Although my last post was two months ago, I have been anything but idle. Most of that time was spent continuing the work on the stringers: first the 5 cm ones, then the 7 cm stringers. Along the way, I kept running into many of the same challenges I described previously—cutting dozens of notches, dealing with the considerable bending forces in the timber, and constantly correcting frames that wanted to move out of alignment. Hull shape taking place! A new problem also appeared. One of the 5 cm stringers snapped during what should have been its final dry-fit. It happened just as I was about to fasten it to a frame. After looking carefully at the broken piece, I came to the conclusion that grain orientation matters more than I had realised. It is worth examining a stringer from the side before installation and paying attention to how the grain curves through the wood. Ideally, those curves should follow the shape of the hull rather than work against it. Even so, I think bad luck played a...