Feckin Notches.....

So, the fabricated batten is done, and planed, and seems to be just fine. Time to start on fitting the battens.

There are 6 battens, and they have to be fitted at 4 frames, and the transom. That's 30 notches.

And the battens all have to be in the same plane. Right, no problem.

I started with by setting a marking gauge to the thickness of a straight beam, plus the batten. Then I placed the beam across the keelson and the chine, and marked the frames with the gauge. So far so good. Then it's a simple matter of running a saw across it a few times, and chipping out the waste with a chisel. Fine, except this is Oak, and Epoxy Soaked Ply, and did I mention there are 30 notches to cut.

I have one batten fitted all the way to the forward frame, at that point I need to taper the thickness so it will bend a little at the bow, but now I am thinking of how to speed up the show a little.

I'm thinking that if I get a Long straight router bit, and make up a guide that won't flex or bend, then if I set the bit depth to the thickness of the guide + my batten, I should be able to cut the notches in a morning. Of course, adding power tools does allow you to mess up faster 8-)