Boat-Building and Boating

by Daniel Carter Beard

The Yankee Pine

From the saw-mills away up among the tributaries of the Ohio River come floating down to the towns along the shore great rafts of pine lumber. These rafts are always objects of interest to the boys, for the youngsters know that when moored to the shore the solidly packed planks make a splendid platform to swim from. Fine springing-boards can be made of the projecting blades of the gigantic sweeps which are used to guide the mammoth rafts, and, somewhere aboard, there is always to be found a "Yankee pine." Just when or why this style of skiff was dubbed with such a peculiar name I am unable to state; but this I know, that when a raft is to be broken up and carted away to the lumber yards there is, or always used to be, a good, light skiff to be had cheap.

However, all boys do not live on the bank of the river, and if they did there would hardly be "Yankee pines" enough to go round; so we will at once proceed to see how to build one for ourselves. Although my readers may find the "Yankee pine" a little more difficult to build than the blunt-ended, flat-bottomed scow, it really is a comparatively simple piece of work for boys familiar with the use of carpenters' tools.

For the side-pieces select two straight-grained pine boards free from knots. These boards should be about 13 or 14 feet long, a couple of inches over a foot in width, and as nearly alike as possible in texture. Besides these there should be in the neighborhood of a dozen other ¾-inch planks, an inch or two over a half foot in width. A small piece of 2-inch plank for the stern-piece is also necessary. Upon the bottom edge of the side-board measure off from each end toward the centre 4 inches, mark the points, and saw off the corners shown by the dotted line in [Fig. 188]. Next take a piece of board 4 feet long and a foot wide, saw off the corners as you did on the side-board, making it 4 feet on the top and 3 feet 4 inches on the bottom. This board is to be used only as a centre brace while modelling the boat.

Fig. 188.—Side-board.

Fig. 189.—Frame.

Out of the 2-inch plank make a stern-piece of the same shape as the centre brace; let it be 1 foot wide, 14 inches long on the bottom, and 20 inches long on top. Set the side-boards on their shorter or bottom edges and place the centre brace in the middle, as shown by [Fig. 189]; nail the side-boards to it, using only enough nails to hold temporarily. Draw the side-boards together at the bow and against the stern-board at the stern ([Fig. 189]). Hold the side-pieces in position by the means of ropes. A stem should be ready to fix in the bow ([Fig. 190]). This had better be a few inches longer than the sides are broad, as it is a simple matter to saw off the top after it is fitted. Make the stem of a triangular piece of timber, by planing off the front edge until a flat surface about ½ inch broad is obtained; 2 inches from the front, upon each side, cut a groove just the thickness of the side-boards (¾ inch). Trim the stem so that the side-pieces at the bow fit the grooves snugly, and nail the side-boards to the stem and to the stern-piece ([Fig. 189]).

Fig. 190.—Stem-piece.

Fig. 191.—Finished skiff.

Turn the boat upside down, and it will be discovered that the outlines of the bottom form an arch from stem to stern. If left in this shape the boat will sink too deep amidship. Remedy the defect by planing the bottom edge of both side pieces, reducing the convex form to straight lines in the middle. This will allow the bow and stern to sheer, but at the same time will make the central part of the bottom flat, and, by having less to drag through the water, make it easier to row. Nail the bottom-boards on crosswise, and as, on account of the form of the boat, no two boards will be of the same size, they must be first nailed on and the projecting ends sawed off afterward. The centre brace may now be taken out and a long bottom-board nailed to the centre of the bottom upon the inside of the boat ([Fig. 191]). Cut a small cross-piece (B, [Fig. 191]) so that it will fit across the bow 3 inches below the top of the side-boards. Nail it in place, driving the nails from the outside of the side-board through and into the end of the stick B. Saw out a bow seat, and, allowing the broad end to rest on the cross-stick B, fit the seat in and secure it with nails ([Fig. 191]); 3 inches below the top of the stern-piece nail a cleat across. At the same distance below the side-board put a cross-stick similar to the one in the bow. This and the cleat on the stern-piece form rests for the stern seat. Five feet from the stern saw a notch 2 inches deep and 1½ inch long in each side-board (A, A¹, [Fig. 191]). Saw two more notches of the same size 3 inches from the first; these will make the rowlock when the side strips have been fastened on.

Fig. 192.—Keel board or skeg.

These strips should each be made of 1-inch plank, 2 inches wide and an inch or two longer than the side-boards. Nail the strips on the outside of the boat flush with the top of the side-boards, making a neat joint at the stern-piece, as shown in the illustration ([Fig. 191]). Cut two short strips to fit upon the inside at the rowlocks and fasten them firmly on with screws ([Fig. 191], A). Next cut two cleats for the oarsman's seat to rest upon. Nail them to the side-boards amidship a little nearer the bottom than the top, so that the seat, when resting upon the cleats, will be about half the distance from the top edge to the bottom of the side-boards. Let the aft end of the cleats be about 6 feet 2 inches from the stern. Make thole-pins of some hard wood to fit in the rowlocks, like those described and illustrated by [Figs. 203] and [204].

Top view of "Man Friday."

Fig. 193.—The side-boards.

The Yankee pine now only needs a skeg to complete it. This must be placed exactly in the centre, and is fastened on by a couple of screws at the thin end and nails from the inside of the boat. It is also fastened to the upright stick at the stern by screws ([Fig. 192]).

If the joints have been carefully made, your Yankee pine is now ready for launching. Being made of rough lumber it needs no paint or varnish, but is a sort of rough-and-ready affair, light to row; and it ought to float four people with ease. By using planed pine or cedar lumber, and with hard-wood stem and stern, a very pretty row-boat can be made upon the same plan as a Yankee pine, or by putting in a centreboard and "stepping" a mast in the bow, the Yankee pine can be transformed into a sail-boat. But before experimenting in this line of boat-building, the beginner had better read carefully the chapter on how to rig and sail small boats.