Boatbuilding Do-Overs
Tell us about projects gone wrong and the eventual fix
A reader named Paul wrote to ask if we had any articles from amateur boat builders who’d made big, disheartening mistakes on their projects and had to re-do a portion of their build. I assume he’s asking for a friend. Based on my own experience this hardly seems like a rare occurrence, but I think it makes an interesting topic.
How about you—have you ever fouled things up so badly you thought you might’ve ruined your project? Only measured once? Made a poor materials choice and had to start over?
Share the unvarnished truth in the comments below—including how you eventually fixed things—and we’ll send one lucky reader a System Three Gel-Magic cartridge.
If you have photos or a longer (horror) story to tell, send us an email at josh@smallcraftadvisor.com. —Josh
I am not telling. I can show you mistakes on every thing I have ever built. But you would have to be extremely knowledgeable to see them. So if you never tell someone about your mistakes, they will never know. The best boat builder in the world, made a mistake on a boat the class was building at the Wooden Boat School. When he discovered it he simply said “I wish I hadn’t done that”. And he showed the class how to fix it. So even the best make mistakes, they are just better at correcting them.
One time discussing good cabinet makers vs run of the mill cabinet makers with an elderly, yet exceptional, cabinet maker friend he said," You know the difference?" Confidently I said, good cabinet makers don't make mistakes. He said, "No, good cabinet makers know how to fix their mistakes.
Every time I mess up, I learn a new way to fix it. Lesson learned.