Two at a Time I worked with two planks at a time. Both planks, once bent to the correct shape on my "plank bender", were pinned in place overnight (one per each side) with large pins and then in the morning when dry, they have taken the shape of the hull. Then they were glued on with carpenter's white glue. I was surprised that it was such a slow process. Soak and form a plank on each side in the evening, glue and clamp them the next morning before going to work. So every day I only moved down 5mm on each side. Click Once To Enlarge

Slow, Slow, Slow Here I am slooooowly working my way down the side of the hull. I maintained the "soak and form a plank on each side in the evening, glue and clamp them the next morning" routine every day for 45 days. Click Once To Enlarge

The "Bevel" As the planks have to lay flat against each other, the more curve the hull takes, the wider the gap becomes between the planks. Each plank has to have the correct "bevel" for the planks to lay flat against each other to make a tight fit. To see a drawing of a the plank bevel click Here

Finally, Something Different from Planks I used templates to ensure the correct location for the propeller shafts and cut slots into the hull to accommodate them. I could have done this later, but I needed to do something else during the planking. I used 9mm brass tube for the propeller shafts. Click Once To Enlarge

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Intro / Getting Ready / Cutting Stations / Gluing the Stations to the Keel / Planking / Bow & Stern / Catastrophe/ Casemates / Final Product