Craft A Craft - Boat design, home building, and cruising in a nutshell

How a Marine Propeller Pattern is Made

cac — Thu, 17 May 2012 01:25:33 +0000

A bit bigger than what might go on most of our boats, and I would have expected more CNC use these days, but apparently not always.

I must say that I enjoyed when they got the angle grinder out for heavy wood removal. Same thing I've done (and it works great).

This is a video showing how we create a set of marine propeller patterns. The patterns are used by a foundry to mold in sand and cast the finished propellers in stainless steel.

For more on what we do, visit http://www.industrialshapeandform.com/

Hubless Bicycle

cac — Fri, 11 May 2012 02:07:36 +0000

Visit - Hubless Bicycle Hubless Bicycle

Bicycles are a great form of transport for boaters. Good exercise, no gas, etc., but somewhat space intensive. This concept design not only looks really slick, but is space saving.

Flying Hovercraft

cac — Wed, 09 May 2012 18:15:47 +0000

Visit - Flying Hovercraft Flying Hovercraft

OK, looks like a lot of fun, but not seeing $190,000 in my budget.

Refrigerator shelves

cac — Wed, 09 May 2012 01:36:38 +0000

Visit - Refrigerator shelves Refrigerator shelves

There's a growing movement among some of building "tiny houses", often based on a standard trailer. These intrepid builders follow a lot of the "less is more", "minimalism", and "green" trends. This leads to some great ideas that could also translate to boat cabin builds, etc. Check out this great idea for reusing old refrigerator shelves. I may just use that...

The American Queen - returned to service

cac — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:25:01 +0000

Visit - The American Queen - returned to service The American Queen - returned to service

The American Queen, A 436 passenger, classic paddle wheeler boat (with a pair of
modern “Z-drive” pod propellers) is again providing service on the Mississippi River.

The American Queen, the largest passenger steamboat ever built, has returned to service on the Mississippi River -- offering passengers regular overnight cruises on the river for the first time in four years.

The South Street Seaport Museum

cac — Mon, 07 May 2012 02:25:39 +0000

Visit - The South Street Seaport Museum The South Street Seaport Museum

Neat looking museum in New York. If you're ever in the area, sure looks worth checking out.

Sixteen galleries have opened to the public with a lively interweaving of the city and the sea through photography, video, historic artifacts, and contemporary design

PlanetSolar - successful solar powered circumnavigation

cac — Mon, 07 May 2012 01:47:51 +0000

Visit - PlanetSolar - successful solar powered circumnavigation PlanetSolar - successful solar powered circumnavigation

Well, it's been a while, but PlanetSolar's Turanor successfully completed it's world circling cruise on May 4th, 2012. This French article (translation via Google) covered their arrival in Monaco.

Build your own surfboard

cac — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:51:05 +0000

Visit - Build your own surfboard Build your own surfboard

Simple, nice looking surfboard. They may only use it for decorations, but good job. Who knows, it may surf great.

Do note the slick, stenciled stain job. I like the thought of having a pattern on a wood product like this, and it was done with gel wood stain and duct tape :-)

The Concrete Canoe

cac — Fri, 04 May 2012 03:01:08 +0000

Visit - The Concrete Canoe The Concrete Canoe

Make sure and check the MAKE Magazine link and read the article. Lots of other resources on canoeing with concrete.

How to choose a kayak

cac — Thu, 03 May 2012 13:54:19 +0000

Visit - How to choose a kayak How to choose a kayak

Seems like there are a lot of kayak and canoe enthusiasts out there, and it's obviously a fairly inexpensive way to get on the water. Not to mention great exercise.

I am certainly no expert in this area, but this article looked like it might be a good quick overview into some of the decisions you should think about if considering a kayak purchase (or build).