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How to Make a Boat Float With Wood and Straw

You can make a boat float by using straws and wood to construct the hull. The sides of the boat will be made from straws with an interior frame constructed from wood. A wood frame will provide the needed rigidity and strength to keep the craft together. To do this you will need to use a form to make the curved shape for the hull of the boat.

Things You'll Need

Plastic 2-liter bottle
Scissors
8-inch plastic straws
Craft glue
.25-by-.25-by-8-inch balsa wood
Tape measure
Utility knife

Instructions

- 1
  Cut the top and the bottom off of from 2-liter plastic bottle using the scissors. Cut the remainder of the bottle in half lengthwise. You will now have two curved pieces of plastic.
- 2
  Place a plastic straw at the bottom of one of the curved pieces of the plastic bottle. Apply the craft glue to both sides of the straw. Place a plastic straw on each side to glue them together. Allow at least one hour for the glue to dry.
- 3
  Apply craft glue to each side of the glued straws and glue another straw. Repeat this step until you have reached the sides of the curved piece of plastic bottle.
- 4
  Apply craft glue to the top of the center straw. Place a piece of Balsa wood on top of the straw and wait for the glue to dry.
- 5
  Measure the width of the curved piece of plastic bottle with the tape measure. Cut two pieces of the balsa wood to this size with the utility knife. Trim .25 inches from two of the 8-inch pieces of Balsa wood. Glue these pieces together in the shape of a rectangle frame.
- 6
  Measure from the balsa wood at the bottom of the curved piece of plastic to the top. Cut two pieces of balsa wood to this size. Glue these two pieces vertically on the balsa wood at the bottom of the curved piece of plastic. Allow the glue to dry.
- 7
  Apply the craft glue to the top of the plastic straws along the edges of the curved piece of plastic and to the top of the two pieces of Balsa wood.
- 8
  Place the rectangle-shaped frame on the glue and allow the glue to dry. Turn the curved piece of plastic bottle upside down and lift it off of the plastic straws.
- 9
  Apply craft glue to the vertical piece of balsa wood on both ends of the boat. Glue plastic straws down each side in a horizontal direction and allow the glue to dry. Trim the excess end of plastic straw on the sides with the scissors.

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