(Entry 8) What did you do today?

Ladies and Gentlemen, I'd like to welcome a wonderful lady by the name of Curvy to the stage.  Well, she is coming together as you can clearly see.  I've got all the stringers on this end of the canoe cut and glued up, it was a bit of an adventure.  Again, the instructions from the "how-to" manual are extremely vague and disappointing, or maybe they're great and I just forgot how to read.  Either way, I winged it all today.  I don't have the slightest clue as to what I'm supposed to be doing, I just know what I want her to look like and that is what is driving me.  I'm a little scared, I won't lie.  The stringers are now glued into place on this end, on the other end they are full length and still need cutting and gluing.  What happens when I rush it and cut a stringer short?  Whoo waa!  Roasted marshmallows Batman, that's what happens.  Either way, I'm impressed with the way she has turned out so far.  It has been an exciting experience thus far, and I'm sure it will continue right on through to the bitter end.

I need to go to a lumber yard tomorrow and get some "green" lumber (freshly cut from the tree, not air or kiln dried) for the ribs.  I would have purchased the rib material sooner if I had known I'd be at that stage of the build already, it has gone pretty quick.  I shouldn't get too excited about ribs and such, as I still have a days worth of work to do before I can start laying them in, and who really knows what types of mistakes can happen due to my craftsmanship before then.  

 I will also have to have cut the piece that will make up the "cut-water" (The strip of wood that will go on the bottom of the boat from one end to the other, after the Dacron has been applied...It will help protect the covering, plus it will help the boat cut through the water and track straight).  It needs to be cut from the green material also and shaped prior to putting on the covering, so I can attach it with clamps until it holds the shape of the stem.  Once it holds shape, it will come off and it will get set aside until the boat is done, it is the final piece.

I'm actually very excited, once I get the stringers glued in and the ribs set, I can take the boat off of the molds and finally flip her over.  So, until next time...Cheers!