Rain, rain, rain

Heavy, daily rains have retarded progress on repairs.  For the last 6 days we have waited to add to the 18 layers of mat in place on the base for the new on deck mast step.

We estimate the base will require 25 layers of mat to bring the layup level with the existing lip.  Once the two are level we will then fair out the new base.  The new compression post will drop down through the hole and rest on the original mast step.  A half inch stainless steel plate caps the new compression post.  This plate will rest flush on the base seen above.  If all this is confusing, then stay tuned.  With the forecast improving we should begin to pick up some speed on this project.

Down below I am beginning to re-install the plumbing and electrical ripped out of the vee berth and head to facilitate painting the lockers.  Today I completed rewiring the AC outlets and lights in both the head and the vee berth.

 
Tomorrow I hope to make progress on the plumbing.

Nothing left but to re-install the refinished windlass

Thanks to a great deal of assistance from friends and family our Sea Tiger 555 windlass is completely restored.
Bud assisted me with removing the windlass.  Here is the starting point...

 I struggled to disassemble the windlass so a local friend took the windlass the his workplace, a local Naval Yard.  The assembled windlass returned it looking like this...

I then transported the windlass to my family's home and with more help from Bud we stripped down the windlass into its component parts. Degreasing and inspecting the mechanism we relaized one spring was missing, a couple bolts were nearly stripped, and all the o-rings required replacing.

 I located SL Spares, a UK based vendor that supplies replacement parts, via the internet.  The new parts arrived as ordered from the UK in under 2 weeks.  Bud took on reassembling, priming, and applying the finish paint.  The Lovett's are in town visiting for a day and delivered the windlass.

 All that remains is adding some additional grease and bolting the windlass back to the deck.

More images and comments on this project can be found in our photo album: Refinish Windlass - 2011

Thanks for all the help to everyone that pitched in on this project.

Projects preempting posts

Daily showers here in Beaufort, NC have not prevented long hours of boat projects from preempting blog posts.  By the time I finally come to rest at the end of the day all energy for updating the blog has gone into laying up the mast step or refinishing the trim in the vee berth or completing the new counter top for the head or...

This morning's rain shower only allowed me to apply three layers of mat to the new mast step so after securely tarping over the curing epoxy and cleaning up around the cabin I drove home for lunch.  Over lunch I checked in on the C'est la Vie blog and realized that the last update was on Sept 17th.

While the blog  has not received daily updates, I have continued to add images and captions to the web albums chronicling the evolution of to our two primary projects underway.  If you are looking for more detail on our progress please check out these albums...

Rigging Repairs and Modifications - 2011  - We are currently fairing out our modifications to the interior / original mast step;  building up layers of mat, 18 layers of 25 layers complete, on what will be the base of our deck mast step; and waiting on the machine shop to weld up our compression post assembly.

Refinishing the head - 2011   Most of the headway on this project in the last couple days has focused on refinishing the wood trim in the head and vee berth area.  We have also made progress on the new counter top and will hopefully be applying the final coats of bristol finish to it this afternoon.
 

Rainy day progress

The 70% chance of rain materialized as a day of incessant drizzle.   The drizzle worked in my favor as it kept temps cooler yet allowed me to leave C'est la Vie's leeward ports open.  An autumn like breeze ventilated the cabin.  Under these conditions and I applied the final coat of paint to the head lockers and began build up the mast step with fiberglass.

The fresh paint in the lockers now highlights the need to refinish the wood trim and replace the dingy lid on the head.  I'm unsure if time will allow us to complete either of these tasks before we need to began our trip back to Florida.

While the paint dried in the head, I changed venues and begin to build up the old mast step.  The compression post we plan to add below decks will require a level surface on which to mount.  The current step slopes aft.  We will use sections of mat left over from the cloth cut for creating the new mast step on deck to build up the old, interior mast step.  Initially I laid out the dry mat on the step to figure out the best pattern for the cloth.  I then numbered the sections as they were removed from the step.  Before applying the new cloth, I used thickened epoxy and a syringe to fill old bolt holes and irregularities in the step.

Applying the 12 pieces of fiberglass mat went smoothly, but I was a bit disappointed by how little this work did to reduce the slope on the step.  I will definitely be adding more cloth once this application cures.  By tomorrow I will be able to set a level on the area to get an accurate assessment of how much remains.

Note the fresh coats of paint along the walls of the mast channel in the image above.  This area was painted in conjunction with the head lockers.

The rain is forecast to end by tomorrow morning with cooler temps remaining in the area.  Hopefully tomorrow, Anne and I can team up to begin fabricating the new mast step on deck.

making 'head'way

The majority of my energy over the past couple days has gone into tasks associated with refinishing the head.  I have poured more effort into this project since I realized the chain plates must be re-installed prior to re-stepping the mast.  Since the port side chain plates are in the head I need to at least finish painting the lockers so the chain plates can be installed.

I did manage to complete two coats of Kilz 2 primer and one top coat of an exterior, oilbased semi-gloss.   Darkness caught up with me prior to completing the second top coat.  I continue to underestimate the time, effort, and quantity of  paint it takes to recoat lockers.  Painting small enclosed spaces - lockers- is a different beast that large enclosed spaces - rooms in a house.

Thanks to a great  deal of assistance from Tipper, the counter top for the head is progressing quickly.

Above are four sections of  Sapele that we are laminating into a single piece.  Once the glue is dry we will sand down the face.  Once finished it should be difficult to see any joints.

Our weekend forecast is calling for rain.  Knowing that the weather will limit me to inside projects, I purchased all the hoses, clamps, and fittings necessary to re-plumb the head.  Rain or shine we have boat projects at the ready.

still plugging away at boat projects

I've kept plenty busy with boat projects over the past couple days, but none of my progress has made good fodder for blog posts or generated images of amazing progress.  I continue to add images of my progress on a daily basis to the Rigging Repairs and Modifications -2011 and the Head Refinishing - 2011 photo albums.

In the past couple days sanding has occupied more of my time than any other project.  The lockers in the head are ready for primer and paint.

 I believe that Anne is going to take on the brush work.  Hopefully by Friday afternoon I will be able to post images of freshly painted head lockers.

We plan to resurface the counter in wood.  I purchased approx 10 board feet of Sapele for the counter top and a couple of other side projects.  A local friend is allowing me to use his wood shop to fabricate the counter top. We do not plan to install a sink in the head.  After issues with salt water back flowing through the head sink drain when heeled to port, we keep the sea cock closed.  We use the galley sink instead.  Thus for the the past couple years the head sink has remained unused.

I began cutting cloth for the new mast step this afternoon.  This is going to take more time & cloth than I initially anticipated.

A day for templates

Completing the painting and shelf for the vee berth lockers allowed me to create some work space.  The open waist high surface of the forward berth proved useful for laying out templates for other projects.

A cardbord template for an aesthetic piece of trim that also displays our documentation number along the main bulkhead...

A butcher paper template for the new counter top in the the head...

And a cardboard template for the multiple layers of fiberglass mat that will be used to create the new mast step.

Vee berth lockers are painted!

Spent most of my boat time today priming and painting the lockers below the vee berth.

The space on the port side (left) will house the holding tank (waste water storage) and the area on the starboard (right) is storage for seldom used items.

Above is the lockers after 1 coat of primer and 2 top coats.  The metal tank visible in this image is our fresh water storage.

Between coats of paint I worked to harvest the track for the mainsail outhaul from the old boom.  After 45 years the machine screws were seized.  I tried penetrating oil, heat, and an impact driver all to no avail.  I was successfull in removing the track, but had to resort to creative measures...