Hi All,

I am in the initial stages of making a Guillemot - forms, strongback, cutting strips, excreta.

I would like to get some comments about stapleless construction. I know it can be done - I am trying to decide if, for my first stripper, I should attempt this construction or not.

Putting in staples to hold the wood in position for 30 minutes while the glue sets and then having to remove them - leaving all those holes - is something that I would rather avoid if there is a practical alternative.

I was thinking of using 2" binder clips to keep the strips aligned between stations. To keep the strips tight and against the forms, some sort of clamping or "hold down" (elastic cord or rope & weight) at each station.

Regular glue with strategically located dabs of hot-melt glue for the main construction and maybe some 5-minute epoxy for the higher stressed areas. Might even resort to some steam bending to pre-shape some of the "extreme strips".

I recently saw an advertisement for "90-second epoxy" that I have to look at - might be real useful in stressful situations.

I'd appreciate you sharing some of your experiences - positive or negative on stapleless construction.

Thanks

Hank