: I am about ready to start building an OI (my first boat)....will be ripping
: strips soon(Northern White & Western Red Cedar). After reading many
: posts and books it seems that it might be an advantage to use a hard wood
: for the sheer strip. I really don't know for sure.

: I plan to try a stapleless approach, and figure that a hardwood strip might
: hold up better with the extensive use of tape/clamps. Before starting to
: rip, I would want to buy a hardwood plank if needed.

: As I nearly finish building my workshop and sawhorses, the apprehension about
: the importance of the form setup has grown. However, I keep learning more
: and getting more encouraged each day as I read the posts...thanks to all.

: I would really appreciate any thoughts/suggestions about the choice of a hard
: or softwood sheer strip.
: Bob

Hi Bob,

I am stripping my first boat, but my vote is yes for a hardwood starter strip. Someone mentioned a couple of days ago that they were using mahogany and found that it took clamping without much damage. I am using walnut and found that it stands up to lots of taping and clamping much better then the cedar that only has tape or clamps on it once.

John