Wooden Boat People

By McKenzieDriftBoat.com

Oak Bow Stem

Such a simple question for you experienced boat builders... but not for an old first time builder.

I have a new set of Don Hill 16' plans... when fastening the bow stem to the side panels, do the panels mount flush on the bow stem or does the stem stick out further than the side panels?

I can't find a close-up picture of one mounted on a boat, so I am unsure how to mount it. A close-up picture (or link) would be appreciated.

In simple terms... does the bow stem stick through the front of the boat, or it it hidden?

Something has to finish that front edge to make it look right.

Thanks for your help...

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on October 30, 2010 at 10:37am

A common method is to provide a finish piece. Wooden Boat People has a great search function, it's a the top right of the page. I did a quick search and found that long-time contributor Jason Knight (March 13, 2009) started a wonderful discussion on this very subject. Plus there were about 10 plus pages of other discussions. This is a wonderful part of WBP pages. This reference is almost like a book on boat building all by itself.

In addition I included a couple of pictures from last springs Wooden Boat Festival that show some stem details. There are pictures from the last two festivals on my page and on other folks pages. Hope this helps. It's fun to share information and to be able to pick the brainss and knowledge stores of others who came before me.

Good luck on your boat Riverman and we can't wait to see some pictures of both your boat and some of the rivers you fish on. As a Northwest guy I have only read about some of your great rivers and the fishing there. So I would love to learn more and see some pics.

Happy Waves to You,

Rick Newman

Attachments:

April pictures 159.JPG, 2.2 MB
April pictures 192.JPG, 2.2 MB

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Lawrence E. Long on October 30, 2010 at 12:54pm

Riverman: Without looking at you plans it seems that the stem that the sides are attached to would be what I call the inner stem. The "raw "edges of the plywood are exposed on each side of the stem. The stem and the edges are then coverd with a second stem called the outer. The stems on my current build are curved laminations(much more difficult) but the outer stem is screwed and glued to finish off the works- as shown in Newmans photos. You can get real fancy and use different woods for the outer which gives a nice color contrast.
Good luck