Going back to Cali

So, I finally got the strips on the first half of the hull. Now it's time to cut to the centerline and then start fitting the strips on the other side. Let's get started, shall we?

Here is where we begin.

Cutting the centerline with a sharp chisel.

I started cutting the centerline using a very fine saw. That wasn't working so well, so I went back to the book, Canoecraft, for guidance. Mr. Moores discusses using a razor knife and straight edge for the initial cutting to within 1" of the centerline, then following up with a chisel and either block or rabbet plane. I don't have a rabbet plane (maybe I'll build one after this canoe is out of the shop) and I don't have a straight edge as long as the keel line of this boat, so I just used a chisel. I was surprised at how well it did the job. As long as I worked from the center toward the stems, the chisel was cutting across the grain and keeping the bevel of the chisel toward the cut gave me excellent control. I was able to make the entire centerline cut in about 2 hours.

And this is what I finished with.

More planks going on!

The planking went surprisingly fast. I still had to wait for the glue to set pretty well between each strip, but the weather was very nice and the glue was cooperating nicely. I was looking at about an hour between each strip before I could take out the wedges and staple the planks and not worry about them pulling out of place or away from the molds.

Tape is a great clamp.

The picture above shows several strips of tape across the hull. That is to keep the two sides of the hull lined up while the glue dries there. I had hoped to complete the bottom of the hull before taking off for California, but after working all day and getting within 10 strips, I was spent. The following picture shows where I left off. When I get back home, I will hit it hard and get the hull complete and ready for 'glass within a week (maybe a week-and-a-half?) hopefully.

I have to leave it here.