Finishing the Gunwales

This week with the help of a 3 neighbors, I turned the boat over to begin working on the topside.  In the photos you can see where I have decided to try and "dress-up" the gunwales on each side of the boat.  Also you can see some peices of wood positioned diagonally in the bottom of the boat.  These peices are epoxied in place and will serve as the cleats for 3/4" wooden slats that will be the flooring in the boat.  This should only increase the weight of the boat by about 20-25 lbs. but I think it will really do alot for the appearance.  Just in case one may wonder---they are placed diagonally to keep any water from being trapped when the boat is tilted to drain.

Also, in case you haven't noticed...the boat is sitting on a cart/wagon that I built out of scrap wood laying around my garage.  It basically simulates a float-on trailer and has 6 wooden wheels (3 on each side) which allows me to roll the boat in and out of my garage while working.  Very handy and eliminates the need for saw horses and other help when trying to move the boat.  I would recommend something like this early on in your construction regardless of the style of boat you attempt to build.

So far I am very pleased with my progress during the last week or so.  This week I plan to get all of the wooden floorboards cut and finished.  The floorboards, rubrail, and gunwales will be stained and the remaining portions of the topside will be painted "san juan tan".  and of course the bottom is painted "hunter green".

I am anticipating a faster pace (in terms of finishing this) during the next couple of weeks.  Next weekend I will test the mast and begin addressing any rigging issues.