A Little Trim

I took a leap of faith this weekend and started to put some things back on the boat.  All of the forpeak and cabin painting is complete other than one more coat in the hanging locker and some touch up in the head.  I installed the teak trim slats in the forpeak on either side of the cabin and all of the support boards.  (Before and after photo)  All of these had been refinished at some point prior to this last two years of steady work and had been sitting in the basement.  I reattached the slats with 1" silicon bronze flat head screws with a finish washer under each.  I have stripped all the paint of the water tank which goes underneath the forpeak birth and I also pressure washed the inside this weekend along with the Diesel tank.  I am now pressure testing the water tank by leaving it on the back deck filled to the brim to see if there is any leakage.  I have ordered and received the new galley foot pump (Whale Gusher Mk3) and if the pressure test goes OK I can begin reinstalling the tank and installing the plumbing for the fresh water system to the Galley sink.  Still need to buy hoses, clamps etc but wanted to get the equipment installed first to measure for length. 

The Starboard settee is also all back together with boards and slats installed.  (Before and after photo)The port Settee needs a board trimmed and the slats refinished before I install but that should not be far behind.  I took all of the shelves and storage bottoms out and cleaned and repainted them this weekend with a coat of epoxy paint.  I will install all of those this week as well as the drawers and sliding cupboards.  All of that trim work needs a light sanding and coat or two of varnish but I should be able to do that in place.  Next week I will be moving on to the Cockpit lockers and the rear of the engine compartment.  All of this needs to be cleaned and scraped and painted.  The port side locker used to hold the diesel fuel tank and will need a lot of rework to reinstall it.  the starboard side still holds the batteries, starter etc and also has the bilge outlets.  The stern locker really only has the engine exhaust port.  Until I start scraping and sanding I won't know how much work will be involved and how much rework will be required.  While I have a month of above freezing temps I will try to knock this out.  Then when it is too cold for epoxy or painting work I can move back inside for electrical and mechanical installations.

More Paint

I never would have imagined that this little boat could consume so much paint.  I am wrapping up the interior cabin painting and have gone through two gallons of epoxy paint and 3 quarts of enamel.  I am just about done and have one more round of enamel on the lower settees and another coat of epoxy paint in the hanging locker.  I will need another gallon for the cockpit lockers and engine compartment.  $230 in paint so far and another $100 to go not to mention the rollers, brushes and tape.  Add another $50.  Call it $400 for the interior paint jobs in material which is offset by the low cost of the labor.  The other bonus is I now know every square inch of my vessel intimately.

Fresh Paint

A large push on the painting as allowed me to finish up 90% of the primer.  I still have some cut in work to do and a lot of 2nd coat under settees and in cupboards that will not be getting a topcoat of Yacht enamel.

 This week I plan on only being able to paint on Wed or Thursday so progress will be minimal but I hope to get the coach roof done with two coats of yacht enamel so I can remove a lot of the tape and paper and focus on the lower surfaces.
 This epoxy paint is a pain to work with and really smells bad making it a chore in the tight quarters you have to get into but it finishes up nice, really fills in some voids and seems to be really tough and durable.  Itr ios so nice to go on the boat and smell fresh paint instead of rotting wood and diesel oil.

In the forpeak I was able to get all the deck flange bolts cleaned off and fitted with new washers and new acorn nuts for a finished look.  It doesn't look to bad for being 40+ years old.

Cart before the Horse

I have done it again. Lined up another project before the first one is done but timing is everything. I stumbled across an unfinished tender for sale that had some nice classic lines and would be a perfect match for the classic sailboat that əkwâr`ēəs is. The problem: it is still unfinished although the tough part of the job is completed the time consuming part is yet to be done. She is fashioned after an older style pram with beautiful mahogany accents on okoume plywood over a frame of steam bent white oak. It is held together with silicon bronze screws and 5200 adhesive. What it needs now is filling and fairing of all the screw holes. The main hull to be painted inside and out. All of the mahogany to be pulled and varnished and the final seats to be fitted and varnished. Along with lots of other little things to make it stand out; sanding, easing, oar locks, oars, cleats, etc. It is a fraction larger than I would like. She is just under 8' but closer to 7' at the water line and a high free board. She is wide, very wide; 52"wide. That is the most troubling for storage especially upended on the bow but will make for a very stable row boat. Hopefully I get a break over Christmas and can get the main body painted then just varnish the smaller parts in the basement. Why are some boats so pretty?

Prime the Pump

After many false starts and lots of sanding and cleaning I was able to begin masking and taping off for some paint applications. I ordered another gallon of the epoxy primer and two more quarts for the Yacht Enamel. The priming will continue through out this week. I may do the final coats on the cabin ceiling so I can peel off some of the masking a little sooner to let in more natural light. Getting into and cutting in all the details in the cabinets takes a lot of time. I have to break it into smaller sections but there are lots of start and stop opportunities. Crawling into lockers and cabinets with wet paint is a messy job. I end up wearing a lot of paint. All of the lockers, cabinet under-berths and drawer/storage interiors will remain the white semi-gloss of the epoxy primer. The ceiling and all settee backs, shelves, etc will get 2 coats of the Yacht Enamel. The weather is great for painting right now. Mid 70's during the day and around 50 at night. This will only last a couple of weeks so I am trying to make hay. It helps that Lillian has found a new place to do Homework, keeping dad company. Lillian has been given the entire forpeak cabin as her "room" on the boat. She is enjoying coming up with ideas on how she wants it decorated.