Re: 17LT Bulkhead

Posted by Laszlo on Jun 4, 2006

Pat,

It looks to me that rather than trimming the bulkhead you should be loosening and adjusting your stitches. You have very tight contact there at the chines and the left side of the photo show s tighter gap than the right. All that indicates to me that the stitches need adjusting.

That said, that gap is not too big to fillet. (On small boats like the Chessies anything under 3/8 inch isn't even worth worrying about for structural reasons.) Your bulkhead is very well supported on the sides and bottom, and the deck will get plenty of support from the sheer clamp and the rest of the bulkhead.

But again, my recommendation is to go back and adjust your stitches rather than cut wood, if you feel that you must close that gap.

Good luck,

Laszlo

In Response to: 17LT Bulkhead by Pat on Jun 4, 2006

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