Acorn To Arabellavideo

Acorn to Arabella - Journey of a Wooden Boat - Episode 107: Trouble with Cedar Planking

17 April 2020 · 28 min · 175K views · Worcester, Massachusetts

What this video covers

The crew building the wooden boat *Arabella* struggles to install complex, banana-shaped cedar planks due to wood instability and structural defects.10:54 While attempting to fit the starboard plank, the team encounters significant checking and splitting, particularly near a live knot in the aft section.21:43 After initial attempts to scarf and steam the cedar fail, the crew determines that the wood’s grain structure is too compromised for the high-stress bends required at the stern.22:02 The project, already hampered by mechanical failures in the shop’s thickness planers and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, forces the team to adapt their schedule and labor force.13:33 Crew members depart for their homes as local quarantine restrictions tighten, leaving a smaller team to continue the planking process.15:54 The team eventually pauses work to decompress with a fishing trip on a local brook, acknowledging that the remaining planking will require further repairs and refined techniques to ensure structural integrity.24:52

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