capriosca

Just looked it up - brand is Comcork Aquadeck.

We used a product for the flooring on Sheila B that has proved to be very satisfactory. It is a combination of cork and rubber with a raised button. It comes in sheets so it needs joining but was quite easy to lay out and cut in. It is great on bare feet and fish blood and beer wash off with no stains or issues. Used epoxy to glue it down with good results but care needs to be taken with clean up as you don't get to see the drips and spill until they yellow. Doing it again I would wash down with white vinegar thoroughly after laying. I used it on the platform as well as the floor. You can pick up the button effect if you look closely at the image. Let me know if you want more info and I can look up the product. It is from Melbourne I think from memory.

I can't answer the why part but can say this. The platform on our 256 is just the best thing for boarding, jumping off, throwing your snorkelling gear on to when getting out of the water etc.etc. I had the plans for the Ocracoke 24 and had started but as soon as the 256 came out with that platform there was no way I was going to have anything else. We load passengers of all ages and abilities from the beach and they can just step on that platform from knee deep water. It's one of the coolest things about the boat and I like the way the engine looks back there. You can sit your gear on there without having to drop it over on to the deck. I could go on and already have but I can't imagine the boat without it.

My two cents worth - any that you mount on a vertical surface should be as far above the bilge as is practical. They all leak and ones mounted low will take any little amount of water in the bilge.

A few years ago we had a friend help us relocate our business. He had come up from his country home and was an enormous help in a task that took two weeks. As a bonus we decided to gift him our Spindrift 11S as we had a boat or two too many. People hooked on building will understand. It was some time since we had heard from our friend Jeremy and he called one day to say sorry - the boat was gone. It wasn't until several questions went back and forwards that he elaborated on the horror that his family endured. Only then did he mention that he lost his home and everything in it. They had to flee with what their car could carry - wife and two little kids and not much else. When they returned to see the devastation he noted that what was once the mast was was some melted alloy on the ground and the rest was nowhere to be seen. He now has reservations about rebuilding on his land which is very understandable. Most people have been having a very difficult time for all the current reasons but to be homeless with young children and being restricted in your movements is as tough as it gets. It was a great little boat that was thoroughly enjoyed by Jeremy and his family. Not sure if this an excuse to build again or not.

Well done Tim, Great achievement and great finish. Look forward to sharing some adventures now that you have your weekends back. She looks great on your new mooring and you will get plenty of enjoyment just watching her there at sunset.

Stop it Lotus. The rest of us can't compete.

Bote Cote has a great following which is clearly for a reason. I started with International HT9000 and won't change. My one Bote Cote experience was not good by comparison. Should be readily available locally. Each to their own.

Very kind of Steve to cut the stem off his boat to show you how it looks.

Suggest you get expert opinions on this before trying any large areas. We found that with the heavy bi axial cloth used on the 256 plus working in tropical conditions with short pot life that brushing the epoxy on the back of the cloth made it so much easier to get a nice wet out. Of course after laying the glass down we used a squeegee and put more epoxy on top. Thought by putting this out there you might get some more knowledgable responses.

A couple of things that we could add here without trying to throw fuel on the fire. Since Sheila B is our first large planing power boat we are short on experience. Our engine installer, however, is a highly experienced and dedicated expert. His opinion on our boat was that it a. rode bow high .b should have a stern lifting prop rather than a bow lifting prop (which was what was suggested as a starting point) c. it could benefit from a bit of weight forward. The only weight forward of the fuel tank is a 60 litre fresh water bladder. Also we have the Zipwake "trim tab" interceptor system which either doesn't work properly or I have no idea how to drive it. For me personally I don't care that much because it goes like a rocket and handles any sea it has been in, rides smooth and dry and is just a load of fun. To me it is like roaring around in a sports car or alternately cruising quietly around the bays in a big lazy convertible. One thing that freaked me out a bit during the build was the line of the decorative piece that runs from swim platform forward (I am going to call it a strake and wait to be corrected on that). I had tried to build mine in a line from the platform and when the boat was moved out of the shed it looked like it was high forward and not parallel to the DWL. I went for the trusty Google search and found that this seems to be the common look on other boats of whatever manufacture that I saw. As you can see on the attached image this strake is not parallel to our water line and neither is George's and I think that exaggerates the bow high stance we are looking at. I don't know that they are meant to be parallel either but will wait for the response of the experts. I am sure George will get sorted very quickly and love every minute of boating in the 256. If he was buying gas in Vanuatu like we do then he probably wouldn't have put 2 175's on but that is a whole different story. Our single 200 will keep us poor enough. Looking forward to positive news.

Congratulations George, This build has been a journey that has taken a few turns but the result is simply spectacular. Wishing you lots of great times aboard. I wouldn't want to be the first one to get those beautiful teak decks bloody but you can't catch fish without it happening. She looks wonderful in the water and is a credit to you and all those that worked on her.

I used the same bow roller as you on the 256 and the same anchor design (but not the fancy stainless type). I attached the bow roller directly to the deck surface using machine screws epoxied in to the king plank. The anchor tucks up nicely under the bow. It just needed a hardwood block for the anchor shank to lay on. I don't have a good photo to show you but if you look at the launch posting you will see the setup with a temporary foam block under the shank. Might give you something to consider.

"Elusive" as in difficult to achieve your awesome standard of work. I try really hard to make a well finished boat but there is no way I can approach your standard. Frankly I don't know how you do it. Very well named!