Stitching
After all the panels were cut, the next stage was bending and stitching the panels to form the hull. My stitching wire came from a pile of scrap galvanised soft steel wire used as the armoured protection around heavy electrical cables. When the strands were separated, each was about 1.5mm diameter and proved to be ideal. As I intended to remove the stitching before taping the seams, steel wire was satisfactory, except at the stern where I used copper wire so that it could be left in-situ to hold the panels that are bent tightly and pulled together.
Here are the two bottom panels stitched together with the frames in place. These will eventually form waterproof bulkheads to give buoyancy for support during capsize or rolling. Note the "bench" (2 ladder sections) has the plywood panels removed so that stitches can be made from underneath along the keel. The bulkheads are wired upright on to the panels so that they help to form the hull bottom "Vee" shape correctly.
View from the stern of kayak. the panels are slightly twisted but straighten up once the everything is finished. I used a stitch about every 100mm along the keel but where a heavy pull was needed I put the stitches closer together. If joints gapped a bit, I eased areas with a fine saw on the tight sections. Small gaps are fine and can be filled with the resin filler mixture.
A closer view of the stern and the stitching wires. This is a tricky job that must be done gently and with care to avoid splitting the panels. before starting, I left the stern end of the panels covered over with towels soaked with hot water for about 45 mins. I then brought the stern together a little at a time starting with loose stitches at the top and working slowly down, retightening each stitch above as it became loose. Although it looks impossible when the panels are flat, they will go into the correct shape. Re-soak if they are proving stubborn!
Not a good picture, but this shows the hull after finishing the stern stitching. The bar across the centre is to keep the correct hull width and allow me to align up the hull ready for taping. A String line stretched from bow to stern is helpful and the trusty level sets the edges up nice and square. I found a few wooden chocks were needed and some adjustment of the stitches to obtain the alignment. It is important to take some time to get this right because once the resin and tape is set, the hull will become rigid and cannot be then be re-aligned.