In reply to "rib material?", posted by Brian King on Dec 23, 2000:
>I build a drift boat 10 years ago useing another boat as a pattern. The sides and bottom are marine grade plywood but the ribs are made out of fir. Would Oak be better? I plan on building another driftboat this spring with my oldest son who thinks it going tobe fun. If God had wanted us to have fiberglass boats he would have planted fiberglass trees. Thanks for your help.
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Fir is fine for ribs. Port Orford Cedar is good
too, and a little lighter. White oak is stronger,
but heavier. White oak is a good boat building wood.
Red oak turns black on exposure to water.
I've built maybe a half a dozen boats with
red oak ribs, and works fine. But the ribs do
turn black where they meet the floor. I think
fir and/or Port Orford Cedar is better, becuase it's
lighter and handles water better.