Well, over a week, this has taken about 9 hours of tacking and sewing, and about 3 hours of planning and cutting out and making templates.Maybe an hour to dye and an hour to cut and make the sennit band.
I finished it with a "beeswax 'n'melt" coating, this morning,
The whole thing is now stiffened up considerably, and fits ok.
I,ve deliberately left long-ish taggle ends on the band, which drape over the edge of the stern brim...as a draining aid.
Stood out in the heavy rain this morning and it seemed to shed very well, that beeswax was a great idea, thanks Eric. In rain, it sounds like being inside a tin can, but I can live with that.
A great learning experience.
I may just make another!
Thanks for all the encouragement and thanks for looking.
Ceeg