Scaffolding

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Quetzalsailor
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Boat Name: Quetzal
Boat Type: LeComte North East 38
Location: Philadelphia, PA

Scaffolding

Post by Quetzalsailor »

Since the chat about varnishing doors had strayed beyond useful techniques like enlisting wives, I moved the lumber question to a new place.

I've found that purpose-made scaffolding is not such a bad thing, especially given my fondness for working in uncomfortable positions and high places.

The pile of bits next to Q is two sawhorses and a deck. Sawhorses use the metal cheepie brackets from the Despot, screwed so that they're more like framing connectors. These horses' legs are 4' and are tall enough for the job. Since the cheepie brackets are not good enough for anything but a quick workbench, I triangulated the leg bottoms and braced them diagonally. I widened their stance with the bottom 2" x 4". The deck is 1/2" CDX x 32" wide, enough so I don't have to fret about stepping back, the 2" x 4" x 8' are laid flat to be more stable and to shorten the span of the plywood.

It's pretty hard to pick an appropriate height when there's so much swoop to the sheer. I had previously made a second pair of similar horses for painting a 9'-6" ceiling; they're shorter, so that the deck passes over a stair railing. A third horse fits through the stair railing and down to the stairs 'way below, pictured. The pair works nicely at the stern. Of course, the same deck is used for the marina or the house.

If you have a nice clean flat floor a rolling scaffold is dandy. Here's one I built for wiring and painting in an 11' high ceilinged space. It's just the right size to make it through doors and has wheels at one end for easier moving. It knocks flat and was considerably cheaper than buying one, also pictured.
Attachments
Rolling wharf with access ladder.
Rolling wharf with access ladder.
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Tom Young
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Location: Rockport Maine

Re: Scaffolding

Post by Tom Young »

Some good ideas Doug. I use sawhorses alot for staging as well to hold a couple of planks. On the boat, I often use two step ladders (one 8', one 6') with a stout plank to paint the topsides or varnish the toe rails. They're fast and allow the ability to follow the sheer. But you have to be careful on one plank, period. :)

My shop is so small (it's our garage as well which just barely fits two small cars) I use saw horses with a plank or plywood layed across, as a work table.

But there's no room for them to store. I needed a pair of folding horses for my small shop. I looked at a couple manufactured and thought for the money, I could do better. They had to be strong and light. These are built with 3/4" pine stock.

With the 1 1/2" beam, a gusset to triangulate them fore and aft, these are glued and screwed together, surprisingly stiff. I think sawhorses benefit from a lower shelf to hold tools.

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Tom Young
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Location: Rockport Maine

Re: Scaffolding

Post by Tom Young »

To fold them up, you pull out the plywood shelf, and pick them up. The piano hinge let into the bottom of the 2 3/4" beam halves, folds.
Both fit on a bicycle hook.

BTW, most of that nice "stuff" above was scavanged from the dumpster at Rockport Marine as they took BOLERO down to the ribs. Shelves, pilot berth fronts, and other scraps.

I didn't mention the dumpster to you, sorry.

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Quetzalsailor
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Re: Scaffolding

Post by Quetzalsailor »

We looked up into the gloom at Bolero's huge, beautiful hull. I was amazed at the small dimensions of the travellift that moved her. I am an inveterate dumpster diver and trash picker, too.

I have several pairs of the yellow Red Chinese folding sawhorses from the Despot. Bought some years ago for making tables in Sue's darkroom. Funny how they've made it down to the shop, barn and marina! They're great for workbenches, but wholly unsuited for standing upon.

Nice looking folding 'horses. How have you managed to avoid varnishing them?
Zach
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Re: Scaffolding

Post by Zach »

On my Triton I use pallets.

If you are in a yard that does steel boats, they bring in sand by the pallet...
Stack them up to the height you want and add some junk boards.

On the big stuff on a railway... I'm on 2x12's that are 14-16 feet long spanning between A frame scaffolds made out of 4x4's. The flimsy ones are 16 feet tall between 4 and 5 feet wide at the top. The 20+ feet tall, get that high with carriage bolts through the sisters that raise it up to height. The top pieces tend to be cut on a bevel to accept the 4x4. Add a 2x6 to 2x10 horizontally, nail them up with some 16d's. Bonus points if you whack them in, leave about 3/4-1 inch hanging proud, then smack the nail head over so you can pull them back out without working hard or destroying the board.

Some run straight up and down (used on the aft sections of big trawlers) the ones toward the bow are plumb on the outside legs, but taper in toward the hull as the legs go towards the dirt.

At the stem, a massive, doubled up in all regards scaffold is pretty much permanently in place. This lets you lay boards on 2-3 heights down each side, and walk around the bow to the other side.

I've also spent some time on welded pipe A frames that range between 4 and 8 feet tall. They bite into the sand because they sink in... not always evenly or level. When you are on wood and have a warped 2x10 you can cut a wedge and level it out just screwing it in place. Pipe wiggles and slides a bit.

My favorite saw horse design, is a 2x4 I beam for a top. Top and bottom laid horizontally, web of the beam stood vertically. This means you don't have to cut a bevel, nail and screw to the bottom and the web... angle is already pre-set. The top piece is sacrificial. If you make two, add supports around the outside of the legs on one, the inside on the other. Make the inside on just a bit smaller in width than the other so they stack.
Pretty much bomb proof, way heavier than they need to be for most jobs... but when you lay a board on top of them you have a work bench, not a table top. If I'm on the move I use the folding sheet metal style that fold into a sheet metal box... For cross cutting timber and stuff that is to short or heavy to prop up on the ground, I use a yellow square I bought at lowes that has a bunch of cut outs on it in various sized lumber. Works well.

Ripping plywood without a table, I lay two 2x4's on the ground loft my curve, set the saw shallow and go at it. Jig saw work I'll prop it up against a wall, or stand it vertically. I don't use a jigsaw very much, a skill saw with a blade with a lot of cutouts like a freud wet lumber blade, when set to just cut the depth of the wood... will cut pretty much any radius you'll find on a bulkhead. I come back and cut the notches for clamp boards with the jigsaw. (Bosch oscillating are the only way to go...)

Zach
1961 Pearson Triton
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1942 Coast Guard Cutter - Rebuild
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Rachel
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Re: Scaffolding

Post by Rachel »

Zach,

I can visualize the pallets. For the rest..... my brain is requesting photos :)

R.
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