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Pinguino temporary frames set up for the "taping method"

Big steps today... I finished the Pinguino panels by beveling the edges of panels #4 & #5 where the hull/deck joint meets.

In the past I've used a router table to bevel the edges, but today I didn't have the energy to set it up so I used a new rasp I bought from Pygmy's East coast competitor Chesapeake Light Craft. It's called a "Shinto" and is made in Japan. It's made up of a number of saw blades and is pretty ingenious. You can find it on Amazon too.

After that I put the panels aside and set up the temporary frames using the spacers I cut on the table saw last week. Remember that when you use the "taping method" instead of sewing the hull together with wires, that you build the boat upside down over the temporary frames.


The official Pygmy manual that comes with your boat gives exact measurements for lines that you mark on the #1 panels (and #4 panels). You will need to also mark those same #1 lines on the table. Before marking them, make sure that you center the boat in your room and on your table such that you can walk around both ends as needed. 

To align the frames exactly you will need to cut spacers exactly the height that is specified by Pygmy in their "class manual". The class manual doesn't normally come with the kit and you have to ask Pygmy for the measurements of your specific boat's spacers. Below is a snapshot of the spacer dimensions, but please note that this is from several years ago and may have changed, plus several boat models have been added since.  (NOTE: When I made a Borealis a few years ago we discovered that the middle spacer would probably be better if it were 7.25" instead, but you should probably use the Pygmy measurements regardless...)

 
I was very careful to exactly mark the temporary frames just as specified in the "class manual". Then I carefully mounted them to the spacers, again just how the manual says. They were marked right down the center and then mounted to pieces of wood that were themselves screwed down to the table. 

In the picture below you can see that the frames were offset by 4mm so that the frames were actually directly over the lines that you mark on the table. 


When all done correctly, you should be able to sight down the three frames and see that the peaks of the frames (actually the keel... it's all upside down) line up. If they don't then go back and see where you might be off. Make any corrections you need to now because otherwise the boat will be twisted and warped! 



Phew! That's it for today, but the next step is a huge one... mounting the hull panels onto the frames using strapping tape and then epoxying the panels together. Yikes!



 Cheers!



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