BoatBanter.com - Project Reports

BoatBanter.com (https://www.boatbanter.com/)

- ASA (https://www.boatbanter.com/asa/)

- - Project Reports (https://www.boatbanter.com/asa/19622-project-reports.html)

"N1EE" wrote:
Your spring project reports are due soon. (10 pts)

What sort of projects have you been doing to
improve your boat? Report in, or take a dozen
lashes!

I'm thinking about washing the deck one of these days.

Seahag

Great

I'm thinking about washing the dock one of these days.

Seahag

Wanna help?

Seahag

"Scott Vernon" wrote:

Great

I'm thinking about washing the dock one of these days.

Seahag

I suggest the best way to fair is with a long board, not an orbital.

Cheers MC

N1EE wrote:

Your spring project reports are due soon. (10 pts)

What sort of projects have you been doing to
improve your boat? Report in, or take a dozen
lashes!

My report: Hull Fairing and Painting Project

The last few weeks I've been fairing the hull of my
big boat with a goal of getting it in the water by May
30th. I've just about completed the bottom of the hull,
and plan one more layup of fairing material on the hull.
So far I must have over 24 hours of sanding, and my
brother has another 16 hours logged.

Time to move the poppets and fair the areas under them.
I've been fairing the thru-hulls to take them from nipple
size down to the opening diameter.

Here's what I've learned about fairing a hull.

1. Make small batches of fairing material and apply each
batch carefully. Excess has to be sanded off. Mix your
own and use lots of filler to make it easier to sand.
Several thin layers are easier to work than a single
thick layer. I used West 410 filler and found it mixed
well, and was not too hard to sand. 407 filler was harder
to mix but sanded much easier.

2. Fair every inch of the hull--don't be lazy. I used
a 6" knife to spread it. I cleaned it with solvent when
applying more than one batch. When leaving overnight,
It was faster just to break the plastic off the knife
the following day.

3. The best sander to use is a 6" orbital hook and loop
--6 hole hook and loop--60-80 grit paper. I also used an
air powered longboards for final sanding--use 80-100 grit.

4. Use a vacuum cleaner with the sander and get plenty of
bags.

5. Stay upwind of the sander, and pick a cool, windy cool
day and get the job done quickly If you stay upwind of
the grit on a windy day, you won't need a repirator.

6. Repeat the fairing and sanding a few times and it will
look good.

7. Use a respirator when you are underneath the sander.
Always use eye protection.

8. Take asprin or other pain killers before you start
working--trust me on that one. You'll get more done.

9. Drink at least two beers after every hard day and go
to bed early, so you can start in again early the next
day.

Future work: The keel needs a little more sanding and
fairing, as does the rudder. I've discovered my rudder
is actually slightly concave. It was repaired at some
point. My feeling is I need to fill the hollow spot six
inches in from the trailing edge to make it flat or
slightly convex. I'm worried that as it is--slightly
concave, it'll make the rudder prone to stalling.

Next comes barrier coat and bottom paint. I'm going with
copper-poxy, which needs lots more sanding, but lasts
years longer and can be sanded in the water. It also
serves as a barrier coat, which might save some work.

The shrink wrapp comes off soon. It is starting to get
in the way. So far we have had very little rain, most
of that has passed to the north and missed the boat. My
wooden platform is also getting in the way. Time to bite
the bullet, buy a longer ladder, and improve work access
to the topsides.

After May 1st, I'm going to borrow a mast dolly, sand
and paint the mast, replacing some shives, and work on
the masthead. I want to stick a couple of extra Ham
antennas up there and haven't figured out how to do that
yet.

Bart Senior

As promised, some pics. Almost all the engine work is done - now I have the
buffing and painting. Launch in about a week.

Here's a shot down one of the exhaust elbows, chipped out, but not dremmel'd:
http://www.sv-loki.com/carbon.jpg

The elbow with a "U"
http://www.sv-loki.com/exhaust.jpg

Here's the clump of eel grass I pulled out. The gasket for the end of the core
assembly is shown for scale. The intake chamber is the smaller part of the
gasket, one third of the core. The grass is fluffed up compared to how it was
when pulled out.
http://www.sv-loki.com/eelgrass.jpg

The Volvo prop, 16x11
http://www.sv-loki.com/propopen.jpg
http://www.sv-loki.com/propclosed.jpg

Looking forward under "Loki" - in front is a Prout 37:
http://www.sv-loki.com/pdqprout.jpg

"Jeff Morris" wrote in message
...
"N1EE" wrote in message
om...
Good report, but not enough detail. 8 points.

Any pictures? The eel grass would have been
interesting to see.

Tomorrow, maybe - I did save the largest clump.

What sort of props do you have?

Volvo two blade folding

What do you recommend for raw water strainers?

There's no cheap way because you need full flow. I'm thinking Groco 750's.
Defender is $75 - WasteMarine is $99. I always wondered why they weren't
standard on the boat, but I guess they think the saildrive feed acts as a
strainer. All in all, it wasn't a lot of debris for 5 years, but it did get
inconveniently far into the system.

What is with the carbon in the exhaust elbows?

One engine has a severe bend in the hose between the elbow and the muffler -
about one foot radius. I'm thinking this causes enough back pressure to
carbon
up the elbow. This is the forth time I've pulled it, but the buildup wasn't
that severe. The first time it was 80% clogged, so I figure its worth doing
every year or so. This is the second time for the other engine - its buildup
isn't to bad.

Like a lot of jobs, the first time is hard and stressful - then it gets quick
and easy. Four bolts releases it from the block, so the only hassle is the
big
exhaust hose.

Is this the first time you have serviced it?

I've done all this before, except for the heat exchanger core. I wish I had
done that several years ago.

How did you find this problems?

A mechanic at Ashley Marina in Charleston, SC was fixing an oil leak (warranty
work - a bad gasket in the original setup) and didn't like the way it reved
up.
When he realized we also used that engine for battery charging, he decided it
was worth looking at the elbow. His advice was to reroute the exhaust (which
I
haven't done), rev higher when possible, and pull the elbow every 300 hours.

How often does this item need service?

See above. I'm thinking in a year or two I'll just replace the elbows.

Are you coming up to Long Island Sound this year?

We're hoping to get to Maine this Summer. Also, it's likely we'll go to the
Vineyard and maybe Nantucket. Further South than Newport or Cutyhunk is
unlikely. When are you getting out out of the Sound?.

-jeff

I'd love to. Should be down your way sometime in the next 3 months.

Scotty

"Seahag" wrote in message
...
Wanna help?

Seahag

"Scott Vernon" wrote:

Great

I'm thinking about washing the dock one of these days.

Seahag

"Donal" wrote

When I become incredibly wealthy, I'm going to set "No-Archive" option on
all my posts.

why?