On Sunday afternoon a well-focused crew of boatbuilders added strips 21 and 22 to each side of our canoe Traveler. Jean-Noel and Nancy helped prepare and bend the new cedar strips which are bending wide as they begin to fill up the “football” in the center of the canoe. In addition, young Ish with help from Jennifer added some short strips to the upper parts of the bow and stern.
People have asked about the staples. We are using 9/16″ T-50 staples to hold the cedar strips to the sixteen “stations” and establish the form of the canoe. (Masking tape is used to temporarily hold strips together until the glue sets.) The staples will all be pulled before we sand the outside. After the sanding, a wash with water will cause the little holes to close up, and the epoxy resin coat will make them almost disappear.
