Breaking the Mould

Today was a big day. John removed all the strategic screws from the pram and when son Ben came over late this afternoon, we lifted her off the building jig and turned her over. In this view of her bow, you can see her laminated fore keel, bow transom, garboard, middle and shear planks. There are also quite a few epoxy rundowns that I am going to have to figure out how to remove before painting.

Below you can see the laminated midships frame and the stern transom with the bottom and planks attached. We have elected to keep the cross piece attached to the midships frame thinking it will add some strength to the midships section when we are bending the oak rub rail onto her. We have read one blog which suggests that there is a little tendency for the pram to reshape under the pressure of the oak rails. He even went so far as to create his own steaming system so he could bend the oak to fit the boat. We don't think this is going to happen, but the cross piece will help to make sure it doesn't.