Doug Cameron

Good looking boat Joel. Did you use wood for those rails? I plan to put some handrails on the cabin top to keep my feet from sliding off if I have to go forward and to give an attachment point for fenders and maybe a mizzen staysail.

Photo of Yeti ice chest in the step position Watertribe's Chief and me beside the boat. Chief is planning to build a 17 Mark III Pictures of the new cabin top tomorrow.

I haven't figured out exactly how to do a rub rail. Do you follow the side-sheer line or do something parallel with the water line. The former is the widest point. Scott, the centerboard pivot bolt is accessible from the port bunk/seat. It is sealed just like the one on the mark I with a plate secured with 3 screws and non-permanent sealant. Also, today it occurred to me what the answer is to the cabin step quandary - a cooler!

Updates on the build Ready to travel with the anchor locker finished Cabin windows temporarily in for the drive Cockpit details - thwart/mast step and water ballast tank top in Still a lot of sanding, then painting and hardware installation.

Next-to-last coat of paint on the outside Painting the rudder Drilling the pivot hole on Alan's beautiful centerboard The inside of the boat will stay bright (encapsulated in epoxy) until after Cedar Key. I do plan to finish the lockers and the thwart/mast base Detail of the forward end of one of the sprits. They will stay bright, finished with a couple of coats of varnish to protect from UV. Aft end of one of the sprits with the rounded tip to fit the loop in the clew of the sail. The sails and hardware arrived from B&B today!!

Details on building the centerboard are at http://www.sailnaway.blogspot.com/2014/04/a-little-side-project.html?m=1 Alan does good work, and the results will show up in future kits.

Hull painted Masts and sprits More details at capt-doug.blogspot.com

They are not in the plans. I have a set of 10' oars for my Mark I (still for sale! Reduced to $9,000!) and borrowed a set of shorter oars from a friend who coaches crew. I will see which works best while at Cedar Key in early May. The last coat of paint goes on the bottom tomorrow. The masts and rudder are finished. Lots of little details. Maybe some pictures at the end of work tomorrow.

The Mark III is optimized for rowing. The mizzen does get in the way in the Mark I for rowing since the seat/thwart is dissected by the mizzen mast. The rowing seat for the Mark III is the bridge deck. Graham's drawings shot an oarsman and the mizzen has been moved aft a bit to make this work better.

New Pix. The bottom now has its keel and 3 coats of epoxy and is sheathed in 10 oz. fiberglass to above the joint of the sheer strake. the rudder has been shaped and the rudder, cheeks, and tabernacle have pivot holes filled to provide bearings for pivot bolts. She needs to air out and cure a day or two before I paint the bottom and flip her back, but I'm now crawling under her to do some small tasks upside down, and I'll build the masts this weekend. The long boards the rudder is sitting on are the sprits. I could not find 2 X 2 clear spruce or ash around here, but I did find 1 X 2, so these are the laminated sprits - probably stronger than plain clear spruce (got it for a reasonable price from Aircraft Spruce in Atlanta, and I saved shipping when I went down to see grandchildren in a dance recital.). The rudder faired with pivot hole filled with thickened epoxy tabernacle with pivot holes filled with thickened epoxy rudder cheeks and doublers with pivot holes filled hatch covers encapsulated in epoxy There boat sheathed in 10 oz cloth and coated with three coats of epoxy.

Steve and Jay, the October Messabout is on my schedule.

I have made an appointment with Island Nautical in St. Pete to do the cabin cover the week before, so she will be at Cedar Key. Whether she is ready for the water may be up for debate. I remember whel Dale launched his CS 17 there. You all should come just to see all the boats. I put more pictures and comments on my blog at http://capt-doug.blogspot.com

You make a perfectly good boat, then you cut holes in the bottom. Holes for the plug to fill the water ballast tank,. the Andersen Bailer to empty it, and the Centerboard. Now working on sheathing the hull and finishing the bottom.

Flipping her Sorry for two posts, but I can't find out how to delete one.

Flipping her

Joel, the slot goes the whole length of the cabin sole, but the top continues a couple of feet to the forward bulkhead (look at the top picture - the combing is the front of the slot. The step was already on my mind , then there was the discussion of where to put a battery. ( above).

Construction updates - ready to flip and do the bottom (sheathe in fiberglass, paint, add keel, cut centerboard opening).

Here is a comparison of two step stools. The ruler is a yardstick if you can't read the numbers.

I have been thinking about the big step down into the cabin. I have been using a plastic two step stool from Costco during construction. The battery box Graham mentioned would be a good idea, but it would take up some of the precious foot room for taller people (shorter folks can sit farther toward the bow). Ann went online and searched for "folding step stools," finding some good ideas. I'll post pictures of stools in the companionway and updated pictures tomorrow. Just about ready to flip her and do the bottom.

No, it won't be sealed. It provides a comfortable backrest, and you can store the oars and maybe even a boat pole in there. It will be sealed forward and open in back. Therre are air tanks below the anchor locker up front and below the aft part of the cockpit sole.

I have just updated the blog on the build at http://capt-doug.blogspot.com/.

Just finished the Everglades Challenge in the Core Sound 20 Mark I. It took great care of me. More on that later. On the slot - I came down here a day early to talk with the crew at Island Nautical (the old JSI). They have a lot of experience with projects like this. We talked about arched battens sewn into Sunbrella attached to cars on parallel tracks. The material could accordion in between. The forward part would be in an awning track. I'm awaiting a drawing and have to run this by Graham.

We're still talking about that, Brian. We like the security of the Skiff America hatch (snaps and battens over a combing), but we are thinking of a sliding accordion arrangement.