For the deck I wanted the stern to match the bow as well as book matched. I have sometimes done this by getting two consecutive flitch-cut boards using the strips from one board for the bow, and the other board for the stern. The joint in the middle near the cockpit is not very noticable because the wood matches quite closely. I was not able to find flitch cut planks for this boat. Instead I used half the strips from one plank on the bow and the other half on the stern. To keep the grain matching fairly closely I put the first two strips off the plank on the bow, then the next two on the stern. So strips 1,2,5,6,9,10,... are on the bow and 3,4,7,8,11,12,... on the stern with the odd numbered strips on the left side of the boat and the even numbers on the right. This keeps the strips book matched and the bow and stern match up as well. Again, the joint in the middle of the boat is not too noticable as the joined strips are nearly consecutive off the plank.
I proceed by fitting one end of one strip, then cut it near the middle. I then fit the other end with the next strip and cut it to fit with the first strip. I cut the joint a little long and dry-fit the strip back in place before gluing to double check if it needs to be shortened. I then glue in the one strip before unclamping the other end and gluing it in permanently.
The Petrel has a lot of rake from the front of the cockpit down to the back. It is possible to just force the strip and hold it in place with clamps and tape until the glue dries, but pre-twisting makes the job easier. A little heat applied with an iron or heat gun will convince the strip to stay in the desired shape. Likewise, the stern of the Petrel sweeps up with fairly tight curvature near the end. Ironing in some curve makes the fit easier.
