It works like this, Bill. The canoes were built with strips. Full length strips. Unfortunately 80 years ago no epoxy and no glass. What to do,what to do? I've got it we'll clinch nail the boat together. All the big stripper boats, of which there were hundreds of examples, are clinch nailed. Why not our boat? But what will we nail the strips to? Well all the big stripper boats nail their strips to steamed ribs. Why can't we do that too?
You get the picture, Bill? There were stripper skiffs before there were stripper canoes. These stripper skiffs were made from large thick strips that were edge-nailed together. When the strips were all assembled steamed ribs were inserted and clinch-nailed. Without a lot of steamed ribs to hold the strips into place you had a limber pile of sticks. No steamed ribs, no clinch nails no boat.
The problem with stripper canoes was the strips were too small for edge nailing so the ribs were clamped onto a mold and the strips were nailed to the ribs. The lack if edge nails necessitated something to keep all the strips in line so the strips were ship-lapped.
That's the story, Bill, whether you believe it or not. I think I got all this information from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association. If you want to do battle with them be my guest.

: Technically that's not a stripper. A strip built boat, canoe/kayak
: or whatever has it's strength in the strips which eliminates the
: need for lots of frames. Having lots of frames means it's
: conventional construction of some sort, not seeing the boat, or
: the book for that matter (though I've looked thru the book in
: bookstores) I can't tell for sure what construction method it's
: done with. Sounds like it's built like a traditional canvas
: covered canoe without the canvas, which can be done but it's
: hard to keep it waterproof. Might be built like an Adirondack
: guide boat.

: Bill H.