> My brother has the Video of
> stitch and glue from Glen "L", but, I don't recall it having
> much on it in the way of F.G. info.

> Any idea of what it takes to put together a set of photos for a project
> like this. Even though I'm a greenhorn I'd still like to get pics and put
> them out so everyone can see what NOT to do in S&G.

Second question first. You can use any camera, from a basic disposable on up. I'd suggest you get one with a flash if you go the disposable route. Your photofinisher should be able to get you digital versions of your pix of a floppy disk for a small fee. If not, Kinkos, or a friend with a scanner can do the conversion from your prints.

After that you post the digital versions to the internet. Several sites offer free webpages. Sign up online for one and follow their instructions on how to post your pictures. If it gets confusing ask back here for more help. If it gets too techie and off topic I'm sure someone will assist through e-mail.

As for your first item, I have a rather basic question: Do the instructions for your boat specifically say that the hull must be fiberglassed? Many stitch and glue designs are sealed with epoxy resin, but NOT glassed. Some are glassed only on the outside for the purpose of protecting the wood against scratches and dings. This may be optional. If so, your only use of fiberglass materials is in the seams. You'll create a fillet from filled resin and cover that with a fiberglass fabric woven into a 2 or 3 inch wide tape, and some unfilled resin. Alternately, you can cut strips that wide from fiberglass cloth.

Some boats call for very thin and flexible plywood which needs reinforcement, and gets that additional strength by being covered with glass cloth. Other boats are designed to be built with slightly heavier panels which are strong enough on their own. These types of designs have been built for decades, and many last quite a long time even though they are covered with nothing more than a few coats of paint.

Older wooden boats have so frequently been `restored' by simply covering the outside of the hull with a waterproof barrier made from a single layer of glass cloth and resin that some designers now call for that as part of the original design -- and some don't ! Exterior glass may be totally optional. Check those instructions carefully before you jump to buy anything.

If your plans do not call for covering things with a layer of glass cloth then you won't need as much resin.

By the way, in the note on estimating materials, I forgot this was stitch and glue. You'll need to see if the seams are covered with one or two layers of glass tape, and how wide of tape is called for. Frequently two widths are used. You'll need to figure the length of all the seams (which may be slightly longer than the length of the boat, as they are curved) and double it (inside and outside) to get the length you need for ordering the tape. Get an extra 2 or 3 yards.

If you're economizing to the max, consider polyester based resins instead of epoxy. You can also get a thicker polyester product that can be used as a filleting mixture (see the ClarkCraft price list).

Hope this helps.

Paul G. Jacobson