Barnacle Jim

Hi Konrad, We laminated the sole for our Vacationer/Friendship Sloop. For added strength we also used scarf joints (cut across an 8 foot span). I did have some doubts about the project when we began, yet everthing turned out ok. The plywood laminate was 8 x 20. We used epoxy as an adhesive, not only for its strength, but also for its gap-filling properties. Here is a picture of the joint. The wood on top is a hickory stringer.

Hi Pushboater, We used hickory for our stingers. Its properties make it both tough and pliable. As a result, none of our stringers are kerfed. The cost was in the range of what you might pay for pine. Hickory is a hard wood and needs the right size pilot holes for screws. Otherwise, the screws will simply break, and hickory will laugh you to scorn. Here's another picture, taken from the opposite direction.