Key Largo by Dave Vangsness, Riverside, California
4 April 2011
This is during our sea trial in March, 2011, at Lake
Perris, California. She sits well in the water and
performed exceptionally. It was a partly cloudy day,
but the lake was glass-smooth. We spent a couple hours
on the lake and now it's on to find an upholstery shop.
This is layout of the frames in 2003 on the bench.
Frames are Honduran Mahogany with plywood gussets. All
joints are epoxied and bronze ring-nailed.
These are all the completed frames laid out on the garage
floor "bottom up" to get the idea of the shape of a
boat to come.
This and the following glue-up photos show the frames secured
onto the motor stringers that have been trued and plumbed on
the building form which I nailed to the concrete floor for
rigidity as the boat progresses.
The hull taking shape after all the chine and sheer logs have
been secured and the battens have been let into each frame.
Complete framework before any plywood is attached.
The beginning steps of creating the "Barrelback"
design that is so appealing about the Key Largo.
This and following 2 photos show the hull taking shape with
plywood laminations. I used 4 layers of 1/8"
Phillipine Mahogany plywood on the bottom. The first 3
layers are alternated diagonally and the last layer runs
lengthwise. The sides are two diagonal layers of the
same plywood and the final layer will be 1/8"
solid Honduran Mahogany.