Hi Patsy, this is how I would do it (will be doing it on the deck): I would rip regular 1/4" strips out of Cedar and Spruce and cut them into half-diamonds/fillin pieces on the miter box as I needed them. I would glue all the lower half first and then the upper half. I'd staple a temporary guide strip onto the form above my work to help keep everything aligned properly.

: Would there be a problem with applying glue to all the tops of the diamonds
: as well as the top of the bottom strip and getting that top strip on
: before the glue dries?

Slippage is the biggest problem with gluing diamonds; the whole thing tends to slide apart when you clamp it. This time the boat (and guide strip) will act as a clamping jig. Yellow glue has pretty good tack/dry time properties; it won't be a problem. I used a two part superglue on these loaves (to overcome the clamping problem) and it is much harder to work with.

Hey, good luck with your boat Patsy, you've come to the right place.

- Chip