On Board with Mark Corke

Best countersink for wood

Here’s a quick tip that you might not know about. The recognized way to countersink a hole for a screw head is to drill the clearance hole for the shank of the screw first and then follow up with a countersink. It works but the countersink is often less than perfect, especially on soft woods where the countersink may chatter in the hole.

There are two ways to overcome this problem. The first is to countersink the hole first. This only works if you use one of the countersinks like the one on the extreme left in the picture. It may seem counter intuitive but it does work I can assure you, as evidenced by the picture above using the same bit but both techniques.

The other way to get perfect countersinks is to not use the multi point style countersink at all. These bits were initially designed for use on metals, for which they work well – on wood not so much. The two rather odd looking bits in the center of the second picture have a single cutting edge and actually burnish the hole as they cut. These bits are meant for wood and only for wood but they produce perfect countersinks. It should be noted that if using these bits they should be run at a slow speed for best results.

Boat tool storage

 

Storing tools on the boat is always a compromise. On one hand they should be easily accessible, and on the other they tend to just get chucked in a box or plastic tray, and dumped in the bottom of a locker because space on a boat is always at a premium. Then when you do need some tool or other,o you finally pull the tool box out only to find out that all your tools are covered in rust. I have mitigated these problems to a large extent by only buying good quality tools, spraying them with WD40, and then storing them in an airtight box. I thought I was pretty particular, till I saw this Hylas 54 with super-dooper tool storage in the main salon. Impressive yes, but I think this is a bit of a waste of space. Also given the size of boat there were not that many tools in there - a basic tool kit at best.

The bottom picture shows another storage solution and one that I use myself. Although this is in my workshop at home it's an idea that works equally well on a larger boat. Lengths of PVC pipe are cut on the chop saw and screwed to a convenient wall or bulkhead, both fast and cheap. Some tools, such as bolt cutters do not require caps on the bottom of the tube but others, such as those used to hold screwdrivers and suchlike, do. There are two ways to go with the caps, either buy the plastic end caps where you buy the pipe and glue them on; easy and quick. Or do as I do and use the correct size hole saw to make a plywood disc on the drill press which is then epoxied into the end of the tube; easy and cheap. You'll need to get the right size hole saw, the local Home Depot or other tool store should have a selection just make sure that the inside diameter of the saw and pipe are the same size.

Canoe, Boatbuilding, or Art?

Although I've never met canoe builder, Philip Greene of Woodsong Canoes, I think I would like him a lot. Coming out of the navy where he was a sonarman on submarines he started building wooden canoes. But not just any canoes mind you, very beautiful and expensive canoes. Working from his workshop in the delightfully named town of Round O in South Carolina, Greene spends up to a year making each canoe. Many of which never make it to the water however, as they are purchased as works of art or family heirlooms, to be passed down from generation to generation.

Did I mention that they are expensive? If you want to order one be prepared for a wait as it seems that there  are more than enough well heeled paddlers beating a path to his workshop. If you want to place an order a $10,000 deposit will be required but expect to shell out anywhere from $70,000 to $155,000 in total for the boat of your dreams.

When one considers the time that goes into making these exquisite works of art the cost does not seem too bad. No seriously, think about it. If it takes 6 months to make the cheapest canoe which is 1,100 hours of work time, which equates to $63 per hour from which you then have to deduct the cost of materials, workshop overheads and so on it's really not overpriced. Even so I don't think I'll be buying one anytime soon.