Planking a hull

Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)

Dave Stevens (Lumberyard)

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I would like to take a survey on the time it takes to plank a hull.

for an average plank on bulkhead hull about 18 to 25 inches long using the planking material supplied in a kit.
 
4 planks per day. 3 to 4 work hours. I mean full length plank row going from front to back of hull. So on average it takes me 1 hour per such plank row.
 
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Well...time depends on the planking method use. A more historically accurate technique takes a lot of time since every plank must be worked (shaped) to fit...thus several weeks of work easy. There are less historically accurate methods that take way less time. I have done both depending on the final finish of the hull. For example, I have used the method of rapidly laying planks straight on the natural curve of the hull and then filling in the gaps with shaped planks when the hull will be painted or coppered. Then there is the double planking issue...double time. So, unfortunately this is an "it depends" kind of answer. I can say, that of all the hull construction steps...planking takes the longest time.
 
2 to 3 planks a day in a work session, prep yime is very time consuming especially if you are spiling, I PERSONALLY DISLIKE DOUBLE PLANK BUILD CAN NOT WORK THE VERY THIN SECOND LAYER OF VEENER. Don
 

Adventure galley

here is a simple and short creating a hull starting with a high resolution scan of the original I import the image into CAD and trace the station lines and the bodyplan the black lines are the original stations and the red lines were added. here you can see the original bodyplan on the...
shipsofscale.com


go to this topic and look at the hull

this hull is scary for me to plank because there are so many curves

so what do you all think it would take in time to single plank this hull?

I did a planking on the royal James starting at the keel working up but the hull of the Adventure Galley you would have to set the main wales first then plank from the keel up to the wales and then do the upper works.
 
The glue drying is really the bottleneck. Best I have been able to do is two planks before going to work and two when i get home. I have been thinking that if I mix up a batch of hot hide glue I could pick up the pace, since it sets in minutes. Has anyone tried this?
 
I've been using the mixed glue method - PVA alongside the plank inside surface with a few blank spots where I put super glue (gel!). Pressing the plank into position allows the super glue to dry in a few seconds, then the PVA has time for itself as I continuou planking. With this method the planking can be continuous, virtually without any intermittent time for letting the glue dry. Obviously bending of planks has to be involved if the hull shape requires it, as the super glue can not provide enough strength if the plank has to be bound excessively.
Janos
 
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