
While I was building the hull, I also fiberglassed the centerboard trunk. It’s a good idea to try and keep smaller projects going that can use up leftover epoxy from bigger jobs.

And finally I epoxied the two sides together to make the centerboard case. I made a long spatula with a nice radius at the top so I could put a fillet of epoxy at the edges. Should make the joints stronger, but more importantly watertight. This is an area on the boat that I don’t want to have to try and repair.

Cutting the hole for the centerboard case was the most nerve wracking step so far. My chalk line was still visible from when I made the bottom panel, so I used that as the centerline of the boat. I marked out two squares along the centerline that will accept the protruding head ledges of the centerboard case.

Then I cut the holes out with an oscillating saw. I had to use a grinding attachment to clean up the holes and bring them to size.

Success! The centerboard case fits in and appears to be parallel with the centerline as best I could measure.

Next I epoxied in the centerboard case and half bulkhead with thickened epoxy and 4″ 12oz tape. This really locks it in position and stiffens the bottom panel.

I flipped the boat over and then used a straight edge to connect the two head ledges. This gives me the size of the slot to cut out.

I drilled a hole at either end and jig sawed out most of the waste. I made sure to stay well within the lines so the blade wouldn’t damage the layer of fiberglass inside the case.

Then I followed it up with a trim router and a flush cut bit to make a nice neat slot for the centerboard.

I simply glued these together with thickened epoxy. I put a trash bag underneath so any drips wouldn’t glue it to the boat.

Finally I drilled and countersunk a bunch of holes to screw it down. The glue joints don’t need to be particularly strong since this piece will rarely be taken off and there’s no load on it.