Antony Harvey

It was a beautiful frosty morning with thin ice in the cockpit, but when the Princess 22 "Cirrus" is finished, it just has to be launched despite the season. It had warmed up a bit by the time I got to the lake and caught up with my mate so we rigged it and prepared for the plunge. Unfortunately Lake Eucumbene (which is really a very large dam that provides water for irrigation and hydro and part of the Snowy Scheme) was so low and the ramp so flat that I had the exhaust pipe under and bubbling with the hull still high and dry. We waded further out (it was freezing!) but it was just too flat and shallow. So we had to give up, unrig and drive home. (And now I can't even get hold of the little yellow crying face icon). The "ramp" is really the main street of the old town that was drowned as the dam filled and has now re appeared. The proper ramp is now miles from the water. So, I will have to drive to the coast (about 3 1/2 hours but it is well worth it). When I started building the lake was at the optimum level. It was huge! 25 km long and very much bigger than Sydney Harbour. This is all the result of the worst drought in our recorded history. Makes you see the reality of global warming. Cheers, Antony

Thanks for the comments - I feel better already. I can't comment on the speed as the boat has not been launched due to a delay with the trailer. Can't wait - very frustrating. Antony

I was persuaded to buy an 8 hp motor not the 6 hp I noticed on the B&B photos, mainly because it was the same weight and not much more expensive. The extra grunt would be welcome in a stiff head wind. It is a Tohatsu, and well regarded here. What I didn't check was the size. It is a lousy 15 mm too long so I had to rout out the clamping beam and reinforce it with glass and epoxy. All is OK now and with the motor in the up position it just fits under the tiller. Anything bigger would be hopelessly oversize. I hope this may fore warn the next P22 person, cheers, Antony Harvey

Hi Garry, I am using a nice streamlined looking track that is screwed on with silicone adhesive that is suitable for luff slugs for my P22, see attached. I am not sure about the attachment, but it is an aluminium extrusion by Spunspar and it comes in 2 sizes for 9 mm and 12 mm diam. slugs. There may be something similar in the US. [attachment=1] regards, Antony

Hi Norm - It is an adventure all right. I noticed your protective mask etc. and remembered how I was ticked off by a business associate who supplies epoxy products for the building industry, for being slack with handling epoxy. He said very few amateurs like us appreciate the health danger because it does not smell all that bad. In fact you can develop a severe reaction without warning. He knows of workers who have had to re-train and leave the industry for good. The boat looks terrific and it is such a good feeling to know that it will soon be the real thing. regards - Antony

Strength of the tabernacle: I know it is a case of "belt and braces" but I made the tabernacles out of Spotted Gum. It has a strength grade of F27 ++ (it goes off the dial) and as a comparison, Douglas Fir is rated F11. The performance of PILGRIM is very reassuring. Thank you all for your replies, it is nice to know there are so many of us out there. Regards Antony

At last some progress. I made some changes to the foredeck for an external anchor well. The diaphram action of the mast / tabernackle is taken by both the remaining foredeck and the floor of the well. I also took the option of the open #2 bulkhead to get internal access to the space under the bridge deck. While I was at it I made a sliding cupboard that gives access to the rest of the galley.

OK Graham, here they are:

Congrat's - It sounds like a great race. As I don't know anything about it could you tell me something about the opposition? Why I ask is because all the old sailors I talk to dismiss anything that is not sloop rigged saying "it won't point". So, how does a cat-ketch point? Best regards, Antony (half way through a P22 to be called Cirrus)

We live 20 km out of Adaminaby which is in the Snowy Mountains south of Canberra. It is quite isolated - we have a 600 acre wildlife refuge but work from a home office. The local water is Lake Eucumbene and it is cctually larger than Sydney Harbour. Otherwise it is a 2 - 3 hour drive to the coast.

The first rotation was done in the shed by 4 strong men and 2 strong women. The next time I will rig up chain blocks and the rope loops I saw somewhere in the B&B photos. The glass sheathing is now on - I will send a photo when more epoxy, sanding, fairing and even more epoxy is done.

Looks terrific - a candle rubbed on my new rudder did wonders.

I think only one went. Can't see them anywhere. Preview shows 3 so that will have to do. The hull gets a tarp for protection when not being worked on. The closed part of the shed has a 1 foot high ply barrier to keep snakes out. I anticipated grinding a lot of ply back at the bow so I put more glass and epoxy on the inside. The picture of the gutters for the cockpit lockers shows how much grass you get in a drought.

Can someone help this computer dummy get the picture files out of my folder and into this forum message?

For some mysterious IT reason this email would not go to Graham so here goes with the Forum. Hi Graham, Some time ago you asked for some progress photos - It took me all this time to get, and get my head around the technology. I still like my 1970 Pentax. The gutters for the cockpit lockers were pre fabricated and held together with picture framing cramps and panel pins while glueing. (My partner is an artist, guess who does the framing!) All the smaller items were made in my heated office last winter and now at last I can sheathe the hull. Unfortunately this boat, to be called Cirrus, is an indulgence and gets low priority when it comes to house renovations etc. regards, Ant

Thanks to Graham, Klaus, Oyster and Travis - I will continue with confidence thanks to the forum.

I have decided to pay for the keel ballast to be done in a casting yard so I am making a wood pattern. This is really a question for Charlie Jones: You mentioned there was not much contraction in the 3 1/2" x 3 1/2" section but was there any lengthwise? Any advice on oversizing the pattern would be much appreciated. :?:

These emails were sent to Graham - they might be of interest to Oz B&B builders ----- Original Message ----- From: Antony Harvey To: Graham Sent: Thursday, April 07, 2005 7:24 PM Subject: P22 1. General progress and bow problems. Dear Graham, I must say it is a pleasure to have everything coming together so nicely. All you need to do is measure and cut accurately! My question is with epoxy and glass tape seams. I have done the chines, the fincase and all around the O/B well, and have gone through most of the 60m of tape. I understand the bulkheads and panels at right angles to them are to form structural cells so I will buy more tape and continue. Are these cells to be formed with two layers of tape or one? ( I used 3 layers for the fincase - trunk whatever) So, all is well. The only problem I had was splitting the bow stringers so I laminated them. Then I found the ply strakes very hard to bend so I ended up with 100mm wide lapped panels. I think it maybe the plywood. I am using Australian Hoop Pine which is very close grained even though it is a softwood. It looks a bit bland but is top quality. As soon as I have finished everything inside that equires a hull penetration (O/B well, fincase and floor logs pre-drilled ) I will turn it over again and finish the outside. Best regards, Antony. G'day Antony, Thank you for giving me an update. I would love to see her, can you email me any pictures? The minumum amount of glass for taping your 9 mm bulkheads etc. is 600 grams on each side. Was the planking at the bow run at about the same angle as drawn on the plans? It does not matter what width you make the planks forward, it is just a matter of experimenting like you did. I am glad that you got it to work. Keep up the good work. good luck Graham ( The pictures may have to wait until I get my luddite mind around the technology) 2. Masts Gday Graham The hull is upsidedown again and filling/fairing nearly complete..... but winter is on its way and I think it wise to glass the hull when it warms up (the boat is in an open part of my shed and it snows here). So I can get on with smaller things that can be glued in the heated area such as deadwood, lead pattern, tabernackles, rudder and fin. I want to buy the mast blanks before making the tabernackles and have come up with the usual problem of local supply. The nearest standard flagpoles to your specification are all in 6063 T6 not 6061T6. The difference according to aluminium.matter.org.uk summary of properties by alloy and temper, is as follows: 0.2% Proof stress 6063 - 50 Mpa, 6061 - 55 Mpa UTS 6063 - 100 Mpa, 6061 -125 Mpa Shear stress 6063 - 70 Mpa, 6061 - 85 Mpa So 6063 is not as strong. The wall thickness is available in 2.2mm ( 0.0866 whereas you call for 0.083 main and 0.080 mizzen) The available tube diameters are 100mm ( 3 15/16" for your 3 1/2") and 80mm ( 3 3/16" for your 3") My gut feeling is the extra diameter and wall thickness should compensate for the softer alloy but you can't rely on my gut. Can you advise? The alternative is custom made mast blanks from spar makers designed with software based on the boat length and displacement, but we are looking at 2 1/2 times the cost. I came across some re cycled Spotted Gum for the tabernackles and it is as strong as hell. e.g. Douglas Fir is stress graded here at F8 to F11. Spotted Gum is F27!! It is also heavy but I will live with that. regards, Antony

Graham's plans (Princess 22) call for 12oz. 1208 biaxial for the chines etc. This translates to Cotech E-BXM 446/225 + CSM Biax, according to ACT Fibreglass Supplies (Canberra) who sourced it for me. So far all going well, I can only move at the speed of spare cash flow. Ready to assemble the sides and bulkheads, stem and transome (or "tuck")

Graham's plans (Princess 22) call for 12oz. 1208 biaxial for the chines etc. This translates to Cotech E-BXM 446/225 + CSM Biax, according to ACT Fibreglass Supplies (Canberra) who sourced it for me. So far all going well, I can only move at the speed of spare cash flow. Ready to assemble the sides and bulkheads, stem and transome (or "tuck")

Thank you Charlie, Joe, Garry, Oyster and Michel for your help. I have ordered the Devlin book. I have never used a forum before - It is incredible that I can get instant replies to a fairly remote part of Australia from the other side of the planet.

I am about to start a Princess 22, having built one traditionally framed plywood boat. Is there anything I can dowload that explains the technique and materials? Are there many ways of going about it? Am I opening a bag of worms?