Core Sound 20 Hull #102

[wkisting]

Greg, that was my thinking about keeping all my questions on the same thread... thought it might be convenient for others interested in my CS20 build, as well as less annoying to the rest of the forumites who probably would've been driven nuts if I posted a thousand threads for my thousand different questions.    I'm part of the young "online" generation, but don't know exactly how forum etiquette works, so I've wondered many times if I ought to be breaking my questions up into smaller, topic-oriented threads.

Dale, I can't tell you how pleased I am to hear from you and the others that the sails can rotate. I've been wondering how any kind of wooden key (to prevent mast rotation) would hold up, and didn't really want the maintenance involved (inevitably) with a high-friction wooden part like that. Anything that simplifies construction and still works is fine by me! So now I'm just going to install round end caps, probably of plastic, per Gordy's suggestion.

Attached is a picture of the house we just bought. Closing is on July 15th, so it's not "official" yet, but looks like we'll have a nice home to move into. My wife is SO excited. I am, too, but I'm so invested in this build that it was painful to take time off to look at homes. We're trying to finish by July 29 because we wanted to be sailing on that day (our 3rd anniversary), but now I'm doubtful we'll make that date since the home buying process ate up so much time. The good news is that the home we bought has a very spacious double-car garage. I kept telling our realtor, "I don't care what it looks like, just find me a garage with room for my tools!" 

[JeffM]

Beautiful house!  Congratulations!  May you inaugurate that garage properly in a few years.

[wkisting]

Well, got the boat on the trailer and she fits great. We settled on a 17' trailer (bow-roller to end of bunks) with a 70" frame (between the fenders) and 13" tires. Payload is 1900 lbs., which is more than plenty for our needs. We close on our new home on Tuesday, so then she's on her way to the new 2-car garage to get finished. Just have to paint the interior, install the deck, install the sailing hardware, and varnish. Also have to assemble the masts, but that shouldn't take too long. Probably another 3 weeks of work, given that we'll also have to spend time painting the house and moving stuff in. I'm really getting antsy to launch her. [Edit to add: In the pic below, the mast steps aren't set in place yet, which is why the masts look to be at different angles... I just set them in the boat to get a sense of how she'll look when finished.]

[wkisting]

Hey Jeff, about inaugurating our new garage... already working on it! I took all the leftover wood from the temporary awning we erected to build our boat under and cut it down to usable sizes to make a proper workbench. Figured out how to use three layers of 2 x 4 per beam to make a simple tongue-and-groove style assembly. It's not fancy-looking, but it's ROCK solid. I'll add a layer of 3/4" plywood for a dead-flat work surface on top (72" x 36"), finished off with a (replaceable) layer of 3/4" MDO as the top work surface. That will be the first project to finish in the new garage, followed by some boat painting and varnishing. 

QUESTION: What options have folks selected for holding the Core Sound seat hatches shut? Advantages and disadvantages? We were considering using those little stainless-steel latches that allow you to slip a padlock through to lock them. I think Ray mentioned that some folks use bungees, but I wasn't sure how that would be setup. Pictures would be great if anyone wants to offer their solutions. And I'd also be interested in how the fore and aft hatches (in the deck) also are held down.

[Charlie Jones]

On Skimmer, Graham used something dead simple- and CHEAP ;D

He set a bolt down below the edge of the hatch, down on the front of the hatch facing. Then used a loop of bungee with the ends lashed together, through (I think) an eye strap up on the hatch. You pull the loop down and hook in around the bolt head.

On the Core Sound 20 I built I used regular latch type locks like you are referring to, made a jig so all the screws and bolts would be exactly the same and mounted them using short bolts.

On the deck hatches I used regular hinges on one side ( of course) and a hasp on the other. You can just clip the hasp closed, or put a lock in it.

On both boats I put the hinges on the fore hatch in front so the wind holds it closed when trailering. On the rear hatch I opened it to starboard so it wouldn't interfere with the tiller.

[Designer]

We are finally back up.

Wes, here is part of my new hatch drawing showing my shock cord latch. The shock cord has a tail below the whipping for a hand grip for latching.

[Greg Luckett]

Ummmm?  Ray, being as you are in and from Maine, a "red neck lathe" is not something you should be using as you might be injured, unless of course, you received training in the South.  Perhaps some "Yankee Ingenuity" would be safer for you? Being from Texas myself and trained in the Navy, I am proficient with both styles. ;D

[Greg Luckett]

LOL.... ;D

If the bearing were just a little bit better, a drill press would be a nice mill too, but for non precision work, it is a great tool.  I use mine to make sheaves too, for blocks, and that one came from someone posting the "how to" on the net.

[wkisting]

Well, I'm still leaning toward the little hasps since they would be lockable, but now I understand how the bungee concept works.

Ray, do you have pictures of the latches you describe? They sound neat, but I'm having trouble picturing them.

Another approach I considered was rare earth magnets, which I used to seal the hatches in a cedar strip kayak I built. But the magnets grab ridiculously hard. I know to respect them in my kayak (they're strong enough to lift the entire kayak by the hatch), but I'd worry that a passenger on my CS20 might get their fingers slammed if they weren't aware of the magnets' power, so I'd rather not use them on a multi-passenger vehicle like the CS20.

Got the hatch covers filleted today for cosmetic purposes. They're already assembled with epoxy and brad nails, but I wanted to cover over the seam where I chiseled away the seat cleat with a smooth fillet to make it look nice. Now they just need to be sealed and painted. It all moves over to the new house tomorrow!

[wkisting]

Another question... what brand/style of oarlock sockets should I install in the side decks? I'll probably use round oarlocks, but all the oarlock sockets (the receiver part) I've seen at the local West Marine look too light duty for the CS. The oarlock sockets Graham shows in the plans look much beefier, but I wasn't sure what brand/model they are.

[wkisting]

Hey Ray,

Did you ever get a chance to snap pics of the oarlock sockets? Also, if you know the brand/style of them, I'd like to know that too, as I still need to order some.

Boat has been delayed AGAIN. Moving into the new house took some time, but we had a catastrophe when we started repainting our kitchen... the previous owners painted over wallpaper that was not laying flat, so we had to remove it. But there was no primer between the drywall and wallpaper, so it pulled off drywall paper too. So we had to coat the walls in wallboard/joint compound to smooth them, but then the drywall paper peeled in a few places from the moisture in the compound, so we had to spot treat it with sealer and re-coat... etc., etc., etc.... turned into a BIG job that still isn't finished, but luckily this is the only room in the house that was improperly painted so the other rooms will go much, much easier. Unfortunately, until it's complete, I can't set up shop to finish the boat. Which means I may just put off the boat project for awhile now. I've got two weeks off starting next week, and it's the first real vacation I've had in a full year, so I really need a break after all this moving and home-remodeling and boat-building and teaching.... ugh.  :

[wkisting]

Bump to the top for Ray...

Hey Ray,

Did you ever get a chance to snap pics of the oarlock sockets? Also, if you know the brand/style of them, I'd like to know that too, as I still need to order some.

[wkisting]

Okay guys, I'm getting desperate because I'll need them soon... Can anyone tell me what size/brand of oarlocks they installed on their CS20? Also, let me know how they've worked out for you, especially if you've encountered any problems.

Thanks!

[wkisting]

Thanks Ray. That's exactly what I needed to know. I'm considering installing a hiking block like yours also, so I may just do as you describe.

Got the interior prepped and primered today. It's coming out very well... none of the problems I had on the exterior hull, thanks to the primer. I LOVE the Systems 3 Silvertip WR-155 primer... so easy to use, easy to clean up, no significant odors... thanks so much for the recommendation, Ray. As you suggested, I just rolled it on, as I thought it might be too tricky trying to work with the HVLP spray equipment on interior spaces. Results were great. Used a short nap roller and some foam brushes. Here's a pic...

[Rod Thompson]

Congratulations on the new work space, I mean house, Wes.  I'm still deciding on paint and am interested in your thoughts on the benefits of the Silvertip primer.  In addition to the low odors and easy cleanup how was it an improvement over what you used on the outside which as I recall was an Interlux product - VC Performance. 

[Greg Luckett]

On the interior and painted decks, I no longer tip it off,  just roll it out and lightly sand to break glaze whonce cured.  This give a slight stipple finish for a wee bit of non skid and extra security under foot.

Likewise the finish topcoat paint for interior and painted decks does not get thinned at all and simply gets rolled out with a roller being carefull there are no roller lines in finished product.

Ray, what kind of roller are you using?  Thanks.

[wkisting]

Rod, the thing I like best about the Silvertip primer is that it gave us absolutely NO trouble with runs or sags. We roughed the epoxy surface with 120-grit, wiped it with acetone, and started applying the primer. The primer gave good adhesion and stayed exactly where we rolled it. Like Ray mentioned in his last post, we didn't both with tipping either. We just rolled carefully to prevent/eliminate any lines from the roller edges. If you overlap strokes carefully and smoothly, without pressing too hard on the roller, it quickly lays down flat and even. The coverage was also good. We had total coverage of the underlying surface after two reasonably thick coats. Also, I expected more surface imperfections to show through, but the primer seems to build and fill very well. We put a lot of work into prepping the surfaces, but unlike the VC Performance we used on the exterior hull, the primer coats small imperfections well and yields a very flat surface.

On the hull, the VC Performance does not use a primer first, and the VC paint applies so thinly with the HVLP sprayer that EVERY little flaw shows up. That said, I like the VC Performance for the exterior because it is a very tough paint, and the next time I repaint the hull, the old paint will sand down nicely and provide a good base like a primer ordinarily does. Next time around, I'll add 5 fresh new coats and the exterior will look as good as the interior.

[Rod Thompson]

Thanks Wes for expanding on your experience with Silvertip.  Interesting to get your take on its fill or "build" properties.  I think Ray finds the same. 

I was trying to get a sense of how much time to spend getting a smooth epoxy base.  I'm quite satisfied with what I've achieved on CS #144.  One problem in a few spots was bunch of pin holes that appeared in the last fill coat.  Think I must have introduced some imputities.  Have managed to fill them with a thin coat of epoxy mixed with cabosil.  Forced the mixture in with a metal drywall putty knife.  Had the effect of applying a glaze.

Regular expoxy rolled and tipped in the normal way was pulled out of the little holes.

[Hirilonde]

Regular expoxy rolled and tipped in the normal way was pulled out of the little holes.

The same happens with epoxy primers including high build and LPUs, and occurs spraying as well.  Using a filler and mechanical application such as the thickened epoxy with hard knife as Rod did is the only sure way to fill them.  Failing to get these last few pin holes at the end of the fairing stages is a sure way to disappointment after painting. 

I believe a search would yield a couple threads on avoiding making the pin holes.  Not that any guarantee is implied with these techniques, but they do help a lot.  The one I find extremely important, which PAR summed up so well, is regarding temperature, especially changes in it.

[wkisting]

Jeff's discussion of epoxy degradation on the other thread got me wondering... Do I need to paint the underside of my CS20's deck around the cockpit perimeter? I was thinking of leaving it unpainted since it will never be seen (unless someone lays on their back to peek under the coaming), and in case I want to epoxy-glue anything to the underside later, such as a bracket to hold fishing rods or something like that. However, I know that UV rays can bounce/reflect off surfaces, so perhaps enough UV might bounce off the cockpit interior and still reach the underside of the deck to degrade it? I'm inclined to think this is unlikely, but then again...   Anyone know or have opinions about this?