BUILDING A SKERRY Days 51-55
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Offerings to the Spirit of "ET Bugaboo" Days 1 - 5 : Order, Instructions, Clean garage, Glue panel scarfs Days 6 - 10 : Glue outwale sections, Sand scarfs, Measure for frames, Drill wire holes, Sand & taper outwales Days 11 - 15 : Cut gains, More wire holes, Wire Panels, Insert frames Days 16 - 20 : Fix "gap" problem, Glue Mast Scarf, Sprit Scarf, Skeg Halves, and Centerboard Handles, "Tab" Glue Seams Days 21 - 25 : Remove Wires, Glue Seams, Clean up Seams, Shape Stem and Stern Days 26 - 30 : Glassing and coating the exterior Days 31 - 35 : Breast Hooks, Rails Days 36 - 40 : Rails (cont.), Skeg Days 41 - 45: More epoxy, Fiberglass & coat interior Days 46 - 50: Install Seats and Centerboard Box Days 51 - 55: Still doing the Seats and Centerboard Box Day 56: Making it rowable Day 57 - 60: Sanding the fillets, Making Spars, Figuring out the rudder Day 61 - 65: Rudder and Dagger Board Day 66 - 70: Rudder (cont.) Day 70 - 75: Dagger Board Slots, Partner "Adapter", Install Mast Step Day 76 - 80: Sewing the Sail, Adding Lead to Daggerboard, Floorboards Day 81 - 85: Floorboards (cont.) Day 86 - 90: Floorboards (cont.). Foot Braces, Sanding, sanding, sanding,... Day 91 - 95: Finishing Day 96 - 98: ...and more Finishing, Rigging
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Day 51 (7/6/03) 1 Hr: Cut the excess off of the Centerboard Box and applied the first coat of epoxy to the exterior. Sanded the first coat of the upper seats and applied the next coat. They say not to apply coats of epoxy as the temps are rising. I forgot about this when I applied the first coat to the upper seats. I ended up with all kinds of little bubbles. Being the first coat, it was easily sanded.... and a good lesson.
Day 52 (7/7/03) 1/2 Hr: Applied final coats of epoxy to the upper seats and the centerboard box.
Day 53 (7/8/03) 1 Hr: Installed the Centerboard Box. The trick is to get it centered and square.
Day 54 (7/10/03) 2 Hrs: Applied fillets around the seams of the frames and the centerboard box. I applied the "caulking" using the plastic bag method (like a baker decorating a cake), then smoothed it out with a rounded tool I cut from a plastic squeegee. After the fillets had cured for a few hours, I smoothed them out some more using a gloved finger dipped in denatured alcohol. I decided not to use the package tape method, mainly because of poor planning... I didn't have enough tape. I also mounted a Tupperware container in the front bulkhead of the hull, using the leftover fillet mix. This is where the Offerings to the Spirit of "ET Bugaboo" will remain and be part of the boat.
Day 55 (7/12/03) - 4 Hrs: The first task for the day was to put the "offerings to the Spirit of ET Bugaboo" in their place. Next, I drilled 1" holes in the front and aft bulkheads for the drain tubes. These tubes were the 5" long bronze sort that I cut down to 2" with my hack saw. I decided on bronze T-style plugs (instead of the plastic ones that came with the kit). After drilling the holes, I applied epoxy inside where the wood was now bare. Next, I glued the seats to the frames and hull using "mustard mix". I weighted the seats down with good sized rocks. Because I beveled the edges of the seats, I had little contact with the seats and the hull. Even weighted down, the only real glue contact was on the frame. I let these dry for about 5 hours. I had put newspaper under the rocks to prevent scrapping the seats. This was a mistake. When I later removed them, I found that a few drops of epoxy had been on the seat. It took 30 minutes to scrap off the newsprint.
Later in the afternoon, I glued the drain tubes into place using 3M 5200 sealant.
I also created the fillets around the upper seams of the seats. Because of the large gap created by the beveled edges (I'll say it again... DO NOT DO THAT!!!), The fillets mix had to be extra thick, so it wouldn't flow through, and the fillets themselves had to be very large. They are rather hideous looking.
I installed four oar locks, measuring 17.5" from the frame. I sealed the underside of the locks and the screws with Elastomeric Marine Sealant from Sudbury (gotta support the local folks, ya' know).
Later in the evening, I smoothed out the partially cured fillets, as best I could, with my alcohol soaked finger. I have a lot of sanding ahead of me.
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