That is a very good idea about pre-clamping the sheets, thanks for sharing!

: My method.

: Support the ends that you want to feather with a good hard straight flat
: piece of board. Clamp well and plane all in one go to ensure a common
: bevel to all planks. As long as the ends are supported well and clamped
: well the rest of the ply sheets can be held up any old way, Preferably
: rising above table level rather than falling. This ensures tht the layers
: of ply are nicely compressed at the cutting edges. USE A VERY SHARP PLANE.
: (pic below)

: For gluing up. Once again, concentrate on supporting the joins for a number
: of feet on each side of the join very well and very flat. Set the joints
: up perfectly, one above the other (no glue at this stage). You can glue
: them all in one go.

: Now clamp the boards firmly (G cramps Not Spring clamps) both sides of the
: joint but about THREE FEET back from the joins on each side. This allows
: you to separate (raise) the ends of the ply planks (eg: with lengths of
: strips on edge or some such) enough to enable you to apply glue and wax
: paper as necessary to all the scarfs without having to readjust the planks
: once glue has been applied. Simply remove the spacers and allow the planks
: to fall back into their perfect alignment on the table.

: Then choose a plank with a little natural warp in it and clamp it bowed side
: down accross the joint. I then add an old battery from a lorry to add
: preassure.

: NB it is important to clamp the planks AT THE POINT MENTIONED IN CAPITALS
: ABOVE well. If these clamps are not tight the scarfs will slide away from
: each other under preassure when they are lubricated by wet glue. You may
: not notice this as there will be wax paper and glue squeeze out hiding the
: view.

: Try to judge your glue right. Using too much glue will just require extra
: sanding afterwards of your already flat planks. DON'T FORGET YOUR WAX
: PAPER OR PLASTIC SHEET! between boards and the table etc.

: I am sorry I do not have a pic of the glueing lay up. Next time I will take
: one.