November 25, 2012 - project update

Well I didn't get through my list for the weekend.  I didn't even manage to check off half of the items.  But, it is a boat after all.  Things always take WAY longer than expected.

The three doors are now sanded and ready to be saturated with penetrating epoxy.  Tomorrow I will coat them with penetrating epoxy giving it a coat every hour or so until it won't take any more.  Once it hits that point (where the epoxy doesn't soak in anymore) the door needs to sit for a day or two.  This will give the two-part epoxy paint was are using for the exterior a good "bite".  They say that this paint job on the doors should last 10 years.  I sure hope so.

3 doors ready to be painted.

I have the salon door frame at home so I can repair it.  It took a long time to get off the boat, but I now have an easy fix that should be much stronger than the original design.  I also removed the trim from the inside of the old hatch.  It was bedded with some really goopy adhesive that didn't want to let go.  I had todestroy the wood getting it removed.  But it's gone now.

hatch almost gone.  It will soon be a nice clean ceiling.

I've been cleaning up the "boat deck"; removing all of the flaws.  I am gringin out the flaws and filling hem with fiberglass which I then sand down until it is flush with the deck.  This is the best way to go as it eliminated any potential for a small patched hole to "let go" and cause a leak in the future.  I also filled all of the old railing mounts as I want to change the railing to better accept our two kayaks, and perhaps solar panels (for future use in Mexico).  Plus, when we re-orient the dinghy our railing will have to change to accept the dinghy.

The LARGE boat deck being repaired.  This is a big boat deck.

I continue to work on the new rear navigation light pod.  The US Coast Guard has specific requirements for navigation lights (depending on the size of the vessel) and I'm making sure that our boat meets the latest requirements.  Actually, I'm meeting the requirements for an even larger boat (66', or 20 meters, and longer).  It will make our boat more visible at night, which to me is an important safety factor.

The new light pod ready to be faired

So, if had to guess right now, I don't think we will be painting this week.  I still have a lot going on before that can happen.  This is turning out to be quite a big project!  And the big project hasn't even started yet; our stabilizers.  Yikes!