Building a Hard Dodger, Part 1

While visiting my parents here in Maine I also carry on with my project list. The truth is that I did not complete all of my projects during my last haulout--shocking, I know. The next big project is to construct a hard dodger to shelter the companionway hatch, both from the sun and the sea.
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MUSIC: Etude 19 in Am--Dionisio Aguado( performed by Kevin Boothby).
Tropic Moon--Kevin Boothby
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CAMERAS:
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DRONE:
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[@chriswatts1412]

Fred Flintstone called and wants his jigsaw back! Love your videos.

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Not on camera, lacking sufficient comfort level there.

[@andrewcarr3650]

Kevin, get yourself a vise bolted to a piece of board temporarily tied down in the cockpit. That should help hold your work while trimming it all to fit snugly.

[@skousend]

Rare sighting of Captain Boothby in American suburbia.

[@sailingeden9866]

Good video

[@DrShout]

The Boom Gallows are tricky to work around. What about adding a Topping Lift and then on top of your much large doger. A lighter version of boom gallows, just as a support, since the Lift would do most of the support. I know I watched this a day late and dollar short (no way your starting over). Well, I see you have a part 2… love my Sunday’s, I get to catch up on all my favorite KZbin sailors 😊

[@deeparks3112]

I believe you will love having a Hard Dodger, especially a nicely crafted one such as you are building. looking good.

[@captaintoyota3171]

NICE carpentry on old boats my FAV.. haha no seriously i love ur boat and diy attitude i tell ppl all the time you can build stuff too. Yeah im a journeyman carpenter with 17yrs exp but i started out just doing it too. All you can do is try but you will learn along the way no matter result.

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Agree 100%, let the work teach you the work.

[@paulthew2]

So far, so good. A hard dodger is a great addition.

[@flightplan1000]

Nice. You'll be glad you built this...

[@edl617]

Nice looking. Very old school

[@jamesadams1064]

Your videos are always very enjoyable. “What’s he going to be up to next”? You never fail. Ahoy everybody!

[@1911bladeguy]

Love your channel. Ill be in Brunswick with my wife and daughter in a few days. Dropping a recent graduate from Key West High School to her new home for 4 years at Bowdoin. We are excited, maybe we will see the Ruth Avery at anchor. Keep up the great work Kevin. Steve

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Still here in Basin Cove. Congrats on getting your daughter into Bowdoin, a top notch school!

[@Steve-ul8qb]

Hey @TheAwwyee I think you already know the answer to your question. I will share this with you anyway :) I did something similar about 15 years ago. I built myself a boat, took the kids out of school and went for an adventure. I had so many naysayers. You have never sailed before, you have never built a boat before, your going to kill your children. Yeah, they went that far. But i knew i could do it, so i did it. We had the best 3 year adventure taking us sorts of places (the boys 10and 11 at the time gained so many life experiences that they are now two free thinking and hard working young men). Of coarse when we returned home all those naysayers had nothing to say. To the contrary they were full of appraisals. Which i found rather empty. If they really new me they would have known/ believed i could do it? I’m not bitter, simply an observation. That said...:) A good surveyor is what i would be looking for if i were at your level of experience. That can be tricky. You need someone who really understands the type of boat your buying. Eg timber, glass etc. most surveys these day are “insurance surveys”. Maybe you can find an old timer? All the best Steve

[@riverrat4631]

Way to go Kevin. Congratulations on hitting 25,000 subscribers. You deserve this buddy. Very proud of you. Love the dodger by the way. Be a great place to set or stand in bad weather…

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Thanks Joe. Looks like the tropics are starting to get busy, hold on to your hats down there.

[@riverrat4631]

@@howtosailoceans1423 I’m at my place in Indiana right now. Heading back next month unless they shut down travel…lol. I heard of one Florida hospital near my place locking ER doors because they can’t take anyone else. I see travel getting restricted soon in Florida. Unless things turn around soon. Stay Safe buddy.

[@dolcevita5411]

It's a good thing you have hair to soften the blow lol! It looks great so far!👍⛵

[@StemtoSternSailing]

Now I'm envious of both the hair and the dodger ... some guys just have it all 🙄

[@DowneastThunderCreations]

Ayuh. Looks like you are doing a great job building that hard dodger, Kevin. Yessuh! She's a beauty. Looks like your parents have a well equipped workshop for you to use - makes life much easier for such projects.

[@garyfroeschner2523]

good stuff

[@Ash-cy7yw]

Best DIY hard dodger video I've seen. And it's only part 1 !

[@PaulAnthonyDuttonUk]

Clever chap.. The window method was cool.

[@tomwaite4594]

Kevin, this addition appears to provide Avery Rose a very "English Traditional" look. Well done,totally in keeping with her lines.

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Thanks Tom! I think it looks nice too! Hope it's not too hot down there. We just had a cold front go through, nice and cool up here.

[@tomwaite4594]

@@howtosailoceans1423 Kevin you absolutely have the eye to design this important addition so that it does not appear as an afterthough or inappropriate bolt on. Artistic! Cooled down here as well with the frontal passage....getting thing done...have you seen the 3 lows today in the Atlantic?

[@UUBrahman]

Rose Avery.

[@tomwaite4594]

@@UUBrahman thank you for the correction

[@UUBrahman]

@@tomwaite4594 Actually I copied you and had it wrong - it is "Ruth Avery"

[@finding_mojo]

Doing a great job. I think it might also have been interesting but more complex, to incorporate the boom gallows into the design of a bigger dodger. But what you have done will work well and look good too.

[@alvessail4718]

Good job 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

[@huntsail3727]

Nice to have a complete, well equipped workshop you can come home to, enjoying all of your videos and the thought process you are going through as you navigate your way though being a single handed sailor crossing oceans.

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Indeed, a well equipped workshop is one of the great pleasures in life, I reckon.

[@rfdinesen4027]

@@howtosailoceans1423 Could not agree more. Nice job.

[@MikeAG333]

Wow, your fore-cabin workshop seems have grown! :)

[@MrA1582000]

Great sturdy dodger. A welcome addition.

[@peterparker5166]

Excellent work bro, can’t wait to see her finished.

[@tommycheshire5508]

I see that you know your way around a woodworking shop! Good job.

[@xfoxtrotwiskeykilo995]

Iron on edge veneer for exposed plywood edges ? CHEERS !

[@jesusbeiro6113]

great job !! looking forward to see the final result .... Cheers from Muros

[@HandyMan657]

Rinse and repeat, copy that. Nice work man.

[@magdakaniewski]

Yòu best me to it. I was gonna get on this project this fall. Always loved the look and practicality of the hard dodger

[@howtosailoceans1423]

It's a fun project, hopefully will prove beneficial too.

[@jayknight850]

Nice, you will enjoy the new dodger. I “installed “ some plexiglass panels on my day sailer with some 3M VHB, several years ago. Easy, quick and 5 years later still no leaks! I am quite sure the 3/8 plexiglass will break before the VHB fails. You have the advantage of more area to bond the plexiglass (wider VHB strips) Best to you, hell of a sailor!

[@MrMichaelcurran]

The single handed sailing that you have chosen and respecting the boat chosen a hard dodger makes perfect sence.

[@zackariasthepirate]

I build most of the things I need (functionality wise). I enjoy your sailing videos, so this was a bonus!!! Looking good so far!!!

[@johnbolongo9978]

Better late than never ....watch ur head.

[@s.v.gadder1443]

After building my hard dodger, and knowing what your doing, it really would have been better to build the gallows into the dodger and making it correctly

[@richmorrow4886]

I have a feeling Kevin is a bit of an expert on cost/benefit. Maybe he knows what he can achieve for the right amount of effort without multiplying the complexity of the project - bearing in mind just how structural and critical a proper boom gallows is to a gaff rig.

[@CoVianna]

Great addition. It’s almost like a small dog house. Have you seen the JunkMing channel on KZbin? About Roger Taylor and Ming Ming and Ming Ming II. And his adaptions of the boats for high latitudes sailing. He did something very similar. Fair winds.

[@tombackhouse9121]

Roger Taylor is a legend. He's one of the people who prove you can sail oceans in a small, cheap, engineless boat can be if you care about seaworthiness and simplicity rather than comfort and gadgets. Him, Sven Yrvind and Kevin are probably the three sailors who give me hope that one day I might make ocean voyages even on my pitiful budget, as long as I can summon enough resourcefulness and grit.

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Yes it is like a small doghouse for Snoopy. I keep hearing about Roger Taylor so I shall have to do some research. Wasn't he the one behind the Contessa 26, which is a fiberglass folkboat?

[@benjamingreif9169]

Mingming2 is corbee 21

[@CoVianna]

I’ve replied twice now and both have disappeared!

[@UUBrahman]

@@howtosailoceans1423 You might be thinking of Wave Rover in the C26, which borrowed concepts from Roger Taylor's Mingming (meaning brightbright in Chinese). As a teenager, Roger Taylor crewed on a large wooden square rigged replica triple masted schooner (Endeavour II) that failed to make the change of course from heading east to south in the northeastern part of New Zealand and after several days was blown ashore and sadly ended up scrap wood. Roger was exasperated with the poor quality of planning onboard that caused the shipwreck and determined to never again be dependent on others captaining the boat he is on. He built and sailed a ferro-cement boat in New Zealand back to the U.K., then build Mingming and sailed great distances solo never going ashore. His style is the epitome of cautious self-reliant sailor. He uses a modernized Chinese junk rig.

[@danielfabreponce7079]

Muy bueno, Kevin. Tengo que hacer uno para mi barco. No me decido, si fijo o plegable. Saludos

[@sailingcitrinesunset4065]

Nice video

[@reloadncharge9907]

Looks good so far! Nice work area! Thx, Andrew

[@jakeroth5809]

Its looking really good...your boat is going to look great with dodger and will be of great comfort in heavy seas...Thank you for sharing

[@bchrisl1491]

Looks like a storm headed your way.

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Henri has come and gone, a little rain, a little wind.

[@geniexmay562]

Nice ........ : )

[@maritimetees2315]

Kev I wondered when you would breakdown and make yourself a dodger. It’s coming along nicely. Can’t wait to see the finished product. Hope all is well. Don

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Thanks Don. How's the new boat?

[@maritimetees2315]

@@howtosailoceans1423 Coming along. Lots of work. I need to get you some $$. Will send tomorrow. I was thinking about when you said the cost of plywood. 😆 Sales have picked up a bit. Still the favorite tee is the anchor. Interesting huh? Someday we will get you over to the West Coast for a visit and a seminar.

[@magnuslundstedt2659]

Nice dodger. I was thinking about the aft arch, would it not be beneficial to place that on top of the roof? It would give you more headroom, a nice handhold and maybe can break of some splash too. I also think the idea to integrate the boom gallows in the dodger would be nice, but that would make you start all over again. Anyhow, thanks for a great channel and great sailing videos. When people say an electric motor is not good in a sailboat becouse of the limited range I always think of you and your boat.

[@howtosailoceans1423]

I think that a supporting arch is better structurally. Also, the boom may not clear with the arch on top.

[@waynemazan7485]

nice old saw....

[@sailingkoko]

Well done

[@zerofox7347]

I’m looking forward to seeing this!

[@saulzain1957]

Just my 2 cents worth! I can't believe you didn't use thickened epoxy. You're depending on a thin resin and screws to hold this dodger together. The sea is an unforgiving place! Otherwise your joinery looks good. I hope you are going to fiberglass the dodger! Bulleit proof!

[@marianoschaller9066]

It is enough room for the winch's handle???

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Good eye! Not enough room for a full swing, so will have to use the ratchet pawls. Generally I can pull much of the staysail in by hand, just use the winch for the last bit.

[@scott.wallace8625]

As a 30 year carpenter you thought that fairly well.

[@stephenmccolley6204]

Mr Boothby, Another good video, thank you! I never miss one. I have a question for you. Since you are one of the very few youtube sailors that uses 3 strand running rigging, I am looking for advice. I am about to replace the running rigging on my, new to me, sailboat. There is a huge difference in price between the well known brands and the bulk 'by the spool' prices for no name 3 strand line. Which way did you go, or which do you recommend. I intend to rig my boat as traditionally as I can. Thanks,

[@howtosailoceans1423]

For my running rigging I like New England Ropes traditional 3-strand, the poly-dac if I recall. It's not too expensive either.

[@stephenmccolley6204]

@@howtosailoceans1423 Thank you Kevin, I really appreciate it.

[@Appaloosa67]

Nice job Kevin! Its gonna be awesome mate.

[@jimthurgood5364]

I have to ask. Is that your workshop at your land base? Very nice!

[@howtosailoceans1423]

That's my dad's workshop, the house belongs to my parents.

[@jimthurgood5364]

Thanks Kevin. I sort of guessed when I saw the age of the jigsaw you were using. Noah would have used one of those to build the ark. Don’t get me wrong, oldies are the best! Better than the plastic ones today. Still, a very comprehensive workshop. I don’t think I saw a drill press.

[@tmwhatif8630]

Thanks for another great video! I look forward to seeing the dodger in action. Just curious, will or how will it affect the boat in high winds?

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Not too much, I hope, but that remains to be seen.

[@annafraley5388]

That’s really going to be N1CE when you’re done.. we are sitting here Waiting for you to finish it Kevin, so hurry up ⬆️ man 🤣😂 That’s like making a video of baking a Nice Cake 🍰 🎂 then Sticking it in the oven talking about how good it will tast, then ENDING the video 🤷🏻‍♂️🤔😱. We are both over 70 and wouldn’t DARE video Any of our projects as Every single thing we do comes out as IF we never measured a thing, yet we measure everything out Meticulously, at least we Think we do, nonetheless we end up with a big mess...!! 😎👍✅

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Ha, ha, I serve no wine before it's time ... thanks for watching.

[@PennWolfsSailingAdventures]

So why not move the boom gallows onto the dodger and use the gallow frame to support both the gallows and the dodger?

[@howtosailoceans1423]

I wanted to keep them separate, the dodger can be more easily removed for painting that way.

[@PennWolfsSailingAdventures]

Makes sense. The one I'm building shortly is going to have a boom gallows on it, you gave me the idea when I saw yours a while ago, Thanks btw.

[@roncanizares9966]

Good going. Where are you doing the work. Is this your home or a friends?

[@howtosailoceans1423]

At my parents' place in Maine.

[@SailingSarah]

I don't understand, you people are sailing all around in these remote areas and then all of a sudden you're in a freaking garage! With tools! LOL 😂

[@Bradley_Clark]

thumbed

[@kennyparrish3156]

Why not foam ?

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Marine ply has worked very well.

[@heyheyjc]

You have a HOUSE?!?

[@howtosailoceans1423]

That's my parents' house.

[@daneatherton7886]

Just sold my PS Orion (to small) was looking at Alajuela 33 but you have me looking at Gilmer/Southern Cross. Any thoughts

[@howtosailoceans1423]

There's an Alejuela 33? Didn't know that. I love the 38, beautiful hull. The Southern Cross' are good. Also the Crealock 34, which is another PS.

[@daneatherton7886]

@@howtosailoceans1423 there's one or two Alajuela 33 for sale, I also like the Hans Christian 33.

[@generoll4027]

did you consider moving the gallows aft?

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Yes, but decided against it.

[@tuiscott3719]

Kevin it would have been much better to get rid of that ridiculous boom gallows and bell and use that nice sweeping coaming to to mount a professionally built s/s hoops /fame and dodger, the plastics are so good now they'll stand up to a full blown gale, that dodger matches absolutely nothing on the boat!

[@MrKenNoath]

Just move the gallows??

[@914va]

Very nice Brother.... DO NOT wear a hat for awhile....or you will be walking around with a bruised forehead. Been there..done that!!

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Ha! OK, sound advice.

[@pavelavietor1]

Hello 👋 remove the gallow. Saludos 👏

[@skousend]

Is it too early to ask -- will Ruth Avery lose her bell?

[@HomeGr0an]

Your awesome and highly skilled but Your back is gonna hate you now Make the top slide so you don't have to duck everytime

[@ImnotChuck.]

Could we meet your parents?

[@howtosailoceans1423]

I don't want to bring them on camera, just a privacy thing. Thanks for asking about them.

[@ImnotChuck.]

@@howtosailoceans1423 I understand. I seem to remember that you said you sailed a lot with your dad, and would like to hear some more about that. Thanks anyway.

[@victorsmith7766]

Some of those free hand cuts you did on the table saw are very dangerous. When I saw that, I had to stop watching. I am a professional wood worker and anybody making those kind of cuts with a table saw in my shop would be fired. I suggest you seek instruction in proper table saw use.

[@windonwater3895]

And I thought all you did was sail!

[@howtosailoceans1423]

Ha! Well that's mostly what I do ...