Finish ribs, start on bow

Once the bent ribs have cooled and dried it's time to get them all aligned.


Placing lengthwise hull stringers symmetrically on both sides of the keel provides a reference.  This lets me align the ribs perfectly with each other and with the lines of the boat.

Basically that means adjusting where the ends are clamped until both sides are symmetrical and each rib is in line with the ones in front and in back.  Of course, tweaking one often means you have to tweak the ones next to it and the ones next to them and...  It takes a while.

  
Once they are all in final position, a hot-glued gauge made from rib scraps makes it easy to mark where to cut each rib.


66 ends to cut.

 
The ribs line up nicely with the stringers.

Whew!  It is starting to look really boat-like.


What will I do with all those cut ends?  Obviously, a quick game of Jenga!  If I pull this one will they all fall down?


Before moving on, let's take one art-shot up the middle, just for fun.

Ok, Next up is working on the complex "bifid" bow.  There are two separate bow pieces, upper and lower.


The upper half of the split bow notches into the gunwales in front of the bow block.

  
The first half is hand-drawn to fair nicely into the gunwales and into the curve at the tip.  Then careful measuring makes the 2nd half exactly match the first half.

From this angle it looks like a platypus.


A slim strip left from cutting ribs makes a nice bendable guide for making clean curves.

 
Swap a 1/4" blade into the band saw so it can make tight curves and then cut out the top of the bow.. Using a spoke shave and chisel, clean up the saw marks and slant the edge to match the slant of the gunwales.

The rest of the pieces for the top are simple to cut.  Then chamfer the edges with the spoke-shave and chisel.


Finally, glue the whole top bow up with waterproof epoxy.  Some creativity is required to put pressure in all the required directions while the glue sets.  (The bow is upside down on the bench, in case that isn't obvious).

Now for the bottom half of the bow.  The bottom of the bifid bow swoops up in front of the top half - but to do that I need a wider piece of wood than I have.


So peg and glue an extension.  This piece will become the bottom of the bow and also the forward third of the keel.

However, now it's gotta sit until the glue sets.

If you're having a hard time seeing how all these pieces come together, you're not alone.  It will all become clear next time!