After marking out the position of the eight fixing holes they were drilled out and countersunk. All marking out was done in pencil on the under-surface of the capping.

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Two wooden jigs were constructed to wedge the capping in exactly the right position whilst the fixing holes were drilled into the underlying GRP of the casing.

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Using the jigs to hold the capping in exactly the right position, the pre-drilled fixing holes in the wooden capping were used as guides to drill into the underlying GRP of the centreplate case top. These were then ready for the eight 12 gauge self-tapping stainless steel screws which hold the capping in position. The screws are 1.5" long.

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Before finally screwing the capping in position on the centreplate casing, some final finishing was carried out. The edges of the capping were roughly bevelled using a plane.

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The roughly bevelled edges were then sanded smooth with a sanding block. Finally the wood was given several generous coats of Burgess Woodsealer

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After attaching the stainless steel stop-plate, the completed capping was then screwed into place using the eight self tapping stainless screws.

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With the boat launched it was time to see if, when the centreplate was lowered, the arm and attached shackle cleared the capping. The photograph shows that this has been successfully achieved by welding an extension on to the original arm. The steel stop-plate at the back of the slot protects the wood from being damaged when the plate is let down. All objectives successfully achieved!

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