Sportfisherman 26 Strip Cedar Skin

The strip cedar topside skin of the new 26ft sportfisherman is progressing. The tactic of starting at the level of the aft sheer and running that first strip along the path of least stress seems to have worked out. The strips above and below the first one have been relatively easy to fit, each epoxied and nailed to the previous strip with plastic nails fired in with a pneumatic nailer. A few temporary screws with fender washers were used to hold them at bulkheads and ends until the epoxy had cured.

Fitting the strips is a two-person job, in the interests of getting each strip neatly into position with the glue in the joint where it is needed rather than creating a mess with it where glue is not wanted. Kevin's help came from his dad for a few days and from wife Michelle whenever needed.

After working upward to where further work had to wait for construction of the chine flat, they  continued down to skin the flare, from the bow through to the break in the sheer.

Port side of the flare skinned

My job was to prepare the outer edge of the plywood bottom panels to match up to the chine flat. For most of the length this is a simple matter of shaping the edge to a vertical surface for the rectangular chine strip to butt up against. In the bow this detail has to change because of the much steeper slope of the bottom panel. The vertical edge doesn't work, so a rebate must be formed for the chine strip to fit into, with the bottom skin overlapping over the top of it.

I chose to cut the rebate into the edge of the plywood with hand tools. I could have formed it with a router and edge guide, then planed the edges of the chine strip to fit but I wanted the rebate to have horizontal and vertical faces to match the square edges of the chine strip. Each side took a few hours with chisels, mallet, Shinto saw rasp and a bit of help from a rip saw to cut the top edge once the basics of the rebate had been started with the chisels.

Rebate to receive the chine strip, from bow to Station 1. The bulkhead in the photo is at Station 0.

The vertical edge of the plywood bottom, changing to a rebate in the bow.

The first chine strip dry-fitted to check the fit.

Now the hull flare has been skinned both sides, and the first strip of the chine flat glued in both sides. The chine gives more definition to the hull and it is starting to look really good.

First chine strip in place both sides, giving more definition to the bottom shape.

The cleat that will form the landing for the wet deck was fitted next. It fits into pre-cut slots in the edges of the bulkheads and the hull skin will be fitted over the outside.

The strip between the chine and the top of the cedar strips is the landing for the wet deck, slotted into the bulkheads.

The flare all skinned. The sheer won't be trimmed until the hull has been turned upright.

The second strip of the chine flat must be fitted and trimmed, then the skin will be completed by my next post. Watch for it after next weekend.

This design is not yet complete, so is not on our pricelist or website. See previous posts on this blog about the 26ft Sportfisherman for more info. See our full range of designs on our main website or our mobile website.