JungleRanch - Wooden Shoe 25 3 entries, 8 photos Back to the log

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new build

JungleRanch - Wooden Shoe 25

Wooden Shoe

Per Landeback · 2025 to 2026

A build log

JungleRanch - Wooden Shoe 25

Wooden Shoe


kept by Per Landeback

2025 to 2026

The boat

Wooden Shoe

Designer
Nexus Marine
Length overall
23′ 10″ (7.26 m)
Beam
8′ 2″ (2.49 m)
Hull
plywood
Construction
cold molded wood
Started
1 August 2025
Built by
Per Landeback

Scratch-building a Wooden Shoe 25 in the jungle. Full lofting completed, backbone and station molds set, and currently fairing the keel-to-bow junction for stringers and strip planking.

What it took

By the numbers

5.1 months
From first day to last
3
Days written up
8
Photographs
318
Words written

The work

Contents

Chapter 01

Strongback & Molds

Building the strongback or ladder frame and setting up station molds.

2 days from May 2026

Strongback & Molds

Bending the Bow Frame | Chechen Wood REFUSES to Bend!

PLease watch the video below! We are facing challenges with the bow construction of our DIY wooden boat. This video shows the detailed process of how to build a boat's bow, from reviewing the drawing to preparing the Chechen wood. We cut boards to precise thickness and then clamp them to supports for cold molding, painstakingly gluing sections together to ensure no gaps. It's a true test of our boat construction skills, especially when bending wood to shape the bow.

Building the bow of our DIY wooden boat in the Mexican jungle — and it fights back! 🌴🚤 In Part 1 of this bow build, we tackle cold molding the Wooden Shoe's bow using Chechen wood strips. From lofting the curves to the first glue-up, nothing goes as planned. The wood springs back, the gaps won't close, and we discover why this bow is the hardest part of the entire build.

🪵 Wood used: Chechen (Mexican hardwood) + Cumaru framing 📐 Design: Nexus Marine "Wooden Shoe" 🌎 Location: Mexican jungle workshop Part 2 coming soon — where we finish the bow! 🔔 Subscribe to follow the full build!

Related videos: ▶️ Lofting Guide: https://youtu.be/x_5HqN7jefo

Wooden Shoe: Bending the Bow Frame | Chechen Wood REFUSES to Bend!
Photo 1
Wooden Shoe: Bending the Bow Frame | Chechen Wood REFUSES to Bend!
Photo 2

Video: https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/MpCUtrzKNuY

Per Landeback

We got springback! The Chechen wouldnt bend!


Strongback & Molds

All stations done

This is a recap of 200 days of our DIY boat build so far, — from making our own marine plywood to finishing the Cumaru wood transom. Every station, every frame, every struggle — in one video.

🪵 What you'll see: • How we make marine plywood from scratch • Five stations going up — first milestone • Precision bulkhead fitting and reinforced frames • Web stations complete • The Cumaru wood transom — DONE • Station 7 — the biggest frames finished • The bow challenge — where the wood fights back

This is the Wooden Shoe — a 25-foot powerboat design by Nexus Marine, built with Brazilian Cumaru hardwood and Chechen wood in the Mexican jungle. No fancy workshop. No shortcuts. It's a true test of traditional craftsmanship and determination, living in the jungle while building a wood boat from scratch

Wooden Shoe: All stations done

Video: https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/CCQpKy6WbCw


Photos from Thursday 22 October 2026.

Wooden Shoe, under construction
Photo 1
Wooden Shoe, under construction
Photo 2
Wooden Shoe, under construction
Photo 3
Wooden Shoe, under construction
Photo 4
Wooden Shoe, under construction
Photo 5
Per Landeback

These pics show; the beauty of Chechen wood with Epoxy, Giant bulkheads for the helm, How to make marine plywood, Web stations

boatbuildlog.com

JungleRanch - Wooden Shoe 25
3 entries, 8 photographs, written down as the work was done.

The words and photographs in this log belong to Per Landeback.

The log itself lives at
https://boatbuildlog.com/builds/jungleranch-wooden-shoe-25

Printed 22 October 2026