Main hull upright and solid

I’d like to take a moment to thank Fred again; not only for showing up at 0800 Saturday morning to help me and dad spin the hull around and get upright, but also letting us utilize his wood-shop for an hour or so later that night when I had the motivation to start building the beam mount jigs and wanted accurate tools for the job.  Thanks!

The morning started out emptying the garage and dad and I were able to get the main hull spun around some on our own.  This is the last time we’re going to man-handle the hull like this, as once we start to fair the surface, there will be no more dragging things on the ground!

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As you can see, the floor has become littered with epoxy drips and we’ll take a chisel to it again soon.

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Of course, there are no pictures of this “fun” event either.  The three of us managed to turn everything with the help of the pulley in the ceiling.  The hull has put on some weight since the last time we manoeuvred it and the next time will take better blocks – considering the system we have was around $4 at Harbour Freight, I think we got our money’s worth…

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Spent a little time cleaning up the fiberglass with the orbital sander and then took a short break.  With temperatures in the 104*F range outside, the garage has gotten quite warm to work in lately.

Decided to go ahead and cut the main hatch opening so getting in and out of the boat would be easier for the upcoming beam mount installation.

Opening feels huge now!  Much easier to get in and out of boat as well – seems bigger inside.

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Looking aft out the opening – putting the box-fan bowing air inside the aft cabin creates a nice breeze under the crawlspace and into the main hull, plus it leaves the hatch free to move about.

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Here are the compression pad former molds for the forward beam mounts

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At the start of this, I made a vow to myself to not allow any wood to become a part of this vessel.  I think I’ve done a good job of that, except the few broken pieces of tooth-picks that might be in foam somewhere at the bow cap of a float…  Ian calls for the forward beam compression pads to be made from wood.  I asked him a number of months ago about this, and the option existed to make them out of solid fiberglass.  I started discussing the subject with dad again (partially because the temperatures are not nice to large bricks of fiberglass) and we came to an understanding…  He had some Oak stashed away – probably around 15-20 years old – from a now-closed lumber-yard on the east coast that he and his father salvaged.  Granddad was an incredible wood-worker; joinery that I would never even attempt to aspire creating on some of the most beautiful furniture ever to come out of a workshop.  Part of me wonders, if he were still alive, how much he might harass dad and I for building a boat out of these materials…  Of course, I know he’d be interested nonetheless…  Either way…  Here’s to you 🙂

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(planed, squared and cut with real wood-working tools, too)

… and a coat of epoxy …

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I thought that I took a picture of the beam mount jigs too, but apparently not.  I’ll make sure to do that next time.

The cradles are secure and stable now, the last of the extra lamination is done to the hull, and I’ve set up a water-level at the aft beam bulkheads.  All that’s left is to put a water level on the forward bulkheads, level the boat and cut some holes.. 🙂

On a “sad” note, I had to retire my work-shoes after 2.5 years of faithful service.  They finally had so much epoxy on the top that the fabric was starting to crack instead of flex (the same with my work pants as well, actually) and the soles had enough epoxy that even after “sanding” them on some cobble-stones, they still caused me to slip.

Goodbye, old shoes…

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