One thing that is evident about Mark’s work is a deep love of wood and perfection in finish. If Mark hadn’t told me he had trained and worked in construction and engineering I would have probably guessed. He has the discipline of finish and personal high standards and attention to detail this is evident in his work, from humble coracles and paddles to a beautiful sea kayak, there is a beauty and an instinctive love of wood, be it larch, ash, sapele or ply.
Mark brews some coffee and I return my wet and smelly Labrador to the boot of the car before he disgraces himself in the workshop.
Mark shows me the other work area, there’s a bonny clinker built traditional centre board dinghy a-la-Amazon sapele & oak built with copper rivets, built by McNulty Boats before 1980. Mark explains he’s been asked to restore it by a regular client, it’s a big job and the boat needs some keel/keelson work and some of the lower planks cut out and replaced. If I’d thought that Mark was purely a stitch n’ glue ply boat builder I needed to think again. Here was shipwrighting adzes, chisels, rove dollys and all those salty tools those of us with epoxy in our jeans drool over with envy.
Using copper boat nails with conical roves to rivet the coracle rim together adds an attractive detail. The pale ash laths contrast well against the black bitumen waterproofing.
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