After a delayed start and along with the help of Ron and Chuck (our dads), we were able to rip down the trunk of an Ash tree (thanks Tom and Sandie Fish!) that Greg felled the previous day. The original Oak ribs we had been soaking and tried steaming on two previous occasions only yielded 8 ribs and so after nearly a week and a half of our kayaks going untouched we decided to try our luck with totally "green" wood.
After ripping them to size, they went into a hot water bath for the time being. From there we plucked one at a time, measured it to fit a given set of mortises and placed it into the steam box.
One at a time they came out and got bent into place, clamped, and started to dry.
After setting for a bit, we marked our cuts on each one to fit exactly, quickly removed and made the cuts, then shaved of the ends slightly and put them back into place.
We still had broken ones, especially as you work down towards the bow and stern where the bends get a lot tighter. None the less, we were impressed with the capability of our Ash to actually make those bends.
Time Spent Today: 8 hrs
Total Time Spent: 48.5 hrs
What's Next: Finish the ribs, then lash them to the keelson.
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