Shaping the inner stems

[Lisa in BC]

So I can't quite help myself and have started Kayak #4. On my previous kayaks I have shaped the stems as I stripped the boat. I'm thinking about shaping the whole inner stems before I start stripping this time, hoping that it will make the process go faster. I am wondering what the majority of boat builders do in terms of strip ahead or as you go.

Any thoughts?

[TC in Twin Lake 1]

Unless you build the same boat over and over again I think it would be very difficult to hit the rolling bevel required as you near the keel. I don't know if this is true for kayaks but it is true for the canoes I build. I vote for shape as you go. I do get it pretty close to begin with and then touch it up that last little bit with a spoke shave and a very sharp chisel. I found this works the best for me.

[Bryan Hansel]

I vote to leave the inner stems out. You don't really need them. Just bevel the edge of the stem form and lay strips directly against it.

[BearLeeAlive]

Bryan, am I right to assume that you could not use a staple-less method to do this, as some kind of fastener would be needed to hold the strips to the stem mould until the outer stem is installed.

And in gluing on the outer stem, what do you do to stop the stem from adhering to the form? Just use some kind of tape on the exposed part?

[Bryan Hansel]

I'm sure you could use a staple-less method. I'd probably do the stem like Gilpatrick during the build and then cut it back to add the outer stem. There's probably other ways too.

To stop the stem from sticking to the form, you just use tape in exactly the same way you do on the other stations.

Here's a few pictures. I build with staples, so you'd need to vary your methods for staple-less.