You’ll want to give some thought to the sequence of the various steps needed to finish the deck and superstructure. The building sequence includes grit blasting, insulating the hull, and may include installing the engine and fitting out the interior. You may want to undertake some of these steps before you build the decks and superstructure, so you’ll need to plan your own work schedule. You must also be prepared to make minor changes as you proceed with the work. You may be considering building the decks, and/or the superstructure, in a different material from that of the hull (usually not recommended by this designer). As most of you will be building the entire boat in one metal, however, we’ll leave detailed discussion on alternative deck and superstructure materials until nearer the end of this chapter.

   Before you start to build the decks and superstructure, you should consider installing all the bulky items that will need to be in the hull and which may be difficult, if not impossible, to install after the deck and cabin are in place. The engine, large tanks, bulkhead panels, the plywood sole and similar items need to be in position before the hull is closed up by addition of the superstructure. You will have to balance this against the fact that you may need to grit-blast the inside of the decks and superstructure, a practice that would not be recommended around your new engine! Again this is another reason why we recommend using all pre-grit-blasted and pre-prime-coated steel.

   If your hull is large enough, say over 35 feet (10.67 m), you may plan to set up a small workshop inside the hull where you can manufacture much of the joinery. This is worthwhile if you can fit in a small bench, a table saw, and a band saw, otherwise it may be better to consider one of the alternatives. For example, if your boat is smaller, or if you prefer to work outside the hull, then consider setting up a work area at the sheer or deck level, then you’ll only have to climb a few steps to saw, plane, rout, sand, or temporarily assemble a piece of joinery. This can save a great deal of time and effort. Getting up and over and out of the boat to make each cut can soon become very tiring (and tiresome), so a better plan is needed.

   You may find that some of the cabinets and joinery can be set up inside the hull and then taken out to a nearby bench for sanding, painting, and so forth, before being reinstalled in the hull. It’s better to undertake as much preparation as possible before the deck goes on.