AmosSwogger

There are multiple correct ways to fix this; I would patch the hole now with a replacement wooden finger: 1. Using a file, bevel the edges of the panel where you plan to apply the replacement finger for the purposes of increasing the contact area of the applied finger (in effect creating a minature scarf joint). 2. Bevel the edges of the new finger to roughly match the panel bevels. 3. Clamp a flat board (temporary gluing reference surface) to the underside of the panel. Use tape or plastic so the epoxy won't stick to it in the next step. 4. Epoxy the new finger in place and clamp it to the reference board. 5. When the epoxy dries, sand everything flush (chances are there will be some misalignment).

Nice progess.

Steve, my sprits aren't quite long enough to flatten the sails. I would reccomend making yours longer than the plans call for.

I second the appreciation for the packaging and labeling of the lines. When I started rigging I didn't know the difference between a bed sheet and a mizzen sheet, without the organized kit I don't think I would have succeeded.

Enjoyed the tour; thanks for posting it. I think your motor placement is going to work out very well; I think the boat will steer and respond better with the prop directly forward of the rudder (with the rudder more directly diverting the propeller thrust as compared to a transom hung motor). Another advantage to your placement is less (or no) chance of prop cavitation in waves.

I will purchase that coupon from you; just name your price.

Impressive work. Enjoyed the videos, congratulations Steve. Take a day off and celebrate.

Congratulations, happy to see it rigged up. Post some pictures of your first sail.

To answer your question about attaching hardware to the mast, you can actually attach more than you might think with through bolts. I attached a wrench to a stick of wood for this, and it worked well. By placing the wood/wrench stick on top of the mast, aligning the wrench with the hole in the mast, you can then strike a line on the wood that helps you achieve the right location when you insert the stick/wrench inside the mast. I taped the nut in place on the wrench, aligned the pencil line, and using a flashlight you can align the nut with the hole and then insert the screw.

I'm impressed with how well that crate is organized/packed. Very cool that boat of this size can fit into a crate like that. Looking forward to following your build.

You guys captured some excellent pictures, thanks for posting them. What was the wind like when you crossed the sound Monday?

Thank you for the excellent pictures Jay. Steve, the sail with the family was a lot of fun (after Lara helped me tie the reefing lines correctly!). Definitely the strongest wind we had ever sailed in and fastest we had ever sailed. Some the gusts that came through were really strong. The kids really enjoyed the accelerations and weren't scared at all when the boat healed over. I was initially heading up into the wind too much when the gusts came through and had to learn that the boat could handle them fine with the water ballast helping keep us upright. The other guy that went out with us in his small homemade boat (Matt?) was an excellent sailor and it was lot of fun watching him sail as he was hiked way out and going real fast. I wish I had gotten some pictures of his boat, but I had my hands full. It was a good learning experience as this was our first time sailing reefed.

I haven't seen the drawings you are referring to, so I misunderstood your question. I'm sorry about that. Dang it, now I'm confused also. We are probably both overthinking this. Once your boat is upright again and you start laying out the pieces of wood that guide the tape all the confusion will go away and it will make sense. It is one of those processes that is hard to describe in writing, but is easy to do in person.

No, that isn't right. It needs to extend much more than that. Are these the drawing you are looking at?

Steve; let me know it there is anything else camping related you want me to throw in the truck for you. I plan on arriving Thursday afternoon (the rest of the family is coming down Sunday morning for the day).