Inwales

My first attempt at installing the inwales ended with a loud "crack" as the Douglas fir I had chosen gave up the ghost to a hidden knot. Upon further inspection, there were lots of little flaws in the wood that were bound to give me problems. So I went down to my local mega building-supply store and started picking through the lumber stacks. I decided to go with the Southern Yellow Pine that Graham had suggested in the first place (when in doubt, do not question the designer). I managed to find two very nice pieces with no visible knots or warping. I did notice right away that this stuff was much stiffer and heavier than the Douglas fir. I probably could have just forced the inwales into place, but after one round of cracked wood, I decided to play it safe and steam them first to help them ease into place. Plus, ya know, fire, steam, and lots of down time to drink beer? Sounds like my kind of project.


So first thing is to set up some kind of steaming box.















The observant among you may have noticed that my steam box is actually just a piece of PVC pipe. And you may also be asking yourself, "Hey, isn't that stuff gonna melt with all that heat?" Well, sure it is, but not before it does its job, right? Well, not exactly...

The pipe itself is easily up to the job of steaming for and hour or two, but it will get soft during that time. My tactical error was to only support the pipe in the middle, giving it plenty of leverage to bend down on the ends when we pulled out the first inwale. So the second inwale was a bit tough to jam in there, but we got it eventually. When it was all done, the PVC was pretty soft. I guess all it's good for now is cutting up for cheap clamps.

(It happens to every PVC pipe once in a while...)

So after steaming, the inwales bent into place without a peep. Then we clamped everything into place to let it cool and dry overnight.





It's true what all the pro boatbuilders say. You cannot have too many clamps. And those cheap PVC clamps are great for clamping over large areas. I use vice grips, hand clamps and C-clamps at all the critical spots, then use the PVC clamps in between those for even pressure. There are lots of other important tools required on inwale day. Can you spot the most important one?



Here, let me help you.



So the inwales rested overnight and by morning had taken on enough of the bend that it was quite easy to pull them out, lay down thickened epoxy, and set them back in place single-handed. They are setting-up now.

Next up, installing the transom and filleting and taping all the seams.

Thanks once again to Guy for all the help wrestling everything into place, and to Marie and Tracey for all the great pics.

More soon.