Once Around the Sun… again…

Another trip around the sun completed today. It was a lovely day for boat work but Jan and I spent it collecting a nearly completed furniture project. We picked it up today because rain is in the forecast for next few days and we didn't want to dodge rainfall trying to get it home.

This is a chimney cupboard for my sister's country cottage. My brother-in-law did most of the work on this piece but I did learn a lot from watching and assisting (when possible). All it needs is a bit of sanding, paint and a few bits of hardware and it will be ready to deliver!

As for Gardens, I am still sanding, fairing and sanding - just not today. Not much to look at yet but painting will begin soon.

Step By Step... Slowly

Incremental - perhaps infinitesimal is more accurate - progress over the past week.

Working around cool days, I'm nearly done filling the weave of the FG cloth on the bottom. The stem and centerboard slot surrounds are installed but need glassing, sanding and fairing. Fairing of the hull is approaching that stage of, "just one more time…"

So, work continues at a slow pace but it is progressing. I wonder how long I can (should) wait before priming the hull?

Surprise Results

While I've been figuring what I need to tent off the work area (how much plastic sheeting, lumber, etc), I've been doing a few bits of epoxy work with surprising results.

Temperatures in the barn have been in the mid-50s (outside temperatures in the upper 50s) when I filled a couple of spots between the sheer and adjoining planks. Twenty-four hours later (with an overnight low in the high 30s and outside temperatures again in the upper 50s) the epoxy was soft but not tacky. Eighteen hours after that, the epoxy appears to be cured. I'll let it sit for awhile longer before trying to sand it but I am pleasantly surprised by this result. >br>
The area needs some sort of enclosure and heat but I know work can continue until improvements to the space can be done.

Alternatives?

The weather forecasts were wrong. Thursday and Friday were no better than last Wednesday. Neither were yesterday or today. The centerboard surrounds still need to be installed; the stem and surrounds need to be glassed; the weave of the glass on the bottom needs filling; and, of course, there is still a great deal of sanding and fairing to be done. Lows in the 30s with highs in the low 50s makes that epoxy work tough to do.

So, what are my alternatives?

• Wait for warmer weather? That could be a long wait...
• Do the epoxy work and wait for it to cure - at least something would get done... eventually.
• Close in the area Gardens resides and use a space heater to warm the space to epoxy-friendly temperatures?

This last alternative seems to be the best option right now. There are plenty of beams and rafters from which to hang plastic sheeting which, together with a space heater, ought to warm the space enough to let me work in this cool weather.

Cooling My Heels...

Yesterday was cold and rainy. So was this morning although the precipitation ended by mid-morning. This brief preview has me cooling my heels. Tomorrow and Friday ought to be warmer, allowing epoxy work to continue.

The stem is stalled at 5 plies and - based on test fitting of the centerboard slot surrounds this afternoon - may end there. No further cracking or splitting of the plies.

The centerboard slot surrounds will take five plies to match the the stem but they are short enough with little enough rocker so I should be able to install two plies at a time. The surrounds will be installed tomorrow and, maybe one more ply for the stem. After that, I'll round-over the stem and surrounds and fiber glass them to provide a measure of abrasion resistance.

Another thought… and I should direct this to John Welsford… what about a boom gallows? Located foreward of the mizzen and low enough not to interfere with the boom while sailing, a gallows could facilitate a boom tent and provide support for the spars while trailering. Just a thought… deserving further consideration.