I personally didn't build Bootstrap but bought it from Phil Brody who had suddenly became a farmer and needed to build things like chicken coops. He didn't build by himself, but was a student on a course run by one of the colleges in Porirua.
Luckily the course was run by Mr Parano, who is a professional boat builder, so there is nothing - structurally wrong with the boat! It is definitely home built - I am sure that the keel isn't quiet in the center of the boat!
Bootstrap is built from construction ply. The logic is that the boat is essentially rot proof - is this important given that the boat spends most of its life on a trailer under covers? There is a very real danger of getting poisoned from the preserving chemicals while sanding the boat. I always wore a mask and never had a problem - but on the other hand I didn't have to do that much sanding. Another factor is that construction ply is rather rough and has numerous hairline cracks in it. It would require buckets of paint and hours of sanding to get rid of them. The wood itself is 'softer;' than marine ply, so a heavier grade of ply was used adding to the weight. If I was starting from scratch I would use marine ply throughout, but in reality I don't have the space or time to build an entire boat.
As she was when we picked her up from Phil's farm.
The local kids thought she made a great play ground. I wasn't so sure.
It took me forever to finish the damn thing off. Felt like a lifetime of sanding and painting.
One of the tricky bits was the cockpit cowing. Because I wanted to varnish it I had to clamp it instead of screwing. The little balk clamps are bulldog clamps from a stationary shop.
Starting to look like something. In the distance is the sea. It took us a year to get the boat from here to there!
Out first attempt at sail making. A friend gave us a huge sail from his keel boat and we cut out a mainsail shape piece. Unfortunately the sail was shot and stretched to hell. Good learning experience!
Our second attempt at making the sails was fun. Buy lots of ploytarp, carpet and duct tape and stick it all together! Yes, I am shirtless - for once in New Zealand the weather was hot, very hot! Sonja rushed out and bought 2 fans, which we have never used since!!
