after having built the hull to the point of installing a breasthook, I am considering adding spacered inwales. but the angle of the breasthook and the angle of the mast thwart (each in relation to the adjoining inside of the hull) is less than 90 degrees. (I understand that most people tht intall inwales put a different breasthook in but that doesnt seem to solve the thwart issue) so where the inwales will abutt the knees and the bresthook the inwales will not be flush. I can remedy this in two ways as I see it, I can intall the inwlaes at 90 degress and then plane down the tops of the inwales once installed to taper to those angles so they are flush where they meet.
But the other way that seems neater would be to rip a bevel into the spacer wood before i cut them up, using a table saw set with the very sight angle off 90 equal equal to what I need. then cut each spacer from that stock. that way the spacers will set up (along with the inwales) at an angle which will match the top of the thwart knees and breasthook. I am guessing that there is one angle which will work for the knees and the breasthook since they are pretty close. it doesnt seem critical to me that the angle will need to match any other place along the rails. I was going to just measure the angle at the breasthook and knees facing square and inside from the hull sides. Lets say that is 86 degrees. then I will set the table saw at 86 degrees too. right?
Does this make sense? has anyone else done this or see another way? any problems i should anticpate?
Another dory builder and I were discussing this and we both thought it easiest, and would look fine, to simply sand down the tip of the inner rails to kill into the breasthook and knees (knees have same issue). Also I wanted the inner rails to be flat to the outer rails. As you look around and find pictures of other dorys I think most builders do the same thing.
Coincidentially I glued in the inner rails in my dory this week and purposely clamped the end of the inner rail down a little and the inner block a little below that...and then sanded the two to align to the breasthook and knees. It worked great...Be careful when you sand the tip of the rail sticking up where it kills into the breasthook because the breasthook is plywood..dont want to eat into that and expose a layer in the plywood. Here are some pictures you can look through.
https://picasaweb.google.com/114717787929554738224/BuildingWoodenBoatCLCNortheasterDory?authkey=Gv1sRgCKCBzczm_aKs2wE#5993083179265338642
Curt 830/997-8120
thanks for that input, and especially the pictures, which help a lot.
As a follow up, I am frankly somewhat intimidated by the joining of the rails into the bresthook and knees. I havent done the "kills" thing before. do you have any tips on doing that? it looks like the sort of project that you only get one shot at and have to get it right up front. Did you make a template and use that for both peices to join them?
your overall rails look great by the way, hope mine turn out as well.
David
thanks, that makes sense. just scared I guess and I have to just forge ahead. Which is sort of th ewhole point to taking on a boat building chalenge in the first place. my email is dfabbott@earthlink.net and would greatly appreciate the tips you have accumulated.
David
I routed outed the outwales to ride over the plywood edge so was able to continue part of the inwale over the breast hook. This kept the surface flat. Hopefully the pictures posted and make this clear.
Barry
wow, that looks sharp, but will have to wait to do that on my second boat, since my gunnels are already attached on this one. I have only just started to figure out what my router can do, so many things are doable suddenly that are more professional looking.