The side shell panels of the scow are made from 6 ply.

As the sides are longer than 2440mm (8'), it is necessary to join two pieces of plywood. As shown in the drawing, the join is arranged to be in between the bow and mid seats/tanks.

I am of the opinion that it is better to join two rough-cut pieces of ply and then do the final cutting - to line up a piece of ply which is four times longer than it is wide seems too inaccurate to me, but no doubt others achieve it. So start with two rectangular pieces of 6 ply, 2440 x 410 and 1250 x 410.

I had the luxury of getting my boss (an experienced wood boat builder) to cut scarphs in the end of these panels - with an epoxy/microfibre 'glue' the result is superb, but I would not attempt it myself! If you do use a scarph joint, you will need to add the scarph allowance onto the panel dimensions shown above. The two alternatives to a scarph joint are:

- a butt strap on the inside of the panel - this should be between 100 and 125mm wide and fixed with epoxy/microfibre 'glue' and nails;

- a laminated joint using glass cloth on either side of the panel - some people reckon these are only suitable for thinner ply, but I can see no reason why this is true.

When the ply is joined, mark and cut out the two panels as shown - remember to make the two panels 'mirror copies' of each other!

The shape of the finished panel is shown in the drawing. NOTE: All vertical dimensions are shown measured from the finished top edge of the panel - I recommend that you leave a further 10mm of height to be cut off later.

Mark all the dotted lines shown in the drawing on the plywood with pencil - DO NOT leave this to do later as it will be very difficult. It can be helpful to mark both sides of the thickness of the internal structure, so that you do not try to assemble them out of position. For example, mark the underside of all seats 6mm below the line of the top of the seats shown in the drawing - the top of all the seat bearers will be on the lower line.

It would be a good idea to mark the top of the sheer strake doubler, 75mm below the finished top edge of the side shell, but do not fit this piece to the side shell - it would then be difficult to bend it the side shell in a smooth curve.