We have spent a good deal of time discussing how we would make the two laminated pieces that make up the forekeel and midships frame. Last week, I traced and cut out the plywood form that we would use to bend our laminated forekeel. We fastened that piece to a board with small blocking pieces between the form and the board. The end result looked like the picture below.
Then we cut out the 1/8" strips that we would be gluing together with epoxy. John had brought up two short 3" boards made of Douglas Fir from the mill and we reduced these to mostly sawdust while making our strips. The resulting pile of strips is in the picture below.
We used West System epoxy and hardener. I spread the epoxy on the strips, both sides, and John fit them on the jig. We were aiming for a laminated piece that was 2-1/4" thick. It took us 17 strips to accomplish this thickness. The forekeel will remain clamped together until the epoxy has hardened and then will be sanded and shaped to the proper thickness and dimensions.
It feels good to have the first laminated piece done and now we have a system in place to do the midships frame. The strips for the midships frame are longer and won't be as easy to saw, clamp or glue but we have this one under our belts and have a little more confidence about what to expect at least.
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