Cape Dory Typhoon, Weekender

Cape Dory Typhoon, Weekender

Saturday, October 31, 2015

Preparing the Toe Rails and Rub Rails

October 31, 2015


The next item on the to-do list was to fabricate the new toe rails and rub rails.  Having just a little bit to work on the boat prior to: 1. watching the first half of the Gator game, and 2. trick-or-treating with my kiddos, I got right to work in the....mid-morning - sleeping in on the weekend is still important to me :)

I gathered my mahogany boards (3) and proceeded to the wood shop.  I selected the 2 boards to be used for the toe rails and the other for the rub rails.   


Over the previous weekend I took measurements on the rails, and I also took notes on the shape and dimensions of the originals rails.  The original toe rails measured 1 and 1/8" in height by 5/8" width.  The new toe rails would take the 1 and 1/8" height, but would measure nearly 3/4" in width.  I ran the toe rails through the planer to take off the cupping that was evident in the boards. I planed the boards to just proud of their eventual width - 3/4".


After planing all the rails I used the finish sander to clean up the markings caused by the planer.


The next step was to joint at least one side of the boards, and I attempted this on a small jointer I have.  However, the boards were of such length and the jointer disproportionately sized for the job that I eventually relented to my hand planes for achieving a jointed edge.  After several passes and constant measuring I achieved the result I was looking for.


With at least one edge jointed on edge of the boards I proceeded to rip the mahogany stock, creating blanks for the toe rails.  I ripped the toe rails to 1 and 1/4" (height), and ended up with 9 pieces in total.  I will need 3 pieces for each toe rail, so I have enough pieces to select the best of the lot for each toe rail.


One of the two mahogany boards ripped into 5 blanks for the toe rails.


I had selected one of the three mahogany boards for the rub rails, and followed the same preparation steps.  The rub rail blanks were ripped to 3/4" (height), with a base width of 7/8".  I ended up with 8 blanks for the rub rails and will need three pieces for each rail, thus I will have two left over pieces. The next step will be to cut scarf joints in the material selected for the individual toe and rub rails using the template I have prepared.  I created a template on top of a sled that I will push through the table saw to create the necessary scarf joint (see earlier post on this scarfing sled). 


As a public service announcement....NEVER! stand directly behind the table saw as you cut your stock! :)  Sometimes the material can be under a lot of pressure due to the way the grain is running, and as one cuts, this pressure can be released and cause the board to ride up against the blade...producing a missile launcher effect!  Yikes!


I had to pull this out from the exterior of the shop!



Total Time: 5 Hrs.

3 comments:

  1. Wow! that last two pictures really say a lot.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I need to replace mine, but I can't figure out how they're attached. The screws appear to go down into the deck, but I can't see them down below. Are they just into the glass?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Capt, Paul, there’s not a lot of space between the centerline of the (smallish) toe rail of the CD Typhoon and the inboard side of the hull to deck joint. The screws are likely bottoming out within the deck joint. I would recommend that, if you pull the old rail for replacement, fill the old fastener holes with epoxy and begin anew. Best!

      Delete