Rudder Shape Is Nearly There!

The rudder shape is nearly there! I am nearly convinced that it is time to move on to sanding the rudder to its final shape. The plane has removed wood down to the reference lines and the templates fit the foils very well. Sanding will smooth out the surface and prepare it for glassing. Here is a pic of the rudder from last night showing the shaped leading edge. The second side of the trailing edge was shaped this evening. The picture shows the top end of the rudder. The top end of the trailing edge will be out of the water and so does not need to be as streamlined as the lower portion. The shape of the top end will be softened a bit during the sanding process.



Covering the rudder with fiber glass will take a bit of time - mostly for the planning of the process. Once you start, particularly once you saturate the glass cloth with resin there is no going back - not without considerable mess and remedial work.

I have decided to build the router jig to make the cuts for the scarf joins. The materials will cost less than $20 at Home Depot, and this will give me another sub-assembly or component to build here.

While progress seems slow right now, I am satisfied with how the rudder is taking form. I am also satisfied with my general progress, although I definitely have to find a space large enough to cut out and assemble the hull pieces.