Read Russel Brown's book on epoxy techniques, built a half dozen from scratch, looking forward to finally building a boat from a kit... now you're asking for permission?

Hmmm....

Understand the folks at CLC have engineered their kits to work well as supplied, assembled in a manner they've proven works. For what you've paid for yours you're entitled to do with it as you please.

I'd have to believe your prior experiences will serve you well in your endeavor with this kit project.

There's nothing inherently wrong with the approach you're asking for permission to undertake, but don't be surprised if you find yourself challenged by planks somewhat stiffer than if they'd been left uncoated.

Let us know how it turns out.

   Permission? You don't need no stinkin' permission. 😁. 
Pictures as you go!

As mumichog mentioned....no permission required.

i have built an annapolis wherry before and i understand why you would consider the appproach you mentioned.....sanding can be a bear on this boat...particularly if you are sloppy with your epoxy work.

with respect to your ideas, 1 and 3, pre-coating certainly works and can make the sanding easier.  however,  to get the ease you want you need to be particularly careful in you glue/fillet work.  for me, in order to get clean work i use blue painters tape and mask off all my glue/fillets to get nice lines and protect from spills.   you will also want to rough up the bonded surface to ensure a strong bond if you have pre-coated.

with respect to idea 2, prebonding glass, this can work as well.  i don't think there are any curves in the annapolis wherry that are so severe that this would have a noticable impact on (the stiffness concern made by spclark above).  that said, i would only do it with 2 oz cloth becuase on most of the inside of the wherry, there is no glass and 2 oz is a great approach to getting a little glass on surfaces that otherwise would be epoxy only which i am not a fan of.  all this said, you still need a single layer of glass on the the center panels inside and out.

fwiw, i think clean epoxy work is the key to this boat and the ideas you have have more value if you assume that your work is going to need a lot of sanding.    but the main risks for non-clean work are in the glueing-the-panels-togther and bulkhead installation steps.  so if you are clean with those steps, the value of pre-coating is small relative to the extra work.  if you are messy with those steps, no pre-coating or glassing willl save you any time or get you a better result.

you may want to look at the following video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExFqOgdQOuQ  which shows the layup schedule on the annapolis wherry which highlights on the build instructions where they they have glassing vs just painting with epoxy.

anyway, that's my thoughts on the matter.

h

   Thanks for the prompt replies!   I agree that I don't need no stinking permission, but I was still looking for a nod from the manufacturer, before I went into the weeds, process-wise.  I am a retired engineer, and I respect the concept of building to process.  I firmly believe in Build Specification # MILTFD-41 (Make It Like The F____ing Drawing For Once).

These panels are like noodles, anyway.  With the gentle curves in this beautiful boat, I don't think that'll be an issue.  So, I'll go ahead and pre-sheath the interior of panels #1& 2 as called out in the manual.  The exterior of #1 will be sheathed per the plans, after assembly.  

@hspira-- Are you talking about using 2oz tape on all the interior seams? MI wonder about the epoxy-only seams, too,  That might be worth considering, although 4oz "tape" per Brown's method would be invisible, too.

Finally, I agree that neatness counts, especially when finishing the interior bright.  Blue tape is always in my shop, along with rags and denatured alcohol.

Thanks again for the quick response.  I love the kit, so far.  It is going to spoil me from building from plans.

   " I am a retired engineer, and I respect the concept of building to process. " Maybe but I bet none of your clients or contractors asked for a variance on a public forum.

>> with respect to idea 2, prebonding glass, this can work as well.  i don't think there are any curves in the annapolis wherry that are so severe that this would have a noticable impact on (the stiffness concern made by spclark above).  that said, i would only do it with 2 oz cloth becuase on most of the inside of the wherry, there is no glass and 2 oz is a great approach to getting a little glass on surfaces that otherwise would be epoxy only which i am not a fan of.  all this said, you still need a single layer of glass on the the center panels inside and out. <<  

On my build (a different stich & glue) I was advised if one wants to pre-bond the glass, only do so on the inside of the future curve. That will bend nicely. I built a test panel and it bent so I did the boat that way. Bending the 14-foot long full-size panels was, in fact, easier than bending the 2-foot test panel. That was with 6oz glass.

I did not try bonding, or even pre-coating, on the outside of the curve. I'd suggest a test panel first if one wants to try that.

   Grumpy-- I have designed products with a specific process in mind, often necessary, only to have the workers in the assembly plant decide to install it their own way.  Sometimes, it didn't matter, but other times the quality suffered.  I did not want to be one of those guys.

Chenier-- I intend to pre-apply sheathing only to the inside, so I think I'll be fine.

Since no one else has pointed this out, I will. Those of us responding on the Builder's Forum do not speak for (or represent) Chesapeake Light Craft. We are folks who have built boats. Some, like hspira, grumpy, Mummichog, and spclark have plenty of experience, but we are all capable of making mistakes and stating our own preferences without the backing of solid scientific evidence. Don't ask us for permission. We make recommendations that come to you absolutely free. Value them accordingly.   

as birch said, the advice is free...no reps or warranty....just a lot of experience.

that said, what i was trying to highlight is that most of the Wherry is actually not glassed and is simply painted with epoxy and most of the seams on the upper sections are not glassed or taped....they are just glued.

so my first remark about pre-coating wood that you know will be painted with epoxy is that it is sometimes easier to precoat and sand prior to assembly ...particulary if you have a concave surface....but you have to be careful about loss of strength in the seams becuase the epoxy is now going to be epoxy on a previously epoxied surface and not wood to wood where it can be absorbed a bit into the wood making the bond stronger.

my 2nd remark about 2 oz glass is that 2 oz glas is often used as a layup in lieu of simply painting a surface with epoxy....it gives a stronger, more consistent finish.  and when i have done that i just pre-glass any piece that would otherwise be painted with epoxy with a 2 oz layup and then just work with it like a raw panel piece after that.

the final point i was trying to make though, is in the wherry where it calls for 4 oz or 6oz glass i would follow the instructions because it is also acting as tape on the seams of the lower sections and you don't want to lose that panel to panel strength that the glass is providing.   coming in later and trying to tape a seam on a wherry would be a lot of sanding to make it look good in my view.

h

   I also came to the realization that y'all were not speaking for CLC, but experienced builders like myself.  I've sent CLC an email via the "Contact Us" portal.  Let's see what happens there.

My experience with Russel Brown's homemade tape has been very good.  Common glass tape, purchased in rolls, has a hard edge, or selvage.  He cuts his own out of sheet 6 oz cloth, and creates a fringe of a out 1/4" all around.  This edge feathers in very nicely with the pre-coated & glassed panels.  If you haven't seen his videos or eead his book, I urge you to do so.  Here's a good example:  

https://youtu.be/yDoauHaOfBQ

@hspira-- I agree with you about the glue seams.  They should not be pre-coated.

   @hspira-- Regarding all that sanding of the tape per your last comment.  Brown's process is this, at least for the inside, which will be finished bright:

1. Bond the glass to the bare wood panels on the flat.  Follow up with a second coat in a couple of hours.  Sand smooth.

2. Attach and fillet the panels, sanding the filets when cured.

3. Apply pre-coated glass tape to the seams.  This is not the regular glass tape which has a nasty selvage.  These are cut from sheets of glass cloth.

4. Apply peel ply over the wet epoxy tape.  The transition edge between the tape and the panel disappears.   No sanding is required to hide the edge, only light sanding to erase peel ply's fabric texture.

You really need to read his book or see his video on this.  Unfortunately, the video is only available on offcenterharbor.com.  It is a subscription site.  I'll order the peel ply, and give this a try on a test sample.  I'll keep you posted.

thrillsbe, 

looks like a great plan and will result in an enhanced construction with little weight penalty.

i did look at the videos and can see now exactly what you are talking about.  looked very cool.  totally adaptable to a wherry build in my view.

h  

   Thanks for the positive thoughts, hspira.  That's what I thought.  Here's my plan:

1. Build a mock-up joint, to familiarize myself with the process and with using peel ply.

2. Document all the steps here in photos, for the benefit of others' understanding.

3. Assuming success with the mock-up, I will use this process for the interior glassing, not the exterior.

I applied the first coat of epoxy to the glass/panels this morning.  I'll give it a second coat this afternoon.  This is gonna be fun!

   So, I did my mockup, and it went well.  Here's what I did.

1. I applied 6 oz glass cloth to two panels with a light coat of epoxy
2. I gave them a second coat of epoxy while the first coat was firm but still green.
3. I sanded them with 220, and joined them with a fillet.
4. I sanded the fillet smooth, once cured.
5. I cut a piece of tape out of some 6 oz cloth, saturated it with epoxy, and laid it onto the fillet.
6. I placed Peel Ply over the joint.
7. When cured, I removed the Peel Ply.  The joint only required light sanding before varnishing.  The tape blended into the panels!

   Here's a photo showing the end result.  The right side is after the Peel Ply has been removed, and the piece lightly sanded with 220.  The left is after three coats of Flagship and one coat of Captains varnish.

   Here's a photo showing the end result.  The right side is after the Peel Ply has been removed, and the piece lightly sanded with 220.  The left is after three coats of Flagship and one coat of Captains varnish.