: I asked this question in the “Strip: hand bevel vs b&c -
: opinions” thread, but rather than hijack that thread further I
: have started a new thread for this topic.

: Modern strippers are glassed for cross-grain strength. Many years
: ago the strips were edge-nailed and/or tacked or rivetted to
: ribs. I prefer not to glass my boats for various reasons that
: are not the issue here, but I still want to take advantage of
: modern methods and materials. I suppose a glass-free stripper
: could be made of ply, but that might be difficult and probably
: heavy.

: Has anyone tried gluing steamed or laminated ribs to the inside of
: the stripped hull to provide cross-grain strength? I have
: supplies of very flexible wood strips that I think could be
: inserted inside the boat after the strip build is completed.
: That would give it a fairly traditional look without the , time,
: work and weight of the traditional methods.

: I have found that 3 mm ply with an internal cross-grain element of
: around 1 mm makes an adequate hard-chine canoe without glassing.
: This suggests the rib thickness should average 1 mm. 3 mm thick
: ribs would easily bend around the inside of the hull after
: stripping, and 1" wide ribs every 3" would, I think,
: look attractive.

: Anyone see any snags?

Hi,
There is a method similar to what you describe, edge-nailed planking. The planks were at least square in cross section, say 3/4 X 3/4". Originally, these square planks were edge-nailed and luted, (thickened paint used as a 'glue') with the nails going through at least three planks every four inches or so. Later when glues bacame more reliable for marine use, the luting was replaced with glue and the edge-nailing went through two planks.
The frames that I saw were a mix of sawn and bent, spaced a bit closer than traditional boats.

They made a nice water-tight hull but was somewhat heavier than traditional builds given all the extra nails. They were also complicated to repair any hull damage. Pilot holes would be needed for every nail.
For a kayak, the nails would have to be very thin.

There is much less work in making a kayak with the usual strip and glass.

The thinnest hull I've seen with this method was 3/8", edge glued instead of nailed, with steam bent ribs between several frames.

Mike Savage
South West Cork