Day 7: First Blood

So day 7 was supposed to be easy and a prelude to steam bending ribs tomorrow. Steam bending ribs is somewhat exciting (relatively speaking). Deck beams are not all that exciting on the other hand. But installing 5 deck beams was today's chore. Considering my Greenland yak has 8 or 9 deck beams, this was supposed to be easy. Instead it took all friggin day long.
One major difference between a canoe and a kayak is the lack of deck beams in a canoe. Usually there is only one deck beam called the thwart. The stems are heavily reinforced with a breast hook or a wedge to help the tips angle apart. Instead of the breast hook, I'm using two closely spaced deck beams to give it shape (along with the thwart). Being that this is my first canoe, I really hope this all works. Only when I take out the forms will I find out if it keeps its shape.
Installing deck beams if fairly strait forward but tedious. Each deck beam has two angles that need to match the gunwales. The first angle is the shape of the gunwales as they are close to each other at the tips and spread apart in the middle. This angle is achieved simply by tracing the gunwales on the deck beam. Flip the deck beam over and around and the line drawn on the bottom is now on top. The gunwales do not sit parallel to each other but instead spread apart such that the top of the gunwale is further apart than the bottom of the gunwale. I use a tool such as this to find the angle and trace it onto the deck beam. After that, its just a matter of making an accurate cut to make the deck beam fit the gunwales. Lots of words to describe this and lots of detailed work to make it fit perfectly.
To make the deck beams stay put, they get lashed and pegged. Pegging is strait forward. To lash it, I have figured out the most secure and tightest way is to drill two holes in the gunwale and saw two groves in the deck beams. Wrap sinew around the deck beam and gunwale and then pinch the sinew tight. The resulting lashing resembles and "H".
First Blood: In all my woodworking projects, bleeding seems to be a requirement before they get finished. While installing the thwart, I finally drew first blood. My pull saw is a very sharp saw and very good at making detailed cuts. When making detailed cuts, my hands are often a little too close the business side of the blade and cutting myself is quite common. I cut the tip of my finger and bled a small amount. Just enough to leave a few blood spots on the thwart. Now that I can check "bleeding" off the check list I hope I do not have to check "bleed again" off the check list.
Steam Bending: While this post is way too wordy, I might as well mention the next step of steam bending wood. When done correctly, its a miracle in woodworking science. When done incorrectly, its the most frustrating thing on the earth. The basic idea is that when heat is applied to wood, the chemical bonds that hold wood fibers together loosen up just enough to allow them stretch. Upon cooling, the bonds reform in their new positions and the wood is strong again. Steam is the most common way to apply heat to the wood. Certain woods bend better than others. Oak and ash are probably the best. My steam box is a PVC pipe and my steam source is a wallpaper steamer. While the wallpaper steamer is new, the PVC pipe is seeing its second action. Hopefully the revamped steam box will give me good results and I will create ribs, not firewood.
This post is definitely way too wordy but fits my day quite well... Way more complicated than I predicted.