Yesterday we divided our time between preparing the marine ply for mounting, and constructing the stern post. This has to be perfectly straight and solid to hold the curve of the ply when we mount the sides in place.

Ian put together an ingenious tailor-made soaking bath to soften the ply. The resin itself is (we hope) fully waterproof, but the fibres should soften with soaking, allowing us to bend the ply more easily into place, and then set again in their new positions to form a strong curve.

These angles were tricky to do but we now have a stern that looks like it could break Ice. Hopefuly robust enough to withstand some hard knocks in its life as a resource for young people and community activities in the future.

Now that it has a stem the boat is starting to transform from ‘primordial fossil space fish’ to something more like a viking longship (in miniature). The origins of the flatner design are lost in time, but it is thought to owe its shape to either Viking or Saxon heritage… what do you think?