How to Build a Cedar Stripper Canoe

Building an old-fashioned cedar strip canoe would take a good-sized book to describe. These craft are a work of fine skill and take a long time to build. To get the beauty of a cedar strip canoe and the durability of fiberglass, you're better off building a cedar epoxy (CSE) canoe. CSE canoes are built on a mold without the intricate ribwork of the old fashioned all wood models. The CSE canoe is lighter, less expensive and quite as beautiful.

Things You'll Need

• Wooden canoe mold
• 3-inch screws, ½ pound
• Sufficient cedar strips to cover the hull, 62 board feet for a 17-foot long canoe
• Ash or other hardwood 1 by 2 inch planks for thwarts
• Two ash planks, 8 inches wide and long enough for two 14 to 18 inch long rectangular seat bottoms and two triangular deck plates.
• Rubber mallet
• 30 small clamps
• Cove molding for gunwales and the stem and stern.
• Epoxy fiberglass resin
• Enough 6 oz. E-glass fiberglass fabric, plain weave, to cover the entire hull inside and out, preferably with single pieces
• Fiberglass spreader
• Mixing bucket and stirring stick
• Table saw
• Respirator
• Drill and bit set
• Saber saw
• Router and cove bits
• Orbital sander
• Tape measure and chalk line
• Range of sandpaper grades fine to coarse
• Steel wool fine to extra fine
• 1/32-inch milled glass putty filler

Instructions

Laying the Cedar Core

1. Rent, borrow or purchase a wooden canoe mold from a supplier or locate one through a canoe club or on-line forum. You need a wooden form to tack nail the cedar strips to for the first layer of the hull.

2. Buy or rip 3/4-inch wide strips from ¼-inch thick cedar plywood or solid boards. Use the router to bead and cove the edges of the strips with a router. It's best if the strips overlap so the joints between each strip are stronger.

3. Turn the mold upside down. Start at one end at the bottom and nail a cedar strip to the mold. Tack it. Don't drive the heads all the way in. You will have to pull the nails out later. Pre-drill nail holes to avoid cracking the strips. The strips should bend easily.

4. Glue the lower edge of the second row of strips to the upper edge of the bottom row. Tap them together with the mallet, drill and tack to hold the rows tight together while they set. Use strips of different lengths. Don't end strips side by side.

5. Wipe off excess glue squeezing out between the strips. Keep adding rows of strips. Trim the strips to fit snugly together near the top. The final strip will be a long football-shaped oval in the center of the keel.

6. Steam cove moldings and bend around the ends of the boat. Glue, then nail or clamp. Allow the end moldings to cure and set.

7. Remove all the nails from the boat. Sand the hull smooth. Fill irregularities in the surface with wood filler. Paint epoxy clearcoat over the hull twice. Sand between applications to seal the hull.

Fiberglassing

1. Drape a 6-oz. fiberglass fabric mat over the entire hull. Trim to the shape of the hull and clamp to the edges so it lies flat. Trim the fabric where it works around the curve of the ends.

2. Start at one end, pull up a section of the mat and paint underneath with epoxy fiberglass resin. Mix only enough to finish the section before the resin starts to set. Lay the fiberglass over the epoxy resin. Paint resin over the fabric and smooth with the spreader. Work the resin in until the white in the fabric and any bubbles disappear, leaving the surface clear and smooth. Don't allow any section to dry before starting the adjoining section. Allow the boat to dry and cure for a full day. Lift the canoe straight up off the mold. Trim overlapping fiberglass with a saber saw. Sand the edges smooth. Clean the inside of the hull and sand smooth.

3. Lay another 1-oz. fiberglass mat over the inside of the hull and trim. Overlap by an inch to allow for shrinkage. Paint two coats of epoxy clearcoat inside the hull. Lay the fiberglass mat inside as before--section by section. Allow the fiberglass to cure and then trim the edges with a saber saw. Apply two coats of clear fiberglass gelcoat inside and out.

4. Screw the cove molding for the gunwales to the edges of the hull inside and out. Cut two triangular deck plates for the bow and stern and screw them in place. If the bottom of the boat is not rigid enough, epoxy three cedar slats to the bottom and cover with fiberglass fabric and epoxy resin.

5. Cut 2 by 2 thwarts to the width of the canoe where they will be placed. Trim and shape with a drawknife, sand smooth and screw the ends to the hull just below the gunwales. Cut four 2 by 2 seat supports the width of the hull at the seat stations. Shape, sand and screw to the hull at both ends. Cut seat bottoms from hardwood about 8 inches by 2/3 of the width of canoe at the seat station. Screw them to the supports, sand and varnish all wood parts to complete the boat.

Tips & Warnings

• Read manufacturer's instructions before handling and mixing resins, solvents and fiberglass.

• Wear eye protection when sanding or working with solvents.

• Wear gloves when handling solvents and resins.

• Wear a respirator when working with solvents and resins or sanding fiberglass.

References

• Build Your Own Cedar Strip Canoe
• Building My First Cedar Strip Canoe
• The Cedar Strip canoe

Resources

• How to Build a Cedar Strip Boat Using Compumarine's Technique
• Stripbuilding Notes For Canoes & Row Boats
• Epoxy Cedar Strip Canoes