Building a river boat

[derekwarner_decoy]

Well Victor

Considering your vessel will not suffer the storms & waves of the North Sea.....I believe your installation of the recycled stained glass ''lead lights'' will be a beautiful addition with the afternoon sunlight streaming in to the living spaces .........in the calm of the Murray

Looking forward to seeing more images as you progress the build 

Derek

[victor vector]

Well Victor

Considering your vessel will not suffer the storms & waves of the North Sea.....I believe your installation of the recycled stained glass ''lead lights'' will be a beautiful addition ,  with the afternoon sunlight streaming in to the living spaces .........in the calm of the Murray

Looking forward to seeing more images as you progress the build .

Derek

The joys of flat water boating Derek.

Thanks for the comment and for still following along.

I`m looking forward to finishing this thing so I actually have time to read all of the excellent threads here , at the moment I feel I`m missing a lot.
No time !

[Delaunay]

 :)Although the good evening;

With beautiful doors and windows like this, a real floating mansion! 

cordially
François

[victor vector]

Thank you for the nice comments Francois.





Finished windows.

[derekwarner_decoy]

Just a few questions Victor .......without me going back to post #1 of the build

1. was the vessel base frame supported as built on a measurably flat level surface?...ie., equal to the flatness of water

2. will the vessel have adequate structural rigidity to enable the lifting and transportation without any damage to the glass windows?

Seem to remember viewing images of motor vessels being lifted via mobile cranes with all of the vessels windows secured in the opened positions

Derek

[victor vector]

Hi Derek.

Thank you for the question.

First off , all these pontoon based houseboats built here do in fact flex.
This is most evident when the boats are moored with the bows pushed against any uneven river bank.

In that respect you are quite right .

Most of the steel framed ones built here are lined with Gyprock ( US drywall ) to the walls and ceiling.
These boats have displayed sufficient flex to show cracks at  the cornice or corner moldings.

What I did is epoxy glue and bolt the hull sections together using a string line to get them straight and true.
I was pleased with the result , they did in fact turn out to be quite straight and true.



Each hull is , in effect , a rigid box beam / girder .
So , longitudinally they are good to go for transport.

After the hulls were assembled they were chocked level with large timber blocks using a water level.
I did get them very close to level , that is to say the level did not show any discrepancies at all over the forty foot length.
That is good enough for me.

The 150 x 50 ( 2 x 6 ) timber  beams ( there are 22 of them ) are stress graded ( visually inspected and selected by a professional timber grader ).

They were checked for wind shakes , checking , and allowable knot size and location , as well as moisture content and bowing and twist.





Stress graded deck beams.



The hulls turned out straight and true.



The deck ( floor ) aligns parallel with the water plane.



There is enough flex in the Whitco casement stays to allow movement inside the frame , and there is additional clearance from the opening frame to the casement proper.

There will be flex Derek , to be sure.I anticipate it will be ok for transport.

Windows slightly ajar during transport is a prudent precaution I think.

[DamienG]

 

[derekwarner_decoy]

Well Victor...

I sort of understood that you had the necessary structural/design requirements considered & well in hand    ....but just had to ask

Wouldn't want to see any of those leadlights cracked..

Have you considered air bag rollers for elevation lifting prior to a low loader ...as opposed to a mobile crane lift?

Derek

[victor vector]

I know a guy ........... ..................

..............who happens to have a trailer that will easily carry this pontoon boat , as well as larger ones.

That trailer is quite a thing ....it`s adjustable in width so will accommodate narrower or much wider boats than mine.

This little craft is small at 3.6 m or 12 ft wide.

AS things stand at present , the plan is to jack the boat another 200mm or eight inches on two steel RSJs and lower it down on the trailer.

It can then be literally launched backwards into the river like a rather large trailer boat.

Don`t ask the cost Derek ....SCARY EXPENSIVE.

The boat will not likely need to be craned at all.

[PeteH]

Just joined the forum and had to look at ALL the pages of this build - great work!

[victor vector]

Hi Peter ,

Thank you for the kind words and interest.

I see on your profile that you are a machinist .
I so often often wished I had skills like that.

One of my goals has always been to build a model steam engine and boiler , but have always lacked the tools and skills needed to make that a reality .I don`t know if it is something I could teach myself ?

I think I could perhaps fabricate a simple oscillating engine .
Maybe one day.

Welcome to the forum.

[DamienG]

Victor these may work for your lighting.

https://store.voltimum.com.au/products/lighting/lamps-and-tubes/led-lamps-and-tubes/hpm-legrand-sale-69-nelson-3w-led-12v-mr16-3000k-warm-white-lamp.html

[Robert Hornby]

Victor,
I also have just joined this superb forum and read through your build. I am in total awe of your craftsmanship, skills and ingenuity. You will have a masterpiece of creation when finished and something to be very proud of.
Great work Victor.

Robert

[victor vector]

Victor these may work for your lighting.

https://store.voltimum.com.au/products/lighting/lamps-and-tubes/led-lamps-and-tubes/hpm-legrand-sale-69-nelson-3w-led-12v-mr16-3000k-warm-white-lamp.html

I finally have some bandwidth to reply  .....So better late than never .....

Those look like good halogen replacement bulbs Damien.

I have not seen quality ones like those at such a good price.

I don`t have the Halogen fittings for them , so I`m still looking at all options.

Thanks for the heads up mate.

[victor vector]

Victor,
I also have just joined this superb forum and read through your build. I am in total awe of your craftsmanship, skills and ingenuity. You will have a masterpiece of creation when finished and something to be very proud of.
Great work Victor.

Robert

This is really quite  a simple little boat Robert , no high tech stuff , or even anything out of the ordinary.
Even though I am on a very tight budget , its costing far more than I had hoped. I mostly make do with what I can scrounge and adapt for the task at hand , hoping its all going to work out in the end.

Far from any masterpiece Robert , but I think you can budget and still have something pleasing to the eye.
Aesthetics are highly subjective too , what one person finds attractive may not please another , so one makes his or her choices ......

Thanks for the kind comments , much appreciated.