I'm pretty clear on the whole build except for the curved deck beams. I understand the process for making the laminated deck beams. But what's driving me nuts is how to get that nice curve that Brian has on his. I am probably completely over thinking this part. Some guidance in this area would be helpful.

On my F1 I just laid it out on paper to full scale ... reset the top edge about 3/16 inch below the top of the inside edge of the gunwale ... set the height of the center section such that the height of the deck ridge was per spec. ... then drew it up until I was satisfied with the curvature.

To make a form I just nailed together some scrap wood to get the proper thickness, transferred the drawn curvature to it and cut it out with a jigsaw. I laminated the beam out of a few layers of roughly 1/10 inch thick SPF strips. Spring back was negligible.

Ken Blanton