Finishing off the flare forms

Today's task was to figure out how to finish off the flare forms. These are the series of quadrilateral shapes that really define the shape of the hull. I made the tops of them the other day (those are the beveled and notched boards). Now we have to make the sides and the bottoms.

First order of business of the day was to brace the strongback so it couldn't wobble from side to side. Everything we are doing here is about making things level and plumb, so its imperative that the strongback be plumb. A stringer is in order here.

If you're like me and have forgotten all your trigonometry, the internet is there to rescue you. Just go to http://www.csgnetwork.com/righttricalc.html and it will calculate all your angles for you. Easy peasy.

Each of the flare forms starts with the piece I shaped the other day. The next step is to make sure the flare form is correctly positioned relative to the strong back in every direction: Square, plumb, level.

I started out getting it square. What I found was that each form is going to tend to be off in one direction or the other, so screwing a block on the appropriate side, then screwing the flare form to it, is a good way to get is close. The block also establishes that the side of the form is plumb.

Next we want to make sure the form is square to the strongback, and that it will stay square. These braces do the trick. What I did was to hold it in place and sink one screw. Then I could make final adjustments to the position of the form (getting it perfectly square to the strongback), then a screw on the other end. All the while, I'm holding a level on the top of the form. This is pretty much a three-handed job, but if you go slow everything will fall into place eventually.

Even with all that bracing in place, you can knock the form out of level if you aren't careful, so be careful.

The next step is to make the bottom of the quadrilateral and mount it into place. The Barlow plans give the required length of these forms (actually, they give half of the length of the bottom of the quadrilateral, so work it out from there). I cut a board to the width of the base of the jig, marked the center line point, and then measured out from there the required offset for the length of each side.

Getting this thing properly positioned is a tedious job. If someone knows a better way to do this, by all means let me know.

The plans call for the top of the bottom piece to be 24" below the top of the top piece, so I started by measuring that distance and making a mark on the stanchion. Then I used a clamp to position the board as close I could by eye. From here its just an iterative process....measure for level, measure for distance from the top board, measure the distance side to side to make sure they are equal. If you are off a bit, use a rubber mallet to tap the board a bit, then measure all over again. Eventually your taps will get lighter and lighter as the board gets closer and closer to being in position. When you finally have it correct, screw the board into the stanchion:

The screws will lock you in in terms of side to side and top to bottom movement, but the board can still rock out of level. To solve that, I made diagonal supports that attached to the jig:

Put one of those braces on each side, and your horizontal board is going to stay horizontal.

Next step is to position the sides to the quadrilateral. Here's a tip I figured out: If you are working single-handed like me, clamp a block of wood to the end of the board you just installed, making sure it is perfectly aligned to the line you marked earlier (the offset from the plans). This will make positioning the side much easier.

Next I cut a piece of 2x4 on an angle corresponding to the angle on the end of the flare form from the plans, and then clamped it into place. This is where the block comes in really handy. Crank the wood clamp on top down hard, and the piece will stay in place as you screw it in.

And presto! Now just do the other side, and you are done with that flare form.

At the end of today's session, I have two flare forms completed. I still need to go back and trim off the excess on the bottom piece (see how it sticks out beyond the side), but that will wait. I need to get some new, sharp blades for my Sawzall first.

Speaking of tools, this chop saw has been invaluable throughout this process. It cuts all these angles with ease and accuracy. If you are going to start a project like this, I highly recommend you get a good chop saw (including a stand with extension arms) as your first step. I promise you won't be sorry.

For now, I am almost out of wood and deck screws, and am certainly out of gumption for the day, so I'll pick this back up next week.