Gunwales...

I spent several days filling cracks where the deck joins the rest of the boat...not much fun...then it was time to start on the gunwales! Fortunately I had just enough mahogany scraps left to be able to make them by scarfing three lengths together. I finally broke down and purchased a table saw (since I'll need it for sure when work begins on the mast and boom) which greatly simplified the process. After the scarf joints cured, I rounded off the edges and sanded the gunwales smooth, as it would be much more difficult to do once they are attached to the boat. Also, I attached the shroud anchors (purchased from duckworks), since it looked like they'd be more difficult to install once gunwales are in place.
There was some discussion on the Selway-Fisher yahoo group about installing hardware using the "drill, fill, drill" technique--just in time because I would have probably not thought to do that otherwise. The basic technique is to drill an oversize hole, fill it with thickened epoxy, and then drill a guide hole for the screws once this cures. The idea is to prevent water from wicking into the wood at points where hardware is attached to the boat (since these screws generally cannot be countersunk and covered), which would otherwise lead to eventual rot. In fact, I had already attached the pintles and gudgeons to the stern and rudder without using this technique, so I had to remove them and redo it...better now than later!
The gunwales were finally shaped and sanded and ready to install. I dry fitted the starboard gunwale first, notching out a place for the shroud anchor, and left it overnight to adjust to the bend...but sometime during the night the stress was too much for it and I found it cracked the next morning. No problem...I still had just enough scrap leftover to scarf on a new piece and try it again, this time, soaking it in hot water beforehand (the phrase "waterboarding before torturing" springs to mind) . But again the next day I found the new scarf joint had failed under the stress! The third attempt worked after re-doing the joint and flipping the board around (the other end was from a different board that wasn't so dried out).
Overall, more difficult than I had imagined, but well worth it as the boat now has a much more "finished" look!