main bearing clearance: 001" -.003".

6. Hydraulic roller retrofit The early style non-roller block was upgraded to a hydraulic roller setup by using a Comp Cams hydraulic roller retrofit kit (Comp # 12-417-8, Grind Number XM 270HR). Cam specs are as follows: Gross valve lift:.495 /.503 Duration @.006 tappet lift (Intake/Exhaust): 270° / 276° Duration @.050" lift (Intake/Exhaust): 218° / 224° Lobe separation: 112° Intake Centerline: 110°

7. Image courtesy of Comp Cams. Click image to see Cam Spec Card.

8. For this buildup, we chose to install a set of Air Flow Research 180cc SBC Eliminator Street Cylinder Heads (AFR Part # 0919).

9. The aluminum performance cylinder heads feature 180cc intake ports, a 75cc combustion chamber with a 64cc exhaust port and a 3/4" thick head deck.

11. The engine is rated at 430 HP @ 5500 RPM. Peak torque is 470 ft/lbs @ 4500 RPM. Dyno results for a similar engine can be seen on AFR's Cylinder head dyno results page.

12. Valves are lightweight 8mm 2.020 intake and 1.600 exhaust with AFR’s hardened ductile iron interlocking valve seats.

2. Pistons are TRW.030" over flat top forged units.

3. Checking camshaft end play with a dial gauge.

4. We had to fabricate an.048" shim to slip under the cam drive water pump drive plate in order to get the required.005" -.010" camshaft end play clearance.

A Comp Cams degree wheel kit was used to ensure that the camshaft was installed according to specifications.

We fabricated a Top Dead Center pointer from a piece of 1/4" threaded rod, an aluminum block and a steel welding rod.

A solid lifter was inserted into the lifter bore to determine maximum valve lift and cam timing.

It's been a long time since our last update. We've clocked 12 hours on the engine since our launch last October. It has performed flawlessly but we expect that the hydraulic camshaft won't stand up to sustained high RPM usage. Last month, we pulled the Hot Rod's 355 Chevy engine and will be upgrading it for severe duty service. This includes installation of a main bearing stud kit, Air Flow Research aluminum cylinder heads, hydraulic roller camshaft, aluminum roller rocker arms and an Edelbrock RPM Air Gap intake manifold.

Click here to see more engine assembly photos.

Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video. Glen-L Hot Rod - 355 Marine Engine Startup

Glen-L Boat Builder Gathering - September 25-26 2010, Lake Nickajack, Tennessee The Gathering is a get together of boat builders, family and friends organized by Glen-L builders. The Hot Rod made the trip again this year. After scouring the want ads for several months, we found a used Palomino pop-up truck camper for a reasonable price. The passenger-side box wing was replaced with a new fiberglass-laminated plywood panel and the driver-side box wing was reinforced with fiberglass cloth and aluminum plates to support the camper tie-down straps. The original two-way refrigerator was upgraded to a new three-way unit (propane, 12 volt DC and 120 volt AC). The camper and tow vehicle's wiring were also redone. Photo coutesy of John Brantuk, Glen-L Marine Designs We didn't have enough time to get the boat ready before we left for Tennessee, so we finished up the wiring, fuel lines and exhaust hoses before launching the boat on the Thursday afternoon. The boat ran great and the new propeller is a big improvement over the prop we ran last year ! Photo coutesy of Gayle Brantuk, Glen-L Marine Designs Click here to browse our Trip Report, photos and videos of the event.

It's over for another season... We've logged 18 hours on the clock since we got back from G4. Actually using the boat has to be the best part about boatbuilding ! We shot some footage on our second last run and thought we'd share it with you. So hang onto your tuque (temp was 36° F!), we're going for a ride... Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video. Glen-L Hot Rod Boat Cruise - Ottawa River 2010 (HD)

1. The stock head bolts were upgraded with an ARP head stud kit.

4. Comp Cams Magnum aluminum roller rockers, roller lifters and pushrods complete the valvetrain.

6. If you click the image to enlarge it, you'll see the drive cog for the cam drive water pump. The plate is bolted to the end of the camshaft. The timing chain cover is another Glenwood item.

7. A Holley 600 CFM Marine performance calibrated four barrel carburetor is mounted to an Edelbrock RPM Air-Gap intake manifold.

8. The Hardin Marine flame arrestor uses a K&N air filter capable of flowing 30% more air than a stock flame arrestor.

9, 11. We've moved the engine from the assembly stand to the break-in stand. The new Edelbrock RPM Air Gap intake manifold adds several inches to the induction system's overall height. (Click the image for a higher resolution photo).

10. Ignition is controlled by an MSD billet aluminum marine distributor and digital ignition box.

The bottom portion of our custom built 12 quart oil pan received a coat of truck bed liner and was freshened up with a new coat of paint.

We've moved the engine from the assembly stand to the break-in stand. The new Edelbrock RPM Air Gap intake manifold adds several inches to the induction system's overall height. (Click the image for a higher resolution photo).

Transmission oil cooler is mounted on the Port side.

A compact Velvet Drive bellhousing mates the engine to Velvet Drive 71C 1:1 ratio hydraulic transmission.

Engine oil cooler and dual remote oil filters are installed on the Starboard side. We also had to plumb in a Holley marine electric fuel pump, relay and fuel filter.

Click the image for a higher resolution photo.

Click the image for a higher resolution photo.

Inboard Motor Installations by Glen L. Witt and Ken Hankinson. It's a real honour to have photos of our engine installation on the cover of one of Glen's books. See the top row and bottom left corner of the book cover.

Here's the finished passenger seat ready for final installation. (Click the image for a higher resolution photo).

1–2. The rubber webbing was a very labour intensive job, but will make for very confortable seats !

3. The webbing was looped around a strip of 1/2" wide by 1/8" thick flat aluminum stock.

4. Two #6 x 3/4" stainless steel pan head machine screws were used to retain the webbing to the seat frame.

Sole was covered with outdoor carpet. We'll upgrade to marine grade carpet when the boat is totally finished !

1. Soles were cut from 1/2" exterior grade fir plywood. Both sides were laminated with 10 ounce fiberglass cloth and West System epoxy. Once sanded, the parts were primed with DuPont Uro Prime urethane primer surfacer.

2. The 'down' side was topcoated with DuPont Imron single stage two-part urethane paint. Also visible is the adjustment slot for the foot pedal. We'll have more on the foot pedal soon !

3. Soles rest on 1"x2" douglas fir battens. An aluminun angle ledger strip was fastened to the engine stringer.

4. Battens are fastened to aluminum angles bolted to the side of each frame. Fastening the batten through the top of the frame would allow moisture to penetrate into the frame and eventually cause it to rot.

5. We installed Sert-a-Nuts so that the soles can be easily removed without compromising fastener thread holes. They're like a blind rivet with a built-in thread.

6. The driver's seat is adjustable (8" of horizontal travel) so the Glenwood foot pedal is also adjustable.

7. The pedal is mounted to an aluminum plate which can be moved by loosening the three bolts on the left and removing the bolt on the right.

8. Once the pedal has been repositioned, the bolt on the right is inserted into a new hole position and all bolts are tightened.

1. Final assembly for the Port fuel tank cradle and forward jumpseat bulkhead. Cradle bolt holes were bushed with fiberglass bushings. Sert-A-Nuts were installed flush on the inside face of the cradle flange.

2. Here's a view of the forward jumpseat bulkhead looking aft.

1. Fuel fill blocking was laminated from marine grade plywood and Douglas Fir stock. The plywood layer prevents the Fir from splitting.

2. A stainless steel 2" fuel fill will feed the 9.2 gallon fuel tank. The white plywood box is a mockup of the tank. Also visible in the photo are the hydraulic steering's annealed copper tubing lines. It's a very tight installation !

1. Blocking for the aft stainless steel pop-up deck cleats wax glued up.

2. Blocking was barrier coated.

3. Deck sheeting was cut out for the pop-up cleats.

4. Cleat in the 'up' position.

5–6. Close-up shot.

Deck sheeting was cut out for the fuel fills.

Hose barb will take a 3/4" hose. Also visible in this photo are the two 3/8" annealed copper tubing hydraulic steering hoses. They're retained by bulkhead fittings bolted through the steel transom support uprights.

... and the fuel fill hose.

1. A 1-1/8" hole saw was used to install the two bilge pump thru-hulls.

2. The large white box is a plywood mockup of a 9.5 gallon fuel tank. A 2" fuel fill hose can be seen on the right of the photo. A 5/8" fuel vent hose with a high coiled loop is on the left.

3. Here's a better view of fuel vent hose...

4. The vent hose was routed to the sheer. Hose should be run 'downhill' so that water can't find its way back into the tank.

5. Stainless steel fuel vent fitting completes the fuel tank rigging ! We'll be taking our fuel tank mockup into a welding shop next week !

1. We built up the jumpseat's leading edge with a piece of 1" x 2" stock and radiused the top edge before laminating both sides with 10 ounce fiberglass cloth.

2. A stainless steel piano hinge will complete the assembly.

1. The 5/8" rubber fuel vent hose has been looped to form a high loop before its routed to the sheer mounted fuel vent fitting.

2. The 2" fuel fill hose is directly below the deck fill fitting.

3. Here's a closeup shot of the unswitched 12 volt fuse block. This provides circut protection for the automatic bilge pump and any accessories that require unswitched 12 volt power.

1. Deck blocking was added to handle the plywood joint.

2. We ran the blocking at an angle so that any hard spots could be spread across a larger area.

3. The front deck panel was trimmed to fit.

1. With the rear deck panels installed, it's time to put a 1/2" radius on the deck ply at the transom. We bolted two pieces of 2" x 4" through the transom tie down bolt holes.

2. We dug out the transom frame template (one of 160 templates we built for this boat !) and screwed it into the two pieces of 2" x 4".

3. This will give us some support for the router.

4. A 1/2" round-over bit makes quick work of rounding the edge for applying fiberglass.

1. Deck was covered with 10 ounce fiberglass cloth. The cloth was draped around the radiused 'shoebox' edge. We had previously built up several layers of fiberglass mat and cloth along the sheer to form a 'shoebox' joint along the sheer. This deck-to-hull joint is used in fiberglass boats and saves a lot of time as the deck cloth doesn't overlap the hull, only a 3/4" wide strip at the sheer.

2. More cloth was applied to the rear cockpit carlings.

3. Cloth overlap will be ground down flush.

4. We've moved the boat from its trailer to our steel boat dolly. Much easier to work on the boat this way !

5. Fiberglass was blocked out with a straight-line air file fitted with 40 grit paper.

6. We'll be applying three coats of West epoxy resin before the first sanding.

7. Time spent tweaking the sheer line was well worth the effort ! You'll notice the frame outline templates hanging on the wall next to the clock.

8. The deck will be painted, so to produce a solid base for sanding, we applied three rounds of West System epoxy catalysed with 207 hardener. Each coat was allowed to cure for three hours before applying the next coat.

9. A very light coat of epoxy was applied with a 6" foam roller...

10–11. ... and tipped with a West 8" foam roller cut in half and affixed to the end of a 24" piece of 1" x 2".

12. The tipping tool is lightly dragged on the epoxy surface until the tool starts to stutter. This breaks up the air bubbles induced by rolling on the epoxy and distributes a very thin coat of epoxy. You'll save many hours of sanding if you can minimize surface texture and runs !

13. '

14–15. '

16. The rear deck was sanded with an inline air file with 40 grit sandpaper and blocked with a longboard. The initial sanding was followed up with two barrier coats of West System epoxy catalysed with 207 hardener spaced three hours apart. The extra coats provide a thick sanding base. The hull sides were also air filed and blocked with a longboard. Surface was wiped down with DuPont Wash & Wipe (wax, grease and silicone remover) prior to spraying several rounds of DuPont URO Prime urethane primer surfacer.

1. The rear deck was sanded with an inline air file with 40 grit sandpaper and blocked with a longboard. The initial sanding was followed up with two barrier coats of West System epoxy catalysed with 207 hardener spaced three hours apart. The extra coats provide a thick sanding base. The hull sides were also air filed and blocked with a longboard. Surface was wiped down with DuPont Wash & Wipe (wax, grease and silicone remover) prior to spraying several rounds of DuPont URO Prime urethane primer surfacer.

2. Transom deck to hull fiberglass was feathered, blocked and primed. Many of the DuPont industrial coatings we've used over the years have been phased out because they can't meet the strict environmental VOC regulations.

3. The whole side of the hull was blocked and primed to improve the surface quality.

4. The sides are ready for final blocking.

1. A transit level was used to mark a 6" waterline on the hull. It was taped, masked and prepped.

2. We applied two rounds of DuPont 1141S 2K urethane primer-filler. This is a very fine finish 3 part white primer we use as a sealer for light colored topcoats. We'll be shooting Corvette yellow over this base coat.

3. The deck is ready for blocking and a second round of primer-surfacer.

1–2. We used the gantry lift to flip the trailer so we could easily weld the trailer tongue jack mounting plate and build a removable winch stand.

3–4. Here's a close-up photo of the 4" drop axle.

5. Our aluminum skid fin was too close to the crossmember so we cut it and created a U shaped extension to provide more clearance.

6. Here is a downside-up shot of the trailer tongue. We never liked the look of the tongue jack's strap-on U-bolts, so we molded the mounting bracket into the trailer tongue.

7. We also molded in a piece of heavy duty square tube to act as a receiver for a removable winch post.

1. Not much new to see here, just more blocking and priming until the panels are flawless ! The deck was blocked with 40 and 100 grit paper on the inline air file. This was followed up with the longboard, by hand. A round of 3M Marine body filler was applied to fill pinholes and minor imperfections and sanded out. A second round of primer was applied.

2. If the second round of primer blocks out without any sanding break-throughs, a sealer coat will be applied. Normally this would be followed up with the final color topcoat, but we're anxious to hit the water, so the paint will be done once the boating season is over.

4. If you compare this photo to the same shot 5 photos back, you can see the surface has improved dramatically. We'll keep repeating the process until we're happy with the finish !

We've decided to build a removable hard shell tonneau cover to protect the engine and related parts from the elements while towing. Normally this could be done with boat canvass stretched over the rear cockpit and fastened around the cockpit coaming with snaps, but we were after a cleaner look without any visible fasteners.

Click here to see how the cover was fabricated.

Our custom aluminum fuels tanks arrived on the 23rd. The 9 gallon tanks were fabricated at a local welding shop in Ottawa, Ontario. The tanks were on back-order for some time now. We've been holding off on final assembly until they were installed. Let the assembly begin !

We've decided to build a removable hard shell tonneau cover to protect the engine and related parts from the elements while towing. Normally this could be done with boat canvass stretched over the rear cockpit and fastened around the cockpit coaming with snaps, but we were after a cleaner look without any visible fasteners.

1. We built a removable buck supported on the engine stringers. Cambered deck deams were produced and spaced on every frame. 1" x 2" battens were rabbeted into the deck beams. The structure will be covered with 1/4" plywood and covered with 10 ounce fiberglass cloth.

2–3. When completed, the cover will be cut out to accept the engine and related parts that will protrude through the cover. We'll be installing the engine and driveline soon, so now is the best time to get this piece completed. It would be very difficult to build the cover with the engine installed in the boat !

4. We've removed the tonneau cover from the boat and placed it on our trolley for sheeting and finishing. Corners were built up from from two pieces of 3/4" plywood molded to a width of 3/4".

1. We've removed the tonneau cover from the boat and placed it on our trolley for sheeting and finishing. Corners were built up from from two pieces of 3/4" plywood molded to a width of 3/4".

2–3. Decking is 1/4" G1S exterior plywood.

4. The remaining sub deck panels were glued and screwed. We're ready for fiberglass !

The remaining sub deck panels were glued and screwed. We're ready for fiberglass !

1. Six ounce cloth was applied with West System epoxy catalyzed with 206 Slow hardener.

2. The cover is ready for first sanding and weave fill coats.

1. We'll be installing the fuel tanks using David Pascoe's method. Complete instructions are included in this article: How to Install an Aluminum Fuel Tank. The 1/4" thick fuel tank mounting pad was fabricated by laminating a fiberglass sandwich consisting of 6 layers of 2 ounce chopped strand mat between two layers of 6 ounce cloth. Once cured, we cut the composite into 2" wide by 16" strips.

2–3. Tank bottom was roughed up with 40 grit sandpaper, washed down with Wash & Wipe wax, grease and silicone remover, The strips were bonded to the tank with 3M 5200 adhesive.

Port side fuel tank was placed on its cradle and the jumpseat panels were installed. The cockpit coaming is ready for another round of clearcoat.

1. The distributor's MSD ignition box (blue box) mounts to the side of the electrical box with rubber vibration dampers.

2. A stainless steel piano hinge was used to hinge the electrical box door.

3. The electrical box is very cramped but we managed to pack a Blue Sea Systems marine rated fuse block, a solenoid-actuated master disconnect switch for the battery and an electrical fuel pump relay. We'll sort out the mess of wires when the engine is installed !

The first round of primer surfacer was applied.

Some of the cover was cut out for the engine opening. We won't be doing the final trimming until the engine is installed.

1. Here are a few photos after trimming the tonneau cover to fit around the engine. Still lots of trimming to do, but it certainly has the look I had envisioned ! It's going to be sweet !

Steeper shaft angles increase upward thrust which increases transom lift and decrease bow lift. Lower shaft angles reduce upward thrust and increase bow lift. More thrust is available to propel the boat. Reference : Basic Propeller Theory - Prop Shaft Angles (sfmbc.net)

How to measure propeller rake The Rake measurement indicates the angle of blades’ tilt towards or away from the transom. The rake angle is measured on a line extending from the center of the hub through the center of one blade. A propeller with 0 degree rake has blades 90 degrees perpendicular to the center of the hub. A 20 degree rake results in a blade that is angled 70 degrees from the hub.

Propeller is mounted to a propeller shaft and levelled horizontally in a bench vise.

Rake is the measurement of the angle of the tilt of the blade's tip toward or away from the propeller's front hub face. The angle is measured on a line extending from the center of the hub through the center of one blade.

An inclinometer (angle finder) is used to find the rake angle. The setup presented here isn't very accurate, but will work if you need a quick determination of rake angle when you're in the field.

Here's our new OJ 12x16p LH 3 blade Nibral propeller.

Propeller # 1 is a 12" diameter by 15" pitch left hand rotation propeller.

Propeller # 2 is a Menkens 11-1/2" x 15p forged steel 2-blade. We encountered severe ventilation and vibration with this propeller.

1. The sensors are only installed when we wish to check the carburetor's calibration after we've made jetting changes. A stainless steel oil pan drain plug is installed when the sensors are not needed.

2. Sensor fitted to the first cylinder bank...

3. ... and the second cylinder bank.

To help tune our carbureted engine, we fabricated aluminum spacer blocks to mount a wideband oxygen sensor in each cylinder bank as close to the exhaust ports as possible. The sensors will feed an air-fuel meter which will indicate if the air-fuel mixture is rich or lean. The spacer blocks are prototypes for an automotive TBI to marine conversion kit that we've been working on. We'll have more on that project as soon as its up and running !

1. We fabricated a set of exhaust manifold spacers from 1-1/2" thick aluminum stock.

2. The original allen head cap bolts were replaced with studs.

3. The spacers will be drilled and tapped to accept a wideband oxygen sensor.

1. The prop on the left is our old OJ 12x16p LH 3 blade Nibral propeller. It has performed flawlessly, but we wanted to increase our cruise RPM by several hundred RPM, so we had a new OJ propeller reworked to an 11x14p.

2. (Index)

Time to get back to some finishing and get the seats ready for upholstery. The seat tops were trimmed at a 10 degree angle so that the tops are flush with the deck. The simple rotisserie jig made spray painting the parts a lot easier !

We encapsulated with three rounds of West System 207 Special Coating. After block sanding, we sprayed three rounds of Perfection two-part polyurethane varnish.

1. Time to finish up the front deck. We needed to build a wide deck beam to bolt the dash cowl to. We epoxied a 4-1/2" wide strip of 1/4" marine grade plywood to the bottom of the deck battens.

2. We laminated three layers of 1/4" marine ply to conform to the deck beam's curvature.

3. The pop-up bow light mounts in a plastic housing (at left of photo). The fit wasn't too good, the plastic was very flimsy and the bolt holes were way too close to the edge, so we fabricated a wood plug from some scrap wood (middle of photo). We wrapped the plug with Saran Wrap and wetted out three layers of 6 ounce fiberglass cloth with West System epoxy.

1. The pop-up bow light mounts in a plastic housing (at left of photo). The fit wasn't too good, the plastic was very flimsy and the bolt holes were way too close to the edge, so we fabricated a wood plug from some scrap wood (middle of photo). We wrapped the plug with Saran Wrap and wetted out three layers of 6 ounce fiberglass cloth with West System epoxy.

2–3. We moved the front mounting hole inboard away from the flange and created a step to receive the mount bolt.

4. The shroud was epoxied into the strongback.

Fits like a glove !

1. Blocking for the pop-up deck cleats was made from 3/4" marine grade plywood.

2. The cleat pops up when you hit the release button.

3. To restore some of the deck batten thickness we removed while fairing, we laminated a strip of 1/4" marine grade plywood to the underside of several battens.

4. The battens will be encapsulated before applying the plywood deck.

1. Before epoxying the deck, we had to trim the flotation foam billets to clear our new bow light pod.

2. To ensure adequate ventilation and prevent rot issues, we installed 1-1/2" diameter 1/4" marine grade plywood spacers between the deck battens and foam bilets.

3. Billets are held in position by 1/4-20 stainless steel threaded rods and SS nyloc nuts. To see how the panels were fabricated, click here.

1–2. Starboard deck was installed using thickened epoxy and fastened with silicon bronze screws.

The port deck was buttoned down. We're ready for some fairing along the sheer and fiberglass.

1. With the deck plywood installed, it's time to build up two layers of ten ounce fiberglass cloth to form a 'shoebox' joint along the sheer. This deck-to-hull joint is used in fiberglass boats and saves a lot of time as the deck cloth doesn't overlap the hull, only a 3/4" wide strip at the sheer.

2. The deck's underside will be encapsulated with two coats of West System resin catalyzed with 207 Special Coating hardener. The flotation billets are getting a few more rounds of body filler to get them ready for paint. We'll be fiberglassing the deck tomorrow...

1–2. Fiberglass was trimmed with a utility knife and blocked with coarse sandpaper.

3. The deck will be primed and painted, so we chose a heavier 10 ounce fiberglass cloth. We'll be sanding with an airfile which would normally just shred lighter four or six ounce cloth. Width is 39" so we laid it out in three panels.

4. We'll let it cure overnight, knock off the high spots and apply three fill coats tomorrow.

Fill coat # 2 : The second fill coat was applied at 1 AM. Another late night !

1. Fill coat # 1: We blocked out the seams with coarse sandpaper and airfiled the surface with 80 grit sandpaper. The first round of West System 105 Resin catalyzed with 206 Medium Hardener was applied at 7 PM.

2. We'll let it cure for a day or two before doing some fairing.

1. Fill coat # 3 and 4: Once the epoxy was fully cured, we airfiled with 80 grit sandpaper and applied the third and fourth fill coats (7PM and 12AM). We didn't have to do any fairing as the deck panels were very fair to begin with.

2. One more blocking with the airfile and two more epoxy barrier coats should give us a thick enough substrate to apply urethane primer-surfacer.

We'll block and prime the substrate until we're happy with the finish !

1. The deck was airfiled with 80 grit sandpaper followed up with 100 grit on a longboard. Low spots were filled with fairing compound made from West System Epoxy and 407/410 fillers.

2. The substrate was cleaned with Final Wipe Wax, Grease and Silicone Remover followed by DuPont Plas-Stick 2319S Plastic Surface Cleaner Three medium coats of DuPont URO 1107S Urethane Primer Surfacer were applied with an HVLP spray gun. Here are some links for these products: Final Wipe Wax and Grease Remover DuPont™ Plas-Stick® 2319S ™ Plastic-Prep DuPont™ URO® 1107S Primer-Filler

Low spots required very little finishing putty. Surface was prepped for second round of primer surfacer.

The dash was blocked and topcoated with three build coats of Nason SelectClear 2K Clearcoat .

Before we spray several rounds of black primer-sealer to the deck and hull, we clearcoated the dash so we can tape the whole cockpit to prevent overspray.

We'll let the primer cure for a day before reassembly. Another week should do the trick ...

1. The hull was prepped and sprayed with two rounds of Sherwin-Williams SpectraSeal 2K-urethane black primer-sealer. The semi-gloss sealer confirms hull fairness prior to paint and provides UV protection. Here's a link to the Product Data Sheet: SpectraSeal™ P27B 2.1 VOC Color Primer Sealer We'll be finishing up the sheer trim and cockpit coamings over the Winter.

2. It's going to look nice in Corvette Yellow...

The propeller shaft was shortened by 5/8" to reduce the distance between the aft end of the strut and front face of propeller hub.

Diameter was reduced from 12" to 11" which yields 1/2" more blade tip clearance.

1. The rubber webbing we originally used for the seat base and back was too soft, so we replaced it with seat belt webbing. Here are a few photos of the final installation.

2. Custom fabricated steel brackets mount the adjustable driver's seat base to the engine stringer.

3. Here's a close-up shot of one of the brackets.

1. We welded a square tube stub into the fender step to receive a removable boat guide on the Port side. A 4' length of 1" square tube drops into the socket and is held in place with a 1/4" x 2" stainless steel pin.

2. At the 2012 Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering, Lake Nickajack, Tennessee. Photo by Gayle Brantuk, Glen-L Marine Designs.

3. Photo by Gayle Brantuk, Glen-L Marine Designs.

4. If building a boat trailer, I recommend ordering Glen Witt's book How to Build Boat Trailers. All aspects of trailer construction are covered, including axles, hubs, wheels, brakes, tires, springs, couplers, frame construction methods, and much more in easy-to-read non-technical language. How to Build Boat Trailers" by Glen L Witt. It's a real honour to have a photo of your boat trailer on one of Glen's books. Our Glen-L 2100 trailer is featured in the top middle and lower right corner of the book cover. Click here to see Glen-L's Trailer Plans.

Here's the finished dash. (Click the image for a higher resolution photo).

At the Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering, Lake Nickajack, Tennessee. Photo courtesy of Gayle Brantuk, Glen-L Marine Designs Click on the links below to see the latest updates. Seats Deck Exhaust System

Gathering of Glen-L Boatbuilders at Lake Nickajack Tennessee, September 16-18, 2011. We attended the fifth annual get together of Glen-L boat builders, family and friends organized by Glen-L builders. Photo courtesy of Gayle Brantuk, Glen-L Marine Designs Click on the link below for more details : Gathering 2011 Trip Report and Photos

The boat has been reassembled and is back on the water !. The deck and hull have been sealed with two rounds of black primer-sealer. The shortened propeller shaft and new smaller diameter propeller have been installed. The front seats and cockpit have been reassembled.

1–2, 5–6. At the Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering, Lake Nickajack, Tennessee. Photo courtesy of Gayle Brantuk, Glen-L Marine Designs

3. Fits like a glove !

4. The port deck was buttoned down. We're ready for some fairing along the sheer and fiberglass.

7. Clearcoating the dash.

8. Fresh coat of black urethane primer sealer.

9. Upgraded rubber exhaust hoses to custom aluminum "S" pipes.

10. First startup of the season.

11. New removable upholstery !

12. At Lower Duck Island on the Ottawa River.

The seat tops are just proud of the deck surface.

1. Here are some photos of the completed upholstery.

2. The passenger seat back folds down for access to the v-drive. There's enough space behind the seats to store the paddle, rope boarding ladder and other boating stuff.

3. Driver's seat back cushion is slipped onto the seat frame and attached with a velcro strip along the seat back's bottom edge. The passenger seat back is held in place with snap buttons.

4. Seat pan cushions fit like a glove...

5. We'll have to raise the passenger seat's hinge pivot point so that the seat back lays flat on the seat pan cushion.

6. Many thanks to Marcel Vaillancourt for doing a great job on the seats. The final product is exactly what I had in mind !

The spacer blocks added 3" to the overall width of the exhaust system, so while we were at it, we replaced the 36" long runs of 3-1/2" wet exhaust hose with aluminum pipe. We cut the Glenwood 3-1/2" exhaust elbow flange and welded on 4" aluminum pipe stubs. The aluminum 4" OD vertical-drop 'S' pipes were cut, rotated, fitted and rewelded. The pipes were detailed and sprayed with DuPont etching primer and topcoated with Imron silver metallic paint.

We didn't have space for mufflers, so we installed Gibson Transom Mount Power Tip mufflers. The silencers reduce decibel ranges and surpass the 88db limits required by the California SAE J2005 Motorboat Sound Law without compromising power. Click the photo for a higher resolution image. Click here for silencer specifications.

Space is at a premium in this boat !

The air-fuel meter can monitor each cylinder bank individually or can provide an average for both cylinders. Averaging both sensors at 2000 RPM gave us this reading. Our jetting is in the ballpark, so we'll log our next run under load and cruise conditions and try our next setup. The meter will store up to 25 minutes of data in the dual sensor mode. This tool really takes the guesswork out of tuning a carburetor !

The boat needs a major cleanup when we get home !!.

The Gathering was a blast. I'd like to thank everyone who organised the event and all who attended. Special thanks to Gayle and Glen-L Marine Designs for providing Saturday lunch, the Sunday Breakfast crew (Bruce Dow, his Dad Brian) and everybody who pitched in to make this the best Gathering to date. Your hospitality and fellowship keeps us coming back year after year !

Click on the links below to see more photos of the event : Gayle's Blog and Photos Glen-L Gathering 2011 Photo Album ttomshaw's Photo Album vupilot's Photo Album Glen-L Boat Video Directory (Past Gatherings)

1. We fabricated an alignment jig made from 3/4" plywood scraps and hose clamps to mark location of turnbuckle mounting holes on the 7/8" OD control shaft.

2–3, 5. Here's an excerpt from the Glenwood Marine Catalog explaining how the cavitation plate override system works: "On high speed boats, quick accurate setting of the cavitation plate is desirable for safety and best performance. Using a combination Foot Control and Control Handle with an Override Assembly makes such adjustment quick and positive. Usually the cavitation plates are set by the hand control to the desired pitch. However, when quick acceleration is desired, or when the bow of the boat needs to be brought down instantly, the foot control can be depressed to override the hand control. When the foot control is released, the cavitation plate will will return to its initial pre-set pitch."

4. Double faced carpet tape was used to temporarily hold the cavitation plate male bosses while fitting. Mounting holes will be drilled after the control shaft has been machined.

Hole centerlines were marked with a die grinder cutoff wheel. Parts were reassembled and measurements were double checked before sending the control shaft out for spot facing and drilling.

1. Once we got the control rod back from the machine shop, the turnbucles were trial fitted.

2. Now to cut the foot pedal control rod, thread the end to accept the clevis end and mark the control rod for the 1/4" wide keyway.

1. The cavitation plate is fastened to the transom with 5/16" x 3-1/2" stainless steel button head machine bolts. Every second bolt hole was overbored to 1/2" and filled with an epoxy and West System 403 filler.

2. A 1/4" hole was bored slightly above the bolt hole. The thickened epoxy slurry was loaded into a syringe and pumped into the bolt hole. Once cured, the cavitation plate was reinstalled, a 5/16" drill bit was used to locate the mounting holes.

3. Here's an excerpt from the Glenwood Marine Catalog explaining how the cavitation plate override system works: "On high speed boats, quick accurate setting of the cavitation plate is desirable for safety and best performance. Using a combination Foot Control and Control Handle with an Override Assembly makes such adjustment quick and positive. Usually the cavitation plates are set by the hand control to the desired pitch. However, when quick acceleration is desired, or when the bow of the boat needs to be brought down instantly, the foot control can be depressed to override the hand control. When the foot control is released, the cavitation plate will will return to its initial pre-set pitch."

1. A 9/32" pilot hole was bored followed by a 5/16" tap to thread the bolt hole.

2. The threaded bolt hole is less likely to leak than an unthreaded hole. Several wraps of teflon plumber's tape or thread sealant is all that is required to seal the threads. If needed, parts can be easily removed in the future.

3–5. Here's an excerpt from the Glenwood Marine Catalog explaining how the cavitation plate override system works: "On high speed boats, quick accurate setting of the cavitation plate is desirable for safety and best performance. Using a combination Foot Control and Control Handle with an Override Assembly makes such adjustment quick and positive. Usually the cavitation plates are set by the hand control to the desired pitch. However, when quick acceleration is desired, or when the bow of the boat needs to be brought down instantly, the foot control can be depressed to override the hand control. When the foot control is released, the cavitation plate will will return to its initial pre-set pitch."

6. To ensure that the cavitation plates were installed flush to the bottom of the hull, we used a length of 1/4" steel plate supported by two hydraulic jacks.

1. Time to get the transom ready for final paint. Sanding with an inline air file with 180 grit sandpaper was followed up with block sanding using a long, hard rubber sanding block.

2. Paint prep included a wipedown with Final Wash wax, grease and silicone remover followed up with DuPont Plas-Stick 2319S Plastic Surface Cleaner. The substrate was tacked with a 2K tack cloth before applying three medium coats of DuPont 4004S Ultra Productive 2K Urethane Primer-Filler. The panel was block sanded with 400 dry and 600 wet sandpaper, prepped as mentionned previously and base coated with Limco Urethane white.

1. An hour later, we topcoated the white base coat with single stage Sherwin Williams Genesis GC 3.5 VOC Acrylic Polyurethane. The color was custom mixed Corvette Yellow.

2. Masking tape was removed four hours later.

3. Unfortunately the topsides won't be painted this year. It's time to get the boat back in the water and see how the cavitation plates will affect the handling.

1. Opening for the thru hull fitting is to the left of exhaust pipe hole. This should place the thru hull roughly 1" above the waterline.

2. We used a hole saw and a sabre saw equipped with a metal cutting blade to cut through the stainless steel transom support.

3. Here are the cast aluminum oval thru hull and related components. We cut a custom gasket for the thru hull flange which will be bedded in Permatex "The Right Stuff" gasket sealant.

4. Here's the finished product.

5. Here's the view from inside the boat.

1. It's a very tight fit, but there's just enough room for the thru hull fitting and cavitation plate pedal control rod.

2. The thru hull retainer thickness had to be reduced 3/4" to compensate for the 3-1/2" thick transom.

3. We built custom pillow blocks from 1" x 2" aluminum bar stock.

4–5. The bar stock was notched to fit over the steel angle iron frame clips. We bored a 3/4" diameter hole through the bar stock and loctited a 1/2" ID x 3/4" OD bronze bushing.

6. To gain enough clearance for the foot pedal rod, the starboard side fuel tank cradle was modified to shift the fuel tank over 1-1/2".

7. The large spring ensures that the control handle returns to the neutral position e.g. cavitation plates flush with the hull bottom.

8–9. While we were at it, we fabricated a new gas pedal and mounted it on the 7/8" diameter shaft that was supplied with the Glenwood cavitation plate foot control kit.

10–11. Here's an excerpt from the Glenwood Marine Catalog explaining how the cavitation plate override system works: "On high speed boats, quick accurate setting of the cavitation plate is desirable for safety and best performance. Using a combination Foot Control and Control Handle with an Override Assembly makes such adjustment quick and positive. Usually the cavitation plates are set by the hand control to the desired pitch. However, when quick acceleration is desired, or when the bow of the boat needs to be brought down instantly, the foot control can be depressed to override the hand control. When the foot control is released, the cavitation plate will will return to its initial pre-set pitch."

The boat is finally back on its trailer. We've affixed the Transport Canada Capacity Label to the upper starboard corner of the transom. Click the photo for a higher resolution 2272 x 1704 image.

3. We are now known as Kane Custom Boats Ltd.. Our Transport Canada assigned Boat Manufacturer Identification Code is YPB. The capacity label was issued after a marine survey was performed to ensure that the boat conforms to Canadian boat construction standards. The boat can now be sold to the general public.

Latest Updates It has been a while since our last update ! We've been busy installing an adjustable cavitation plate on the boat. The installation required pulling the starboard fuel tank and fabricating a new shaft to mount the cavitation plate pedal and gas pedal. We also shot some Corvette Yellow on the transom while we were at it. We hope to have the boat back in the water early next week. We'll be leaving September 3rd for the 1200 mile ride to the 2012 edition of the Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering at Lake Nickajack, Tennessee, September 7-9 2012. Click here to see the cavitation plate installation photos.

Gathering of Glen-L Boatbuilders at Lake Nickajack Tennessee, September 7-9, 2012. We had a great time at the 2012 edition of the Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering held at Lake Nickajack, Tennessee. wnd would like to thank everyone who made it happen. The hospitality and camaraderie at this event keeps us coming back every year ! We're already making plans for next year... Here's the first cut of Gayle Brantuk's ride in the Hot Rod : Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video. I'd like to thank Gayle for taking time out from her busy schedule to attend the Gathering, Neel Thompson for providing the video chase boat and Nick for shooting the video. We'll post more videos soon ! Click on the links below to see more : G6 was G-Great! (Glen-L Boatbuilder Blogs, posted by Gayle Brantuk) G6 Boat Videos (Glen-L Boatbuilder Forum, posted by Mr. Hot Rod) Gathering 2012 Photos (Glen-L Boatbuilding Galleries) Gathering 2012 (Thread on Glen-L's Boatbuilder Forum ) Glen-L Boat Video Directory - Gathering videos (2007-2012) (KaneCustomBoats.com)

Gathering of Glen-L Boatbuilders at Lake Nickajack Tennessee, September 20-22, 2013. The highlight of our boating season was the 2013 edition of the Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering held at Lake Nickajack, Tennessee. We had a great time at G7 and would like to thank everyone who made it happen. The hospitality and camaraderie at this event keeps us coming back every year ! We're already making plans for next year... My friend Nick made the trip again this year and shot a lot of video. Here's the first cut of the G7 Tennessee River Run : Click the 'Play' button (>) to see the video. I'd like to thank the event organizers and everyone who attended the Gathering, and Nick for shooting the videos. We'll post more photos and videos soon ! Click on the links below to see more photos and videos of the event : Gathering 2013 Photos (Glen-L Boatbuilding Galleries ) Glen-L Boatbuilder Gathering Videos (2007-2014) (KaneCustomBoats.com) Gathering 2013 (Thread on Glen-L's Boatbuilder Forum ) Gathering 7 Video Clips (Glen-L Boatbuilder Forum )

At the bottom of the photo, you'll notice another set of templates. These are for a 1/4" marine grade plywood lamination which is bonded to the frame before the frame gusset are added. This will prevent the frame lumber from splitting and adds more strength, as the lamination overlaps the frame joints.

Here's a photo of the completed frames and floor timbers.

The following photos describe how we produced frame templates for the Glen-L Hot Rod. We might be building more than one boat, so developing the templates may save a ton of layout work if we ever build another one. Click on any photo for a larger image.

1. The frame outline board is depicted at the top of the photo. It's made from 3/8" plywood and is used to assemble frame parts. it also ensures assembly accuracy and provides unobstructed access for clamping around the perimeter of the frame. The frame templates are visible at the bottom of the photo. Templates are made from select grade 3/8" exterior plywood. They are temporarily affixed to lumber stock so parts can be trimmed with a router equipped with a top-bearing flush trim bit.

2. Close-up view of the top, side and bottom futtocks.

3. Frame templates are assembled on the frame outline board. Covering the board with plastic film before assembling the frame components will prevent the epoxied parts from sticking to the outline board.

4. Close-up view. The side futtock (frame member) usually runs from the top of the sheer to the bottom chine edge. When the chines are screwed to the frames with long screws, the screws will have a tendency to split the lumber if driven into a futtock with edge grain. The screw will have more holding power and won't split the lumber if driven across the grain.

5. 3/8" marine grade plywood gussets are applied to the frame.

6. Close-up view of the gusssts.

7. Close-up view of the floor timber. It can be made from the same stock used for the frames, or with 3/4" marine grade plywood. The plywood may be a better choice as its more stable than lumber and won't split like wide pieces of lumber are prone to do.

8. Here are the 1/4" marine grade plywood templates. These laminations are bonded to one side of the frame before the frame gusset are added. They prevent the frame lumber from splitting and add strength.

9. Close-up view. The laminations overlap the frame joints.

10. Close-up view at the keel junction.

11. With judicious nesting of parts, frame 7 would require a single piece of 1"x8"x8' lumber. Once all the frame templates were completed, the parts were laid out to minimize lumber waste. The dimensions of the nested parts were entered into an Excel spreadsheet and grouped by width to produce a lumber shopping/cut list. Click here to see the spreadsheet.

Since there was a possibility of building more than one boat in the future, we produced a set of frame templates to improve construction accuracy and save layout and production time on subsequent boat builds. Click here to learn more about the frame templates.

Latest update : We've recovered from our cardiac issues and getting back into our truck camping and boating trips. We have also been commissioned to build a Glen-L Mist Miss for a Glen-L boatbuilder from Kentucky, USA. His boat build progress is posted on the Glen-L Boatbuilder Forum : Dave's Mist Miss Build I hope you have enjoyed viewing the Hot Rod Project. If you have had any problems using this web site or have any comments or suggestions for improvement, send us an email. Click the Left Menu tabs to see more boats and videos : Video Directory (Glen-L Boat Videos and Photo Albums) Glen-L Gatherings (Glen-L Boatbuilder's Gathering Photo Albums and Videos) Other Boatbuilders (Bruce Dow's Glen-L Monaco and Bruce Taber's custom inboard runabout) If you can spare the time, the folks at the Boatbuilding Web Ring would appreciate it if you would Rate this Site. Thanks ! Sign our Guestbook : If you have any comments or questions about the website, boatbuilding in general or wish to tell us where you're from and what you are building, please Sign our Guestbook. Thank You !