The center section of the sole is flat or nearly so in the original form. It is the corners that are all pulled up and accommodate the curves of the hull. The thickness of my solid hardwood sole is about the same as the combination of the glass, balsa and then the teak and holly. If the center section were any lower than what I am laying out there wouldn't even be room for the large whale pump hose. The max headroom occurs right in front of the engine and then decreases significantly as you go forward.

I'm building the grates for ventilation now and as soon as I have them sorted I can glue up the first 3 center strips and place them in the boat. Then I plan to work outward one strip at a time to the transition points I have laid out. Then using some pixy dust I will figure out the angle those corners come up at and then just do some tedious fitting. The forward part of the sole is not going to be too bad, but the rear with the way the wings work is going to be a serious puzzle. I have the original pieces from the rear, I am just not too sure they will be much help with the way I am sorting this thing out.

Dave Graf