Rudder and Leeboard Bracket

Click on any picture to enlarge it. Blog starts with the September 23rd post.

To make the rudder mount, I epoxied together several pieces of 3/4" (19mm) thick mahogany. I could only find pintles to fit over a 3/4" rudder, so I had to notch the rudder mounts for clearance.

The two outer pieces of the rudder mount were epoxied to a piece of Douglas fir.

The resulting assembly was then beveled on the leading edge.

I'm very pleased with the performance of the Ridgid portable table saw. It folds up for storage, which is a bonus.

The trailing edge was cut to a full radius with the Roto-Zip tool.

The rudder construction is the same as the leeboards. Here, it's being covered on both sides with 6 oz. fiberglass cloth.

The hull was sanded, then given 3 coats of Minwax Helmsman polyurethane. I didn't like the gloss or the "warmth" of the finish so I added another 3 coats of Interlux Schooner varnish.

Here the leeboard bracket is being pieced together from pieces of fir. Again, I'm making it up as I go along.

To save time I made the masts and spars from pine closet pole stock. It's a little on the heavy side but very strong. I'll make proper spruce replacements later on.

I picked up the vintage Stanley plane at the Wooden Boat show in Mystic, Connecticut.

The leeboards after being covered with glass cloth and epoxy.



I glued a steering arm to the rudder mount and attached a steering arm with a 3/8-16 stainless capscrew and a nylon insert nut, allowing free movement.

The rudder was attached to the rudder mount with another 3/8-16 stainless capscrew and nylon insert nut. It will be held down with a bungee cord.

Leeboards and Trim

Click on any picture to enlarge it. Blog starts with the September 23rd post.

To make the leeboards, I butt-glued some pieces of mahogany and fir together. The two woods were chosen to provide some visual interest. Since the boards will be glass-covered, I don't see the need to use pins or biscuits for added strength.

The rudder will be constructed in similar fashion.

The blue pencil line shows where the boards will be cut with the saber saw. I'm making up the design as I go along here.

I'm choosing long, narrow foil shapes for better efficiency at faster speeds. I considered the trade-offs of using one board or two, and decided to go with two boards for the added flexibility it gives to make adjustments for speed, load, and weather.

After cutting, I smoothed out the cut line with the sander. I also ran the boards through the planer to smooth them out.

The handles and bottom edge were rounded over with a cove bit mounted in the Roto-Zip.

I cut the leading edge at 16 degrees per side and the trailing edge at 6 degrees, then rounded all the edges with the random orbit sander.

I ripped some 1/4" ( 6.4mm) thick strips from a mahogany 2 x 4 to form the coamings. They have to be high enough to keep water out of the cockpit and low enough to allow someone to sit on the deck. These will also serve as a surface to lean against, and hide the edge grain of the deck, and the deck stringer.

The piece lying on the deck will be trimmed to match the curve of the deck and attached to the upper edge of the rear bulkhead. This is a cosmetic, not structural, addition.

The third mast mount was glued to the underside of the front edge of the cockpit.


While the epoxy set up, I cut the hole for the rear mast mount.

A piece of ABS pipe helped to align the rear mast step with the hole in the deck. Each mast step has a piece of solid wood under it to take the load of the mast. The masts will have a six degree rake.

The cosmetic strip can be seen in place at the upper edge of the bulkhead.

View of the third mast step.

I made some trim pieces for the mast mounts out of 1/4" mahogany. I'm trying to keep the trim pieces as thin as possible to keep the weight down.

View of the front mast mount.

The hull is just about done.

Finishing the Hull

Click on any picture to enlarge it. Blog starts with the 9/23/08 post. Your comments/ suggestions are welcome.

The bottom received a coat of epoxy and a good sanding. All the seams were filled with the wood flour/ silica/epoxy mix. The front and rear stems were contoured into a smooth curve.

When the bottom was completely prepped, I rolled on the 6 oz. fiberglass cloth. Three coats of epoxy were added to fill the weave completely. All the little lumps and ripples in the surface were then sanded smooth with the random orbit sander.

The deck was then sanded. I removed the brass screws that held the deck on, and filled the holes.

I designed a wave deflector in SolidWorks, to keep water from entering the cockpit. The parts are made of 1/4" (6.4 mm) thick mahogany. The included angle between the parts is 120 degrees, and they tilt forward at a 45 degree angle.

A pencil mounted on a spacer was used to transfer the deck curvature onto the parts.

No bandsaw? No worries!

A sabersaw mounted upside down in the vice was used to cut the curved 45 degree angle on the bottom of the wave deflector.

I really hated to cut through the deck, it looked so smooth, but the front mast step has to go there.

View of rear deck showing the filled screw holes.

The front deck. The beauty of the wood is starting to show through after a coating of thinned epoxy.

Installing the Front Deck

Click on any picture to enlarge it. Blog starts with Sept. 23rd post.

With the sail plan established, I have the location of the front mast step. I cut a deck cross beam and attached it just ahead of the mast step location.

I cut through the deck beam, then added a vertical support to help take the mast loads.

I put a couple of 1 x 2's under the mast step itself to give the mast something solid to bear against. The step is located to give a six degree rake to the mast.

These parts add a noticeable amount of weight, but I want to make sure they will never break since I won't have access to them after the deck is installed.

With the mast step in place, it was time to glue on the front deck. Clamps and tape secured it while the screws were installed.


View from the front showing the clamps holding the deck.



As with the rear deck, screws were used on the outside while clamps were used around the cockpit opening until the epoxy set up.

After the epoxy cured, I used a laminate trimming bit in the Roto-Zip tool to trim the deck back to the deck beams and the rear bulkhead.

I used the sabre saw to trim the deck close to the sides. I then used a plane and the random orbit sander to get it flush.

I gave the hull a coat of thinned epoxy, then started sanding it in preparation for glassing the bottom of the hull.

The seams in the hull were filled with the epoxy/ wood flour/ silica mix.

From the rear.

Note the rudder mounts.