Mast Step

The main mast step is (mostly) ready for epoxy coating as there are some saw marks/burns to be sanded out.

Earlier in the week, I epoxied a piece of 9mm ply to the bottom.

The assembly was trimmed & squared up with the table saw. Using the drill press (with Forstner bit), router and sandpaper I cut the hole in the bottom for the mast foot and cut drain slots with the table saw.

The sharp edges were rounded over using the router.

The mast step will be sanded (a few more times, I am sure) and coated with epoxy.

Lumber Delivery

Tuesday, a buddy of mine and I took a road trip to LL Johnson Lumber in Charlotte, MI, to shop for some lumber. Andy was looking for mahogany to rebuild the companionway hatch-boards for his 36' big boat. I was looking for materials for Gardens' main mast.

Andy didn't find what he was looking for - but I've got a couple of mahogany boards that will work for his hatch-boards so, in a sense, his day was a success. I found the clear, vertical grain Douglas fir I was looking for - so my day was a success, too.

Since we couldn't safely strap three 20' boards to the top of the car for the 50+ mile ride home, I arranged for delivery and we headed back to Greenville. Delivery was scheduled for today.

Around 12:30pm the LL Johnson truck was backing up the drive.

About 30 board-feet of CVG DG:

And the obligatory (not so clear) close-up of the grain:

Jan and I moved the lumber to the back of the barn this afternoon. There it will wait for me to get in-feed and out-feed tables set up with the radial arm saw so I can rip the staves for the birds-mouth main mast.

Plodding Along

The mast-step has been cut to size (185mm x 185mm), planed and sanded. I decided to add a 9mm thick piece to the bottom but - as is the normal course of events - my 9mm plywood is buried at the bottom of an assortment of other materials and supplies, so the step won't be finished until I can access the plywood.

The birdsmouth staves intended for the main yard - but cut from lesser quality lumber - are being repurposed into a boat-hook hook for my brother-in-law. Ironically, I am using the table-saw to cut the staves down to a size that, until recently, I deemed "too small" for me to work with. Funny how a little experience changes one's perspective.

With the warmer weather, I have begun sanding the hull in preparation for paint. Lots to do there but the process has begun.

Other (not related to Gardens) projects receiving attention this week included milling the stock for the barn windows, work on a quilt rack (mortises and tenons), milling stock for picture frames and riding my new bike about 105 miles (preparing for a Colorado bicycling vacation in July).

The Tide Has Turned...

…so to speak.

With spring-time weather arriving here in Western Michigan, work on Gardens has resumed!

The blank for the main mast step has been laminated using maple and mahogany.

This will be sanded and cut to down to size. Details, such as chamfered edges and a drainage slot, will be added before the step is epoxy coated.

The main yard has not been assembled but the eight birdsmouth staves have been notched and scarfed to length.

The assembly jig for the yard (and boom) has been set up and is ready for action.

I, on the other hand, am contemplating the "how" of the gluing, assembly and clamping of a 13' long birdsmouth spar… I know it can be done… I've seen it on the internet (so it must be real, right?). Seriously, I am coming to grips with the process of mixing and spreading epoxy on eight long pieces of wood and then assembling them (along with the necessary plugs) without gluing them to the jig, the bench or me. I am beginning to recruit help.