: Done well a lap joint can be virtually invisible from one side, but
: a scarf joint is looks just as good from either side.

: A lap joint doesn't have to be very long; a butt block 7 to 8 times
: the thickness is enough to provide strength equal to the
: material, and a short flat spot is less likely to show. Location
: is important too: avoid the most sharply curved parts of a
: plank, hide butts under the deck or at a bulkhead, and in many
: small boat designs the planks are often less stressed near the
: stems than midships so the flat spot hardly shows.

Agreed, but still nice smooth curves, specially on the gunwales where everyone notices, are nice, can't get them without a decent scarf. Lots of ways to make them that arn't all that difficult or time consuming. I've got a jig I built for my bandsaw that works fine. With epoxy the joint doesn't even have to fit all that perfectly.

Bill H.