Something I've not seen discussed on this topic of needing to force the deck and hull together to get a match is the effect on the glass. I had a pretty minor mismatch, maybe 3/8" to 1/2" max. It was not hard to get a fit using various tricks recommended on this Board. What I noticed though is that it looked like the 4oz S glass in the area of maximum stress showed signs of "unhappiness". Some of the fibres turned sort of "sparkly" and became more visible than they had been before. I wondered if they had fractured. I took this a sign I should do everything possible (sticks, keeping pieces on the forms etc) so as to avoid having to do much adjustment when it comes time to match the two pieces.

Ric