The construction notes for the Mini Vee already call for doubling the thickness of the coaming to withstand the strains on the motorboard. Here I've extended that concept to include a bit of protection for the driver. This coaming also is very tall and should come up to the driver's shoulder.
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Bulkhead #4 is located right behind the driver's seat and is the largest of the bulkheads. It is also inherently fragile (before installation) because of the slots where it joins the coaming half-lap style. (The same situation applies to the Pro Vee.)
I had already cut out #4 for this boat when it occured to me that this bulkhead could just as well be cut in three separate pieces -- one between the coaming, and two outside -- as are numbers two and three. Next boat, I believe I'll go that way.
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Early in the 2009 racing season, a builder's inattention and a few laps of rough-water racing lead to this mess.
The builder, of course, was me. My young driver, Drake, was the poor soul who went for a swim.
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The original Mini Vee had a single brace between bulkhead #4 and the transom -- a 1x1 along the bottom and a several-inch-wide length of plywood to back it up. On the next Mini, I installed only the 1x1 and somehow thought that would be enough.
The new Mini Vee has two full-fledged braces here, just to be sure. (On both sides of the boat, of course.)
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The bottom completed. I used a simple wedge at the transom to help the boat through the turns. The reasons are covered in the Mini Vee construcion notes.
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The hull turned over.
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The ridge beam in the cowling is notched into the cowling bulkhead and dashboard. A single screw where the beam meets the deck holds it in place. It can be easily removed to work on the inside of the boat.
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Actually, instead of a notch in the dash I made a pocket from a small piece of plywood.
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Deck and cowling completed. I used 3mm (1/8") marine plywood for the cowling, but thicker marine or exterior plywood could also be used -- but you'll have to saw a series of kerfs on the underside to make it flexible enough.
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I bolted the hood hold-downs to steel angle brackets; they were not designed to be carried around a corner.
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Korgen on the water.
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Purchase Mini Vee Plans
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