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Spindrift 10 Build (by a 9th Grade Girl)


PadrePoint

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We started the build today, learning to mix epoxy and thicken it for gluing.  The Wheezer is a fast learner. I demonstrated the various processes needed to glue finger joints, but she did everything (feels a little lazy to just “watch”.)  Three hours and the finger joints (bottom, sides, seat tops) and the assembled/glued transom were set aside to cure.  The build is moving along.  ?
 

Again... it is SO nice having a B&B sailboat kit with the CNC cut parts. 

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Looks like you are off to a good start labeling the parts is a good idea. Building from a kit has a lot of advantages, but it does have one disadvantage. It is possible or rather inevitable that small errors will creep into your build. No matter how careful you are. If you are building from scratch it doesn't matter much. When it comes time to cut out your seat top you measure your boat and cut the seat tops out. If one side is a little wider than the other no one will know. When building from a kit it can be more of a problem because the seat tops are already precisely cut out. You can still deal with this problem but there is a easy way to minimize this issue.

 

Before gluing any assembly dry fit it and then dry fit the next assembly or even two. This allows you to make any adjustments before you lock in any errors. Also you get to see how the boat is going to look. The first steps are critical because all the others are affected by them so take your time.

 

Your boat name sounds great it is a nice way to honor  someone.

Lighter colors are better. Dark colors can get too hot when left in the sun. This can be uncomfortable and cause problems with the epoxy. 

 

Good luck. Have fun. Post pictures. or at least take them so you will have a record.

 

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The Wheezer was introduced to my table saw today. From 5/4 treated deck boards (southern white pine from Lowe’s) we cut six strips for the gunwales, four pieces for stringers, and a couple pieces for the dagger board trunk. The zipper joints for the bottoms/sides were done this morning and are curing. Good progress continues.

(Luckily, she has swim practice this afternoon... whew!  Time for a glass of wine and a few munchies. ?)

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Good Evening Weezer,   It looks like you stacked all your butt-jointed pieces, with plastic in between, so the two sides are identical mirror images,  Which is a good thing, and a smart way to do it.

As you get going on this, take it slow and think things through before you mix any glue.  Dry fit, and test fit everything.  Check and double check.  It is so much easier to fix something if you notice it before the glue dries.

 

  I have a habit of making pencil notes to myself on my parts, like “in, out, front, rear, left, right”,   It helps me quickly reorient things back into the right position when I take it apart to spread glue.  It might help you also.  Plus I put “witness marks” across any joints or edges, and make a squiggly line to remind myself where I intend to put the glue.  I can’t tell you how many times I have put glue on a piece, turned around to install it, and realized, I put the glue on the wrong side and had to scrape it off.      I still manage to make mistakes, but with all my marks, I usually notice something is not right before I get too far along.

 

Best of luck with your project, I am sure it will turn out great and be something you can be proud of for the rest of your life.

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After The Wheezer’s swim meet yesterday I offered to come over after supper to help her get things ready to unfold.  Since we got things ready to go and the bottom loosely wired, I asked whether she would like to invite her mom, dad and two siblings to be part of the next step: forming the hull shape by unfolding the two halves and wiring the chines.  They all pitched in.  I only took a photo of The Wheezer with her mom and dad as the wires were snugged up a bit.  It was our third day of the build. 
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She woke up with a headache this morning and has an afternoon swim meet... so I had a chance to work a bit on my 15’ ski boat build. Link: Building Form is Ready

 

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We took a few minutes tonight to tighten up and adjust the bow area (added a few wires), wire in the forward bulkhead, put screws into the temporary bulkhead and transom, and do a first check for twist (just a bit... close enough for now.)  The Wheezer has to be a student for the next few days. ?

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Ah, the joys of working with thickened epoxy... the stuff has a way of getting on everything  She had a few long hairs appear in the goo. That wasn’t a problem for me. ?
The Wheezer was introduced today to using my 40 year old Craftsman belt sander, along with some more work with a saber saw, drill, and table saw. 
Her initial fillet work looks pretty good and will not need a lot of sanding ... yet. That will come after wires are pulled out and thicker fillets are put in preparing for fiberglass taping.  
The kit pieces continue coming together nicely, fitting well. 

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You may want to try the cake frosting method of applying the thickened epoxy for fillets (squeezing the epoxy out through a hole cut in the corner of a plastic bag).  In hot weather this method can cause the epoxy to kick too soon since it is concentrated in the bag, but in wintertime that isn't a concern.  I found this technique to be a lot less messy then other methods, and I was able to make quicker and neater fillets.  Just something you might want to try to see if it fits your style.

 

Congratulations on going 3D.

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Amos, this is mostly me just whining.
I have a way of bumping something that has epoxy on it and passing it to other things... and that stuff is tenaciously sticky.  
This morning I noticed a “dirt smudge” on my wrist that wouldn’t just wipe off... a leftover from yesterday’s work that I missed when cleaning up... OR I picked up the smudge WHEN I was cleaning up. 
See... whining at my own carelessness. ?

And, I am going to run out right now to get some frosting bags for The Wheezer. ?  I didn’t try this when I built my CS15. 

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I went skiing ⛷ early this morning for a couple hours on a first sunny day in many weeks (it is about 8 degrees... “fresh”) ?.  Then, it was time for me to “punch in” with The Wheezer across the street. 

 

I assisted her for a couple hours this afternoon installing four of six outwale/gunwale strips (two layers on each side.)  With left over thickened epoxy we made an initial small fillet on the underneath joint of gunwale and side.  We’ll do the third strip-layer later in the build. A productive day.

 

I find that the Spindrift 10 is becoming a very cute looking little boat. I enjoy looking at it sitting on its building cradle.  Maybe The Wheezer will post some more update boat-build photos. 

(And, Amos, the frosting tube worked nicely for The Wheezer.  Of course, I managed to have some of my typical messiness.)  ?

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You can also use a zip top baggie with a corner cut off in place of a frosting bag.

 

I lay the putty in the corner the old fashioned way. A 1/2" wide stick (not rounded off) to apply the putty. Then go over it with a rounded one the diameter I want. Then a quick run along each side with a putty knife to remove the putty that smears out on either side. For me it all goes quicker than messing with a bag.

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Today, the morning of the Packers championship game, we worked for an hour getting things ready to make the inside fillets. The Wheezer has watched Alan’s CS15 videos and she is READY!!  (We started at 10:30 am and she had already done a swim meet... I had barely finished my coffee.)

 

I suggested starting with the under-the-seat filleting, sort of as practice. “Then, just keep going... I’ll be at my home if you have questions (she won’t) and will stop in later (after the game... or before, should the Packers forget to “show up” today) to see how things are going.”

 

Easy day for me. ?  (Pizza, beer and chips in a little while.)

 

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Edit: The game is not looking good as the second half begins... down by 18.  Sigh.  At least I’ve got pizza in the oven.

 

Edit: The Packers showed up, had a chance, almost did it, but lost.

Pizza’s gone. 

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