Joining two halves

At last, we joined the second and third float hull halves together today.  Here I am next to my magnum opus.  Looks like I used too much glue and got my hand stuck to the hull.  No that would never really happen ... really!  Actually, the joining process went pretty smoothly.  Here you can see a few spring clamps and ply squares with screws holding the stern keel seam together.

The aft keel seam from a slightly different angle.  We didn't really clamp the seam together except on the extreme forward and aft ends.  Most of the length of the keel, the ply squares just keep the seam aligned with the frame.  That way any variations in the seam prep can fill in with the epoxy filler mix and keep the overall shape more true to the design.  The seam lines up nicely once the squares are in place to counter the springy-ness of the hull half.

Here's a broader view of the keel viewed from the bow end.  And there's the ever lovely Catherine.  Again you can see we used about a thousand wood ply squares and screws to hold the keel seam together while the epoxy cured.  The temperature is about perfect in the 70's (F not C!)  So the epoxy on the seams took a few hours to kick, which gave us time to apply the epoxy and secure the seams.  Dawna and I spent about two hours gluing the halves together.  Dawna used a zip-lock bag with a clipped corner to apply a bead of epoxy and filler along the seam, like decorating a very crunchy cake.  She wetted the seam on top and bottom with straight epoxy first to ensure good adhesion with the filler.

The deck seam was made even by installing wood bumpers along the edge of the seam prior to gluing.  The top half tends to spring out, so the bumpers hold it in line with the lower half.  I used packing tape to epoxy proof the bumpers prior to gluing, which worked well.  The straps are mostly being used to pull the deck seam in line at the bulkheads, rather than clamping the halves together.  You probably noticed we cut the deck openings prior to gluing, at least the upper half of each opening.  The forward and aft most openings will be filled after completing interior joins, but the big hole in the middle and three round holes are for access ports in the finished hull.

Catherine is checking out the interior space and admiring her parents' handy work.  We now have to do all of the interior joins along the keel and deck seams, as well as the bulkhead joins to the lower half through these holes.  I will cut out the lower half of the openings after the seams cure to give us a little more room for access.  Nonetheless, trying to make a perfect fillet through a 6 inch diameter hole is bound to be a challenge.  More fun to come ...