Overview: How the Fiddlehead Canoe is built

This video is a part of my mini course Getting Started in Boatbuilding.

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This video outlines the process of building a wooden lapstrake (a.k.a. clinker) double paddle canoe.

The boat took me around 300 hours to build. So what I show in this video is very condensed. Still, I think it should give a pretty clear idea of the steps that are involved in the boatbuilding process.

Building a lapstrake boat is complex. But if you break it down, each little step in the construction process is not difficult - even for someone who has never built a boat before.

For a first-time boatbuilder, I think a boat like this one would be a great alternative to a strip canoe or a kit boat. Technically, it's a bit more challenging, but - in my opinion - it's also a lot more fun to build.

Here at Small Boat School, I teach a comprehensive 1-year online course, which covers everything from setting up a workshop over sourcing tools and suitable wood to every little detail in the building process.

Personal support is a central part of the course, to ensure that your learning curve stays as steep as possible.

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00:00 - Introduction
00:54 - Preparing structural parts
02:21 - Setting up the framework
04:03 - Spiling (plank patterns)
04:49 - Garboard planks
06:42 - Middle and sheer planks
07:34 - Turning the boat right side up
08:10 - Decking
09:50 - Coaming
11:20 - False stems + guards
12:25 - Watertight hatches
13:00 - Backrests + foot braces
14:28 - Painting + varnishing
15:42 - Launch!

Video transcript:

This video is a brief introduction to how the beautiful Fiddlehead double paddle canoe is built.

The boat is built using a so-called lapstrake dory construction technique.

Lapstrake means that the planks that cover the side of the boat overlap. At the overlaps, the plank thickness is almost doubled, which increases the strength of the hull quite dramatically. So with lapstrake construction, you can use very thin planking while still getting a very strong hull. This makes it ideal for lightweight boatbuilding.

Dory construction means that instead of a keel, or backbone, the boat has a plank bottom. This method is quicker and easier to build than a fully planked boat. This makes it a great place to start for a first-time boatbuilder.

The first steps in the construction process is to get the various structural parts of the boat ready.

First, I'm building the bottom panel. This panel is glued up from several narrower boards.

Then I'm laying out the by taking coordinates from the table of offsets.  Then I connect the points with a flexible wooden batten and cut out the shape.

Here, I'm building the frames. I've made patterns for them by pricking through the full-sized drawings that are included in Harry Bryan's plans.

The frames are made of seven pieces each that are screwed and glued together.

The 14 1/2-foot two-person Fiddlehead canoe that I'm building here has three frames. The shorter, single-person versions of the Fiddlehead just have one frame, that's placed in the middle of the boat.

Now, I'm building the watertight bulkheads. These bulkheads are made of two thin layers of wood that are glued together with the grain running diagonally to each other.

This technique makes for a very strong panel, and it makes it ver dimensionally stable - much like a sheet of plywood.

Finally, I'm building the stems. Again, I'm making a pattern by pricking through the full-sized drawings that are included in the plans.

Now it's time to set up the framework for the boat. I've built a strongback, and I've made sure that it's perfectly straight and level. At the middle of it, I've drawn an accurate centerline.  Now I'm attaching the frames and the bulkheads to it

I'm making sure that they are at the correct spacing, as specified in the plans. They also need to be perfectly plumb, square and at the correct height over the strongback.

Then I screw and glue the stems to the ends of the bottom panel.

The bottom-and-stems-assembly is then placed on top of the frames and the bulkheads. After making sure the alignment is correct, these parts are screwed and glued together.

Now it's almost time to start planking up the boat.  But first, I need to install a sheer clamp.

The sheer clamp is a thin strip of wood that defines the sheerline, or profile, of the boat. It'll be used for fastening the sheer plank and the decking to it - which we'll get back to later in this video.

I also want to bevel the edges of the bottom panel so that they will be a good, tight fit against the first plank.

I'm using a so-called "jumpstick" to figure out how much wood needs to be removed at each frame or bulkhead.

Then I'm drawing a fair line between these points, using a flexible wooden batten.

This is the line I will need to plane to, in order to get the correct bevel all the way.

At this point, I'm also adjusting the bevel at the stem, so it will fit the first plank nicely. Again, I'm using my flexible batten to figure out how much wood to remove.

Now I'm ready to start planking the boat. The boat has three planks on each side. The first one is called the garboard plank.

Here, I'm making a pattern for the garboards. I'm cutting out some strips of cardboard that i tack on to the frames and the bulkheads. The ends of these cardboard strips mark the width of the plank. I'm also making cardboard patterns for the stem ends of the plank. 

Then I'm using some thin strips of wood to connect the cardboard pieces. The strips of wood are quite thin, so I'm being careful not to pull them upwards or downwards as I glue them on. I want the strips fall as easily and naturally as possible onto the cardboard pieces, so I won't get any distortions in my pattern.

Now the plank pattern is done, and I can take it off. I'm placing it on my planking stock, and I try to make it follow the grain of the wood the best I can. I'm also making sure I avoid any big defects in the wood.

I'm making pencil marks at the edges of the cardboard patterns. Then, I'm drawing a line through all the points, using a flexible batten.

I'm cutting close to the line, and then I'm doing the last bit of shaping with a block plane.

Now I just need to split the board it in two to get my pair of identical planks. This is an easy method for me, because I have a big bandsaw that is set up for heavy rip cutting.

If you don't have this kind of setup, simply using two, thinner pieces of wood for the plank pair will work just as well.

Now, I'm ready to install the garboard planks on the boat. These planks take quite a bit of a twist towards the ends, so I'm steaming them to make them more supple.

If you don't have a steam box, wrapping the plank ends in a towel and pouring boiling water over it will most likely work, too.

Then, I'm marking where the garboard and the middle planks will overlap. And at the ends, I'm cutting a ramp-shaped rabbet, known as a "gain". This is necessary to get a watertight fit at the stems.

The garboard plank is sealed with a bead of flexible polyurethane caulk. This will strengthen the joint and keep the boat watertight, even if the fit isn't 100% perfect and even if the wood swells up in the water and dries out in the sun.

With the garboard plank in place, I'm fastening it with bronze screws at the stems, bulkheads and frames.

The joint between the bottom panel and the plank is screwed from the stem to the watertight bulkhead and copper riveted in the cockpit section of the boat.

The remaining two planks go on in a similar way, although they won't need steam bending.

Here I'm beveling the edge of the garboard plank to make it fit the middle plank. I'm using a flexible batten and a notched stick of wood to help me get the correct angle all the way.

In combination, the batten and the stick act as a placeholder for the middle plank. So if there's a good tight fit under my stick, there will also be a good, tight fit at the plank joint.

The middle and the sheer planks are fastened with rivets, clench nails and screws.

The sheer plank is also nailed and glued to the sheer clamp.

Only the gain areas of the middle and sheer planks are caulked to begin with. The rest of the plank seam is caulked after the planking is complete.

With all the planking done, I'm trimming off the excess wood at the garboard plank. Now I'm ready to turn the boat right side up.

I only peened a few of the rivets during the planking process. So now it's time to finish the rest.

Inside the watertight compartments, there isn't room to swing a hammer. So I'm using clench nails there.

Now I'm ready to start building the deck framing. First, I'm installing center carlins at each end of the boat.

Then I'm installing the long carlins that run parallel with the sheer plank.

When they are in, I'm fairing the deck structure. I want an even surface with smooth, flowing lines, that will fit the decking nicely.

The decking consists of two layers. The lower layer are long, narrow covering boards that go all the way from end to end. Here, I'm fitting these boards.

The covering boards are fastened to the boat with thickened epoxy and bronze ring nails.

A thin block of wood is glued under the covering boards where they butt together.

Then the upper layer of decking goes on. This layer is supported by the covering boards, the center carlin and by the knees I'm installing here.

To get the watertight bulkhead and the center carlin at the correct height to support the decking, I'm glueing in some thin strips of wood.

Then I'm fairing the structure. And I'm scribing the shape for the decking pieces from underneath.

The underside of these pieces have been sealed with epoxy to keep them from shrinking and swelling once they are installed on the boat.

I'm fitting the joint between the deck pieces with a block plane. And I'm rounding off the ends.

Then, I'm fastening the decking with screws, set in a flexible sealant.

Now I'm ready to start working on the coaming. The coaming should lean out a bit, so I need to bevel the long carlins and the coaming support knees a bit, especially towards the ends of the boat.

I'm using this little shop-made contraption to see how much wood I need to remove.

The shape of the coaming sides is described in the plans, but I've decided I want to make a pattern for it anyway. The process of making this pattern is very similar to the plank patterning process.

Then I draw the shape of my coaming side. I cut it out. And plane it to the line. Once the shape is good, I split it on the bandsaw to get two identical pieces.

The coaming sides take a sharp bend at the ends. So to make sure they won't break, I'm giving them a few minutes in the steam box before I install them.

I'm fastening the coaming sides to the long carlins and the coaming support knees using small bronze screws.

With the coaming sides in, I need to make the coaming ends. First, I'm glueing a triangular block of wood to the inside of the ends.

When the glue has cured, I'm cutting off the end of the coaming. And then, I'm glueing another triangular block on the outside. 

To finish off, I'm cutting off the excess wood. And I clean up the joints with a block plane and sandpaper.

Now I'm moving on to the outside of the boat. The Fiddlehead Canoe has a two-piece stem. This means that it has an inner stem, where the bottom panel and the plank ends are attached.

But it has an outer stem, too, also known as a false stem, or a cutwater.

Here I'm shaping these pieces. They need to fit the inner stems, so I'm using their pattern to get the inside curve right.

Once the shape is good, I'm beveling them to their pointy, cutwater shape.

Then I'm attaching them to the boat, using bronze screws and polyurethane caulk.

I'm cutting them off at the bottom, and I'm adding a protective brass strip.

Finally, I'm finishing the head of the stem to a shape that I think looks good.

To protect the sheer planks and the decking, I'll add a guard to each side of the boat.

These guards are simple hardwood strips with beveled edges that are nailed in place.

Now I'm turning my attention back to the inside of the boat. Here, I'm building the ingenious little hatch covers that are used to seal off the watertight compartments at each end of the boat.

These covers consist of an oval and a round piece of wood that are glued together. Behind the two pieces there's a clamping bar with a threaded insert in it.

The hatch cover is installed by twisting it into the oval hatch opening. Then, the thumb screw is turned to make the clamping bar pull the cover tight.

Here, I'm making the backrests for the canoe. I'm building the long 14 1/2-foot Fiddlehead, so I need to make two backrests that can be placed in three different positions, so the boat can be paddled either by two persons or single-handed.

First, I'm positioning the brackets correctly on the coaming. This will help me determine the angle of the hole I need to drill for the backrest.

Then I'm drilling the holes. And I'm cutting out the shape of the brackets. They get a copper rivet on each side for added strength.

Here, I'm making the support bar for the backrest. I'm rounding off the ends of it with a chisel, a rasp and sandpaper.

Then I'm making the pads for the backrest. I'm steam bending them in a form to make them slightly curved.

I'm attaching the pads to the bar with screws and glue.

To finish the backrests, I'm bolting the brackets through the coaming sides and the long carlins.

When paddling a double paddle canoe, it's important to have a good foot support to help keep the body steady.

So here, I'm building the foot braces for my boat.

The foot braces are attached to a track at the bottom of the boat. The track has threaded inserts that accept the thumb screw that goes through the holes in the foot brace.

Now, all that's left to do is to paint and varnish the boat.

I'm giving the inside of the hull two coats of primer.

Then I'm varnishing the decking, the coaming, the back rests, the seats and the double paddles.

The seats are a special feature of the 14 1/2-foot fiddlehead, that will keep the paddlers from sitting straight on a frame or a foot brace track.

The double paddle is a really fun little project in itself. I've made a separate video about how it's built, that you may want to check out.

With a few coats of primer and varnish on, I've turned the boat upside down.

Now I'm giving the outside of the hull two coats of primer. And then I'm giving it two coats of paint.

When the paint has dried, I'm turning the boat right side up again. The inside of the boat gets two coats of semi-gloss paint and the bright finished parts get another five or six coats of varnish.