: Hi everyone I have Mark Starr's book on Building a Greenland Kayak. In the
: book Mark uses forms to bend the ribs around before setting them in the
: Apummaqs or sheer pieces. I think this could be to help form the flat
: bottom in the ribs. My thought is could the ribs be laminated on these
: forms instead of steam bent. I wonder if I used 1/8" strips of ash
: would 2 be enough that is only 1 glue joint would it hold shape? Has
: anyone tried this? If the forms are all fair would that turn out ribs that
: were fair as well. Or should I just steam and save the glue for other
: parts. Thank you all for sharing your experience.
: Clayton P.

Certainly nothing wrong with steam bending, nor is there anything wrong with laminated ribs. Building over forms is common though with most boats other than greenland kayaks, they are the only craft I know of, off the top of my head, that have the ribs bent free hand. Even canoes ribs are normally bent over forms. It's done somewhat differently with larger boats, where the bulkheads are temporary and lengthwise temporary stringers are bent around those forms to get the hull shape, then the ribs are bent to fit tight to those stringers to get the rib shape.

There is a degree of spring back with any method of bent ribs, they are usually overbent do some extent then allowed to spring back to their final shape. Experiments are a good idea with either method so you have an idea what to expect.

This is one of the reasons why sawn ribs are fairly common, since they keep their cut shape.

But bending ribs can be fun, just don't rush. It's a time proven method and ends up with a very pretty boat regardless of how they are bent.

Bill H.