Keel Braces installed

Got the keel braces epoxied in. They butt up against the fin to transfer the load of the fin onto the frames and hull planking. The entire 10 lbs. of the fin bulb will put a lot of leverage on the top of the fin, which only extends into the hull less than 2". What the braces do is to lock the top of the fin at the edges of the slots so that the top of the fin is completely anchored to the frames. There is little chance of the top of the fin now breaking from the frames.

I'm hoping that the three doubled frames with additional keel braces is enough to transfer that load. In the bilge, frame 5 is now 1/2" thick! And frames 4, 4.5, and 6 are all 3/8" thick.

At this point, I'm actually quite confident that this arrangement will work. It also leaves the interior wide open, except for the mast support column, for the servo tray and lines.

The keel braces added about 2 oz. but I feel that they are worth it.

Now off to shape and fiberglass the rudder.

Peace!

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