Interior all painted

Coushions done and in.

Main hull out of barn for first time in five years

Main hull ready to joined with beams and floats

after joining all beams and hulls it will have final prep for paint

still lots of work yet to do

getting closer !

Mild but long winter

Winter has been mild but still to cold too get much done on the boat. I did get the cushions made for the cabin and berths. Thanks Mom !
 When the warmer weather gets here I will be able to get the interior painted !
I also had all the aluminum parts that I made anodized and they are read to be put on the boat once I start to assemble the hulls in late spring early sumer.
Getting closer !!!!

The long Board

The process is going slow but getting very close to being ready for paint. When I'm happy with the finish with the long board, it gets a coat or two of epoxy then sanded again then gets three coats of high build primer and sanded again. If no low spots show up it will be ready for the top coat paint.

Back to the boat

After a six month break I got back to the boat this week. Last fall I turned the boat on it's top to work on the cieling, running wires for lights and  fairing the ceiling. With that getting close too being done I can get back to the final fairing of the exterior of the hull.

Mast base and parts

Not to much work has happened on boat but have been able to get some hardware together !
They have been in the works since the start of the boat building project and now are finally coming together ! Just need to be sent out and get anodized, then their ready for the boat ! All pieces were hand cut
using a hacksaw and filed to final shape,TIG welded and then sand blasted.

Carbon bow pole

                                       

                            Vacuum bag tube with the uni fiberglass ready to go to make the mold tube.

Vac. bag with breather material and perf. sheet ready for fiberglass

Finished mold tube

Wetting out carbon and applying to mold tube

                                   Finished carbon tube rapped with plastic waiting to cure.

Bow pole

After about four months of recovering from a broken foot I was able to get some work done on the boat this weekend.

Making the bow pole was the next on the list. Finding something suitible for a mold tube has been hard. The finished pole needs to be about 4.1875 inches in diameter with a wall thickness of about .1875 so the mold tube needs to be about 3.875.
I can't find a suitable tube so I have to make one. I've decided to use a 4 inch exhaust tube with a wall thickness that makes the inside diameter of the tube just under 3.875. close enough !

Laminating on the inside of the tube is not easy. The first thing I have to do is make tube of plastic film for vacuum bagging. Then rap the tube with breather material then perf. sheet then with wetted out uni fiberglass. That is then rapped with a plastic sheet so that it does not stick to the inside of the exhaust tube. It is all pulled through the exhaust tube then ends are sealed on the outer side of the exhaust tube and vacuum is applied to suck it to the inside of the exhaust tube and left to cure. The fiberglass tube is then pulled out from the exhaust tube.

The mold is now made ! It now has to be covered with packing tape and waxed. It now can be rapped with the carbon fiber to make the finished pole. I'm using A layer of 12oz carbon sock material with three layers 18oz uni carbon fiber with another layer of the 12oz sock. All hand laid and not vacuumed bagged.