Full steam ahead

45mins in the drain pipe and I have a result. Easy to spring on and no horrible splitting noises as I tighten the screws. As Aonghas suggested I shall leave them on for a while then take them off and bed in sikaflex. Hopefully stop them from rotting from the inside out.
The second piece that I steamed is being pre bent by my anchors.
As you may have guessed by this point, I gave up all hope of an April 1st launch some time ago.

Rubbing strakes part 1b

Following yesterdays disaster I received advice aplenty, most of it suggesting steaming the wood.  Cheers to all that came to my aid.  After a bit of faffing about with the headlining I set about removing the split wood, trimmed it up and started to source items to make a wood steamer.
#1 A steam source... Easy, I have a wallpaper stripper in the loft
#2 A container for the wood, not so easy... after a wee search around the garage and garden, my eyes drifted towards the corner of the house.

Well, it's not going to rain so who's going to miss the drain pipe :-)

I can fit two lengths of wood in this pipe

 I sealed the ends with parcel tape and set it running .  I'll let you know how I get on.

Rubbing strakes part 1

This afternoons efforts so far...
1) Removed port rubbing strake. Couldn't undo screws so had to lever off. Fortunately there was no strength left in the wood so it came off reasonably easy. Getting the old screws out was a different matter as on this side they are brass and had gone very yellow.

2) Remove and sand down old filler. The old strakes were bedded in what looks like P38. I chiseled most off then used sander to flat.

3) Cut rebate into back of wood.  I had intended to use the router but in a flash of inspiration I used the table saw to cut part way through and then turned 90 degrees and cut again.  This a) reduced the amount of sawdust and b) gave me some nice strips to use as headlining support.

I have now started to fit the strakes, however even with pilot holes they have started to split with the pressure of the curve.

Window surrounds part 3

Port side made and loosely fitted. That's it for the window surrounds for today... Time to get on with the rubbing strakes.

Window surrounds part 2

Reclaimed vinyl glued on and looking tip top. Only loosely held in position in this pick and headlining still needs supporting.

Window surrounds part 1

Hi, I've got a couple of days off to crack into the boat. The blogs will be short and sweet with pics showing milestones.
I've started on the window surrounds as if I don't do them before she's afloat , they won't get done and I'll be grumpy every time I step aboard :-)
So here goes, the surrounds are made of hardboard and will be covered with some salvaged vinyl. This pic show the first panel cut and temp in place, next job is to cover it. If all goes well i'll do the other side :-)

Lazy Sunday afternoon

I love a busy boat yard... I could sit and watch people work all day :-)   This was taken on Sunday as I waited for Rog to arrive. His boat is the one in the craddle, which was a bit of a shock as we intended to take the mast down.  Fortunately Rog is bilingual and can converse with the boatyard manager. Big Easy was back on the deck in no time.. Good news as I didn't fancy doing it afloat, although it could have been fun watching Rog dangling over the back trying to fit a new aerial.

Rubbing strakes

I am very indebted to to Roger... Roger is also an E.D.S.C member who acquired and refurbed a Hurley 20 over the winter.  His constant updates have kept me focused on the job and the shared ideas regarding what to do next have been invaluable. Rogers boat 'Big Easy' is now afloat and is more or less finished. 

I hope you'll agree, she looks great.  Thanks for the pic Rog, I hope you don't mind me using it?

Roger pulled another stunning piece of generosity out of the bag yesterday by giving me enough 2x1 Iroko to (Very nearly) replace the rubbing strakes on both sides of Ciao Bella.   I've got two days holiday planned at the end of the week so hopefully a significant amount work can be finished.
Essential jobs to do before getting on the water are:

• Replace rubbing strakes
• Repair or replace engine
• Antifoul

This is a very simplified list but that's the minimum that I need to do... So near and yet so far.

A change of scenery

This morning was spent at the club generally cleaning and tidying for the new season.  I put me old scruffs on, prepared for some good honest manual labour, and ended up cleaning windows, tidying magazines and hoovering,,, they've obviously read this blog and decided that I can't be trusted :~)

Back home and after so much time working inside the boat  I needed a change of scenery,  I decided to start rubbing down the rubbing strakes.  They were in a terrible state.  I started at the front on the starboard side and worked my way back.  In general they were cleaning up alright and looked like I'd get another year out of them

Looking much better

When I got around to the port side the strakes were in a much worse state,  Completely rotten and there is no way I can use them this year. They will have to be replaced, there's not even one piece worth keeping. I guess the budget and launch  date are going to have to be revised.

 I turned my attention to another wee job that had been on my mind.  The tiller sat too low and needed lifting to go over the helmsman's knees.  I needed something to lift it so decided to drill and tap an M6 hole and drop a cheese head machine screw in so that I could adjust the height of the tiller, adding a lock nut to fix it in position.

Tiller now better set and misses my knees.

Other items progressed in the last week are the ply cover panel under the companion way, electrical panel in and working, solar panel connected and charging.  I also bought a PL259 plug for the aerial however the socket on the deck is not of that type.  It's possibly a TNC but I'm not entirely sure.  I'll order one and see what it's like when it arrives.



Up the creek with out a paddle.

I had a little set back this week.  Having connected up most of the electrics I decided to check the Log while it is still on dry land.   I pulled the transducer out of the hull, switch the unit on and gave the paddle wheel a flick.... No reading on the screen.  I then blew across it which made the paddle wheel spin quickly... Still no reading.  I then contacted NASA to see if they could advise on what the problem could be.   I spoke to Rob who was very helpful.  He talked through all the basic connections to ensure that I hadn't done anything daft, he then asked me to measure the resistance across the transducer connector "1.4ohms" I chirped up.  apparently it should be 75ohms, he then asked me to cut 6 inches off the cable and check it again, still 1.4Ohms. I cut about another foot off but it still read 1.4Ohms.  He concluded that the transducer was buggered and I'd have to send it back for replacement.
I have now sent it back to my supplier so am hoping I will get a new one soon.  I'm feeling a bit low at the moment and can't see me getting the boat in the water as quickly as I'd like.  On top off this I still need to get the outboard repaired, buy some antifoul and find someone to tow her and help launch her... All this and the budget disappeared over the horizon some time ago.

A good weekend.

I've made some good progress this weekend.  On Saturday I used some more of the freecycled hard wood to finish the bulkhead panels.  I cut a strip of mahogany to go right across the bottom and under the companion way.  This had to be rebated to accept the GRP return.  I also cut another strip to make a return under companion way, this will give me something to locate the cover panel between the door way and the step. This will conceal the back of the NASA Duet.

Which as you can see, needs covering :) You get enough cable on the sensors to go round the boat three times and you can't cut them so I coiled them and tie wrapped them out of the way.

I cut cupboard doors into the bulkhead panels to give me some extra storage.I think they look pretty good. Once vanished they will be the same colour as the washboards.

I also got round to fitting the Genoa tracks and cars. I needed the help of number one son to fit these as my arms just weren't long enough or have enough elbows. Other little jobs were to drill out and fill some of the small bits of damage around the boat. The electrics are nearly done.  Just need to connect the solar panel to the battery and connect the VHF. I traced and fixed another leak, after being so happy that the bilges were dry as a bone I started work and all of a sudden a load of water ran down from the stern.  I stuffed my head into the rear lockers and realised the the rear most strengthening rib was acting like a dam and when I was moving around on the boat it overflowed.  After some more contortionism I found the source, the seam on the outboard well was leaking. I dug out the old sealer and re sika-flexed it.

Water water everywhere.

We had a reasonable amount of rain last night. So when I awoke this morning I couldn't relax, I was like a kid waiting for his exam results and I just had to get out of bed.
Even before I'd had my first cuppa I was stood on the deck with sweaty palms wondering what would great me the other side of the hatch.
I pushed open the hatch and squinted through one eye into the bilge....
Yippeee ki yay... It was absolutely dry. I would have been happy with a small amount of water as I expect a little bit to come through where I haven't put the time in yet but no, it wasn't even damp. Time for tea and a boiled egg, then plan what I'm going to do today.

Headlining up

Tonight I have pared down some recycled hardwood to support the front of the headlining. I'm no cabinet maker but I'm happy enough with the results.
My genoa tracks and cars arrived today so that'll be another job that I can tick off soon. While unpacking them, they made me think of another small job which needed sorting. The cradle for the VHF handset has a clip missing from the top which holds the handset in place. The Genoa cars were clipped to a handy piece of plastic which looked like it could be fashioned into a spring clip. So with some cutting, filing, heating bending and glueing I had a functioning handset cradle. :-)

Handset cradle with homemade clip, not pretty but functional.

Front of headlining supported by recycled hardwood.

Once the headlining and bulkheads are varnished they will contrast much more. The bulkheads are mahogany ply and the headlining is beech faced.  Could do with some kind of trim to finish the inside of the vent.

a little more.

Tonight I have cut out the bulkhead panels and temporarily fitted them so that I can decide how and where I am going to fit the switch / fuse panel, VHF radio and the doors for stowage.  I will cut doors similar to the port panel in the picture below.   This is Rogers Hurley 20,  Rog bought his a few week before me and has the mooring next to me... That's where the similarity ends as his is nearly ready for the season :-)

The  side trims were horrible, falling apart and were painted with what can only be described as artex. I decided that I would be better off just ripping them off and having just plain GRP for this year.   That was until I ripped one off and realised that they'd been stuck on with an inordinate amount of tile adhesive.  Oh well that another job that will have to be done with time ticking on.

Panels shaped and trial fitted.



Argh... Tile adhesive all over the side panels.

  While down the garden the other day I noticed the aeriel connector on the mast was missing.  Probably a victim of not being disconnected before dropping the mast.  I need to identify and source the correct connector.

Need mating connector for this Aeriel connector

The job list is shrinking... but not fast enough!

1. Replace rotten floor support, repair kick board and replace side stringer.  
2. Check electrics,  reposition. cable runs and switch panel.
3. Fit compass (eBay bargain sourced)
4. Fit VHF radio
5. Fit Genoa cars and tracks.
6. Fit headlining properly
7. make and fit side panels (Window trim).
8. Design make and fit bulkhead panels / storage / electrical panel for either side of companion way.
9. Clean and check running rigging
10. Clean and check standing rigging
11. Repair bilge pump (Deck plate repair kit bought, will fit in spring)
12. Anti Foul
13. Repair/service outboard motor
14. Clean, repair & paint tender

At the start of today these were the jobs still to do before I can launch Ciao Bella. I have now knocked of 1,3,11 and some of 2 but it's still a long list.

I started with adding another later of GRP to the rib, while this was setting I attacked some of the other jobs.
The mast head lamp connector which had been ripped out of the coach roof was re-assembled and re-attached, I bedded it on... you guessed it, Sikaflex.  I made up a new length of cable from single wires which I twisted together.  Twisted wire had a lesser effect on radios and compasses than standard cable.

Masthead lamp connector re-attached

New wiring twisted to reduce interference.

The next wee job on my hit list was to fit the compass, I bought this some time ago but it was just taking up room in the loft. Now that the display for the Duet had been fitted I decided to fit the compass directly underneath it. This compass has a bracket that allows it to be removed when not in use, I have a spare bracket which I will position under the tiller to give me a choice of positions.

Compass in position

The compass looks a little exposed here, I may add a slide in panel just aft of the compass to prevent it getting kicked.  My next job  to tick off for good was the rudder pintle.  I was originally going to put a bolt all the way through it but as this would potentially let water into the middle of the blade.  The stainless bucket is so substantial that I decided to fill it with Sikaflex and squidge it on... Job done.

Pintle Sikaflexed on.

 Another box that was taking up room in the loft was the bilge pump deck plate repair kit.  This took . ooooh, at least 3 minutes to fit :~)

New bilge pump cover.

The floor support stringers also needed replacing. I used some of the reclaimed hard wood for this and bolted it through rather than use wood screws.  Once attached I mixed up some marine filler and fared in the kick panel repair. It's starting to come together.

Rib, stringers, kick boards and log wheel.

Finally I put another layer of GRP on the rib. The flat parts are covered in woven mat but I used CSM for the base, really soaking it and making sturdy fillets.  I also used this technique on the Nasa log through hull fitting.

Pulpit attached

Today has been spent doing a job that I hadn't anticipated.taking so long.  When I bought Ciao Bella the Pulpit was attached, however the starboard side was adrift. It had been bent in a collision and the previous owner had spent a long time straightening it, but hadn't re-attached it.  Early on in my tenure, I had forced it to fit and bolted it down. Since removing it last weekend it became apparent that this is the likely cause is the soggy interior.
So today I sanded back the GRP that I had thrown together last week as the light was disappearing.  I thought I was going to have to spend a lot of time digging this out and starting again but miraculously it had set and once the sander had done it's work it looked quite presentable.
Where the old GRP had fallen out in one lump the definition of the edges had disappeared and become a flat sanded finish.  I dragged out my Dremel and used a bit which looked a bit like router and carefully
put the shape and the edge back in.

As the mounting plates were far from flat, I assume they would cause high pressure point on the GRP. I decided to put marine ply pads under the mounting plates . The pads should hopefully spread the load. The pads were jigsawed out of some of the pukka 9mm marine ply that I used for the floors and washboards, I shaped the backs, with a rasp, to fit against the toe rail and stuck them in place with a thick bed of Sikaflex.

 I then left them for a hour or so to grip.  On my return from chauffeuring duty I offered the pulpit up and marked where I would drill one hole on the front starboard foot.  I loosely bolted this up then splayed the pulpit so that the front port foot was in position. I then marked the three holes for the front port and the remaining two holes for the front starboard.  Once the two front feet had been secured I set about marking the rear feet holes. There is a fair bit of spring in this rail and it needed persuading into place, however as the holes were being drilled to fit this rail as is I didn't need to try to twist the feet to fit pre collision holes. 

Once all the machine screws were in place with a nut and washer under them I nicked them up just enough to squeeze out a bit of Sikaflex. I shall leave them like this to set until next week end when I shall remove them again to varnish the pads, squidge some gunk under the screw heads and run the wiring for the front nav lights.

Where are those pesky leaks?!?

Yesterday, in an attempt to reduce water ingress, I removed the mast step and rebedded it on Sikaflex and also removed the connectors that are screwed onto the coachroof.  The antenna connenctor just needed rebedding and was screwed back down,  the masthead light connector looked like it had been forgotten about when the mast was lower and had been ripped out, snapping the wires.  I cut them back to resolder but they had black oxidation all the way down. I will have to replace the wiring back to the panel.

 This morning, Oh boy.. it was wet.  Not being one to shy away from these things I went out to do some more on Ciao Bella, hoping to see a significant dercrease in the amount of water accumulated.  No such luck,  the bilges were swimming; The majority of the water had come in through the hole for the mast head connector, as I hadn't covered it and a lot had also seemed to have come over the washboards.... A rethink on design is required here.

I mopped up and set about making the floor rib and repairing the rotten kickboard.  I used the dremel to cut away the old wood and cut a piece of 9mm ply to fit. I glued this in place with Gripfill and will glass in place another day.  The rib is 12mm and was quickly in place.  I bonded it in place with Sikaflex and then started laying on a layer of GRP.

Early afternoon and the Sun came out so I ventured outside.  The solar panel was already attached to the front hatch but I wanted Dome head bolts so not to cut my feet when walking barefoot around the boat. I also fitted the cable gland,  This was going to be a swish Index marine 90 degree jobby but as it still is not available I fitted a standard cable gland.  Due to the thickness of the deck I had to epoxy the gland in but it seems to do the job. 

The bases for the pullpit seemed to be letting water through so I turned my attention to these.  I enlisted the help of No1 son as I couldn't reach the nuts and screw head on my own.  Once removed the story was clear to see.  Although the GRP looked good while it was clamped under the Pullpit base, once undone the top layer on one of them just fell apart.  It GRP on all of them had started to degrade.

  I overdrilled the mounting holes, this revealed a sandwiched sheet of wood which was sodden. It was all starting to make sense, this is most likely where the dripping tea comes from :~). As it was getting cold and dark I mixed up some thick GRP resin and filled in the holes.  I will attack this properly another day but hopefully this should stop water coming through.