I want a boat- part II

everittdmickey (73)in #boat • 8 years ago (edited)

I want a boat.

I always have, not that I’ve ever done anything about it. I grew up on the hi-plains, the Llano Estacado, of Texas and there wasn’t much need for a boat.

wikipedia

The nearest water deep enough to float anything were local lakes. Come to think there weren’t any very local. I can’t think of one within a hundred miles of home actually. Oh we had playa lakes

Texas Parks and Wildlife
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and draws..
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but they didn’t have water year round usually. When they DID have water in them it was during a toad-strangler

NBC News

Back home we used to have a saying. “We get about two foot of rain a year , and you ought to be here that day...it’s brutal.
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The very last thing anyone was thinking of during one of those was going out boating.
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So...I know nothing of boats.
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But I want one.
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But I haz no money. The story of my life has always been _if I have the time to do something ( no job) I don’t have the money to do it with, if I have some money ( has job) then I don’t have any time to spend it cause I’m too busy working. Of course the money barely made ends meet...but that’s another story.
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So...here I am. Retired. Nothing but time...And no money.
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But I still want a boat.
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Little bitty used kayaks

Craig’s List

cost in the hundreds of dollars and the price takes off like a rocket from there. I don’t really want a kayak or a canoe. I’m a big old boy. six foot by 300lbs. I wouldn’t do too well in one of them. I think I’d do better in a small cruiser.

Shantyboat Living
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Well maybe not that small. That would work though.
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This looks a little better.

ShantyBoat Living

I want to ‘camp out’. The law in Texas is odd. Rivers and lakes, ON THE WATER, is public domain. Unless it’s a private pond, or something else special (drain pond for flood control..etc) then it’s ok for people to play on it. In fact it’s in the constitution.
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BUT...the land is private. Most of it. Texas has about zero federal owned land except for military reservations, public orifice buildings and like that, and parks.
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So...the odd thing is that you can float down any river. (river is defined as anything that has water in it year round...NOT a ‘torrent’. that’s different) It’s ok to be on the water but the land around it is most likely private property. Trespassing in Texas is a real bad idea. You’ve heard the saying Shoot, Shovel, and Shut-Up? Just saying
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So...I need a camper boat. My dream would be to start at a headwater somewhere, then float to the gulf.

Texas Water Development Board

Or maybe the great loop

CaptainJohn
Or something.
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But boats are expensive (see above) especially the kind I’m dreaming about.
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SO...build one.
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Turns out building material is expensive too. The price of lumber, plywood, etc, has skyrocketed...........too.
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What to do..what to do.
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I haz an idea.
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Build a cement/foam boat.
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This guy built a Kayak out of foam.
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Instructables

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He used Rigid Insulation board,
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Home Depot

Gorilla Glue

Home Depot

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TiteBond III

Rockler

and old bed sheets.

104 homestead

Of course I could do this

BUT HEY!
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This is TEXAS.
We have Cattle Panels.

If he can build a greenhouse then I can't see why it wouldn't work for a boat. be a lot quicker than tying each individual piece of rebar together.
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hmmmm.
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I was thinking about using Fiber Reinforced Cement instead of TiteBond III

Quickrete

Like this

The idea would be to build a boat using available plans, but instead of using lumber and plywood, make the whole thing out of foam. Or maybe instead of lumber use cattle panels , or maybe just laminate the foam with cement soaked fabric, or maybe make the hull out of cattle-panel-chicken wire ferrocement and make the upper structure out of cement fabric over foam.
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I think I’ll build a 1/12 scale (one in = 1 foot) model, or several, first.
To see what works and what doesn't work, don't you know.
Shucks, I might even add RC (radio control).
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or maybe solar!
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...or FirstPersonView (FPV)

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