: My SOF if just about ready to be skinned but if i sit in it the
: ribs pop out?! The ribs are rounded (not squared). If I lash the
: ribs to the gunales I am worried that the rib stock will just
: spit where I drill the hole. My brother thinks that the skin
: will hold it all together in the end. Is that a safe assumption
: or should I get this figured out before I skin it? Any
: suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

First- sounds like the mortises were too big for the ribs. They should fit pretty tight.

BUT- the skin will hold the whole thing together. Pin them with 1/8" dowels drilled from the outside, but not all the way through the inside of the gunwale. The skin will hold them in. I have seen historic boats that have an occasional rib lashed into the gunwale. I've also see the historic kayak that has bronze boat nails here and there. However- if it were me I'd put in small hardwood shims to tighten up the mortises if they were really bad, then I'd pin them. If you use the kayak a lot the ribs will swell anyway and make the fit better, but if you can help it out a bit you'll probably sleep better until it's done. Once it's done and you've paddled it for a month or two you won't remember this whole thing even happened.

m