John Gardner Boat Shop Stool Signal Bravo

 20 Feb 21:

Traced the patterns onto scrap cypress. 1 top step, 2 legs, 1 center brace and 2 side braces. Cut them out with the DeWALT 20V jigsaw.

To cut the handhold into the center brace we drill a starter hole for the jigsaw blade.

It is easier to round most of the edges before assembly using a 1/8th inch roundover bit on our DeWALT compact trim router. Some edges, like where the side braces attach to the legs, are better left square. Also it would be easier to paint all the pieces before assembly, but I was impatient.

Marked fastener holes with an awl.

We used #10 silicone bronze screws, 2 1/2 inches long, predrilled pilot hole and countersunk with a Fuller combination pilot hole and countersink bit. Long screws help hold everything together.

Ready for paint.

Intermission. Skipper wanted to visit Opal Beach, the road has just now opened after Hurricane Sally damage Sep 2020.

We coated the stool with TotalBoat WetEdge Fire Red, BlueGlo White and Halcyon Clear Satin Varnish.

One of our crew's first name initial is B, so the step stool got Signal Flag Bravo colors.

FMI: Gardner Boat Shop Stool

John Gardner Boatshop Stool Alpha

16 Dec 18:

We have built 2 stools to match the nice little stool we saw at Mystic's John Gardner Boatshop a few years back, they have come in handy. For the last stool we had made a pattern and wanted to test it out, so we went to Lowes and bout a 1x12 piece of select pine. We bough an 8 foot piece, so there will be material left over.

One thing that was off a bit on the last stool was the hand hold circle, we made a few adjustments to that.

Laid the pieces out on the pine and traced the patterns. The ends and sides are traced twice.

Cut the shapes with our DeWalt jigsaw. Made a starter hole for the saw blade in the circle with a 7/16th inch drill bit on the Kobalt drill. We do not cut bevels for the shallow angle of the ends. For some reason the handgrip hole looked odd, I think I have the center strip offset a bit. I'll make a new top pattern to clean that up. In the meantime I trimmed a bit of the new handhold.

We routed the edges that a hand or shin can get to with a 3/4 inch roundover bit on our vintage Makita router. Tried to leave the mating surfaces square, but goofed some of that up. We also leave the inner edge of the feet square, so the can dig in a bit.

Pile O Parts. CARMEN supervised, she is painted in signal flag Juliet colors. One of the features of the stool we like is the arch on the end, we made it big enough to hook a toe under there, so we can pull the stool to a new location as we work around a boat.

We used the patterns to get the screw holes in the right spots, then drilled #8 pilot holes and countersinks for a 1 1/2 inch screw with a Fuller combination bit. Attached the ends to the center brace first, then the sides, checked for square then attached the top.

This stool got signal flag Alpha colors, she will have pantry and dock gym duties. No nickname yet. Used leftover heels of paint for the custom job.

Next up we need to do a Bravo stool.

Then maybe a Sierra and a Romeo.

FMI: Gardner Boatshop Stool

Dory Boat Part Names by Gardner 26 Sep 17

26 Sep 17:

Here is a list of boat part names from John Gardner's 1987 classic The Dory Book.

Gardner, John. 1987. The dory book. Mystic, Conn: Mystic Seaport Museum.

The Dory Book by Gardner

Today's Classic. The Dory Book by John Gardner. All you need to know about dories. This book was a great help while we worked on Barbashela.

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