July 15: It started out great ... planing, planing...

When you get up at dawn and it is already 80 degrees and dripping with humidity outside, you KNOW it's gotta be one of those Illinois days that either go terribly right or terribly wrong. It started well enough - Mike had sharpened the planing blades to the point that you could get a cut just from looking at them too hard. Having never planed, I figured this would be a job that I would only watch rather than participate in. But to my surprise, I got to try it and I liked it a lot. Is there a job I could get where all I had to do all day is plane? It is an extremely satisfying way to occupy one's time, to be sure. The shear clamps had to be planed at a very particular angle (accomplished with a planing guide ) The fore end of the boat used a guide with a 24" radius and from the fore pair of hanging knees to the stern, a 30 inch radius guide was used. This makes for a rolling curve that is real pretty and a little challenging to achieve. But we did it, despite the extreme heat and humidity, and broke for lunch when it was done. Oh if only we had known what lay before us in the afternoon of this fateful day!