planking

I've begun planking my 1913 OT 17' Charles River with 3" white cedar and completed the bottom 4 rows with ease and success. Now I've come to a point where the planking process looks less straightforward whereby shaping and piecing appear to be required to cover the exterior. Looking for some...

1920's vintage Old Town has gaps between planks as much as 3/16" Does this need to be addressed in the restoration process? Linseed Oil or new planking or some other solution.

I've tried fitting my first plank to see what was involved. Although the planking was planed to proper thickness, when tacked in place I found that either due to factory fairing or shrinkage(?) there was considerable thickness difference at one end of the plank in the bilge area. Question; I...