Loosen the stitches between bottom & first strakes back there. Everything'll fit when there's enough 'give' in those stitches.

Once that last frame's in place you can bring tension back in those stitches before you add further frames.

I'd suggest maybe leaving stitches somewhat slack until everything's together then slowly work them all up a little at a time as you bring everything into proper alignment.

It's easy to get excited at the start when you see edges coming together to pull stitches too taught. Allowing everything more 'wiggle room' as you add frames & panels makes for a better fit once you're farther along then you can bring stitches to final tension.

...what Laszlo said.  Give the boat some shakes, jiggles and wriggles as you go around tightening things up progressively to relieve any stress on edges which may be "stuck" a little, allowing the lapstitch magic to do its work.  A small misalignment at one point has a way of magnifying itself into a larger gap farther along.

.....Michael

   Thanks for the tips.  I ended up having to release the stern end stitches at the stem completely to get the stern frame to seat against the bottom enough to get the stitches in.  Then when I restitched the stem, the frame lifted about 1/8" off of the bottom.  Everything seems pretty loose - I can actually see daylight between the bottom and strake #1 at a few places near the bow and stern.  I'll keep the faith that everything will come together more neatly as I get the other strakes on and slowly tighten the stitches up.

When I was at that stage in my Waterlust build about a year ago I queried Dillon M. about gaps I was seeing. He divulged that with stitch'n'glue (bond?) 1/8" is "close enough".

Also that it's no sin to add more stitches than are provided on the kit parts if you feel it's warranted. These reduce strain on stitches that are tight but yet appear inadequate to the task. I added a couple at stem & stern after hearing this.

You may need more 18 ga. copper wire too if you find you're breaking / adding / renewing stitches. Of course CLC can provide this to you, or a quick tour of your local hardware store might reveal another, more expedient source.

Keep at it, look forward to getting all the major bits fitted & wired in place. There'll be time enough to start tweaking things here & there before moving on to the tack-bond stage.

Michael,

I said nothing. That was spclark and I couldn't have said it any better than he did.

Laszlo

My apologies to all.  Must've had my eyes crossed.  With so many wise contributors here, it is difficult to keep 'em straight!  <;-)

.....Michael