Freeing the Centerboard
I just purchased a Day Sailer this spring and the centerboard always required quite an effort to pull it down. I crawled under the boat (when on the trailer) and noticed that the centerboard was too wide for the centerboard trunk causing it to bind when it was lowered. I removed the centerboard by removing the stainless steel chrome plates that hold the fiberglass wedges that support the centerboard pin. These plates are found at the forward edge of the centerboard on the bottom of the hull. With the centerboard lowered horizontally past the point where it was binding I used a belt sander with a 60 grit belt and took off just enough material (off both sides) for the centerboard to pass easely in and out of the trunk. Using successively finer grit belts & polishing compound the centerboard regained its satin smooth finish. When you reassemble the centerboard make sure the support wedges go back in the way they came out or they will bind the centerboard. Applying a silicon sealer to the plates before securing them to the hull may not be necessary but I did. Good luck.
