Nate Tufts

What is the best choice of wood for a 1" X 1" curved dory gunwhale or rub rail?

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Dory Gunwales
by: Nate

Thanks to Martha and Ben, and anon., all very helpful; will probably use thinner strips and laminate on my Penn Yan 1967 rowing boat.
Gunwale lumber
by: Anonymous

Hi, Nate,

Just wondering why you wanted a 1" X 1" gunwale?

Why not go for a thinner one and for strength add a ?laddered? inwale?
Gunwale lumber
by: Ben

Perhaps the first thing to consider is what is available locally and in the sizes you need.

The next thing is how are you going to bend this 1inch square length?

You could steam it but that is quite a set up, the other option would be to laminate it up from thinner strips.

For the timber you really want something with straight grain that you can obtain in long enough lengths.

You could as Martha suggests use a hardwood such as oak.

On the other hand if weight is a consideration you could go for Western Red Cedar or Douglas fir or even Cypress.

Fast growth isn?t necessarily always weak growth.
Elm is a strong tough wood that has straight grain is quite good for bending.
Dory Gunwale
by: Martha

From the Lunenburg dory builder...piece of oak.

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