Feels like the first chine...

As you probably guessed from my paraphrasing the well-known Foreigner song, the "very first chine" is attached.

This, of course, is only part of a multi-stage process, since I am laminating the chines. Although it means a little more work, I'm glad that I decided to build up the chines from thinner laminations. It has made bending and twisting the mahogany VERY manageable, with no need for heating, steaming, or soaking the wood.

I'm also very pleased with how well the scarf joint is withstanding the bend.

Okay. On to the pictures:

I trimmed and beveled the front of the chine by clamping it against the side of the stem; using the stem as a guide, I hand-cut the front of the chine repeatedly until it fit the way I wanted it to.

Once that was done, I drilled the holes and screwed the tip of the chine into place. 

Notice the blocking that I screwed to the side of the stem in oder to help with placement. VERY helpful.

I was not happy, however, with the screws being this exposed between the chine and the stem. To remedy this, I initially attempted building a chine block. However, the fitting was very awkward, so I came up with a simpler plan.

Here, the chine is screwed into position at each of the frame joints.

Due to the sharp curve and twist at Frame # 5-1/2, I only used one screw. I didn't want to weaken the wood unnecessarily by drilling more holes than needed. This screw helps maintain the rather severe twist that the wood has to make at this joint.

Another view of the Frame 5-1/2 joint. Here, you can better see the beveled cut that I had to make in the frame in order to accommodate the necessary curve of the chine.

The bend at Frame #4 was easier. The lap joint construction of the frames provides plenty of options for drilling & attachment.

Joint at Frame #2.

Joint at the transom.

Overhang at the transom, before I trimmed it.

Close-up of the trimmed chine. I decided to use the piece I cut off to help with the fitting at the stem.

Back to that stem joint: I clamped the scrap piece against the inner surface of chine at the forward end.

Then, using the existing bevel cut as a guide, I cut the scrap piece to match.

Once that was done, I drilled through the second piece, using the first as a guide. Then, I screwed the whole thing to the stem.

Much better!

Here, you can see the hole in the back of the stem, where I attempted to attach a chine block. 

I sanded through the primer & scuffed the underlying epoxy roughly. This is in preparation for epoxying the chine into position.

The first layer of the starboard chine, permanently attached with thickened epoxy and 1-3/4" #10 bronze screws.

Springing the chine

With the starboard fairing being — somewhat — close to workable, I decided to start fitting the chine.

This involves beveling the notches in the frames, in order to maintain a fair curve of the chine and provide a solid fit.

Drawing the angle needed for a beveled cut in Frame #4.

I clamped a metal ruler in place to use as a guide for the cut.

Making the cut in Frame #4.

Chine fitting at Frame #4.

Notch in Frame #5-1/2 enlarged and beveled.

Forward fitting in Frame #5-1/2.

Aft fitting in Frame #5-1/2. It looks like I'll need to deepen the bevel on the forward side to allow the chine to seat fully into the notch.

The bend of the chine taking its basic shape.

A Scarf Is Born

My boy, who was all of 9 years old when I first became interested in boatbuilding, is now on the verge of turning 16. It's crazy, the way time just seems to rocket by faster and faster every year. As Ferris Beuller says, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

A few days ago, he & I went to see "A Star Is Born," directed by Bradley Cooper, and starring himself and Lady Gaga. Great movie.

And thus concludes my brilliant segue from my corny title to a messy scarf joint. 

Here we go:

Here are the two boards, each clamped firmly to the construction form so they won't move. In addition to that, I've used two large clamps, reversed as spreader bars, to maintain downward pressure on the boards to keep the joint aligned with the floor. Waxed paper is underneath the joint to minimize the mess.

The scarf joint is only 6 inches long (1/2" thick boards with a 1:12 ratio scarf). I clamped the whole thing together as firmly as possible with 5 bar clamps.

The squeeze-out of thickened epoxy made a heck of a mess. However, the joint is strong.

Here is the resultant 15' 6" board, loosely clamped in place. (Well, sort of.)

Here is the scarf joint, cleaned up a little bit, with some of the epoxy sanded away.

In Other News

Fairing. The process seems to never end. Currently, I'm close to flattening out the high spots along the inner batten on the starboard side (zones 1 and 2 on the graphic).