Prep for deck paint and spreaders...

I had Mickey and JP's help today creating a newspaper skirt for the boat. JP seperated the papers and fed that to Mickey who held it in place while I taped....many hands make light work!!

I also started to lay out the spreader arangement.

But before glassing the spreaders in place, I added the thickened epoxy to the tips to protect them from the stays. A bit of packing tape around the tips filled w/ aforementioned epoxy, then sand and I should be good to go here.

.

Tomorrow I paint!!

spreaders etc.....

Laid up my spreaders a few nights ago. Pulled them out, cleaned them up and laid glass on them tonight. The first picture is of the long and short spreaders before and after routing the edges. (They are narrower at the outboard end but the picture distorts that.)

I then laid 2 layers of 6 oz glass over them. I consolidated w/ stretch wrap. This would have been an ideal application for the vacuum bag, but I didn't have peel ply etc, so saran wrap was used.

I also began to lay out the rudder. I won't use a rudder box, not sure the extra effort is worth it. I am just going to attach the rudder handle and the pintels directly to the rudder. I lose the ability to raise the rudder, but the keel is so much deeper I can't see where this is an advantage. And it would take a great deal of extra time to build.

I hope to get one coat of paint on the deck this weekend and get into setting up the mast. I have a plan for the rigging. Regular old 1x19 SS w/ turnbuckles is the plan.....nothing fancy and not as lite as possible, but quick and cheap.......I am ready to go sailing!

Also purchased some second hand Melges 20 sails that should arrive shortly. I will need to "modify" them slightly, but they are high quality and barely used and CHEAP!!!! so they fit the bill perfectly. I hope anyway. We'll see soon.

Bensons and Ballgames.....

While my family was off enjoying this:

(JP w/ his favorite head gear and the view of the Bay from their seats at ATT Park where they watched the Giants defeat the Dodgers.)

I was getting in a little of this:

Mast step started:

1st coat of primer on the deck and foot bensons placed:

And companionway trimmed out:

I decided to leave the bensons bright rather than paint them.

They look awesome and serve as a nice reminder that it is a wooden boat after all.

I also got started on the spreader brackets which I am fabricating. I hope that fiberglass brackets against an aluminum mast is ok. (I understand that carbon fiber against aluminum is a bad idea......any input here is welcomed!)

It feels great to get in a couple of solid hours rather than just 1 or 2 here and there. I need to quit my day job.....(just kidding Molly).

MORE SANDING

This is beginning to get tiresome. I actually didn't work on the boat last night for NO reason....I was just done with it. Tonight I went out just to mess around cutting some mall pieces of trim (spreaders and trim for companionway) and got inspired and sanded most of the deck....a little rest does wonders.

Gulliver, green and and over she goes....

I put 3 coats of green on. By the time I did the 3rd coat the coverage was much improved as was my technique. I can still see a few flaws but I think I am pulling a Gulliver. In Gulliver's Travels, when he finds himself in the land of the Big Poeple, Gulliver is sickened by their appearance. He is so small he can see every pore on the face of the folks he is looking at. I think I am simply too close to this thing and I am seeing flaws that will not be noticable to anyone else.
And the fairing that I did came out SWEET!

So with the bottom painted it was time to round up a bunch of folks and roll the boat back upright. Thanks to John, Rob, Don, Kellan, Lupe, and Eric (and I am missng someone as I know we had seven.....) who showed up to help ona Saturday afternoon in the 100 degree heat. With that many folks it was fairly easy. Only had 2 guys stick their hands on fiberglass splinters...NASTY! Sorry guys.

And tonight I put the fairing/float coat on the top sides.

More sanding, then prime, sand, paint and it is time to rig!!!!!

Going GREEN.....

1st coat of paint is on......"good from far but far from good" in my estimation. (A couple of sags, some dust and BUGS!!! More on that further down.)

West Marine is out of blue.......so I chose green. Wasn't planning on calling the boat "boogers" but it seems to fit now....maybe I'll call it "Carbon Offset".

I have been taunted for going w/ the single part epoxy (instead of 2 part) but dang it...this stuff is cheaper, easier to use, and I WILL get the next coat down better. Maybe spray on coat # 2.

Of course the flies that I have never seen in the shop before decided to congregate enmasse...$70 fly paper:

The ones that landed and died weren't so bad. It was the little troopers that landed and WALKED ACROSS THE BOAT that REALLY pissed me off.....

I'll let it set up tonight and sand tomorrow eve. Then my plan is to spray Saturday morning BEFORE the little bastards (the flies that is) are out and about.

Then I build some trailer bunks and we are in business!!

Also starting to gather lead. I found 2 tire shops that are game. Keel coming soon!

Gray boats

Just did the second coat of primer.....and I will say it looks freakin' AWESOME!





I was either going to love or hate the outcome...and I love it.



There are a few pinholes that I will hit w/ a last coat, but they are TINY and few.



Here's my battleship gray i550:






Below is a slightly different gray boat. This picture was taken after we sailed JUST under the bow in my buddy Greg's 37' Tayana in San Diego.











We had just sailed up the starboard (far) side of the carrier and turned to sail across it's bow when the wind shut off. Thank God that the Tayana is a heavy boat, because it fortunately coasted just long enough to get us around. I have looked up a mast before and it always seems like it is about to scrape the underside of the bridge (or whatever) you are going under. Well, do you see the people out on the catwalks at the bow? They were all saying, "OH MY, they are really close...oh gosh,

look how close he is...is he going to make it?" Even from THEIR perspective we were nearly swappin paint.....cool in NASCAR.....not so cool w/ US Govt property of the military kind.

GOOD TIMES!