Drilled for the Bow Eye

My bow eye came in from Glen-L earlier this week. I went with a 3/8" single-post, stainless steel cast type rather than the U-bolt type... I only wanted to drill one hole.

To prep the bow of the boat for drilling, I located & marked the spot where I wanted the bow eye to go... in-between the planking screws on either side.

I ground away the fiberglass in a small spot with my Dremel, and then slowly & cautiously began drilling with a very small drill bit. I used the vertical line of the bow as a reference for trying to keep the drill bit parallel with the center of the stem.

Bit by bit, (literally), I expanded the hole with increasingly larger diameter drill bits, until I finished the hole with 12-inch long 1/4", 5/16" and 3/8" bits.

Did I drill the hole dead-center all the way through?

No. Of course, not. 

However, it'll work. Once the boat is flipped, I can re-enforce the "thin" side of the stem if I feel it's warranted.

Soon, I should be back to painting.

Happy Father's Day!

The Hello Kitty make-up mirror that I lifted from my daughter has been invaluable at things like getting this shot of the inside of the stem. As you can see, the exit hole is off-center... but it'll work.