I bought a partially assembled Little Auk 10. This will be my first strip planked boat, but I’ve
built a Wood Duck, PMD, and Pocketship. The top deck was started but not to my liking so I’m going to redo that completely. The hull looks pretty good though. There were a few places where strip joints had separated but I’ve been able to glue them and pull them back into place. There is one bad spot though. Something has punched a hole in the hull. One strip is completely broken and the one next to it is banged up some . It may have happened when my trailer got rear ended on the drive home. Anyway, what’s the wisdom on fixing this? I’m not overly worried about the strip that’s banged up- I’m far from being a perfectionist. In particular I’m trying to figure out to make a clean cut to remove the broken strip.
hi Steve
i have repaired/replaced planks in strip build boats before. based on your picture it should be pretty straightforward.
my saw of choice for this kind of work is a razor saw. there are a couple variations but what they have in common are very fine teeth and very thin kerf (the blade metal is very thin).
it helps for these repairs to work slowly to remove the material in a clean line and at the edge of the board you are trying to remove (vs cutting into the adjacent board). a sample of a razor saw that could do the trick on clc’s site is at this link: https://clcboats.com/shop/products/new/4-in-1-razor-saw-set.html
to start my cut i will sometimes use a ruler to rest the blade against the cut line so as i work the saw into and through the strip it does not jump and cut where i don’t want it.
how far you cut will determine the length of the replacement strip…and is a bit of an artistic decsion.
while the razor saw if great for cutting along the length of the strip, a sharp point bonsai saw is most useful for the cutting the perpindicular. a pilot drill hole might be required to get that going.
once the bad strip is out, clean up the hole with a flat file and then carefully make any adjustments to your replacement strip to have a nice tight fit. glue in the replacement strip…and then sand/fare it in.
with some attention to the work, nobody will notice the repair except you.
h
A variation on Howard’s technique is to use a razor knife. It has a thinner kerf than a saw and when the wood is soft or thin or both it removes the need for drilling pilot holes. Don’t get me wrong, I love my razor saws and bonsai saw, but for really fine joinery I grab for a razor knife.
Whether it’s to lay out the initial cut, make a linear pilot hole to put the saw blade into or to perform the whole cut, it’s an extremely useful woodworking tool. It’s finer than any pencil line and the short blade gives me extremely accurate control, especially when guided by a steel rule.
Laszlo
Thank you both for the ideas! I guess I need a couple of new tools!
Laszlo, can you give me an example of a razor knife? I’m thinking of a couple things I might call a razor knife but I may be missing what you are referring to.
They’re also known as box cutters.
This one folds and is available at Home Despot and the like for the low teens.
There are simpler, non-folding ones, too. The blade is scored and snaps off when you need a replacement. The knives are cheaper but the blades more expensive. Amazon has them, as do brick & mortar stores.
This one’s also Amazon and has the simplest, most reliable design. It uses ordinary blades, no fancy scoring. But you do have to unscrew the halves to change the blades.
For whatever model you get, don’t forget to get lots of blades and change them often for peak performance.
Laszlo
Ah- ok - that’s what I was thinking of, but wanted to be sure! Thanks!!
I used the saws and the razor knife. I usually work in white oak, so the cedar is a whole different medium.
I’m reticent to post my fix as I am not a great wood crafter, but here’s how it ended up. I probably could have matched the color better, but it is what it is.
Every boat I build starts with the working name of ‘Good Enuf’.
Looks great 
Nice work!