: So next time I'd use heat gun (which, by the way, was a fantastic
: way to bend ash to make the external stem) or use cheater
: strips.

: Cheers, Ian

Thanks for the response Ian. Today I put another strip on and used a heat gun to bend and twist the angles at the stern and while I was at it I helped the bow along to for good measure.
The heat gun really is the answer and until I goofed the last two strips ( got lazy and just put them on with no heat) I was using the heat gun for every strip. After this last lesson I will be using the heat for All the strip even if the bend is minor. I believe it was Rob Macks that says if you can't hold the strip where you want it with a spring clamp then you shouldn't hope your staple will.... or something like that.

Anyway a lesson learned thanks again to everyone for the advice.
Dave.