Let's Build a Laminated Tiller

[John Stone]

The laminated tiller I built for the Far Reach about 8 years ago has started to delaminate. I built it from white oak thinking it would be very strong. It is. But right after I completed it I read from a book Larry Pardey wrote: "Don't glue white oak. The tannins in the wood will cause the glue joint to fail." I have never known him to be wrong. So, I saved the laminating jig I used to make the original to make a new tiller when the oak one failed. The fist signs of delimitation occurred this past winter while sailing in the West Indies. I should have made the tiller from ash because it's hard and dense, relatively inexpensive, available, machines easily, and glues well.

I could just drill and counter-sink a few screws into the tiller from the top or bottom and cover the heads with plugs. But, I'd have to strip the varnish and apply 8 more coats. It would probably last for a while but I expect it would eventually start delaminating in other places. Let's just do it right. It's not that hard of a project. I have the jig on hand. Also, I want to shorten the new tiller by about three inches.

I picked up some rough cut 8/4 (2" thick) ash from my wood supplier. It was $5 a board foot. The plank is 2" thick X 6" wide x 10' long=10 BF=$50.

The tiller will be about 52" long. I cut the plank in half at 60". Now I had two planks about 5' long. Next, I ran one side over the jointer which makes that surface of the plank dead flat. Then, I ran the concave edge over the jointer to make it flat and 90° to the flat side. That gave me a plank with flat smooth surfaces on one side and one edge and at 90° to each other.

Next, I ran the plank through a thickness planner. This machine with the long indeed and outfeed tables makes the second side flat and exactly parallel to the side first surfaced on the jointer. The jointer eliminates an uneven and even curved surface. The less flat the surface is when you start, the more wood you have to remove (more times over the jointer) to make it flat. If you run two opposite sides over a jointer (the wrong technique) they will be flat but not be parallel to each other. A thickness planer uses the one flat side you create on the jointer first as a reference to make the other side flat. That's why it's called a thickness planer, which woodworkers casually call "a planer." The planer took the plank thickness down to about 1 7/8" thick. I ripped (running a board length wise through a table saw) the last rough edge on the table saw which made that edge parallel to the first edge I previously ran over the jointer. These steps resulted in a uniform flat board with two parallel edges, both of which are 90° to the flat parallel plank surfaces and are the basics of milling wood.

Measuring the thickness of the old tiller where it fits into the Edson bronze tiller bracket I determined it is a little over 2" wide. So I looked at the grain of the wood then ripped my planks to 2 1/4" wide--a little extra so I can plane it flat after it's laminated. from start to finish this took about an hour of work. At $50 an hour you would be paying a wood working about $100 to this point. So you can see how doing basic wood projects like building your own tiller can save you a small fortune.

Obviously the tiller is tapered on four sides from the butt end which fits into the tiller bracket to the handle. We will address the top and bottom taper by tapering our laminations. In order to avoid grain run-out, as the tiller tapers on its top and bottom sides, I need to taper each piece of the laminated strips 5/8" thick on the end that fits into the tiller bracket and 5/16" on the end that comprise the end of the tiller at the handle. Tapering the strips will give me a handle 1 1/4" thick and the opposite end 2 1/2" thick. A little math indicates I need five strips of tapered ash. The side to side taper will be addressed after the tiller is laminated. I plan to cut those tapers on a band saw.

The next step then is to build a simple tapering jig so I can use the precise cuts of a table saw.

[John Stone]

Some more photos.

[Jim Walsh]

Interesting project, as always. Will you stick with Titebond III or go with thickened epoxy this time around?
The old tiller will make a perfect spare unless you already had one aboard. Every moment offshore is a real-life stress test. H.W. Tillman’s Mischief had a brass tiller if his description in “Mischief in Greenland” is accurate. I can’t help thinking it was bronze, but I wouldn’t question his veracity.

[John Stone]

Interesting project, as always. Will you stick with Titebond III or go with thickened epoxy this time around?
The old tiller will make a perfect spare unless you already had one aboard. Every moment offshore is a real-life stress test. H.W. Tillman’s Mischief had a brass tiller if his description in “Mischief in Greenland” is accurate. I can’t help thinking it was bronze, but I wouldn’t question his veracity.

I would like to have made an adjustable tapering jig. I have been meaning too for a long time. But I did not have a single hinge I could find. I should have just gone to Lowes and bought one. Regardless, I made a simple single use tapering jig. I cut the planks down to 53" long. Then ripped them on the table saw with the jig which tapered them them 1/4" thick on one end and 5/8" on the other. When I glue them up bent over the tiller jig they will be laminated one on top of the other (5 total) and come out of the jig laminated 1 1/4" at the tip of the handle and 2.5" on the but end. Probably do that tomorrow.

My preferred choice of adhesive would be urea formaldehyde commonly know as plastic resin glue. It's a power mixed with water. It is impervious to heat. And there is practically no spring back when released from a laminating jig. Same glue I used before. But what I have on hand is way past it's shelf life. Lowe's does not have it. I'll call a few places tomorrow but not sure I want to wait to order it. I'll see how I feel in the morning. If I want to press ahead I will use epoxy. Not really a fan of epoxy in such a highly stressed lamination. Especially when the tiller gets warm in the sun. Resorcinol would be a great choice but I don't want a purple glue line on a varnished tiller that is always close to my eye. It would annoy me. I think there is too much stress for Titebond 3. That's my thinking.

MTF.

[wikakaru]

That's quite a collection of tools you have! I look forward to seeing the finished product.

--Jim

[John Stone]

I don't own any exceptional power tools. Just the bare minimum. All basic entry level stuff except the table saw which while only a Grizzly is a 220v with three phase motor. So lots of power. But everything I have built could have been done with a portable contractor's table saw. So not that big of an investment. All those machines are 20 years old. The shop is also pretty small. About the size of a single bay garage. Also, I don't have a band saw. I wish I did but just no room for one. Fortunately, I have always been able to gain access to one when there are no other acceptable alternative.

Lots of towns have woodworking fellowships people can join to learn about woodworking and gain access to tools and machines. That's how I got started just 18 years ago. Until then most of my skills were built around blowing stuff up--very satisfying too I might add. I'd say almost anyone can learn woodworking and other mechanical skills that are not only very satisfying but save you a fortune if you stay with it. Plus, with a few exceptions I think most people, with some practice, can do as well or often better than the so called pros. It all about a commitment to learning and making time for it.

If I had to do it again I would have taking a course or two in welding at the community college. I think that would be a useful skill. Maybe in the future....

[Steve Laume]

"Plus, with a few exceptions I think most people, with some practice, can do as well or often better than the so called pros. It all about a commitment to learning and making time for it." Some people will never be good craftsmen, or artists, musicians, writers, or sailors for that matter. I have always said that everyone is good at something but none is good at everything. I did carpentry and woodwork for most of my life. Some of the worst work I have seen, had been done by professionals who cared more about making money, than the quality of the work they did. Some of the nicest work was done by homeowners who could take all the time in the world with no concern about how much it would cost. These cases are the exception and if you do something long enough, you tend to get pretty good at it as well as learning a few tricks to make the work go much faster. Lots of great tools and machinery help a bit too, Steve.

[Steve Laume]

I found it interesting that you chose to work with tapered strips, instead of using laminates of uniform thickness. It looks like the lamination failed where the strips are thickest, which was no surprise. One of the qualities of ash that you left out is that it bends very well. This is the most important characteristic for this project. Are you steaming the strips for bending and then gluing them hot and wet? I did a kayak project where I was bending 1/8" strips to form the combing lip. I steamed, bent and clamped them in place until they set and cooled. Then I removed the clamps, let the wood dry, glued them up with thickened epoxy and re clamped the pre bent wood. One other thing, you might consider, is wrapping the finished tiller in fiberglass and clear epoxy, before you varnish. I have done this on a few projects and it makes for a very strong stick. It would also cut down on the number of fill coats, you would need to get a nice finish, Steve.

[Steve Laume]

This was laminated and glass covered.

[John Stone]

I found it interesting that you chose to work with tapered strips, instead of using laminates of uniform thickness. It looks like the lamination failed where the strips are thickest, which was no surprise. One of the qualities of ash that you left out is that it bends very well. This is the most important characteristic for this project. Are you steaming the strips for bending and then gluing them hot and wet? I did a kayak project where I was bending 1/8" strips to form the combing lip. I steamed, bent and clamped them in place until they set and cooled. Then I removed the clamps, let the wood dry, glued them up with thickened epoxy and re clamped the pre bent wood. One other thing, you might consider, is wrapping the finished tiller in fiberglass and clear epoxy, before you varnish. I have done this on a few projects and it makes for a very strong stick. It would also cut down on the number of fill coats, you would need to get a nice finish, Steve.

Windlass handle look great. Nice work Steve. What I like about my bronze handle built with flat plate 1/4" silicon bronze is it is slender enough I can store it in the spurling pipe itself. Just drop it in along side the chain and the fatter teak handle keeps it from falling through. One less thing to have to store in the cockpit locker.

Regarding skills sets. Not everyone can do it. True enough. But not not everyone needs to build a boat or even cabinets. A lot of what I advocate is just drilling for your own through hull. Or installing a deck fitting properly. Clearly, some people should never touch a tool or wrench of any kind. But that's the exception in my opinion. A lot of this has to do with patience and circumstances. If I had had the money to buy the boat I wanted I would never have gone down this path. But I am so glad I did.

All good techniques you described. I know you appreciate there is no one way and I know you are not suggesting it. I have thought about steam bending and letting it dry then gluing it up. Was musing on that very thing last night. I have never steam bent. Read about it. Seems simple enough. I might try it to see what it's like.

I don't like epoxy for wood gluing if there are alternatives. Done plenty of it--gallons and gallons of it. Good at gap filling if joints are not tight or if you can't clamp hard. But, it's messy. The chemicals and solvents are not friendly. Epoxy gets on the clamps and work surfaces. And IMO it does not hold up well in heat. Lots of people advocate wrapping in cloth too. Super strong no doubt about that. But again, it's even more messy. And now you're sanding epoxy and glass cloth...and probably a little fairing involved and it's more work to shape the tiller butt to fit between the bronze yoke in the tiller bracket if cloth is involved. If bare wood it's a simple matter to use a smoothing or block plane. Fiberglass cloth makes later stripping the varnish with a heat gun a problem. I just don't care for it if it there are other appropriate options.

I put a carbon fiber and epoxy sleeve around the loom of my 14' ash sculling oar. It was the best way I could think of to strengthen the scarf joint. It's held up very well. So certainly viable. I painted it.

I don't know for certain but I think the lamination failed because I glued up white oak. It was the wrong wood for the task. I want to believe, and maybe I am wrong, if I had made it from ash it would not have failed. And, as you say ash bends well, steamed or not. Perhaps I had some voids between layers. Epoxy is good for voids. Or maybe I need to be more precise and careful ensuring the surfaces are better prepared.

The tiller is tapered. If I laminated uniformly thick strips, (much easier to cut and bend) I would have had to cut the taper across the grain of the top and bottom laminates to taper the handle. Then I would have a series of perpendicular glue lines visible where the laminates ended in the taper. I did not want that. Maybe I could have tapered only the underside though. Would not be visible then--so that could work.

Anyway, varnish over bare wood is easy to strip with a heat gun and a pull scraper. So that's my go to when practical.

I now have enough milled ash for four tillers. Maybe I should experiment. But if I keep it simple keep it simple it could be done with not much more work.

While I look for glue I bent three of the five ash strips around the jig with minimal clamps. Looks fine. But, steam bending might still be a good idea.

Thanks for the input. Some things for me to consider.

[John Stone]

A follow up. My knowledge is limited. I read a lot. I know who I trust, though I acknowledge they are certainly not infallible. I think most of the people that post and read on the forum would probably fall into a similar camp. There are plenty of people in the forum that don't have much experience and are hungry to learn. So maybe this discussion about options is useful for them.

DAP no longer sells the Weldwood plastic resin glue, AKA urea Formaldehyde glue, Inused to laminate my tiller. But CP Adhesives does. I just got off the phone with Jeff Pitcher their technical engineer. I have talked with him several times over the last 10 years. He was friends with Larry Pardey and they compared notes over Larry' Appendix C in his book Classic Boat Construction: The Hull. I ordered some of their Urea Formaldehyde glue (powder you mix with water) earlier today. Since I will need to wait several days to get it I might try steam bending the ash and bend it over the jig to take some stress off it as Steve suggested.

Below are a couple pictures from Larry's book. Larry Pardey pissed off a whole bunch of boat builder people with his position, documented and researched though it was. I share the info not to convince anyone that epoxy is not the be all end all as it is sometimes portrayed. Rather, I post it to share what has influenced me...since this is my project and perhaps you can better see what informs me. There are plenty of boat builders who argue Larry was wrong. Very few of them, however, actually sail the boats they have built and then done an honest assessment about how the he boats have held up after say putting 50,000 miles on them.

All that said, if I were to build a sailing skiff (I love the Vivier designed Ilur) I would most probably build it with epoxy and cloth over stitch and glue plywood. It's the way it is meant to be built. So I am not an epoxy hater at all. So sometimes it's just different tools that do the same job. Sometimes some tools are better than others. Sometimes we do a better job with the tool we are familiar with vise one we are not, or one not available to us, or one that we are not willing to buy.

But I think it's also good to question what we are told and come to our own conclusions. We need to make our own decisions based on the best information we have available to us at the time then take responsibility for them. Sometimes we are going to be wrong or maybe it simply does not turn out as well as we wanted.

By the way, Larry's book is very interesting. If you like boats and clear writing you might enjoy the book. I'll never build a boat like Taleisin but I have learned a ton reading how he built her.

[John Stone]

More pictures of text.

[Steve Laume]

Not sure the choice of white oak was the biggest problem with your first tiller. Even a mild bend in 5/8" stock is going to create a lot of tension and then the glue choice was not idea if the fit was not perfect or the joint was slightly starved because to the clamping pressure. I would definitely steam bend the wood before gluing.

[Steve Laume]

If you look, carefully, at the box, you will see the ends of some fiberglass rods that stick out the sides. These enable me to stack a bunch of strips in the box and still get good steam flow around them all.

[John Stone]

LOL. Well, think what you want.

I'm all about trying the steam bending. Talked to my friend today that's done it. I'm looking around to see what I can cobble together. Should be interesting. All about learning something new.

Your set up looks great Steve. I'll see if I can kind of duplicate it.