Building our GT27 Houseboat, Part 2

[@LiveDontWatch]

PART 3 IS NOW AVAILABLE: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lYi2d2Seab6UsKM

[@shawnhagen6871]

There’s no doubt you have the most adorable crew of boatbuilders

[@davekolb7622]

Your daughters will remember the building of this nice boat as long as they live. Your patience in following good building order and process will serve them well for their lifetimes, as well.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks Dave! I hope so. This boat has sure taught me a lot about patience! 😀

[@mikethedesertrat]

I'm only on Part 2, but man, you did a great job with your videos. I know how much extra work it involves to record the process, edit, narrate, and publish. Thank you. Enjoying it a lot.

[@roblescurbappealconcrete]

Just watched your first 2 videos, and it's really nice to see that this boat project is a family venture. I applaud you and your wife for allowing your little girls to actually help in the process. Not only a nice boat build, but a terrific and inspiring family dynamic. Thank you for sharing the ride with us. Joe

[@LiveDontWatch]

Hey Joe, thanks so much for the kind words! Glad you're enjoying the build videos.

[@trevhedges]

So cool watching the kids get involved! Not an xbox to be seen! 👍

[@MikeSmith-wx9xe]

I love how you involved the children. This will create great memories for them. And great life skills awesome!!!!!

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks Mike! I hope they'll have fond memories of all of this! It's been a joy having them help out so much.

[@robsmith1835]

You and the Family are doing a great job!!!

[@danielwurmer2266]

Beeing in the process of building my own boat I can feel the pain you went through with all the sanding of the epoxy! Well done!

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks 👍

[@RobbsHomemadeLife]

I like the boat you and your family are building, very happy to subscribe.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks Robb!

[@jamessandman3708]

Amazing!

[@dnomyarnostaw]

Great to see this plan in action. I think my idea of building the webbing and major frames as the building base, before the hull panels, and making the criss-cross sections in an "egg-crate" style from laser cutting, is still the way to go. The other thing I envisaged, is extending the two main stringers through the transom, to make a swim platform and outboard pod would be a better way to go than the add on method in the plans.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Yes, I would definitely do something like the extended stringers as you propose in lieu of the bracket shown in the plans. My preference was obviously for a proper aftermarket bracket, but your idea sounds like it would address the same strength concerns I had just as effectively.

[@psmith7064]

I am really enjoying watching your GT-27 build. I will be building a similar size house boat / camper boat and the GT-27 is one design that I have been taking a hard look at. Your videos are a great resource for what is involved with building that design. It looks great and I'm looking forward to the next installment!

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks so much for the kind words. It has been a rewarding but also a difficult build. There are so many little considerations about interior layout that have to be kept in mind, it really slows progress down. But we keep plugging along and are looking forward to posting part 3 later this year. Good luck on your future build!

[@dklomp5849]

Very inspiring job! Nice!

[@LiveDontWatch]

Hey thanks! Merry Christmas!

[@ColinJaquesNarrowboatBuild]

Hi just watched both your episodes, loved your commitment to getting it done and all in your back yard .Really interesting to see the construction methods.I live on my 57 ft Narrowboat boat that i fitted out in 2018 , over here in the uk .I keep hankerings after building a ply boat from scratch one day, my be. Keep up the good work and look forward to your next instalment.colin

[@LiveDontWatch]

Hi Colin, thanks for the kind words and encouragement! Life on a narrowboat sounds delightful, though I'm sure it's not always as romantic as it sounds. I've often watched videos about people living that lifestyle while thinking through how to fit out our little houseboat interior. Thanks for dropping us a comment, and happy new year!

[@thomasritter3159]

Don't be afraid to use more fiberglass resin. If the cloth is not soaked you will end up with peeling later on. All in all nice job. Glade to see the kids wearing dust mask.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks Thomas!

[@sjog1952]

incredibly nice job !!!

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks a lot!

[@mccaskillfarmstead4244]

Looks great! Just subscribed 👍🏼

[@LiveDontWatch]

Sorry for the delayed reply. KZbin flagged your comment as spam for some reason, so I didn't see it until now. Thanks for the compliment!

[@minnoshveaslan3410]

👏👏👏

[@RazN00s]

Greetings from Lithuania. Very nice project and precise job there. We are planing to build pantoon ship and your proces are very inspiring and useful. Just let me know whats the thing are "thicen epoxy" that you using to fil gaps where surfaces join. Maybe you have links to product? We would try to find equivalent in our country. Many thanks and good luck.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks for the kind words. The white stuff to thicken the epoxy is called Cabosil or fumed silica. Most epoxy suppliers should carry some version of it. It makes an extremely strong, sag resistant putty when mixed with epoxy to a consistency a little thicker than peanut butter. It's the best choice for making those smooth fillets along the seams of bulkheads. If you need an epoxy putty to use for fairing/smoothing a surface, it's better to add phenolic microballons, which make a better putty for fairing that is easier to sand. You can see me using some of that in Part 1 of the videos; it's the brownish/reddish color that I apply to the transom to fair it.

[@Verb130]

On all your fiberglass tapes and fillets you can save all your sanding time by using "peel ply". Look it up. Once you try it, you'll wish you would have done it from the beginning. Let me know if you need help understanding how the cheap dacron fabric ply is used and peeled after cure.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks for the suggestion K Verb. I actually have a roll of peel ply, but the few times I tried it, it felt like more trouble than it was worth because of the difficulty getting it laid nicely over such large or long areas. Maybe I should give it another try. I did see that when it is laid nicely, it yields a much smoother surface, so I don't doubt what you're saying. We're just often doing so many seams and surfaces at once (more than it seems in the edited footage, which I simplify for narrative coherence) that it significantly makes it all feel more chaotic if we also try to lay the peel ply while racing to get things in place before the epoxy kicks in the Georgia heat. But there's probably a few tricks I haven't learned to make it go easier.

[@joshuasmith4547]

When using the expanding do you have to plan for condensation or. Is that not an issue?

[@LiveDontWatch]

There are debates about this among many builders but generally I was convinced by a few that if the space is thoroughly filled with foam and well sealed, the risk of condensation is low. In open boats where rain and spray often collect in the bilge, that may not hold true, but especially in a dry insulated cabin interior, I suspect condensation will not really be an issue. Hard to say for certain. Only time will tell.

[@bizim_eller]

🙂🙂👍👍

[@paulcumber4732]

lot of work

[@LiveDontWatch]

Yes it is! The videos are a nice reminder of how much we've accomplished, but there are a lot of days where the sheer volume of work is daunting!

[@sv81]

I cannot even imagine ,how many kg of epoxy you spend 😯😯😯

[@LiveDontWatch]

Ha! Yes, even trying to be careful to avoid waste, epoxy use is now WELL beyond anything suggested in the Bill of Materials from the designer. I hope no one ever sets out to build this design expecting to stick to a budget inferred from the plans. The actual cost of the build will be at least two or three times higher because of all the omissions not accounted for in the BOM.

[@zackleewright6885]

9:00...saw blade is scary high for ripping that thinner stock...watch those booger pickers....

[@LiveDontWatch]

You're absolutely right! Most were ripped with the blade lower as it should be, but sometimes I adjust it for something else and forget to lower it again until I'm in the middle of a long cut like this. Definitely not ideal for safety!

[@zackleewright6885]

@@LiveDontWatch I watch the next episode and your daughter was helping you rip and you had the perfect guard installed....made my soul soar. And don't get me wrong I am very impressed with your skillz and progress. I just always make a sacrifice fence for my saws before I do anything else. Also I think the project completion timing will be perfect..You can launch about the time the girls leave for college..

[@Mungosforge]

Good lord, man. Beautiful work, but what is it with your hatred of wood? Wow.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Hatred of wood?

[@owenmullen9426]

👍🍺

[@richardandmichellelifeadve3473]

All that effort just on the hull,

[@LiveDontWatch]

It was quite a lot! :)

[@richardandmichellelifeadve3473]

@@LiveDontWatch I agree my father was a boat builder, and every day after school we use to help, in those days it was cooper nails and

[@johnlundquist8855]

What size motor are you going to put on

[@LiveDontWatch]

Hi John! The designer suggests a 25hp for displacement cruising, or 125hp (max) for planing. We're fitting ours out like a houseboat with plenty of amenities, so planing seems like a tall order and not really necessary. Displacement speed should top out around 7mph or so at this hull size, I believe. Since the sides are so high and likely to catch a lot of wind, I am pretty well settled on a 40hp motor. That way, there's some extra thrust for muscling the bow through a cross-wind, and most of the time we can run a low to mid throttle for good fuel economy and less noise than if we ran a 25hp at higher throttle. That's the plan so far, and I like that a 40hp keeps the stern weight down a lot over larger options.

[@kz4506]

You really need to add timbers as chines an most of all a keelson down the center , the Dingy style your doing is fine but your building larger , it’s all braceing and strength

[@LiveDontWatch]

Sorry for the delayed reply; your comment didn't show up in my feed for some reason. There are four very substantial interior stringers (~10" tall) running the full length of the hull, plus an extensive series of frames running athwartships. She's built very, very strong. With the addition of the marine foam (optional, but we chose it), and many layers of biaxial fiberglass on the inside and out of the bottom and sides, the hull is very stiff. Will likely still add four runners on the bottom just to deflect rocks/debris, but this hull is close to bombproof at this point and built heavier than required.

[@thetruth8958]

The cost please?

[@LiveDontWatch]

Cost of what? I'm not sure what you're asking. Cost at this stage of the process? Of particular supplies I'm using in this video? Of the whole project when it is finished?

[@richemerson8101]

Subscribed as I too am looking to build a GT 27 to travel the Great American Loop in about 5 years. If you need help building, I would like to volunteer for a long weekend. Just let me know.

[@LiveDontWatch]

Thanks for the offer of help, Rich! I don't know when we might have need of an assistance, but there's always plenty of work and I'll keep that in mind. My build schedule is pretty inconsistent/unpredictable on account of our three little girls. :)

[@micheltrudel3584]

F

[@poppawasarollinstoneboom9396]

What happened

[@LiveDontWatch]

What do you mean?

[@detlefwawrzyniak4223]

OMG 😒😒😒😒😒

[@owenmullen9426]

👍🍺