First canoe problems

[David B Smith]

I glued up a couple of strips a few days ago. Thought I had everything clamped well enough, but discovered this morning that one had twisted and separated. There is now a small gap, 1/8" at is widest and about 3 inches long. Any ideas about how to fix this without ripping off the strip?

Anything to help lower my blood pressure will be accepted. My son said to me after i found this latest unexpected setback, that working on my boat lately sure makes me angry.

Thanks

[Jim Creech]

This is a fairly easy repair.
1- Clean out the opening leaving one strip edge straight.
2- Shape a plug slightly oversize to match the gap opening. ( Try to match wood colour and grain as closely as possible)
3- Carefully bevel the opening about 5 degrees and bevel the plug to match until the plug fits flush .
4- Glue and clamp plug.
5- When dry sand smooth. Patch should be almost invisible.
This technique is often used to repair cracks in guitar tops and works quite well for damaged strip planks as well.

As for blood pressure and anger a good moaning chair and since of humor is a shop necessity. If you don't make a mistake then you are not doing anything.

[David B Smith]

Thanks, I will try out both suggestions.

[Mac McQuinn]

My take on this is a little different.
I'm concerned you will end up with a high spot which may come back to haunt you when you get towards the top (bottom of boat) to complete the bottom. Also if you finish this bright, your eyes will be drawn by the 1/8" higher strip.
Here's what I would do;

I'll assume you're running the 1st strips from bow to stern at widest point of canoe. Since the strips you put in place are now solidly attached to the forms, I would measure the total height of strips at a point where you know they are fully engaged. Mark this figure down and proceed to the problem area. Measure this to determine how much higher it is. I would then make a vertical cut in the strip at the middle of the gap which is twisted and raised, a thin kerf saw blade would be best. This cut should allow you to pull the strip down and clamp it to the already secured strips. Check the overall height to determine if it matches the figure you wrote down previously. If everything looks good, un-clamp it and wedge the strip upwards to add glue. Re-clamp to remove twist and pull into place. If hardened glue from previous installation is preventing you from pulling the strip completely into place, slide a Japanese saw blade horizontally into the slot and cut this away before gluing. Don't forget to glue and clamp the vertical cut you made earlier.

In order to not damage the cove or bead when clamping, put a 1/4" dowel in the cove and slide a block of wood with 1/4" slot cut into it.

Good luck and keep us posted.
Mac