Rudy Woodcraft

Nomad is a sailing kayak (or paddlable sailboat!) of my own design. Continuing our trip from Pensacola, we had some adventures paddling and sailing off of Key Largo, Key West, and off of Captiva Island. Deb and I were quietly watching some Manatee, which started coming under the boat...trying to quietly backpaddle out of their way we surprised them, and the result was amazing! Dolphins did me the honor of swimming with me for a while sailing in the same waters. I enjoyed meeting up with Randy Morrow again at the spot he shared with me years ago in the lower keys and also the fine sailing there off of Cudjoe Key. And we were able to rendezvous with our children and grandchildren and do some paddling and sailing off of Captiva Island with them. Part of the series Sailing Nomad and Sailing These Homemade Boats by Doug Rudy.

Nomad is a sailing kayak (or very small paddable sailboat) of my own design. As part of a trip down to the Florida Keys, Deb and I stopped over in Pensacola to visit some of her family. With SV Seeker anchored there, not only were we able to get in some great sailing in the area, but it was fun to visit Seeker. Like so many, I've been enjoying Doug's videos for years, and they inspired me to do a bit of YouTubing myself. This is the fourth visit. The first was in Tulsa just before Seeker was launched, and then twice I brough my sailing rowboat Grace down and sailed w/ Seeker on Kerr Lake and then off Pirate's Cove. Here's a link to Doug's video with our visit at the end (thanks again Doug!): https://youtu.be/ksUMK9Tk-Kk?si=i3sLBw0RVzJIljR_ Here's a link to the video about designing and building this boat: https://youtu.be/bX6A2rb5ao4?si=fIp97r6gbm7P6Gun Part of the series Sailing These Homemade Boats by Doug Rudy

My sister and brother-in-law had a backyard full of Ash trees where their two kids enjoyed swings and treehouses growing up. The Ash Borer eventually got 'em and they had the wood milled and stickered. Their daughter Molly wanted a bench that was also a chest which turned into a fun project. Part of the series Woodworking by Doug Rudy

I've been sticking to boat videos for a while, but thought some of you might enjoy this project. We had this walnut milled a while ago, and these two slabs are the last 4/4 pieces, and when my friend Jim mentioned he and his wife were looking for a replacement for the round table in the sunken area by his fireplace, I thought of them. Pretty happy with how it came out and hope you enjoy the video! Part of the series Woodwork Projects by Doug Rudy I've been informed that this is "crotch" not "burl" so...changing the title to "figured"

As fall was headimg toward winter, I grabbed the chance to spend a couple days camping and sailing into Lake Erie. Temps were in low to mid 50s, and it was a delight to be on Kelleys Island out of season, with the campground and streets quiet and nearly deserted. Continue to be happy with the design of the boat, forgiving in a range of breeze and taking the seas well for her size. Part of the series Sailing Grace and Sailing These Homemade Boats by Doug Rudy

Uploading again to RudyWoodcraft channel...it appears you can't edit it afterwards and I put this up without a channel before! Ok, getting to the Canadian line didn't involve going out of sight of land, but it was a beautiful day of sailing and a fun milestone in the boat! Kelleys Island is one of our favorite spots, and together with some incredibly peaceful morning biking around the island, it was a treat to be on the water sailing and exploring. The design goals of the boat continue to work out...with the stayless mast it is very easy to lift the sailing rig out for rowing/motoring, as we did on our second day on the island. Part of the series Sailing Grace and Sailing These Homemade Boats by Doug Rudy

Shortly after I launched Grace I met Rod McLaren online, where we exchanged notes about sailing and boatuilding, and he encouraged me to bring the boat for the Elbow Run. This is a week of small boat sailing and camping that he organizes each year, on the beautiful Lake Diefenbaker in Saskatchewan. Though this would clearly be a significant drive from Ohio, I loved the idea of meeting a bunch of sailors and spending a week on the water moving from place to place and camping. Finally this year things worked out and I made the trip--and I am glad I did! There were really two videos about preparing for the trip. The first was to finally figure out how to rig for reefing, since I knew I would likely have to stretch the comfort zone for weather: https://youtu.be/nCM6nhI-oqk And the second was about rigging for camping, plus some other items getting ready for the trip: https://youtu.be/o-Hpos4eK_Y And here is Rod McLaren's channel where he posts among other videos each year's Elbow Runs: https://www.youtube.com/@RodMcLaren Thanks to Rod and the rest of the Elbow Run sailors for a fantastic time hope to see you next year!

I recently returned from an amazing adventure, all the way out to Saskatchewan (from Ohio!) for the Elbow Run. This is an annual event on Lake Diefenbacker organized by Rod McLaren. A group of small boat sailors spend a week sailing and camping on the substantial lake. Here is his channel and 2021 video of the event: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rJl7_Lvyf4 Rod's been suggesting I join in with Grace since she was first launched, and this year I decided to go for it. This video covers several items related to preparing for the trip.

This is the fifth season for the boat, and although I designed the main sail with reef points, I hadn't yet finished rigging for reefing. Part of the reason is that its a forgiving rig, and I can get by in 20+k breeze by luffing, and generally sail where I can get to shelter if things get worse than that. But the other reason is, the boat has a non-standard gaff rig which introduces challenges for reefing. I'm thinking about joining the week-long Elbow Run camping/sailing event, which means I need to be on the water regardless of the weather, within reason, so: time to rig for reefing! Hope you enjoy the video!

Although this RudyWoodcraft channel is generally about woodwork, wooden sailboats, and sailing, I have enjoyed watching my wife learn about bees, and thought some of you might as well. She captured a swarm and installed it in the hive that I'd made a frame for and set up, so we are launched as Bee Keepers! Links: Stratford ecological farm: https://stratfordecologicalcenter.org/ Off the grid w/ Doug and Stacy, an episode w/ Dr. Leo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFP17VekChQ Dr. Leo's horizontal hives site: https://horizontalhive.com/

Like so many, I've enjoyed Doug Jackson's multi-year project, always wondering what Seeker would be like under sail, and so when Doug suggested I bring a boat down to the gulf coast and do some sailing, and a window opened up in the schedule, I took the road trip down from Ohio. Doug and his long-time skilled engineer Andy were doing some rig-tweaking and sailing, and I was able to sail on Seeker, and also video from my boat of Seeker under the fullest sail she's carried yet. Also, there was plenty of thoroughly enjoyable sailing Grace in the intercoastal, the first time Grace has been in salt water. Spending a night on board in the aft cabin and helping out with the ongoing work on Seeker was a blast too. Videos of my two previous visits to Doug and Seeker are here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qASNehSYUMU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vL89XX7yLo

Although my sailing kayak Nomad has spent alot of time in saltwater, the sailing rowboat Grace has only been in freshwater so far. Like so many of you, I continue to follow Doug Jackson's SV Seeker as he's anchored off Pirate's Cove, on the Alabama gulf coast, and have been looking for a chance to take the drive down and Sail w/ Seeker. That would mean saltwater, and there is some work to do on the boat and rig...which gives me a chance to explain the new lift system I added in our new shop. The fabrication of the main cleat is one of the early adjustments after the initial launch of the boat, in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8Lp8sTFej0 Here's the video of making the previous lift system at our old place: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfmbLesrjyw

A bit different video for this channel, but Deb and I had a chance to tack a short stay in Palawan on the end of my work trip, and thought we'd share a video about our adventures. I'd hoped for some sailing, but the Two Seasons' hobie cat had broken standing rigging. But the snorkeling and free-diving the reefs right off the beach was a huge treat. We also enjoyed a tour that took us to two WW2 shipwrecks, the coral gardens, and Pass Island. Long trip...hope you enjoyed the video

Continuing to catch up on some favorite sailing from this year, I enjoyed a fantastic afternoon of sailing, with lively breezes, beautiful weather, and especially meeting another boat-builder. Michael, if you watch this, drop me a note! Your Chesapeake Passagemaker was beautifully built and sailed nicely! Part of the series Sailing These Homemade Boats and Sailing Grace by Doug Rudy

I'm catching up on some of my favorite sails from 2022, now that we've finally moved to our new spot, and in early summer I took each of my two oldest grandchildren on camping/sailing trips. Unfortunately, my battery died so I didn't get much of Cora's trip, but did for Eldon's. It was a total treat to watch them learning about camping and sailing, and get those memories made with them. We also took full advantage of the flexibility of the boat, combining sailing, motoring, and rowing for some great times. Part of the series Sailing These Homemade Boats and Sailing Grace by Doug Rudy

Our house build is almost complete, and one of the fun tasks was to make and install a magnetic knife holder, from some of the walnut we'd milled and stickered and stored in the barn. My son Michael helped me select the magnets, a pair of very strong six inch by 1/2" by 1/8" strips. To get the magnetic force maximally strong, the face of the wood over the magnets has to be reduced to around 1/16", a bit scary routing that close! But, it worked out. Part of the series Woodworking by Doug Rudy

I love Lake Michigan and the smaller inland lakes along the southern shoreline, like Lake Lelanau. We took Grace, a home-made sailboat of my own design, up to Leland for a 42nd anniversary trip. The weather was a bit of a challenge, and my patient wife endured getting caught in an unforecasted squall, and on our 42nd anniversary! Some great sailing and a fine celebration getaway... Part of the series Sailing Grace and Sailing These Homemade Boats by Doug Rudy

Its a long drive from Ohio to Oklahoma, but this was the second time I've made it, this time trailing my boat Grace, to visit Doug Jackson and SV Seeker! Doug Jackson's video: https://youtu.be/Aydc-sya4B0 It was Doug's videos that got me to try making videos myself, when I decided I was going to design and build another boat, Grace. The first visit, two winters ago, was to meet Doug Jackson and SV Seeker before she moved out of his front yard where he'd been building her for over a decade. I thoroughly enjoyed the time, where among other things Doug explained his plan that, once launched, he'd take Seeker down the Arkansas river to Lake Kerr reservoir, and learn to sail her there, before heading on down to the ocean. And he suggested I bring a boat down and sail with her. Here's the video of that first visit: https://youtu.be/qASNehSYUMU With a small schedule opening, I finally made that happen...here's the video! Part of the series Sailing Grace and Sailing These Homemade Boats by Doug Rudy

Noticed some discoloration along the starboard bow/chine after a sail recently--bad feeling as that means water was getting in somewhere. Turned out I missed epoxy caulking about a 4" stretch along the stem inside, and learned some other lessons as well. Next time building a boat like this, there are things I'd do differently to make all these factors easier--those conclusions in this video. And, with the repairs complete, the boat was ready for an adventure, in the next video: road trip to Oklahoma Kerr Lake to sail with SV Seeker! Part of the series Building Grace by Doug Rudy

I designed and built this 17ft sloop, launched in 1988, and our children grew up with it, learning to sail, and making some of our favorite memories as a family. Since I started work designing and building Grace, I'd had to store it away. One of the benefits of our upcoming move is that with the pole barn, I the boat was available to sail. It was a treat to get her on the water again, and unlike Grace or Nomad, Cosmo has the capacity to get alot of people on the water...my sister, two of my three children and their children, and not long after on father's day, a whole series of extended family enjoyed the time. Part of the series Sailing These Homemade Boats and Sailing Cosmo by Doug Rudy

Obviously a bit of a different topic for my channel, but in case you have a mahindra tractor, and maybe specifically the HST but maybe the situation applies to others of their models, this may be helpful. We bought the tractor used, with just 90+ hours on it, and noticed that there would be a small bit of hydraulic fluid (oil) under the right rear of the tractor. This seap steadily grew over a month's time to where I had to do something. My friend Kevin is an expert tractor mechanic, and took a look and identified the source as the rear axle seal, though it run down and then off of the gear box/housing more toward the center of the tractor. I ordered replacement seals, and he kindly agreed to work with me to change them out. As you'll see, we determined that there is a machining flaw resulting in a very loose press fit of the seals, and application of gasket/sealer solved the problem. Let me know if you've encountered the same thing. O--and also I overfilled after we were done, by mis-reading the sight glass, and that also seemed worth sharing.

A very enjoyable first two projects in the new shop, wrapping up the side and dining tables that started in the old woodshop. Both of these projects were from the oak from our and our neighbor's place, milled and stickered last year. Two advantages were apparent: I now have room to set up the air filtration unit I'd bought a while back, and I have the wood in woodracks handy. Part of the Woodworking and Tale of Two Tables (and Two Woodshops) series by Doug Rudy

Deb and I have had quite the adventure with our decision two years ago to buy some property with room for a polebarn/shop, house, and good garden space. Its been a time of learning--skid steers, driveway building, drainage and elevation, and as the house nears completion the new shop is up and running in the barn. And the two tables that started in the old shop can now complete in the new... Part of the Woodworking series by Doug Rudy

With the electrical inspection pass at the new shop, it was time to make the move, shutting down the old shop. This was a chance to review what has been a really enjoyable space, with great times with lots of people. From drawing the plans for the addition, working through permitting, and a big framing and roofing party, to six years of enjoyable projects, I've thoroughly enjoyed it. So here's the story of my first woodshop! Part of the series Woodworking by Doug Rudy

I always enjoy having people participate in their own projects, and this was fun on two different table projects, started in this video. My daughter and son-in-law helped design the legs for their dining table, and my neighbor Dylan worked with me on a side table he and his wife Abbie want. Dylan owned the largest of the oak trees that came down last year in our neighborhood, and which we saved some sections of, got them milled, and stickered. These also turned out to be the last projects from my well-loved woodshop, which I designed and built six years ago, and the first in the new one, a pole barn I've been working on. So I'll do some videos on the building and teardown of the old shop, and some of the fun milestones in building the new one as these two tables get completed. Here is the video of the oak milling/stickering project: https://youtu.be/pu4dOyteH04 Part of the series Woodworking by Doug Rudy