Hi folks,
I’ve posted a few inquires over the past few months as I have tackled my 8'X4'pram (think of it as a short, fat, open decked, surf kayak). Mostly I have read the posting of others and tried to learn from their mistakes. Thanks much for all of your insight. However, it seems I have managed to make a number of the classic mistakes that include not ensuring that I was milling my strips to a smidgen over ¼” so the shoulder on the cove would be sturdy; and not seating the strips together as tightly as I thought I was and there are gaps in the bead and cove.
So, rather than a Viking burial or a contest with the local stray cats for moaning the loudest (that may have already happened) I am looking to you for confirmation of solutions that I have come across in this forum.

First, I have finished stripping and have planed the exterior to discover the various cracks and gaps that occur where the bead and cove are not fit tightly together. I have been cutting slivers and gluing them in place. Tedious, but it works. I am also aware of the various putty options and will probably use that also. My question is whether I should go ahead and sand the hull down before I finish filling? I am fearful that I will just open more gaps and have to start over again with the filling process.

Second, regarding sanding. I have a few places where dips or buckles have occurred because the hot glue or other stapeless method I was using did not hold. I am afraid that I will sand through if I try to get a completely fair surface (keep in mind that the inside of my hull will be very visible and I will need to take it down also). Should I go straight to a fairing board instead of an ROS and then hit the low spots with a small sanding block? Should I just go over the whole boat with the ROS first, taking care not to remove too much material and follow up with the fairing board?

Finally, I latched onto this project in lieu of a kayak due to space reasons and because I thought it might be a simpler project to learn stripping...HA! One thing I have learned is that due to the portly nature of this hull design, the strips have been put through a greater degree of bend and twist in a relatively short length (8’ or less) than a kayak hull. When the strips are bent the wood on the outside of the curve stretches while the inside compresses. When C&B are bent to this degree they seem very cantankerous and do not want to stay politely nested against the adjacent strip. For this reason I think I would attempt beveling on any future craft of this nature.

Your thoughts and insight are welcomed.
Tim