Attaching the Coaming?

[Maria CS20 104]

Hey again to all. I have all my coaming parts cut and fitted in and am getting ready to attach to the carlin and forward deck beam. Any recommendations on attaching? My plan is to do the forward plates and work aft. Using thickened epoxy and once clamped into place I will screw in with 3/4 inch bronze screws. Weather is perfect, about 77 degrees. I am worried about making a mess as I will be doing this by myself. Input and advice appreciated.

Jim

[Ray Frechette Jr]

I usually soak the balanks for the curved parts overnight and then wrap them in bath towels and pour boiling water on them and let them sit in that for 20 minutes before beinding them and clamping them in place.

I then allow them to dry overnight before removing them and trimming the blanks to the right width and then I glue and install them in place.

[wkisting]

I dry-fit all the pieces, using clamps and the boiling water and towel trick Ray describes to turn the corners. Then I let everything settle and dry for a few days, clamped in place. When I got around to epoxying, everything had settled into nearly the correct shape, so it was very easy at that point to glue everything in place. I used no fasteners... just clamps until all was epoxied in place. I do recommend having a helper on hand if at all possible, just to help with positioning when the pieces are wet with epoxy. Also, lay plastic on the interior and mask around the deck to prevent any drips, etc. from causing unnecessary clean up work later.