Wood floor work surface . .

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Wood floor work surface . .

Postby tattoo on Mon Dec 24, 2012 4:02 pm

Fellow builders: If your working surface is smooth, then skiding PocketShip and its construction cradle around is fairly easy. Before starting construction, be sure the floor is smooth and has at least two coats of hard concrete paint -– well waxed after the last coat is very dry. Of course, wax the bottom of the 2x4s on the cradle and the bottom of the 8" x 6" piece of wood (builtup to the 3.5" thickness of the cradel frames) that you placed under the aft end of the keel (to stabilize it).

Better still, install a wood floor over the concrete. It will give you a nice work surface (not so hard on your feet and legs) and you can make it really level. Most garages floors have a slight slope so that water and melted ice will drain out the door and not pool under the vehicles. Mine had variations from 0” to about 3” from low to high spot. Another nice thing about a wood floor is that you can temporarily screw things to it. And, once leveled, anywhere you move the cradle it will remain level at all points of contact. Also, the step-up at the front (almost 5") makes loading PocketShip onto its trailer much easier.

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Floor joists (2x3s or 2x4s [placed on edge] cut with unique profiles) over 1x4 pressure-treated sleepers over vapor barrier over concrete . .
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I installed the wood floor only over half of my two-bay garage. With a surveyor’s level I measured the elevations at 12” intervals on each 1x4 sleeper (on 12” centers) that I nailed to the concrete using a rented “gun” firing .22” blanks shooting 1.5” concrete nails. Then I cut the profile (unique to each) on the 2x3s and a several of 2x4s so that when (placed on edge) the top [straight edges] of these “floor joists” were in the same plane. The joists at the rear of the garage were only about .5" high and almost 3" high at the front. Sub-flooring of .75” plywood was used. Then I hired a “floorer” to install and varnish the entire surface with hard yellow t/g pine 4” widths. I had the sleepers on 12” centers (and .75” subflooring) so that I could park my pickup on the wood floor without any saging.

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Flooring crew laying the 4" yellow pine t/g. Notice sub-flooring and 2x10 ramp . .
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With both surfaces waxed it is easy for one person to move PocketShip around, even when she’s fully loaded with equipment and ballast. After the turnover, her cradle was split and her keel rests on two 8” x 2x6 waxed pads. The cradles (now in two pieces, separated port from starbard, and modified so that the keel is just 1.5" off the floor) hold her upright and are (temporarily) secured to the floor with 4 screws.

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Finished floor at the "roll over" . .
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The floor needs a “ramp” at the front edge which was made of an 8’ x 2x10 of pressure treated wood.
Pete McCrary, launched Tattoo Oct '10.
tattoo
 
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