Rudder

It rained most of the morning so I sorted out all the nuts and bolts I have into 5 clear plastic fishing tackle trays so that at one glance I can find what I am looking for. I did my washing and hung it on the lifelines while it was pouring with rain. Didn't take long to dry in this Florida heat.

The fruit hammock got a good wash too.

I started working on the base of the  rudder by digging in there with a screw driver. I ended up by getting very little out and what came out was dry so I mixed up some epoxy and with a paint brush coated all the cracks and inside.

I then soaked fiberglass cloth with epoxy and stuffed it up inside the cracks and placed it over the outside.

It might sound good but working upside down is very messy. I will sand it down tomorrow and add some  more layers.
I didn't like the looks of one of the rudder bolts so I replaced it.

Yes i know.....it is stainless steel instead of bronze.
I wanted to close the gap between the hull and  the rudder with a shoe, to stop nets and lines going up there and getting caught so I picked out a stainless steel plate out of my junk drawer.

There is still a bit of a gap but much smaller and most lines should slip by.

I have to also fiberglass this in to make it smooth and strong.
Finally I wanted to beef up the backing for my 2 self  tailing genoa winches so I  cut a 4 x 2 into a V shape to place between the bolts running from the hull to the bulwark.

There are 2 nicely placed square holes to give me access so I Houdini from below.
Tomorrow my water tanks should be arriving!