Alan Stewart

Just an update on the 15. She is painted and almost ready for hardware. Since she will be going home with her new owner at the messabout she is being made ready with all of my available time and so the CS 15 video series is on hiatus until after the messabout BUT not to worry I am still taking lots of footage of the build and promise to finish the video series as soon as I have some free evenings! -Alan

blueheron, In the spirit of getting out on the water in any way possible I think it could be done however not without some modification and the boat will not sail as well as a properly rigged spindrift and will also be pretty much impossible to reef. In addition I believe that the sunfish rig will be heavier than a standard spindrift mast and sail. Using a snapshot from Joe's capsize recovery video on his Spindrift 12 and a profile of a sunfish sail it looks as though the center of area of the sunfish sail would be slightly behind that of the Spindrift. This will effect the balance of the boat. You would also at the very least have to build a spindirft rudder. I don't think any of the sunfish rudder parts could work because the sunfish has about a 6" high transom and the spindrift has a full transom of about 18" tall. Also the sunfish rudder is raked back for some reason I've never figured out which is undesirable. Also the sunfish mast would probably be too short to fit in a spindrift and have a reasonable amount of head clearance under the boom. You would have to extend the sunfish's mast to gain boom clearance. LOTS of issues now that I think about it. The spindrift is a great boat and deserves it's propper rig. Start building it and add the rig when you get there it's very easy to make.

Rick, For the 15, my suggestion would be a nice big dodger that snapped around the gunwale and across the foredeck with rotating bows that could be folded down onto the foredeck. A zipper door on the aft end and you would have a tent on the front half of the boat and if you converted the CB to a weighted style and added some seat top filler pieces you would have a nice seat top bunk for 2. A portapotti could be stored in a stern locker and used in the bow if need be. Here is a render of the tent bows. I didn't draw the actual fabric but you get the idea. I was curious so I took Graham's MK3 idea and ran with it on the 15. Unfortunately the boat just isn't quite big enough to make the ergonomics work. Sitting headroom would only be possible if the cabin were made even taller than this and it's pretty chunky looking as it is. It could probably be massaged a bit to be made a little more pleasing to the eye. There isn't room for a bridge deck to sit on for rowing without losing minimum bunk length in the cabin. Also, the cabin isn't really big enough for 2 so it would be a solo cruiser. It would have water ballast, self draining cockpit. Could have a sliding hatch and a dodger or a trench. Here are some renders of the quickie 15-MK3 concept. Solo cruiser. Could maybe build in a small galley to starboard behind the CB trunk. Kinda chunky looking. Maybe if you were really short? Can't quite get sitting head room in the cabin.

Probably a 17. I don't think I would need the space of the 20.

Matt and Tru, I'm so glad the videos have been helpful. I have had lots of positive feedback on them. This 15 is being commissioned by a new member to the B and B family who will take delivery of her at this year's B and B mess-about. My personal boat at the moment is my CS 17 'Southbound' http://www.sailnaway.blogspot.com/2012/09/southbound-completes-ncc-2012.html She was given to me by my good friend Ken who is an active poster here who was the builder. I overhauled her 2 years ago this month and she has served me well. I'm starting to get the itch for a Mk3 though.

Howard, Pulling a vacuum on the rope is a good trick. I never thought of that. I also noticed some stretch in my rope. I think i had to cut maybe an inch off the end. Here is Part 15

I got a little behind in video production but I'm back at it. Here is part 14. Part 15 will be up tonight that gets us pretty much ready to paint the cockpit. As of today, the cockpit is painted and i have already flipped her and glassed the bottom. So expect some more videos soon. -Alan

Since Graham is busy building I thought I would post some pictures on his behalf. Not wanting to take up space on the forum and for "future proofing" I have an album online with all the good pictures I have taken of Grahams 17 MK3 that can be viewed HERE.

Parts 12 and 13 have been added. I'm getting better and or maybe a little faster at editing. Hope to keep it up till the end.

Here is Part 11

I've posted parts 9 and 10. Part 11 should be up sometime tonight. I've linked them below and also they are up on my blog. Part 9: Part 10: Herb, I just saw your question... The kit files for the CS 15 are being created as I build but I have almost cut out every single plywood part so it is getting close. There are still a bunch of notches and pencil lines to add in and some tweaking here and there. Aside from that I think the kit for the 15 could be made available now. That is to say, I think you could get your name in the que of boats to be cut out at B and B. I would give Graham a call this week if you want to order one. -Alan

However, if you don't want to use stinky and potentially brain cell reducing paints I totally understand. My dad and I used system 3 lpu on our cs 20 because of this but it has not held up well in the long term (5 or more years) as compared to a 2 part poly coated boat and it has always lived in a garage when not in use. We will be repainting her soon and I know what to use this time.

It takes to get there. Smoothing out the fiberglass edges and filling in all pinholes and any sharp spots is important but this makes the cockpit smooth not fair. The outside of the hull is worth the time but seeing the structural glass tape at the cockpit joints is not offensive to the eye and if nonskid will be applied then perfectly fair is even less important.

I can relate to working in a hot shop. It's been hot and humid in nc the last few weeks and dripping sweat in epoxy isn't the best. As for fairing and painting I'm about to start this process on the CS 15 I'm building. I'm curious how you decided to use latex since I think it's the last paint I would choose because my experience is that mildew creeps into it and in a few years it looks a little used and repainting is soooo much work. In the cockpit I plan to roll and tip a 2 part polyurethane. DevoE 379 "devthane" it was 75 bucks for a gallon at my local high performance coatings store. Glidden or other/ ask around. If you can wear a respirator and use a few fans you'll be miles ahead of latex. As for fairing the cockpit I have come to the conclusion as graham did long ago that a perfectly fair cockpit is not worth the immense ammount of time

A vote for the stock sheeting layout.... I actually prefer the stock sheeting layout for the main and mizzen. The biggest advantage of the stock layout is that the sheets are always very close to the helmsman. Both sitting and hiking out both sheets are within arms reach without having to hang onto them all the time. If you drop the sheet you don't have to lean in to retrieve it it's right there next to your butt. Additionally, the mizzen isn't something that I adjust all the time maybe half as much as the main but when i do I don't recall ever needing to turn my body, i just lift my aft hand to the coaming and there it is. I push the mizzen sheet forward with my aft hand when bringing it in rather than turning my body to "pull" it and I give the end to my forward hand. Then I can take in more if I want or follow the line back to re-cleat it. This is a very natural motion. Easing the mizzen is a no brainer just un-cleat, let it slip, re-cleat. Many sailors go to great lengths and sometimes engineer convoluted rigging solutions to achieve double ended or 2 sided control lines and sheets to increase control line and sheet accessibility. We have it so easy with the stock layout. To my eye sending the mizzen sheet along the sprit and down the mast to a single sheet point is an overly complicated way of making the sheet LESS accessible not to mention making it a little more complicated to adjust the mizzen snotter. I also find the stock sheeting layout to be exceptionally good in very light airs with very low friction to ease the sheets which I attribute to the simple 2 sided sheet layout. One of the most fun and challenging things about sailing is playing around and coming up with better rigging solutions and there is always another way to do it.

Started on the centerboard. www.sailnaway.blogspot.com "B and B special blend" thickener mix is essentially cabosil and very very fine wood powder. Much finer than regular sawdust. We use it where the wood and fillet will remain visible and not be painted. Cabosil is otherwise white which looks a bit ugly. The wood powder also gives the filler a creamier texture. Graham offers his filler mix along with his epoxy.

Centerboard trunk glued in. Should have the CB up next. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SqI_xuvc-Uc&feature=youtu.be&list=PLCCJRycps-_mbO-Lfdr0s8OZX-4QOZCzL

Sounds like your on the right track to me. 1/8" gaps are not uncommon around the sides and bottom of the forward bulkhead due to variations in bending from humidity and plywood thickness. "little small bears like salt" I think you mean small beads. In that case you could be sanding it while still a bit green or not quite fully cured. As long as it's not sticking to your sandpaper then it should be fine. Just watch out for head buildup which will make it stick and ruin a sanding disk. Also, green epoxy dust is hazardous to your health. Make sure your wearing a mask even if your using a vacuum. I'd wear gloves too if I were sanding not fully cured.

More work done on the CS 15 kit prototype. JRich, Yes there are plans for the CS15 without kit. http://www.sailnaway.blogspot.com/

Firstly, you don't want a 2 part epoxy anywhere there will be sun exposure. You need a 2 part poly for that. Could you get away with it on the bottom? probably. But you said you wanted a gloss bottom and most epoxy paints aren't as glossy (i believe). For a hard durable gloss finish on a painted boat Awlgrip is the gold standard. Alexseal is another high quality 2 part poly. It is worth the investment of not having to paint again for a good long time. It is sprayed and thinned just like your auto paints i'm sure but these paint systems have a clearcoat built in that rises to the surface with each coat. It CANNOT be buffed out without marring the protective outer layer. They do make a buffable paint called Awlcraft that I think can be buffed ( I have never used it so that's all i know) Another brand we have been using is PPG Amercoat. Their 2 part poly is called 450-H and is a 4:1 topcoat. Our experience with it is that it is much cheaper than Awlgrip and looks almost as good. It seems to kick off a little faster so thin it way down for a topcoat. We have been using Awlgrip's slow brushing reducer with it (T0031 I think) which improves it considerably. The gold standard for epoxy primer (under the poly) is Awlgrip 545 high build primer (1:1 mix). PPG Amercoat also makes a high build primer we have been using that we like. and is cheaper and sands about as good. hard to tell a difference. I think it's called 385 primer. I would be comfortable using either of these as a bottom paint on a trailerable small sailboat and you could just put Awlgrip or PPG over it for a gloss bottom. I think the reason that gloss coats aren't used on boats (except for maybe glitter jobs on ski and bass boats) is just because boats are usually bigger and harder to get at than cars. Certainly you wouldn't want to have to clear-coat over white on a 50' motor yacht. I remember reading about an epoxy compatible gelcoat that was being used in molds with epoxy infused hulls down in florida in flats boats. Maybe in Pro-boat magazine. I wouldn't even think about using regular gelcoat on an epoxy and wood boat. That is asking for it.

Great little spot on North Carolina Now published recently. Here is a link to the video if you didn't catch it. http://video.unctv.org/video/2365269661/ The segment on B and B starts at 16:20.

I bought a piece of hydro turf from amazon a while back for the amas of my trimaran and really liked it. It was nice and comfortable for sitting on. It's a sticky back foam tread that you can cut up. I stuck it to glossy topcoat and it held perfectly through the everglades challenge. It's about 6mm thick and they use it mostly for coating pwcs and stand up paddle boards. I think I found a piece 36"x60" for about 80 bucks. I think it would be nice on the bottom of a small boat if you like to sail barefoot. It probably would stain though if you sail around red mud.

I'll throw in my 2 cents. I painted my (previously kens) 17 with ppg amercoat 450H 2 part poly. As far as I can tell it's providing all the long life benefits of the expensive awlgrip 2 parts at a fraction of the cost (like $60 a gallon) you can get it at a Glidden paint Store. Look at ppg website for local distributors. You can also have it tinted. it's a 5 to 1 mix ratio and it's a little thicker than awlgrip but to really improve it you can and should use awlgrip brushing reducer to thin it. If you don't mind wearing gloves and a respirator i wouldn't use anything but a 2 part poly.

Good question. No a bottom paint is not necessary for a boat that lives on it's trailer. My CS17 is painted with the same paint top and bottom. I added some graphite powder to the white gallon to make grey for the bottom. I used Amercoat PPG brand 2 part Poly. It's a bit thicker than Awlgrip and not quite as glossy but just as UV resistant (so far) and is shown itself to be a good hard finish. Thinning with Awlgrip's slow brushing reducer worked very well for me. If you prefer Awlgrip, I have been pleased to find that you can buy base, converter and reducers on Amazon.com at very good prices. I have ordered Awlgrip products from the sellers "Atlantic boat supply" and "Merritt Supply" through Amazon and had no issues. Another option for smaller vessels is to leave the bottom painted with just epoxy primer such as Alwgrip 545. This way the bottom is all epoxy and scratches can be easily repaired and the bottom can be sanded very very smooth over and over again over the years. Especially good I would imagine for someone racing their boat. I know for a fact that Graham's EC-22 bottom is 545 primer for this reason.

Sure you can. Work cleanly so you don't have spikes or lumps otherwise the second coat will bump over the bumps and leave more putty behind than you want. My preferred mix for fairing is 90% microspheres and then a splash of cabosil to stiffen it up. As you add microspheres the mix tends to be runny and then all of the sudden it's too dry. A bit of cabosil kills the runny ness but doesn't dry the putty out so it sticks well. Also microspheres will easily double the volume of epoxy you start with so do a small batch until you get a handle on mix size.