Sounds like you are off to a good second start. Some advice on the
strips. Where possible, if they vary in thickness, shim them on the
inside to make them the right thickness for the outside of the boat as
you glue&staple.

Then, if necessary, on the inside, you can add some expoxy filler to
make it the right thickness during the sanding phase and before
fibreglassing.

If you leave it thin on the outside, you have a lot of sanding to make
it smooth, and a large thin spot on the hull. And, if you fill it, you
have a large 'gross' spot on a cedarstrip, defeating the purpose of a
cedarstrip.

jim.isbell wrote:
Well, after measuring the entire project and looking at several pieces
he had put on it, luckily only 6 cedar strips were done, his statement
that he had neither the time nor motivation to finish it could be
added to. He also didn't have the talent.

I don't see how one could get every spacing, EVERY one, between the
forms, all wrong!! They are supposed to be 12.5" and 13" and they
vary from 11" to 13" and not one of them correct for the position.

Luckily it isn't that critical except in the bow and stern where he
had a concave curvature to the hull. But I was able to correct that
by pulling the nails and allowing the strips to float to their own
natural curve on both ends at frame #5. I have since added 8 more
strips and just left them floating at frame #5 and its working fine.
Lucky for me he got the first strip in just the right place or I would
have had to start all over from scratch.

If he had finished the canoe it would have been a disaster. Even the
strips that he had ripped and cove and bead routered are of various
thicknesses. He must have used a hand saw instead of a table saw to
rip them.

But the boat is in competent hands now and will be finished in a
couple of weeks.....if nothing intervenes.