Posted by Graham Knight on August 22, 19103 at 02:33:20:
In Reply to: Re: Butt or Scarf? posted by Mark Jones on August 21, 19103 at 15:52:02:
I've been thinking about this some more, and have decided I'll probably use butt joins. I agree that planing 1/4" ply accurately enough for a scarf joint could be difficult, although if it's done properly the end result would look much better and should be stronger.
One other thing that occurs to me, if the bottom skins are butt joined near the transom then the butt blocks will fit between the floor battens, this will stop any water from draining freely to the back.
I don't know, maybe I'm making too much of all this? It seems a pretty important detail to me, maybe I should just bite the bullet, get the plane out and do the scarf joints!
Graham.
: Hi,
: I am getting read to plank my boat as well, and I thought about scarfing but opted for buttjoints because even in 1/4" plywood, it's recommended that a 3" joint be established (12:1 ratio). Without a jig to keep the powerplane on a consistent angle, I think it would be challenging... although a few jigs are available. I'm not an expert, but I agree that butt joints would affect bending characteristics and would benefit from being placed in a flatter part of the hull.
: -Mark