Penobscot 14: 3. Planking

To scarf the planks, I built this scarfing fixture using a router. The cardboard that is duct taped in place to the hold down clamp, helps to contain the chips from the router.
(More details on the scarf jig are shown on the "TIPS AND TRICKS" page.)

Here is a view with the router in place. I used a clear plastic sled attached to the router so that I could see through to the piece being scarfed. Note the Shop Vac nozzle screwed and taped in place at the end of the scarffing fixture. This helped to keep the chips to a minimum.

Here is a close up of a finished scarf.

Here is the scarfed plank once removed from the scarfing fixture.

This view shows the making of a paper pattern that I would use to get a rough outline for a plank. I would trim the paper to the rough plank shape as indicated by the pencil lines that are on the paper. I would then use the paper pattern to mark my plywood planking stock. This allowed me to use the planking stock as economically as possible. I used the paper pattern for both the port and starboard side planks.

This is a close up of the small section of plastic notched trowel that I used to evenly spread the bead of epoxy that I applied to the stringer using the plastic sandwich bag as a "pastry bag" applicator.

Putting on the 2nd plank.

These are the tools needed for cleaning up the epoxy glue.

Rubber gloves, popsicle sticks, denatured alcohol, paper towel squares, and recycled cardboard pizza shell rounds. I get the cardboard rounds at my local recycle dumpster.

The cardboard in the background shows a small sandwich bag with epoxy in it. I used this kinda like a pastery bag to evenly dispense the epoxy. The small white thing is a cut off piece of plastic trowel used to spread flooring adhesive. This worked great to evenly spread the epoxy on the stringers. (See details on the "TIPS AND TRICKS" page.)

I used System Three- T88 structural epoxy.

This is the only shot that I have showing a gain at the bow. Note the LED flashlight that I used to light up the interior bow area when cleaning up the glue.

Rather than using screws to hold the bottom of a plank to the stringers at this stage, I used spring clamps. This minimizes the amount of screw holes in the stringers by about half.

Clamping everything in place while the epoxy cures.

Lots of spring clamps!

Home made clamps at a scarf joint.

These are the tools that I used to cut the bevels and the gains in the planks. The plane is a 1939 Stanley skewed blade low angle No. 140. I owe a lot to this wonderful tool. I also used a couple of chisels and a back saw while cutting the gains. I tried a rebate plane, but didn't have much luck with it.

While trimming the edge of a plank with a flush trim bit in the router, I used this milk jug attached to the end of the Shop Vac hose to suction up the debri.