Cabin sole alternative
Posted: Sun Feb 22, 2015 10:07 pm
Blown away by the price of nice hardwood, and unaware that pine would look so beautiful (here's looking at you, Dana), I sought alternatives for my cabin sole. I chose to somewhat replicate the look of "teak and holly" decking.
For the "teak" I used oak plywood. From the centerline of the boat, I carefully measured the distance from center and from bulkhead #2 for each floor station, then cut out the plywood to fit that size. A 4x8 sheet will cover the floor width but not the length - it's about 6 inches short. I made the short end fall under the cockpit area and covered the distance with scraps leftover from cutting out the curve, and glued with a butt joint. The grain doesn't line up of course and it looks kinda ugly - but it's invisible tucked under the footwell.
The "holly" is whitewood pine. Starting from the centerline, I used a router to cut 1/4 inch deep grooves (a mortise, I guess???) down the long edges of the plywood separated by 5 or 6 inches. I then cut thin strips of whitewood pine to fit in these grooves, then carefully planed then lightly sanded it flush. Be careful not to sand through the EXTREMELY thin face veneer of the plywood! Don't use lower than 220 grit. Once everything had been cut and laid out, I labeled and removed the strips and stained the plywood with Minwax (English Chestnut). I then glued in the strips with Titebond and varnished the whole floor. The strips are not stained, of course.
For ease of future removal, I then cut down the center of the sheet, and into three sections on each side.
This approach has some advantages over boards: It's somewhat lighter, is easier to cut to fit the boat, especially without access to a table saw, and gives a neat look. Disadvantages are that it is unsealed plywood (trouble if you take on water for extended periods), a plywood grain pattern, and lots of fiddling with router alignment and super thin strips of wood.
For the "teak" I used oak plywood. From the centerline of the boat, I carefully measured the distance from center and from bulkhead #2 for each floor station, then cut out the plywood to fit that size. A 4x8 sheet will cover the floor width but not the length - it's about 6 inches short. I made the short end fall under the cockpit area and covered the distance with scraps leftover from cutting out the curve, and glued with a butt joint. The grain doesn't line up of course and it looks kinda ugly - but it's invisible tucked under the footwell.
The "holly" is whitewood pine. Starting from the centerline, I used a router to cut 1/4 inch deep grooves (a mortise, I guess???) down the long edges of the plywood separated by 5 or 6 inches. I then cut thin strips of whitewood pine to fit in these grooves, then carefully planed then lightly sanded it flush. Be careful not to sand through the EXTREMELY thin face veneer of the plywood! Don't use lower than 220 grit. Once everything had been cut and laid out, I labeled and removed the strips and stained the plywood with Minwax (English Chestnut). I then glued in the strips with Titebond and varnished the whole floor. The strips are not stained, of course.
For ease of future removal, I then cut down the center of the sheet, and into three sections on each side.
This approach has some advantages over boards: It's somewhat lighter, is easier to cut to fit the boat, especially without access to a table saw, and gives a neat look. Disadvantages are that it is unsealed plywood (trouble if you take on water for extended periods), a plywood grain pattern, and lots of fiddling with router alignment and super thin strips of wood.