Material Order Placed With Northwoods Canoe (8-2-08)

I have just ordered five more ribs and 12' of planking material. It will ship out Tuesday. As soon as it gets here I can shape the ribs then steam them. After steaming I can bend them around the hull. Once installed I can add the planking. Things are slow but this is fun! If I had a source of white cedar here I would have already been done. Northwoods Canoe Company in Maine is THE place to aquire materials. They are a small business and when you call, who ever is near the phone picks up. It might be that someone was planking, steaming, painting, etc. They ship materials on Tuesday and Friday. The cost is high. For example, each rib costs $5. I needed seven. The planking is 4" wide and very thin (about 3/16"). The longest piece they ship is 6'. I have already used 12' and ordered 12' more. I did not know I needed more until I found the other broken ribs. To get the broken ribs out, some planking has to be removed and I found that when removing the tacks (with a special $18 tack puller nonetheless) I split some planks. Ahhhhh! So, when it all said and done (before the varnish, canvas and paint) the hull has to be solid, sound and strong. Sounds like life! Got to have a solid foundation before you put on the shine!