Core Sound 20 Hull #102

[wkisting]

Yep, we just learned about them from some friends who have western red cedar canopies over their balcony... I've seen them buzzing around our place, but assumed they were bumble bees until our friends showed us the damage they do. Then I checked our awning over the boat and found several bore holes.... pretty amazing how perfectly round and big they can bore a hole!

Got the framing that supports the centerboard case installed today, and finally got around to glassing in the transom reinforcement that I glued in long ago. Here's a pic...

[wkisting]

Is there a reliable, convenient way--other than a laser level--to establish the DWL so I can figure out where to have the bottom paint and topsides paint meet? I hate to buy a $60 laser level just for this step.

[Howard]

We've got carpenter bees buzzing around... I had never heard of them until a few days ago (they look like bumble bees to me), but I found out they are extremely destructive to wood. Luckily the epoxy on the boat seems to have been holding them at bay. The cross-members on my makeshift awning over the boat, however, have some SERIOUS holes and trenches dug into them that look like someone took a 5/8" drill bit to them! Guess I'll have to spray the area thoroughly with bug killer to get rid of them before they decide to lunch on my boat, too.  :'(

Mix up some liquid Sevin (cheap and it works) in a garden sprayer and pump the holes full of the juice. These guys buzz around, lay eggs, then die. The larva will hatch later in the summer and then they will buzz around, then winter over. Holes are more like 3/8".

Spray twice. Once now, and once again in a couple months to get the larva.

BTW, it's the males that do the buzzing and they don't have stingers. They are aggressive, but it's mostly bluff. But they will hollow out and wreck the wood. Cedar and redwood are favorites.

[jawilco]

Wes,

Try this water level for a lot less money.

They show a bucket, but all you really need is a tube.

Jim

http://www.factsfacts.com/MyHomeRepair/WaterLevel.htm

[wkisting]

Jawilco, that's the method I used to level the boat fore and aft... I suppose if I lay a string across the boat at the endpoints established by the level, that would work. I was having trouble visualizing it, but the dotted line in the diagram you linked to made me think of the string.

Ray, if I can find one for $40, I might break down and buy one. I'll check our Sears and see... I'm a craftsman club member. 

[jawilco]

Wes,

Would it be possible to make a witness mark every couple inches as you move the tube fore to aft with a marker ?

Then masking tape over the full length of the hull.

[wkisting]

Actually, Ray, I found Joe in a shoebox when I pulled out my dress shoes for a friend's retirement party the other day. So I may just put him to work. You'll just have to be on the lookout in some of my future building pics to see if you can spot him. 

Jawilco, I could try the witness marks... only thing is that when I used the tubing to level the boat, ANY movement of the tube would cause the water to slosh and change levels by about 1/8" - 1/4" and I'd have to wait 10 seconds for it to settle. Other problem is that I need to run the tubing under my building cradle or the center can't get low enough for the water to sit evenly without air bubbles... but I can't dip the end (once it's full of water) to pass it through each cradle step as I work my way up the hull. I'll check Sears today for a laser level... if I see one I like, I'll go that route.... otherwise, I'll report back about the water tubing method, which looks like the only alternative.

[Edit to add: Sears has their $40 laser levels on sale for $19.99, so I picked one up... that was an easy decision.]

Got the seats in yesterday... still need to roundover the edges for fg tape and then fillet the seat-to-hull joint. Looking pretty neat. Not looking forward to cutting and building the hatches... four of them, ugh. 

By the way, I call the third picture "garage sail" because it looks like we're selling all our stuff from inside the boat. Actually, all that stuff is holding the seats down/flat while the epoxy cures. Worked great... We took care not to use any single item weighing more than about 30 lbs. so as not to starve the seat-to-stringer joints of glue. Came out great... and as a lit. professor, I have plenty of stacks of books laying around for this sort of work. 

[jawilco]

Wes,

There's one other way that may interest you.

String a level string parallel to the hull and back light it so it casts a shadow on the hull.

Then witness marks followed by masking tape.

This is about as frugal as it gets.

Jim

[wkisting]

A backlit string... that's another good idea, but I've already picked up a laser level at Sears. It's not that I'm terribly frugal, but since I don't really ever find myself wanting a laser level for anything else, I hated to spend $60 that could be better spent toward other tools, etc. In any case, Ray's recommendation about Sears turned out to be correct... their $40 laser levels are as nice as the (cheapest) $60 levels I've seen at Home Depot, and today they were on sale for $19.99! (too good to pass up)

[wkisting]

Yep, the tripod is handy... Photography is a hobby of mine, so I had one of those already. Striking the waterline went very easily with the laser level, and I agree with Ray, it's worth the money given how well and conveniently it works.

Got the seat tops 'glassed in place yesterday. We decided to glass them to protect the soft Okoume from nicks and scratches, and more importantly, to discourage chipping along the edges of the hatches. May not be needed, but it looks nice since we laid it over some cosmetic fillets along the seat-to-hull joint too. I learned that if you lay fiberglass with a ragged edge, wet it out, then let it sit for 40 minutes, you can come back later (when the epoxy has "gone off") and trim the edges with a ruler and razor blade, then peel away the ragged edges to leave a BEAUTIFUL straight line... wish I'd thought of this sooner... probably would've trimmed all the edges on my glass tape that way because it's amazing how nice the tape edges come out. Probably a moot point though, since sanding has also worked well (just more effort intensive).

Here's a pic:

[Randy C.]

Did you only do the tops of the seats? Did you wrap over the edge or stop right at the edge? You didn't say you did the fronts, is that right?

[Garry]

Interesting arrangement of contrasting "stripes" on the seat tops. Will you leave them bright?

[Charlie Jones]

Is that a chainplate for a running backstay? For some reason I had it in my head that Tehani had freestanding masts (?)

I'm sorry. I just noticed this question. Didn't see it when I first read the post.

Tehani is a standard sloop rig, with a wooden mast and boom. Her mast is Sitka Spruce, and is original to the boat. 1961, Dutch built.

Our 18 foot Sharpie has free standing masts

Picture is of Tehani at anchor in Mosquito Cove, Pensacola Florida

[wkisting]

Randy, I wrapped the glass over the front edge (the edge was rounded with a 3/8" roundover bit on the router) and extended it down the seat face only about 1/2" (just enough to cover the edges to protect from chipping). I didn't do the seat faces any further down that that, since they'll only get bumped by the backs of our legs.

My concern for the seat tops was that the relatively soft Okoume prints/dents so easily... if we were to accidentally sit down on any kind of hard object (a pocket knife, a pebble, the tip of a fishing rod, etc.) it COULD perhaps print into the seat, so I used the 'glass to provide a harder surface. Perhaps the paint would've helped with this anyway, but I didn't want to find out the hard way (later) that the seats are too soft for casual wear and tear. I want them to stay looking nice.

Garry, the seat coloration is due to the fairing mixture I used to fair the gaps where each panel joins. I ended up scarfing the panels together so that I wouldn't have to worry about the 4" wide x 3/8" ply butt-join doublers (the panel joining method shown in the plans) getting in the way of my hatches. (I installed a couple extra cross-stringers in each seat to make up for the stiffness loss.) This turned out to be wise, since one of the seams does fall right where I want the edge of one of my forward hatches to go. (I'm installing full-size hatches to access the forward seat lockers as well, instead of the little round inspection ports). But no, I won't finish them bright. I'm planning to paint them, which is why I didn't worry about the coloration. (For awhile I strongly considered covering the seats in 1/4" thick x 2" wide strips of mahogany, but didn't want to add the weight... would've been a brilliant way to stiffen the seats, though, and good looking too.)

Charlie... no worries on missing the Tehani question... I looked up some other pics of her and answered my own question.    Once I saw the pics, I realized I had noticed the rig before, but somehow got it confused in my head with freestanding masts... probably because of one of the P22 Pilgrim threads awhile back, which had pics of Tehani on it also (but it was Pilgrim with the unstayed rig, of course).

[wkisting]

I keep forgetting to ask... if I'm rigging my sails on tracks, is there any reason to bother installing the third mast step? I suspect it isn't needed since I can reef on the sail tracks.

[Designer]

Wes,

Just ignore the third mast step, it has no value with your rig.

I also miss Joe the deep.

[wkisting]

LOL, all right... I promise Joe will make an appearance real soon now that he's surfaced out of hiding. 

[Designer]

Ray has a small point but on the CS20 that is a big mast to start moving around out on the water especially with the sail attached. I prefer to have a second set of oarlocks further forward. Sometimes there is a tiny wind which helps your rowing if you have the sails trimmed.

[wkisting]

Graham,

To clarify: Are you suggesting that I should install a SECOND set of oarlocks, or that I should locate the ONLY set of oarlocks further forward (if I'm planning to leave the aft mast where it is, with no third mast step)?

By the way, for anyone completely confused by this thread's references to Joe, here's the link that explains it all: http://www.roguepaddler.com/princess.htm

[Designer]

Wes,

I like 2 sets of oarlocks because it gives me a lot of versatility. I like to explore our creeks around here and there will often be permanant wind hole at a bend. I will use one oar in one hand and steer with the other, it usually only takes 6 or 7 strokes and I am back sailing, or I could have sat there and make multiple sail trim adjustments to try to get to the wind line. I need the oar in the aft sockets for this use.

If I am alone and I need to travel further I can use two oars in the forward position. If there are two of us I will row in a stagger with my partner in the forward position and I usually take the aft position.

While beating in to Chocoloskie through the winding mangrove lined channels in this years EC we saved a huge amount of time by having Randy row with one oar in the lulls from the forward station while I chased the wind from the helm.