Keel drag distortion

[Jbeals]

Hello All,
The Cedar row boat is coming along well.
I have epoxied up the nose pieces and continue to wash the whole thing, and re suspend back to "true" shape. I have the mid and front seats in and a mock up a rear put of ply wood, just for structure.

The boat is finding it old shape well, but their is still one glaring issue.
The boat was left on the bank of a pond, in Michigan, I don't know how many freeze thaw cycles. It seems that the keel stayed frozen longer than the rest of the hull. And this distorted the whole boat, by about 1" or less.
The ribs are just bent in an 8" arc, but that translates through out the hull.
Hard to describe.

Here is an image.
http://tinyurl.com/2fjx9hh

Has any one tried to reverse this warpage?
I have some Ideas, and would like any suggestions.


Thanks James

 

[Benson Gray]

I have heard of people supporting the good areas and then using sand bags or other weights on the high spots to bring it back in line over time. Liberal applications of hot water may help speed things up if you are in a hurry. The information at http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?t=5756 and http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?t=2312 may help. Good luck and let us know which solution works best for you,

Benson

 

[Jbeals]

Hey Benson,
I had some dips, and got them out.
The keel stayed in the mud, and the rest of the boat slipped backwards.
So the ribs have a bow as they cross the keel, more in the stern, lessening toward the bow, where the keel is very shallow.
I think i can wet the whole boat and pull back on the keel.
With a certain amount of pull the distortion should come back to place.
Just what is that certain amount and how much stress will it put on the hull?
So far all of my wetting and convincing have brought the hull back to shape.
Although I don't have a reference to know what it use to look like.
Thanks
James