Cotton "wicking" caulking

[Mrleft8]

Well, here I am almost at the point of caulking the Cat's paw dinghy, and sort of experimenting with the cotton to familiarize myself with the stuff before I actually get down to the nitty gritty, and..... It sort of comes off the ball in several strings at once (not like kite string), but there seems to be only one bitter end. Is this correct, or is this just one screwed up ball of cotton caulking? Should I be caulking the seams with the 4 or so strands that pull off the ball, or should I be separating them down to one string....? Have I mentioned that the "How to build a Cat's paw dinghy" book is next to useless?

[Thad]

Cotton wicking for caulk is always balled in this fashion. The four strands should all have ends together but can be easily broken by taking out the twist. The end should be tucked to keep the ball intact. Wicking comes in at least two weights (or sizes) 1/8th+ and 1/16th or less. You probably should have the light weight. In a boat like the catspaw the seams should be tight with the bevel maybe a 1/4" deep or less, so one strand rolled in should be plenty for a good job. As in all caulking the material is laid in to seal the seam, with observation and judgement important. If the seams are wide strands can be twisted together to produce a heavier twist. In a light boat with thin planks like this there isn't much room for driving loops of cotton and there should be no need for such. Getting the four strands seperated is only a little frustrating but not hard if you have had the patience to build the boat. It helps if you do not try to seperate the whole balls length. For this job you can cut 14' lengths to keep the pieces boat length and slowly pull the strands apart.

[Mrleft8]

Thanks!

[Paul Scheuer]

In WB issue 28, there is a little more detail than what is given in the book (pamphlet) "How to Build the Catspaw .." They say a single strand of cotton, applied with a roller.