Cold Molding the Hull

Now that the hull is on it's side, finishing the hull will not be difficult. Cold molding is basically like making plywood in the shape of a boat. Thin layers of veneer are coated in epoxy and stapled onto the hull. Veneer layers are placed roughly perpendicular to each other. With three guys working it takes about 4 hours to cover a 6x6 area. We esimate about 40 hours of work for the three man crew per side. We've completed about half of the first layer on the first side. Not hard labor but tedious----and sticky. Much of the art of using epoxy is keeping everything in the work area clean. Tools left sticky on the bench
may be there until you cut them off with a recipricating saw. Another complication of epoxy is that you need 48 hours of temperature above 55 degrees for the curing process. Summer is short in upstate NY and we both have sailboats on Lake Champlain that we enjoy. We may have to consider extending our building season by enclosing the barn.