Planking continues and Episode 8 of Carvel Planking: The Planking Process hits the airwaves.3/31/2020 Only a few more planks to go and I'm at the level of the lower sheer, that is, before the raised deck section. Before the Covid-19 lockdown I went out to Smithy's Boatshed West where the timber is stored and machined up all the remaining Huon Pine planks. Of the 2 cubic metres I bought in 1983 I have just two planks left over. I'm lucky I was really careful in selecting each plank as I progressed. As almost all planks were scarfed I had to stagger the scarfs so that they didn't all gather in one area. The rule that I used is the same if I had used butt blocks: leave three frame bays between scarf joints in adjacent strakes, and three clear planks between scarf joints in the same frame bay. So I planned out the locations of scarfs to best use the timber lengths that I had, so that there was very little wastage. I also machined up the Spotted Gum for the sheer clamp which runs along the lower sheer on the inside of the ribs and the sponsons which run along the outside at that level. I now have enough material on hand for a good few months work. Hopefully the world will be in a better state by then. The sheer clamp will need steaming, and I will do that once the sheer planks are in. The Spotted Gum has some beautiful fiddleback pattern and I will be varnishing this where it appears in the cabin. I filmed much of the sequence of fitting a couple of planks and have put it together in the video below. Please keep in mind that there is more than one way to approach carvel planking and I have presented what has worked for me over a long career. I have already been attacked by some fundamentalists who feel that the way they do it is the only right way. I have added a painting of the original Ranger by Ian Hansen to the RANGER CLASS Page. This painting hangs on Bill Gale's wall.
2 Comments
|
AuthorIan Smith, Boatbuilder (ret'd) Archives
January 2024
Categories |