These are made from regular 2x6 lumber. It was something of a chore making them, mainly because everything about the shape of the boat comes down to how accurate they are. My scrap lumber pile now has two "duds" added to the mix.
Each flare form has a specific angle cut at the end, so I started out by cutting those using my chopsaw. Then I measured for length, and cut it square, making sure to allow for extra length. The reason for that is that the top of each flare form has to be beveled to correspond to the angle of the strongback at that particular point. By cutting them long, beveling them, and only then cutting to final length, I avoid the problem of the bevel cut spoiling the length.
This picture shows me cutting the bevel on the table saw:
After each flare form was beveled and then cut to final length, I needed to carve out a notch 1" deep and 6" wide in the top. This notch is where the keelson will rest during assembly.
I cut the notches on the table saw, holding bevel end flat to the table and eye-balling the board perpendicular to the blade. Two careful cuts (one at each end) then I just made repeated cuts until the remaining pieces were small enough to break off. Then I ran the piece side to side over the blade to clean up the bottom of the notch. It worked out pretty well:
Last step of the night was to cut notches in the bottom of the flare forms so they can sit on the strongback. I used the same procedure as the keelson notches. When it was all said and done, I dry-fit the whole business together. You can start to see the shape of the boat emerge here:
Next step is to cut notches in the strongback so that the flare forms rest inside of it. The idea is that the bottom of of the 6" wide notches will be flush with the top of the strongback.
Tomorrow I should be ready to start actually assembling the jig (assuming my daughter brings my drill back!!!)
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