Hirilonde

Thanks for the comments on ratios all. I just have to finish this Mini and I can try my hand at ply scarfing. We use a router jig that fits onto the end of the board. It is made out of polycarbonate and consists of a beveled slide that accepts a piece that holds the router. Makes short work of it but only works well for the ends of boards. It can also work for scarfing in repairs for damaged sections of box masts. Our boat sheds are up to 100' long, so space isn't the issue. Our workshop is a shoe box :cry:

No scarfs for the Minipaw I start today, but going to make that jig to prep for my Spindrift 9N later this winter. Thanks for the info Jan, very clever jig. What ratio (length of scarf/1" of material) are most of you using? For box masts on Concordias we have been using 12:1. Which for 1/4" ply is 3 " long. Jan's instructions show 6 degrees, but anything that shallow I would think can lead to slight variations when used and need a little doctoring up by hand.

It was me Graham, and thanks for the reply. You include a very specific detail of the layering of glass for the nesting bulkheads that I found it odd that no mention was made of the rest of the seams. Speaking of glass weight: the stuff I ordered is 9.5 oz.. The supplier we use at work has several widths but just the one weight. My plywood just came in as well and hope to start laying out panels sunday if I can get my boat covered saturday.

He doesn't work in the shop. He just moved his boat there to take the picture. Looking good Jan.

I read the article as well, was a great read. They didn't just win, they smashed the old record! It sounds like a really fun race. Way different than "around the buoys".

The manufacturers of polycarbonates still do recommend silicone. They do so because they know it doesn't attack their material and they want to cover their liabilities. They also don't have to warantee whether the installation leaks or not. I have been using Sikaflex 291 for the past 4 years on countless fixed port bedding jobs using polycarbonate and have yet to etch the material in the slightest, inspite of smearing it all over the viewable portion of the port during the cleaning process. I am not advertising for Sika. Everyone should use their own best judgment in choosing materials. But keep in mind that manufacturers may be more interested in their liabilities than researching new products.

My favorite bedding is Sikaflex, and it harms nothing. But it only comes in cartridges and doesn't keep well for long after opened. It has a fairly long working period in which it cleans easily Boatlife's Lifecaulk works very well and comes in small toothpaste like containers. These tubes last quite a long time when recapped. The working time isn't as long, especially when warm. It turns to a cottage cheese like consistency after a while and becomes a nuisance to clean up, but it does still clean. Both clean easily with mineral spirits within their windows. I assume these access ports are plastic? The manufacturer probably wants to make sure you don't use any harse solvent based materials which may eat into or at least etch the plastic. Neither Sikaflex nor Lifecaulk will attack plastics and mineral spirits doesn't either. 4200 isn't quite as tenacious as 5200, but still more adhesive than you probably need.

I used a search and found many old threads on the subject and some good info. I do however have a specific question. While cleaning out the lumber loft at work I found a coil of solid bronze wire, propably 14 AWG or there abouts. My question should I choose to use it is; can I snip the knot off flush on the outside with the surface and just leave the rest of it in the ply and fillet? Bronze sands quite easily and is a very stable material but I was wondering if anyone knew of any reason why I should not leave some of it behind.

I don't think the order used is important if the right materials are used in the amounts necessary to achieve the results required and IF: ALL BONDS ARE SOLID. Charlie, are you concerned about the glass layer adhering to the filler? or the filler to the wood? Whenever I want to used a soft filler for sanding purposes, which implies a rather dry one, I worry about its bond to the wood. To deal with this I first paint out the wood with pure resin then apply the filler immediately to the wetted out surface. This gives me the saturated/penetrated bond to the wood and the soft, dry and easy to sand surface. This surface can then be sanded out to allow for a good mechanical bond to whatever layer comes next.

Amen!!! The stuff should be illegal. There is little I hate more than having to repair or replace something bedded in that stuff. 5200 or 52-goo as we call it at the boatyard is great if you never want to take it apart. All too many people want to use it as a bedding compound. It does bed well but removal of the bedded piece often causes damage and when mechanical fastening is being used the adhesive properties are unecessary. Sounds like you have a good application for it though.

You've got quite the project going Jake. I am looking forward to seeing the end result. Have you considered a removeable bulkhead with a door? Make up an accurate pattern (I like strips of thin ply scribed to fit and hot glued together) of the bulkhead. Fit it well but loose enough to remove. Then after painting or whatever you will be doing, screw it in with finish washers, or through bolt it, and maybe even gasket it if a waterproof bulkhead is desired. Now it can be removed any time easy access is needed.

just a few more...........

more photos...........

I purchased Pearson Renegade #51; formerly Aliance, last fall in Niantic CT. I sailed her to my place of employment; Dodson Boatyard in Stonington, CT and immediately pulled her out to do a little work. I set a completion/launching date of July 15. I figured this was reasonable though demanding but would also give me a bit of a sailing season. EXTERIOR: I totally removed all exterior woodwork; cockpit combing, handrails, toe rails, taff rail, dorade boxes. I saved the pieces and used them as patterns and made new pieces in teak instead of the mahogany the boat was originally trimmed with. I made a new companionway slider and forward hatch out of teak to replace the fiberglass ones. After dry fitting all these pieces I took them home and prevarnished them. I removed all the ports, fixed and operable. I made new fixed ports and cleaned and reglazed the operable to be installed again later. As the boat was outside under a covering I next went on to do the interior. My boss was going to let me have shed space and eventually the paint bay to use in the spring as our customer's boats were commisioned for the season. In early May I moved into a shed and went on to work the exterior again. I chipped, chemical stripped, ground and sanded the entire hull including the bottom, topsides, deck and coach house down to a remnant of the original gelcoat. This was the nastiest, dirtiest most tedious work I have ever done. I glassed in several holes including former gauge locations. I wanted a fresh slate. I filled all the dings gouges, major crazing etc. I used Interlux Premium Filler for all surfaces above the water line and Awlgrip Awlfare below it. I fared and sanded until I couldn't take it any more or the area was totally fare and smooth. I epoxied and barrier coated the bottom. I used Epiglass 1 : 1 epoxy (a quite thin material) to seal the crazing and bare glass areas on the bottom. It penetrates very well into crevices. I then used Interlux Interprotect (an epoxy barrier coat). This has a "hot" recoat window of 14 days and a "hot" bottom paint window of 9 hours meaning I would not have to sand the bottom again. Intermittently with the coats of Interprotect on the bottom (to get smooth fare overlaps near the waterline) I primed the rest of the hull including deck, cockpit and coach house. A salesman from Alexaseal was trying to get us to try their product in hopes of getting our business from Awlgrip. He gave us several gallons each of their epoxy primers and 2 part linear polymer topcoat. My boss let Hirilond

Ah, now this thread makes more sense to me. Now the 2 criteria are much closer.

When I glue teak I clean both surfaces to be glued with acetone or alcohol. I do this to remove the natural oils teak has from these surfaces to improve the bond. I let the cleaner dry (only takes a couple minutes with tone or alcohol) so as not to contaminate the epoxy. I have never heard anything good about adding thinners to epoxy. If I am gluing very porous materials with epoxy I sometimes wet out the 2 surfaces with epoxy with no cabosil or 406 for absorbtion. Then I add the filler and apply a second coat before bonding and clamping. The heating idea Charlie mentions works well, but keep in mind it speeds up the cure as well, especially the stuff still in the pot.

Hello all! I've been reading the messing-about boards for a while now and even joined and made a few posts already. I found this forum as a result of B&B and the fact that I bought plans for a Spindrift 9N so I will make my into here. I live in RI but work as a carpenter in a boatyard in CT. My son is off in college and my daughter is nearly done with high school. This fact (the financial aspect of it) and that I have a free place to store a boat meant it was time to get back into sailing. Last fall I bought 1967 Pearson Renegade #51. http://www.renegade27.org/ It was structually sound but a mess. I spent 8 months refitting her and have enjoyed daysailing this summer. Now this winter I add cushions, hopefully a dodger and a dinghy. This should make her ready for some serious cruising next summer. I spent a ton of time researching and debating the pros and cons of almost every conceivable option for a tender. I want a dinghy that rows and sails well. I want one that tows well but can be put on the deck of a 27 footer for long passages or stormy weather. I want to sail into a harbor in the afternoon on Hirilond

Trailerable and ocean cruiser? I guess everyone has there own opinions but I don't really see both of those criteria fitting the same boat. My thoughts are that each would compromise the other too much. I beat myself up debating similar issues as well and couldn't find a suitable mix. I settled on an old Pearson Renegade which I refitted myself. http://www.renegade27.org/ Comfortable (relatively speaking) and seaworthy won out over trailerable.

Sitka Spruce is the wood of choice over the years. The 7 Concordias I help take care of all have spruce spars. Long stringy grain and light weight. But I agree, that for commonly available lumber, Doug Fir is probably the best.

I would think the plast-dip would work fine. The tacky characteristic it has for other solid objects has little if any relationship to how the coated rudder will flow through water. It probably isn't as drag free as the new high-tech hard racing bottom paints. But unless you are entering an important race; who cares? :wink:

Looks like you had a great trip. Narraganset Bay is such a great place to sail. Many have proclaimed it the best small boat sailing on the east coast. I work in a boatyard and we have very few customers who could compete with Jeff in a fun/season contest

At the boatyard where I work we repaint aluminum spars all the time. We use Awlgrip products on them. After prep and a serious cleaning of the surfaces we apply several coats of Awlgrip 545 2-part epoxy primer. If applied at intervals of 1 to 9 hours between coats it can be "hot" recoated; that means no sanding between coats needed. After 3 to 10 coats of primer (we have some very picky and wealthy customers) the primer is sanded with 400g paper and sprayed with Awlgrip 2-part linear polymer polyurethane topcoat. Some have us sand again and dress with clear. Awlgrip can also be brushed. The results, though not a car finish like sprayed, are still quite good. I will be using these products on my Spindrift 9N this winter. I will be "rolling and tipping" If you choose to use 2 part epoxies and polyurethanes make sure to read the MSDSs and DO NOT skimp on the safety equipment they call for.

Is "plasti-dip" the stuff you dip tool handles into, like pliers?

If there is any piece on a dinghy where resilience is more important than weight; you have found it. I am certainly considering weight for my choice for gunwhales, probably going to choose Sitka Spruce. But since every time I drag my tender the keel batten is going to suffer for it I think I am going to use African Mahogany. It has long stringy fibers that bend well and resist abrasion. It glues well and is quite rot resistant. I'm not sure how available it is in areas where boat building doesn't normally occur though.

My mother says that when I was 2 years old I would row cardboard boxes with her best wooden cooking spoons. When I was 5 she would let me row the family pram in 2 feet of water and anchored on a short scope while she watched me row and my brother swim. I don't know how many kids today fell in love with boats early like I did, but if you find one you will make him/her extremely happy. Dave self-restored 1967 Pearson Renegade soon to be started Spindrift 9 Nesting