Position and glue the chainplates
In the previous episode, Matt built fiberglass chainplates embedded in the cheeks of his Duracell sailboat's new transom. It's time to put them in place. To make sure the two chainplates are in the same plane, he connects the two cheeks with wooden posts. Off-axis chainplates would eventually cause the mast to work off-axis. The parts are then glued together with filled epoxy. Once the cheeks are glued, Matt removes the wooden beams.
Reinforce chainplates
With the parts now assembled, it's time to reinforce the chainplates. Matt rounds the corners of the junctions between the transom cheeks, the deck and the hull planks. He then laminates several fiberglass fabrics on the inner and outer faces, to diffuse the rig's stresses at both the point and the planks.
Smoothing the transom
As a final finishing step, Matt takes over the lower part of the transom that held the old center chainplate. He fills the holes with filled epoxy, covered with a tear cloth. By plating a temporarily screwed-on wood board, he gets a smooth exterior surface upon removal from the mold. The Duracell transom is approaching its final form.
