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I believe that alcohol is nearly as harmful to your body as acetone. I’ve used vinegar and water for years, but have recently learned that it is also harmful. The techs at WEST recommend soap and water. I pressed them for the type of soap that might actually work, and they said the orange soap. By that I think they mean ZEP Citrus Cleaner. I haven’t tried it yet. There used to be a video on YouTube from MAS Epoxies, where they recommended diluting their epoxy a bit with denatured (not isopropyl) alcohol. But when I mentioned this to Graham, he was against it.

All you needed to do was buy a Sprit Stretcher from B&B.

build of hull 24 i know many of you have been using epoxy for years but while surfing the net I came across an article about thinning epoxy. The article said that denatured alcohol will thin your epoxy without doing anything to the chemical compound after it evaporated. So later that day I tried that method to thin some first coat epoxy the next day when I checked the epoxy it had cured rock hard like it should have. It also cleaned my hands of epoxy without the harsh effects of acetone.while doing more research on the subject I came across an article using 91% isopropyl alcohol to obtain

When I built my Lapwing the plans called for a notch in the mast end of the sprits. As I understand it, in the early days, the snotter ran through a notch instead of a cheek block. So when I finally learned the updated version, I had to cut and inch plus off the end to lose the notch. Well, it matters. It is just too hard to get the sail as flat as I would like in a good wind. Step 1 Cut a scarf and epoxy on a longer piece

I like soft shackles, and use them in several places on my boat. I had even considered making about 35 or so to use them for sail attachment to the mast. But it would be tricky to keep a controlled gap between the luff and the mast. Parrel beads work great, but I don’t like the look of them. I've got the white 3/4” velcro now, and want to try that. It should make for a clean look, and give me the adjustment I’m looking for. I’m under the gun to complete some other projects right now, so this is on the back burner for the moment. As I said before, tinkering with different setups is part

Hi Guys- Been out on Rosie for the last few days and away from wifi. Jay, I agree. Time on aboard helps to figure out all of the refinements that make our boats just a bit better. The best place to stowe things, ergonomics, etc. Lots of fun. The down side to all of the improvements is the added weight. A pound here and there have made a small negative difference in fuel consumption. The price for creature comfort. Don thanks for the complement of the engine cover. I like how it cleans up the look of the aft end of the boat. The table has turned out to be a nice addition. Reacher, noi

Couldn’t resist. Had to put some of the pieces together to see if it would be boat shaped. I still have to do a little more prep and then I can solidly mount the frames to their brackets and start to permanently assemble it.

As the title says, no more 9 oz polyester. My supply has dried up and I can not get anymore. I was considering dropping it anyway because of all the issues. Should have no problem keeping the Primo fabric in stock. I am looking for something to replace it but finding suitable fabrics is like finding the proverbial Needle in a Haystack.

The black flashing goo does not require painting. It dried to a non tacky rubbery finish. my test found it to be unmarked after repeated stabbing with a screwdriver and totally flexible and waterproof. It is certainly more difficult to apply than pant. On the other hand t only requires a single coat. Oh well, still undecided. I have until the skin arrives and I sew a t on to decide. What do I have the lose beside $140 for another skin. ☠️🤷🏻‍♂️😎

Don, have you thought about using parrel beads on the loops you use on your main? You said that you didn't like the knots. Thinking back to when I was water-skiing as a teenager, we used hollow, floating ropes, and made a loop by feeding the end through the outside of the rope into the centre about a foot from the end, and then slid the end further into the rope. Tension stopped it from coming out, or we could pass the end back to the outside of the rope and then feed the bitter end of the rope right through it, to stop it from sliding at all. You could do that sort of thing, and com

I don't understand why you would want to use goo either. If after painting you have a hole opened up along the seam from sewing, then maybe use a dab there. But use a paintable goo and only if you have to, and sparingly.

andy00, I found a cedar board that was almost completely knot free. It was a 2X6X20. Expensive, but a nice piece of wood. I made the laminated beam as in the plans, but if I were to do it again I would reshape the beam. Make it more flat on the top so that you could lash the top side stringers to the bottom of it. if you look at my pictures above, you can see that they kind of poke out just in front of the coaming. With the beam that I made, I just could not get it to look right. other than that, it is all stock per say. I do have some pretty nice tools so nothing was difficult to make. I us

If your going to paint, skip the goo and just paint it. Proven to work and last.

Here ya talking but no video.

I’m really not sure that it would even work on a Lapwing or a CS17. The foot of the sails (are they “feet?”) are lower to the boat than on a Nonesuch. And then there’s all that dangling twine. But it’s fun to consider all the options, and to try different things like velcro “hoops”.

That’s a great “lazy jack” setup. I’ll try it on my prototype wishbone booms (lengthened sailboard booms). I think eventually I’ll build some nice wishbone booms like Peters.

I just recently picked up a Spindrift 13 with a trailer. Boat needs a little TLC. But overall it's in pretty good shape. Needs a good cleaning and polish. Looking forward to getting her in the water.

Were you able to accomplish the noise reduction you wanted with the engine cover?

I love your dual purpose engine cover.

@Hirilonde— I guess you actually could tie them to the sprit. Mine are laced on, so I don’t know about that stuff. I know Peter has sleeves. I was just thinking about the advantages of the wishboom. I always liked how the sail on a Nonesuch would drop into a sort of net slung below the wishboom.

Chick, Didn’t think of that. I’m on my last bag of B&B wood flour and was thinking about whether I should order more or not. I kinda like patronizing the B&B Yachts business and I like everything I’ve received from them. I’ll likely order more... plus, my son is planning to build a Phoenix 3 sailboat and I plan to see if I can get a lot of his building supplies from B&B when he’s ready to start. He wants to finish his current canoe project first. He recently made the double-fish design for the bottom into which he’ll be cutting and fitting the rest of the c

Thrillsbe, I get the part about catching the sails, but why do you have to unbend at night when crusing if you don't have this? Just tie them up to the sprits and use a topping lift. In Peter's case, with luff sleeves he can't drop his sails into the webbing anyway. I was going to build wishbooms with my boat. A few of us were discussing them about 10 years ago. I decided to try sprits first because so many, including Graham suggested I try them. And as we have all learned by now, we can change our minds and make the change happen. Now, I don't think I will ever bother. The big

What I like about the wishbones is that they eliminate my biggest complaint about sail tracks. If you have lacing around the bottom, it catches your sails. If you’re cruising, you don’t need to unbend them. My #2 complaint is still there— the time to unbend, fold, and bag the sails at the end if the day. Just thinking out loud.

The rain keeps the pollen down, so I varnished. The owner picks her up Memorial Day Weekend. IMG_3699.MOV

Since I am prone to experimentation, I may try Locktite PL Roof and Flashing Sealant. I did an experiment and it held water until it evaporated. Dried to a rubbery finish that held up to a screwdriver. I could wad it up with no cracking or delamination. Black in color and will hold up to UV. Long term. 🤷🏻‍♂️☠️😳 I tried the PL construction adhesive. It worked well, but my paint would not adhere. So the boat still floats and paddles well, but the paint looks like poop.