I'm starting to plan my winter build: an SOF adaptation of LF Herreshoff's 18ft sail/rowing "Carpenter" design (the popular Sea Pearl 21 sailboat was adapted from this design). The original design has a flat bottom which is about half the width of the beam at midship and tapers to within a few feet of the bow and stern.

I would like to use marine plywood for the bottom with steam bent white oak ribs and 1050 denier ballistic nylon for the topsides. The bottom will also need a slot opening for the centerboard.

I need help on how to skin this baby. I'm assuming its best to use a single piece of skin from gunwale to gunwale. Do I want to adhere the skin to the bottom or let it "float" or "slide"? If yes to adhere, then with what? Epoxy? One of the many types of marine caulks? Something else?

Any help or redirects would be appreciated.