getting started

johnw · Post by **johnw** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 10:08 pm

I am new to this site and questions I ask may have been covered in the past. Please work with me!!

I've been reading Canoecraft for the past several years and am about to jump into the process of building. In the book it recommends 3/8 or 1/2 plywood for the moulds. I assume that would be the same for the stem moulds. When bending the stems after steaming and for gluing the book recommends using the stem moulds. The stem pieces are 7/8 wide, but the pics in the book show that the stem material is about the same width as the stem mould.

Should the stem mould be thicker than the other moulds?
Should a seperate mould be made for bending and gluing the stem?
I was thinking of putting the bow and stern moulds together to get a wider platform for the bending and gluing of the stems.

Thanks for any help
John

Glen Smith · Post by **Glen Smith** » Sun Oct 02, 2005 10:48 pm

Welcome aboard John. Molds can be made of just about any thickness of material and they don't have to be all the same as long as they are properly set up on the strongback. When it comes to stem molds, if they are any thicker than 1/2" you will be cutting into them as you shape the bevel on the inner stems.

For bending the stems, joining the two stem molds together sounds like a great idea, as long as you are building a symmetrical boat. I suggest you make the stem laminations a bit longer than needed then cut them to size after the laminations have been glued together. Don't forget to make the outer stems about 1" shorter than the inner stems at the keel end. At the other end, if the inner stems extend a bit beyond the sheerline, you can drive a screw through this extra portion to hold the inner stems on the molds so you won't have a clamp in the way during the shaping and stripping process.

johnw · Post by **johnw** » Mon Oct 03, 2005 11:29 am

Glen: Thanks for the prompt reply.
I'm sure I'll have more questions over time.

John

Its Me · Post by **Its Me** » Mon Oct 03, 2005 1:16 pm

My stem molds were 3/4" and my stem pieces were 7/8". The over lap was some what of an advanatge in that I added clamps sideways to keep the edged perfectly aligned. I would think that a 1.5" mold might make it harder to keep the 7/8" laminents aligned.

Glen Smith · Post by **Glen Smith** » Mon Oct 03, 2005 6:06 pm

To It's Me: this difference can be overcome by screwing some short vertical scraps of wood to one side of the doubled-up forms, then using small blocks of wood and clamps to pull the laminations aligned against the vertical pieces. All of the parts should be covered with clear packaging tape so they don't get glued to the stems.