seriously, I put some hours in but my list of maintenance never gets shorter.
today I cleaned, tomorrow I have a small expoxy repair to the transom to do.Than more cleaning/scrubbing .
carpet for the cockpit is under serious consideration because I'm basically sick of trying to keep it clean and white
2nd coat of varnish for new tiller to replace 34yr old one on 1/4 tonner. Also ladder tiller extension. Not rocket science but cost effective, and the tiller extension can be made to the exact length depending on the cockpit layout and beam at the helm position.
So got the mast back up yesterday.
A couple of thoughts. Deks Ole lasts about 2. 5 Years in the WA sun without attention. I let it go for 3 years. Also, a soft shackle will give you about the same. When it fails to close you lose the jib halliard up the mast. Beyond the reach of your quite long boat hook. So, I take the hint, drop the mast take it home on a car trailer and start again. Nice and shiny now.
Got two beefy 20 somethings to help get the mast up. it o solid wood and heavier than you imagine. Compete rats nest of stays and running rigging, had it all sorted.
Heave Ho and up she rises! Well sot of. Had a handy billy to the pelican hook on the inner say to help. Pelican hook bottle screw sheared off mid lift. Wow, stainless goes when it wants. Drop it all, re-rig handy billy.
Heave ho etc. All good this time. Do up fore stay and fore and aft stays. Good, all stable now. Put all the various lines their pins. Let's do the running back stays. Stbd good, why is the port one not coming home on the lever? If I have learnt one thing, if it is meant to run and doesn't, don't t pull harder. Bugger, it is threaded through between the mast and the spreader. Oh well a longer length of dowell jubilee clipped to the boat hook will do the trick. One Long Tom for side party to paint ship. Tomorrow. When I bend on the main. So I can commit sailing.
I have rigged a line through a sheave in the mast. Breaking strain of 1000kg. Next time I go up on a bosuns chair to retrieve it. Just as I was taught as a boy in the Navy about two generations ago. I don't trust my blocks with my life but this sheave is central to the mast so if it let's go to whole mast will take it.
Nothing dull about owning an old timber boat. Of course nothing beyond the whit of man to fix either.
So got the mast back up yesterday.
A couple of thoughts. Deks Ole lasts about 2. 5 Years in the WA sun without attention. I let it go for 3 years. Also, a soft shackle will give you about the same. When it fails to close you lose the jib halliard up the mast. Beyond the reach of your quite long boat hook. So, I take the hint, drop the mast take it home on a car trailer and start again. Nice and shiny now.
Got two beefy 20 somethings to help get the mast up. it o solid wood and heavier than you imagine. Compete rats nest of stays and running rigging, had it all sorted.
Heave Ho and up she rises! Well sot of. Had a handy billy to the pelican hook on the inner say to help. Pelican hook bottle screw sheared off mid lift. Wow, stainless goes when it wants. Drop it all, re-rig handy billy.
Heave ho etc. All good this time. Do up fore stay and fore and aft stays. Good, all stable now. Put all the various lines their pins. Let's do the running back stays. Stbd good, why is the port one not coming home on the lever? If I have learnt one thing, if it is meant to run and doesn't, don't t pull harder. Bugger, it is threaded through between the mast and the spreader. Oh well a longer length of dowell jubilee clipped to the boat hook will do the trick. One Long Tom for side party to paint ship. Tomorrow. When I bend on the main. So I can commit sailing.
I have rigged a line through a sheave in the mast. Breaking strain of 1000kg. Next time I go up on a bosuns chair to retrieve it. Just as I was taught as a boy in the Navy about two generations ago. I don't trust my blocks with my life but this sheave is central to the mast so if it let's go to whole mast will take it.
Nothing dull about owning an old timber boat. Of course nothing beyond the whit of man to fix either.
Good work mate. If I get to the west you can take me for a sail.
My workmate and I sailed my Nacra 5.0 from Beaumaris to Frankston and back. We were out for 2 1/2 hours. I'm still knackered. My god, the chop in the Bay! Would someone be able to tell me when, if ever, there is relatively flat but windy conditions on the eastern side of Port Phillip Bay? The photo - a calmer run back to shore! Oh, this is a 'What did you do to your boat' page, I know. We knocked my Cat around a lot.
Deck is now fully laminated with epoxy and cloth over the plywood. Pushpit is back on and this has made life easier. Pulpit will be in place over the next few days.
Not my boat this time. Some of you will remember when we sailed this aluminium Cole 42 "Aztec" down from Sydney. When my mate bought it it had the glasshouse cabin. He ripped this off and for several years sailed it in its original flush deck form. Now he has welded up a superb aluminium cabin which really suits her lines. He has also sold on the Fleming windvane steering gear and replaced it with an early Aries.
Deck is now fully laminated with epoxy and cloth over the plywood. Pushpit is back on and this has made life easier. Pulpit will be in place over the next few days.
Must be great to finally have it watertight. How are you going to finish the deck? I'm assuming you are not going with teak again.
Deck is now fully laminated with epoxy and cloth over the plywood. Pushpit is back on and this has made life easier. Pulpit will be in place over the next few days.
Must be great to finally have it watertight. How are you going to finish the deck? I'm assuming you are not going with teak again.
Teak makes great paint and resin stirrers. Would not have it on the deck though I'm retaining the teak in the cockpit. The deck will get some extra layups on the flat area ahead of the cabin. Flow-coat of epoxy and microballoons then 3 coats of "White Knights" oil based paving paint in light grey, stern area is done. The walk areas will be done in grey Kiwi Grip. Cabin will be the same colour.
I went down the paving paint path for the obvious reasons and it went chalky in a couple of years, 2pak all the way for me now !
I went down the paving paint path for the obvious reasons and it went chalky in a couple of years, 2pak all the way for me now !
I used the paving paint on my fishing boat, topsides and cabin, deck etc. Only paint that would last. Has to be oil based.
I could have got a dodgy batch, it was oil based and was chalky in 18 months, steel cabin top primed with penatrol & many coats of paint. I thought it was going to be painful to remove but it lifted easily with a sharp scraper. Hope to get better service out of epoxy, jotamastic & hardtop
Deck is now fully laminated with epoxy and cloth over the plywood. Pushpit is back on and this has made life easier. Pulpit will be in place over the next few days.
Looks like you are going to turn this into a real trick yacht Ramona.
It also looks like leading all your halyards and control lines back to the cockpit or cabin top as you like it may be a bit problematic. I am interested in your plan for that.
I have two Barlow 16 single speed winches and one Anderson 28 two speed self tailing winch that are excess to my needs (pics attached) that you may be interested in owning??
No doubt a guy like you has a chandlery collection in your shed that would rival Whitworths. PM if they may be of use to you.
Looks like you are going to turn this into a real trick yacht Ramona.
It also looks like leading all your halyards and control lines back to the cockpit or cabin top as you like it may be a bit problematic. I am interested in your plan for that.
I have two Barlow 16 single speed winches and one Anderson 28 two speed self tailing winch that are excess to my needs (pics attached) that you may be interested in owning??
No doubt a guy like you has a chandlery collection in your shed that would rival Whitworths. PM if they may be of use to you.
Thanks but I will be using the original 4 winches that were on the deck on the cabin top at the rear. The blocks at the base of the mast lead fairly high off the deck and the halyards will go to deck fairleads like these that will be on the leading edge of the cabin.
www.ebay.com.au/itm/12mm-Fairlead-Organiser-Quad-Master-LR-124/262579739847?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 Even though they are ridiculously priced! The area directly behind the mast will be a no walking area anyway. The layout of the control lines will be the same as on Ramona but with two sets of reefing lines instead of three. I have removed the instrument binnacle off the roof and now have an excellent forward vision. A solar panel is going to fit snug over the top of the sliding hatch and goes forward to about 300mm short of the front of the cabin.
I was looking at the lead from mast to cabin top and thought that is going to be a trip hazard but as you say it is a no walk area.
I really like the look of the flush deck and small cabin top for the main below deck working areas i.e. galley and nav station. Looks a weapon.
Looking forward to more pics of your progress.
All the epoxy has paint over it now. Toerails probably will go down on Monday. Once the toerails are down and the life lines/stanchions etc are down then I'll be doing the deck in Kiwi grip. Frame for the cabin top solar panel is underway. The front needs shaping etc. I have tossed the old sliding hatch cover/instrument binnacle which is a heavy fibreglass unit, probably the same as the stock SS34s have. It's here if anyone wants it. The view forward from the cockpit is excellent now.
I am guessing clear sheet will go into that frame so the solar can do it's job?? Drain holes?
Looking good!!
I am guessing clear sheet will go into that frame so the solar can do it's job?? Drain holes?
Looking good!!
No. The solar panel is about 110cm X 70cm and fits on the wooden frame with about a 3mm gap around the edges. It will be secured by a fillet of Silaflex. The panel in the photo came with the boat and is just floating one battery at the moment. Water drains aft out the hatch slide. There is a hole for the panel wire down near the side of the timber on the left but I will cut a reasonable sized hole up the front that will act as an access hole/vent that will drain water into the cabin. I will just have a vent screen on the deck head covering the hole. I doubt whether there would be much water under the panel. Driving rain might put a small amount there but when the rear gets a curved cover close fitting over the sliding hatch it will be minimal.
Toerail is now down and yesterday I refitted the stanchions. Some shaping on the solar panel frame on the cabin top done but I guess that is this weeks job. I wanted to bolt back the Aries windvane but have misplaced the bolts at the moment. It's hanging on the fence at home and is in danger of being overgrown from a climber! Need it there to ensure I don't make changes in the cockpit that will cause problems down the track.
Toerail is now down and yesterday I refitted the stanchions. Some shaping on the solar panel frame on the cabin top done but I guess that is this weeks job. I wanted to bolt back the Aries windvane but have misplaced the bolts at the moment. It's hanging on the fence at home and is in danger of being overgrown from a climber! Need it there to ensure I don't make changes in the cockpit that will cause problems down the track.
Well done.
Where is the safest place you would put the bolts?
Well done.
Where is the safest place you would put the bolts?
A smart person would have taped them to the Aries!
Well done.
Where is the safest place you would put the bolts?
A smart person would have taped them to the Aries!
I'm having some painful thoughts about where I should stick my car keys
Aries is bolted on. One bolt was in my workshop the other in the galley! Fortunately the pile of fastenings dumped in the galley are slowly thinning out as stuff gets reinstalled.
I replaced the toilets recently. I was worried about spilling s**t from the pipes and holding tank. It actually went very well. After disconnecting I quickly double taped the open end of each hosepipe.
Saltiest1 helped me with the installation and I would highly recommend him if you need work done.
Solar panel on the cabin top is now in place. Second one will goes across the top rail of the pushpit. Cabin top winches will be going back on as I service them. A pair of Harken 46 self tailers have arrived and I will be making the bases up and glass that in this week.