With the thwarts and knees installed, the boat is now stiff enough to move without changing it's shape at all! With this in mind, I thought it was time to flip her over, and sand and varnish the exterior of the hull.
Once the boat was off of the strong back, I was able to shape the forefoot, and think about the mast step. The mast step is through-bolted through the backbone, and has a large diameter bolt that will carry the boom vang, as well as a lifting eye. The mast step has a curved groove shaped into it to match the curve of the stem and the under side is shaped in such a way as to mimic the curves of the hull as well. It carries a large shouldered mortise to accept the butt of the mast securely. It is also reinforced with bronze rod should a heavy lateral load want to crack it.
A view through the mast partners
The next step was to install the mast partner hanging knees, which help transfer the stresses of the sailing rig efficiently into the hull. Many boats don't have these, and are more flexible as a result. Most of the knees in the boat fit the "joggled" surface of the planking, and require accurate compound beveled notches to fit snug against the hull. The screws in these had to be heavily angled, due to the shape of the hull.
