The majority of the boat will be held together by a variety of West Marine Epoxy mixtures with fiberglass reinforcement, but metal fasteners will also be required to hold pieces in place until the epoxy is cured and also to provide additional structural support. The designer recommends Silicon Bronze Wood Screws as they will never rust. Of course, silicon bronze screws are the most expensive, even more than stainless steel, so finding a good source is important. I ordered my fist box of screws from Jamestown Distributors and they turned out to be pretty pricy.
Then I found Fair Wind Fasteners.
The cost of the screws was substantially less than Jamestown Distributors and the customer service was excellent. My initial order got caught up in the Post Office meltdown during the holidays and when they didn’t arrive when expected, I contacted Rob Lehmann at FairWindFasteners.com and he immediately shipped another package. Ultimately the Post Office eventually delivered both shipments and Rob refused my offer to return the extras. He is really interested in building his business through great customer service.
Another advantage of Fair Wind Fasteners is that they will sell virtually any quantity you need. No need to buy a box of 50 or 100 screws when you only need 10 of a particular size.
2/14/21 – Update on Fastenings. Traditional boat builders seem to mostly use slotted flat head screws for planking, so without any recommendation from OCH, I ordered an assortment of flat head slotted silicon bronze screws to get started. I have never liked slotted screws and the silicon bronze is pretty soft, so the heads can be easily damaged. I didn’t really have any problems with the 3/4″ screws I used on the bottom, but I did strip a few of the 1 1/2″ screws I used on the stern and bow blocking. I decided I would switch to square head screws.
The advantage of a square head drive is that it doesn’t strip easily and you can load the screw on the driver and it won’t fall off. I contacted Fair Wind Fasteners and they agreed to take back all my unused slotted screws for a credit and shipped me the new square head screws.
On October 9th, in answer to a specific question, OCH stated that the bottom screws should be 5/8″ and 7/8″ #8 screws. I had already used 3/4″ and 1″ #10 screws. While some of them poked through the bottom, that can be ground off when I work on the inside.
3/31/21 – When I flipped the boat over, to my suprise, I was able to easily sand off the screw points with 80 grit sandpaper.
Thankfully, Rob Lehmann at Fair Wind Fasteners was very accommodating.
Thanks for your kind recommendation Bob! I’m glad you finally received your shipments and I hope you put those extra screws to good use in building another boat!
Thanks for the supplier reference for Bronze screw supplier. How did you arrive at a quantity? Could you tell me your totals? I can guess from your photo but not too sure.
I have ordered and paid for a Oonagh kit but have not yet arranged for it to come to Canada. I would normally cross over into US and pick it up.
However, have found an excellent and friendly supplier In Sault Ste Marie, Ontario and purchased some wood, including mahogany, Sitka spruce and ash. I’m will be gluing up the mast in a few days and starting on the spars and tiller (ash). I can begin the process of rounding up the mast on weekends.
I’m also buying more clamps, sand paper and supplies. Amazon is my new friend!
Congratulations on your blog: good quality photos and comments. Between your blog and Kit’s videos, I shouldn’t make too much of a mess of it. Can’t really start until the Admiral lets me have her parking space in the garage… it’s still too cold here yet – near 0 F. Recovering from a snow storm.
Look forward to reading you (already) informative blog.
I just guessed at the quantities and sizes and what you see here is twice what I ordered because he double shipped it. Several people have asked for Kit to provide a list of screw sizes and quantities, but no response yet.
I asked Kit also.
Just sent an email to Rob asking if he can ship to Canada.
Have you looked into other parts like oars locks, pintles and maybe stanchions…
I have not looked for any hardware yet. I was hoping OCH would provide a list of hardware and sources.