Redbird strip at inner stem

[WMegl]

I am laying the 14th,15th, and 16th strips on my Redbird and they seem to need twisted an excessive amount to match the surface of the inner stem. I can dry fit them, but I'm concerned the glue won't hold. Any comments? Thanks.

[Patricks Dad]

The Redbird does require quite a lot of twist in those strips. Some guys use water and a hot air gun to pre-bend them into submission making the stress on the clamping less severe. I found that if you leave the strips long enough, you can grab onto the ends and put enough twist in them long enough to let the glue set up (I've never needed to pre-bend strips for any canoe I've built - but the Redbird is among the most challenging in this respect). If you have a nice joint between the strip and the stem, once the glue is set, it will hold just fine. Subsequent strips will help also (and of course once glassed, you couldn't imagine a problem).

One approach (that I've used) is to put a clamp on the end of the strip, tie a cord around the farthest end of it (for the most leverage) and tie it off to some convenient place with a taut-line hitch to force the right amount of twist. It brings out your creativity if you wait until the glue is already applied and the strip is in place to start thinking about how to clamp it.

Just use your imagination for how you might get any given strip to behave. You can build any number of gadgets to help hold things in place long enough for a good glue joint to form. As Malcolm X used to say ("by whatever mean necessary").

Enjoy your build. The Redbird is one of the most beautiful canoes in the world.

[WMegl]

Randy: Thank you for your reply. I was preparing to wet the strips with warm water and then preparing a levered clamp just as you suggested. Great minds think alike! But, if the glue will hold, I may not go through the trouble. However, you have confirmed that I am on the right track. Thanks again. My Redbird is shaping up nicely.