As the nights draw in then boat building activity is starting again and news of duck punt developments have started to appear in my inbox.
First up is Julian from Lincolnshire who lives in a land criss crossed by dykes and narrow semi-navigable waterways. He built a bigger dinghy last year and decided that a Duck Punt would be a good thing to own
He made most of the boat using Cascamite and screwfix self driving screws s with just the odd bit of epoxy tape on the outside to protect the edges. He completed the hull in grey floor paint from Screwfix
he reckons he got the boat from first cut to be ready for the first coat of paint in 20 hours
here are the snaps.
Tim Marchetti in the USA , runs a timber machining company
http://cncroutinganddesign.com/
specialising in cutting complicated shapes has been so smitten with the design that he has fed the details into his computer and has started working on a kit for the boat - he has cut the basic parts from three sheets of ply. He reckons that using a glue and screw method asnd one of his kits you could have a punt built in 16 hours
here are the snaps
And Rusty Knorr is building a wonderful punt - no expense spared - epoxy sheathed, bits of hardwood
he has a delightlfully ironic and well illustrated blog here
http://ridingonadonkey.blogspot.co.uk/
and finally
the lads from West Mersea having fun
Well, I have clearly missed something in the “build it simple, build it light, build it quick” line of thinking. Granted, it is my first boat build, but it feels like it is taking FOREVER. What have you done to me, Dylan?! Turned me into a damn boat builder, I guess. Certainly one who would never make a dime if I were getting paid, or I would have to charge $10,000 to build one of these for how long it has taken me. Still, it has been an enjoyable learning experience and I thank you for the inspiration to take it on. I imagine it is going to be immensely satisfying to sail a boat I built by myself with my own two hands. That is if I ever actually finish the damn thing…
See my Duck Punt building blog at- http://ridingonadonkey.blogspot.com/
Dylan,
this duck punting lark is getting out of hand.
People are building floating coffins left right and centre. Think of all the widows and fatherless children growing up in poverty just because their dads followed you when you spread Duck Puntism.
When realizing how many followers the most bizarre creeds and beliefs count I am afraid that within my lifetime no water in Britain will be duckpuntless. I hereby urge all photographers in the UK, profs and amateurs, to start recording the sight of surface waters as yet not infested with duckpunts.
That includes all private garden ponds and the Mistly Swan pond.
Soon there will be more punts than ducks, and then what? Swan punts, goose punts, coot punts? Please think carefully before launching another craze that might be the undoing of gullable garden shed carpenters. Think of al those innocent children who will remember their fathers as men who lived in garages and garden sheds. Men who would only join their families at dinner once a week while they were in the house anyway to change into clean clothes and have a shower to wash the wood dust out of their hair.
You have a a lot to answer for, Mr Duckpunt Winter.
Keep at it.
Cheers,
Jan