Running into some difficulties with the stem, the structure that will form the front of the boat and take in a lot of the supporting longitudinals. The plans call for a joint in the middle of the stem to even the grain direction so that cross-grain is kept to a minimum. Too much cross-grain = greater potential of splitting occurring. So below is an image of what I’m talking about, a joint line separating the two pieces of of plywood.

From what I’ve read and studied, this joint can be formed either with a scarf joint or a butt joint. A butt joint from what I’ve read and studied is the most appropriate joint for this location. The plans call for 2 layers of 3/4″ plywood. This first layer is the image above joined by the butt joint at the red line. The second lamination is where I’m getting confused. The butt joint requires a butt block to reinforce the joint, at least 4″ above and below the joint, as illustrated below:

Now where I’m getting confused is  this second lamination. With the butt block under the joint, do I need to cut the bottom lamination below the butt block and the top lamination above the butt block for the second lamination as illustrated below:

Therein lies my conundrum. I’ll have to do a little more research, but times about up for today spent on boatbuilding and about time to get back to studying for 8-10 hrs for the comp exam.