Lille Ø Posted January 19 Report Share Posted January 19 Spoiler alert: We built the dinghy in exactly a month (CNC cutting on January 6th, splashed on February 7th). The dinghy both rows beautifully, and fits on our deck without problems. The build is documented on our website as well as in this thread. On to the original build log: In the beginning of January we started building the Spindrift 9N as the new dinghy for our cruising boat. Until now we’ve been cruising the Baltic, and so our little banana-boot (think Porta Boot) has been enough as a dinghy. But it’s really a one person dinghy with only some 5cm of freeboard with us both and gear on board. For next summer’s trip to Scotland we wanted something more capable. We like to row, so a hard dinghy was the only real option. And only a nesting one would fit the deck of our 31ft double-ender. So here we are. Over last year we transferred the plans to CAD, and now on Jan 6th cut the plywood for the boat at the Cadus makerspace. 6mm okume marine plywood from BootsHolz.de. Solid wood parts are spruce that we ripped and sawed at the workshop of the c-base hackerspace. Transporting the parts, especially the gunwales on public transport was an experience! We had originally booked a spot in a boat hall for the build. But now there’s a cold spell, and so it would’ve been too cold for epoxy there. Since the sailing club restaurant is closed for the winter, we were allowed to build the dinghy in one of their (heated) storage rooms instead. On Jan 14th we opened the butterfly. We decided to go with zip ties, and that has worked pretty well. The main mistake we’ve had so far was not marking the position of the bulkheads when the sheets were still flat. So getting the right (fingers crossed!) position for the nesting bulkhead has been a fiddly process. We also built the cradle too low, making for awkward working positions. Now the inside seams are filleted and glassed, and we will continue installing the flotation chambers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aphers Posted January 19 Report Share Posted January 19 That's good progress. Do you plan to sail your Spindrift? I have been using my 11N as my tender full time for over two years and sailing around anchorages is my favourite hobby now. So glad I didn't buy a RIB like everyone else! Aphers (Sea Change on YBW) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hirilonde Posted January 19 Report Share Posted January 19 57 minutes ago, Aphers said: That's good progress. Do you plan to sail your Spindrift? I have been using my 11N as my tender full time for over two years and sailing around anchorages is my favourite hobby now. My 9N was built as a tender for that very reason. Once I was comfortable with my anchor set I would mix a cocktail and take a tour of the harbor and check out the pretty boats, especially the wooden ones. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 19 Author Report Share Posted January 19 1 hour ago, Aphers said: That's good progress. Do you plan to sail your Spindrift? I have been using my 11N as my tender full time for over two years and sailing around anchorages is my favourite hobby now. So glad I didn't buy a RIB like everyone else! Yes, the plan is to sail it. The club apparently has an abandoned Europe dinghy rig that we may be able to adopt. Today we tack welded the stern seats. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 19 Author Report Share Posted January 19 After lunch we also tack welded the forward bulkhead. King plank and seat tops are there just to help keep things aligned. Now into the lovely winter weather and to the embassy to vote. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aphers Posted January 19 Report Share Posted January 19 1 hour ago, Lille Ø said: Yes, the plan is to sail it. The club apparently has an abandoned Europe dinghy rig that we may be able to adopt. Today we tack welded the stern seats. I think a Europe rig could work well. I initially used a slightly cut down OK rig, it sailed extremely well but the mast was very thick walled and heavy which made the dinghy very unstable and that took away a lot of the fun and practicality. I'm now using an old 5.5m² windsurfer rig with a four piece mast. Initially boom-less, but a couple of weeks ago I found a wishbone boom washed up on the beach, and now it sails really well. I think the rig as designed would be the best option, obviously, but I was running out of time and money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Rolfe Posted January 20 Report Share Posted January 20 You guys are making fast progress! At this rate, you're going to beat me on my 10N build, and I started mine in September (but I also work way too much). It's also impressive that you transferred all the plans yourself to CNC . Have you guys decided on a paint you want to use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 20 Author Report Share Posted January 20 2 hours ago, Bryan Rolfe said: You guys are making fast progress! At this rate, you're going to beat me on my 10N build, and I started mine in September (but I also work way too much). Well, having a tight deadline helps . We need to be out of this workspace by early February, and the boat won't fit through the door in one piece. And of course the dinghy needs to be finished by beginning of April when we head towards Norway. 2 hours ago, Bryan Rolfe said: Have you guys decided on a paint you want to use? We still have a jar of Perfection left over from our deck rebuild, so that's the plan. If that is expired or runs out, then we'll see, as Perfection isn't available on the market any longer. We'd like the color to match our deck. We're planning to apply Kiwigrip to the inside bottom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 20 Author Report Share Posted January 20 Today's project was to fillet and glass the aft and bow flotation chambers, and to epoxy paint the inside of the aft ones to get it ready for painting and closing. Tonight it is the club's travel story night where we and others will tell about the adventures from 2023. So that's it for today with the dinghy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 21 Author Report Share Posted January 21 Today is somewhat of a rest day after last night's party. We painted the aft flotation chambers white, and glassed the forward bulkhead. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aphers Posted January 22 Report Share Posted January 22 Your can of perfection was still good? I didn't bother painting inside the lockers, not much UV in there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 22 Author Report Share Posted January 22 1 hour ago, Aphers said: Your can of perfection was still good? I didn't bother painting inside the lockers, not much UV in there Didn't check the state of the Perfection yet. Since this is basically "bilge space" we just put one coat of Epifanes monourethane that we had lying around. Idea was that by painting it white, it'll be easier to find things if we stash something there. Also, nice to see that the hatches we bought fit just right: Forward flotation chamber we'll keep as just epoxy as there is no inspection hatch. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aphers Posted January 22 Report Share Posted January 22 47 minutes ago, Lille Ø said: Forward flotation chamber we'll keep as just epoxy as there is no inspection hatch. Is there a risk that changes in temperature/pressure will cause damage to a totally sealed tank? I often hear a strong hiss when I open mine up. For that reason I've put a partially crushed plastic bottle, with lid on, inside each tank. The idea is that it will absorb any changes in pressure. Maybe it's totally unnecessary but it's not doing any harm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Tim Posted January 22 Report Share Posted January 22 This boat has water/airtight tanks and they have held for 15 plus years Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 22 Author Report Share Posted January 22 2 hours ago, Aphers said: Is there a risk that changes in temperature/pressure will cause damage to a totally sealed tank? I often hear a strong hiss when I open mine up. For that reason I've put a partially crushed plastic bottle, with lid on, inside each tank. The idea is that it will absorb any changes in pressure. Maybe it's totally unnecessary but it's not doing any harm. At least the Spindrift 9 plans say that the inspection hatch is optional. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Rolfe Posted January 22 Report Share Posted January 22 Might be okay given that the forward bulkhead is relatively flexible. When I built my hollow wooden surfboard, I installed a gortex type vent that allows air to escape/equalize but prevents water from entering: https://shapersupply.com/collections/eps-vents but I also think the board was probably strong enough to handle the pressure changes. I decided not to paint any of my compartments because they wouldn't be exposed to UV, and I figured that they were going to get abused a little with use from storage, and things sliding around in there, and if I ever had to touch up the paint, I wasn't going to want to be doing it through the inspection port. But, yours do look great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 22 Author Report Share Posted January 22 Today was a pretty productive day, as we were able to squeeze in both a morning session, and when epoxy had cured, an evening session. In the morning we prepared the daggerboard trunk for assembly (cut king posts to shape, epoxy painted the inside), and glued the aft compartment lids in their place. In the evening we glued the daggerboard trunk in place, using the keel as a guide (as spied from the #1621 thread). There are also pilot holes for later routing the daggerboard hole in the hull: We then glued the king plank in place, and rounded and glassed the outside seams of the aft flotation chambers: Tomorrow we probably turn the boat over and glass the outside seams to prepare for sawing the boat in half. One concern right now is that the aft seats tops seem to flex quite a bit. Should we have glued some stringers underneath? We now consider to add some glass on top to stiffen them up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 23 Author Report Share Posted January 23 This morning we started by removing the clamps and peel ply. Insides are looking pretty good! We flipped the boat over and rounded the corners. We also countersunk all holes to get a bit more surface for the thickened epoxy. Now the outside seams are all filleted and glassed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lille Ø Posted January 23 Author Report Share Posted January 23 Aaaa! After epoxy had cured, we ran out of excuses, and it was time for the most dreaded part of the project. In hindsight, removing the cardboard from between the bulkheads before sawing would've been smart. As things stand, we cut a little bit into the bulkhead in the middle. Well, nothing that we can't fix with a bit of epoxy. But, the thing nests! We epoxied the stray cut, and filled the ziptie holes. Tomorrow weather permitting we could finally do some sanding or routing as the parts fit outside through the door. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Rolfe Posted January 23 Report Share Posted January 23 Very exciting when you see the boat actually nests, isn't it? I also cut a little into one of the bulkheads while saw in half, but it wasn't the end of the world and just epoxied it like you did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.