Starting the build: the transom

Since this is the first time I embark on a woodworking project this size I start at the easy end, the stern, where the transom and cockpit frames are stiffened by full plywood bulkheads - less chance for a screw up if my first glue-ups are not up to par. It seems there definitely is a learning curve involved in gluing wood with epoxy, even if you do your research beforehand and follow accepted best practice.

Anyway, the first thing to do is to prepare a lofting table surface, draw a grid and put the frame shapes on it. The table is made out of the largest MDF board I could find in the area: 250x122cm, a bit too small for the 2 largest frames, so it is augmented by a smaller piece of MDF on one side.

And the finished product:

I guess unless you have the design printed (which I think would have been a good idea, but I could not find an affordable way to have this done in my area) the only remark is: be precise when drawing. Any error here will propagate in probably the most unexpected ways :)

After that the procedure is well known and well documented on other people's blogs (including the Contructor's), cut the wood to the dimensions specified in the design and lay them on the lofting table:

Part 2 is cutting the gussets (from plywood) and preparing everything for gluing. The gussets here are only there on one side since is the transom and will have one side completely closed by a sheet of plywood. I've probably cut them a bit too large creating moisture traps, I will deal with that later.

The frame parts are fastened to the lofting table using screws - something a lot of people have been doing. It felt a bit uncomfortable to me, so for the other frames I used a different technique which will be visible later on.

After applying epoxy to all relevant surfaces the gussets are held down in place using stainless (A4 or 316 SS) wood screws.

Sometimes the simplest of tools are the best way to go to clean up excess epoxy (after is has cured that is)....

After preparing the other side the transom was finished at home where the glue could cure in slightly warmer conditions (it was already october or november). Since I was going to build through the winter as much as possible, a part of the living room was repurposed as frame storage where the glue could set and cure during the winter months. 

Now on to the next one...