Their rounding the bend and here they come...

After the paint had set for 24 hours we could finally resume building something and it couldn’t happen soon enough. With all the delays, economic setbacks and miscellaneous side projects it seemed as though this stage would never arrive.

Arrive it has and it has certainly lifted the spirits and we’re working with a renewed vigor. All the parts that weren’t cut and waiting were quickly laid out and cut. I laid out the aft seat/decks as outlined on the plans sheet and cut them out and immediately remembered I had planed to leave the outside arc a little proud and trim it back to fit with the router. Well to late for that I guess. There was some discrepancy all right and it will take a little filling to correct but nothing major and certainly not the worst thing on the whole project. I knew the angled transom was a little wide and I would need to pull the hull sides in to mate the parts up. We did this very easily with a ratchet strap. All the pieces were stitched together just like the hull long ago and the fit wasn’t half bad all around. We tacked everything in place with thickened epoxy and then began the fillets on the inside.

This was the least fun I have had working on the entire boat. I don’t know of any other way to do this though so all I could to was recruit some help and get it over with. Laying face up in the aft bunk areas my helper would mix a batch of thickened epoxy and pass it to me through the aft end where the angled transoms would later be. One stringer then a hull/deck joint then the frame joint, slowly it all got its neat little fillet and I crawled out.

Of note here is an addition to the plans we felt necessary. There are no stringers designed into the frames under the cockpit floor, forward deck or along the aft deck/seats. These areas all span over 12 inches by up to 20+ inches and we felt it was going to be the week link in the boat. These are high traffic spots also.

We added the following stringers:
Cockpit deck - 2- 1 ½” x ¾”from the transom to frame “C” or the companion way frame evenly spaced.
Forward deck - 1- ¾” x ¾” about 8” in from and following the line of the gunwale from frame “E” to the spinnaker pole box forward of frame “A” each side.
Aft deck/seats an additional 1 ½” x ¾” by about 5 feet between frame “A” and “C”.

The pictures do not show the cockpit floor stringers.

That brings us up to date for the most part. We have been doing the filling and prep work to place the fiberglass on the deck and cockpit area but before that takes place we will need to tackle the cabin deck/roof. This has several possible approaches and we must decide on one quickly.


Time this segment:Cut and fit decks, seats and stringers 4 hours
Tack weld above parts in place 1 hour
Fillets inner stingers and joints 6 hoursLight sand, round over edges, prep decks, seats for fiberglass 1 hour Total this segment 12 hoursTotal Project: 145 hours

Where have I been?

Lets see when last I made a post we were finishing up on the primer coats to the interior of the hull. Next up was of course the paint. System Three Topcoat in Orcas White was the choice. This is a water born polyurethane know as a WR-LPU and is supposed to be the thing when it comes to top paints. We sprayed the first coat and following the directions provided by System Three the product was thinned by less that 20%. It seemed to be going on OK but I was constantly fidgeting with the gun to get a setting that made me comfortable. This is not my first project to paint and I like to say I know what I’m doing in this area. About half way down the hull I looked back at what had been sprayed and I just about fell to my knees. RUNS. And a lot of them. I knew immediately that the paint was to thin because I was applying the thinnest coat I my have ever applied to anything. There wasn’t a lot to do but keep going and empty the gun. Then I quickly went over the entire thing with a foam roller and evened it out. All I could do now was walk away shaking my head and wait to see how it looked the next day. The time between coats is supposed to be when dry to the touch or about an hour. I new there was no chance of being satisfied with it the way it looked when I walked away so I decide to not even try for a second coat and would just give it the required light sanding in 24 hours and give it another coat after that. When I went to have a look the next day it wasn’t to bad but it sure wasn’t what I wanted in a finish so time to start sanding. A light once over and then wiped down it was time to try again. This time I thinned the paint a little less than 10%. Again getting the gun set was evidence that the same thing was going to happen and sure enough it starts to run. I quickly rolled it over and dumped the mixed paint thinking I’ll try one more thing. I mixed up a batch with out thinning and it went on beautifully. It went on smooth enough that if I didn’t tell you where I rolled and sprayed in the same coat you wouldn’t find it. My faith in the System Three products was restored and my self-confidence shot back up to normal. I am a painter.

Much more to tell you on the progress and some photos but we’ll get to that tomorrow.

Time this segment:
Prepping, cleaning the inner hull for paint 1 hour
One coat of paint, roll out runs 1 ½ hour
Sand first coat 1 ½ hours
Clean up, prep for paint 1 hour
Second coat of paint 1 ½ hours
Third Coat of paint 1 ½ hours
( no time counted on drying between coats)
Also note: Primer was allowed 1 full week to cure before paint was applied.
Total this segment 8 hours
Total Project: 133 hours

One is never enough… but 3 are just right.

After receiving the S3 Yacht primer yesterday I quickly got another coat on before winding down the day. A third and final coat this morning made all the difference. There were a few spots that after one coat I had hoped would fill in a bit with additional coats and they did. Without laying on excessively heavy coats I was able to make a little grain go away that showed up in the aft bunks from what I guess were too thin a coats of epoxy and heavily grained plywood. They still show a little but I think now with a light sanding they will be fair enough when the topcoats are applied. The recommended dry time is one day before sanding so we’ll let it set idle until Sunday.

For the record we used 3.5 quarts of System Three Yacht Primer on this part of the paint process. We could have used about half if leaving the aft section unfinished.

Time this segment:

Prepping, cleaning the inner hull for primer 2 hours

Three coats of primer 3 hours

Total this segment 5 hours

Total Project: 125 hours

Promised photo...

This is the first coat of primer. I was a little disappointed with the coverage but it is what it is. I will need another quart to get the recommended 3-4 mils dry film thickness. Not having a local supplier of this material will delay (again) getting the paint on but only by a day or two.

I know, I know. I never write anymore

I know some of you have been wondering why there has been no activity on my blogs as of late. Well the old depression over our finances reared its ugly head again and threw the whole project into reduced production status. I finely kicked myself in the seat and said enough and fired the project back up into full swing. Two weeks of that time were spent on epoxy curing so in all we lost from about May 22nd to July 8th or 6 ½ weeks. Lets subtract the long 4th of July weekend since we were away for the holiday and to make me feel better. That brings us to right At 6 weeks lost to the monster.

Once back at it the first order of business was to go over the whole interior once again quickly with the sandpaper. I found several places that could have been filled and sanded one more time but the painting inside is more of an exercise than an attempt at perfection. I want to know how the System Three products go on and “learn” in an area far less scrutinized than the outer hull and decks will be. The interior of this boat will be used for storage of sails and little else.

Next getting the shop ready for applying the primer and paint. Everything takes longer than you want it to. I finished cleaning the shop or so I thought last night. This morning there was a fine layer of dust settled on all the horizontal surfaces, tables, shelves etc. This is not the first time I have cleaned it for paint duty, but it’s been a while so I wanted it as clean as I could expect or as I put it to myself “ a little cleaner than the last time I painted in here”. One benefit of the unplanned delay will be the possibility of completing the hull and deck sanding and fairing outside, eliminating the need to clean the shop to the extent it was this go round.

Today after dusting everything in the shop one last time and a quick vacuum of the boat I wiped all the surfaces to be painted with a 50-50 alcohol/water solution. After 3 rounds it looks good to me. I plan to begin applying the primer early tomorrow while the shop is still cool enough to keep from running any fans or even the dust filter.

We will be using the System Three Silvertip Yacht Primer, a waterborne, two-part marine epoxy primer. Two coats are the minimum recommended, three suggested if significant sanding is planed. We’ll see what two looks like and then make that call. This product dries by evaporation and multi coats are possible in a day. A full days cure is necessary before top coating.

Well that brings us all up to date. Keep an eye out for pictures to be posted late tomorrow.

PS: I need to tell you about the little 12’ sailboat we picked up for a hundred bucks some time. Perhaps later next week I’ll sit down and tell that story. Oh and then there’s the 10K rigging bid to address.

I’m not adding any time to the project here because it was negligible. Cleaning the hull took about 2 hours.

Rest in Peace
Phil Bolger
1927-2009


I was never a student to Phil’s designs but always respected his education, writings and spirit.

Gloucester Times: Boat creator 'leaves on own terms'

Does anyone have a finished sailboat I can use for a couple of weeks?

It’s been a frustrating 24 hours.

I was reviewing Sam Devlin’s Boat Building book for a refresher coarse on converting plans to the stitch and glue method (more on that some other time). I knew I had read somewhere about waiting on epoxy to cure a minimum of one week before priming or painting so while finishing up the chapters I needed I flip to the chapter on painting and confirmed the wait times recommended. The problem is every time I think I’m ready to put on some primer I see something I want to smooth out or sand and then need to recoat with epoxy, so add a week more. Now this morning I start reading up on primers, I see the same wait times for that process as well. Two weeks will be lost on waiting and there’s not much else to work on while this goes on. The ruder will get a little work I suppose but that’s a day at best. The deck panels are all cut out except one and that will be a 30-minute job if I take my time. So to sum it up the project is in limbo waiting on epoxy to cure a couple of more days before we can get the primer on and then we’ll have to wait another week so we can paint.

In short there will be no priming this weekend. This comes just when my motivation was back up to a level close to when we started the project.

This is where you wish you had an endless source of funds, a shop the size of a basketball stadium, a stockpile of materials and 2-3 projects going on at the same time. Oh, and nothing else to distract you.

Time to start looking at that next project. If you don’t here from me in the next 2 weeks now you know why.

Time this segment:
We won't count waiting!
Sanding/Fairing inside hull 6 hours
Total this segment 6 hours
Total Project: 120 hours

Do you still have a boat project? Well yes but...

What’s been going on you must be asking yourself. It’s hard to believe it was mid February the last time I posted any updates. There haven’t been any leaps and bounds made that's for sure.

We picked up the plywood we needed to get the last of the sole finished, traced the panel off, cut and installed it. After the panels are in place filets were made all around the sole at every intersection with bulkheads and sides. Then the sanding began. And then a little touchup of a filet. Now more sanding. All seams are taped with the same 12 oz. biaxial tape as the rest of the hull and the weave filled with epoxy. Everything always takes me longer than I think it will and I must admit I’ve let some other things take priority. Now that spring is here of course I wish I’d have pushed myself to get farther along. The possibility of taking this boat out for a sail should be enough. Every time I do get to working on it and stand back to take a look I see her screaming across the water, but alas it’s just a vision.

I’m going back and forth as to the level of finish the interior should receive. One side say just leave it the way it is and move on while the other says do it up nice and paint it. I think for me it should be at least painted a nice bright white even if the seams are left a little rough. It just seems it would make it easer to keep clean and easer to find anything stowed away when it’s needed. It certainly isn’t a space that much time will be spent in. Well, now you’re up to date and maybe by this weekend I will either paint or move on. I’ll post the results either way. Maybe even less that 2 ½ months from now.

Time this segment:
Cutout mid-section sole panel using templates 1/2 hour
Install mid-sole sole panel 1/2 hours
Filets 2 hours
Sanding Filets 2 hours
Touch up Filets and tape seams 3 hours
Total this segment 10 hours
Total Project: 114 hours

Transom goes in and we got sole, well some

The transom was cut at the same time as the hull parts and has been laying around in the boat, under the boat on a shelf, you get the idea. When the time came to install it we found that a few twist and bends had found there way in. In order to get it straight for installing we simply screwed it to a 3” x ¾” piece of plywood to hold it flat. As you can see from the photos we then clamped it in place aligning the center with the hull center. There was a gap at each side of ¼”, a little larger on the port side. Using a strap we were able to bring both side panels up and in so that the gaps were filled. Then a few fillets and it was in place.


We prepped the hull one last time for installing the transom and sole by coating all the area under the line of the sole with two coats of epoxy and filling any leftover holes from temporary screws. We had decide not to paint this area as it is for the most part never to be seen again.

All the sole pieces are in except the aft both sides. This allows us to tape the transom in with two layers of biaxial 12 oz tape first. The plans show the sole installed in 3 pieces each side, however it is impossible to install the mid-section this way. It simply will not go in because the opening in frame “C” is to small. We made a seam at frame “C” and solved the problem. The only effect for adjusting this on the plans might be in nesting and saving a small amount of plywood but without running a nesting solution program it’s hard to say.

There are a lot of fillets to get finished and then a lot of taping around the hull to sole joints before anything else will take place.


Time this segment:
2 Coats of epoxy below sole line 1 hour
Fill any remaining holes below the sole line ½ hour
Install and fillet Transom:1 hour
Install Forward and mid-section soles 1 ½ hours
Total Project: 107 hours

Template for the sole

In order to make the sole installation as easy as possible we decide to first cut a template using corrugated cardboard. We purchased 4 sheets 4’ x 8’ from a local packaging supply company. This would prove much less expensive to make an error on than the plywood.

The plans clearly show all the required dimension to layout the panels and it is just a matter of transferring them onto the cardboard. Although you could just as easily work on one sheet at a time we tapped tow sheets plus 26” together end to end to give us a little over the required 18’. The dimension sheet shows 12” typical layouts. After getting all the measurements in place we simply bend a batten across the points using small paneling nails and a few clamps to help guide us. The material cuts easily with a razor knife.

It looked as if the aft section had more arch to it than would be required but after double checking all the measurements there was nothing much more to do than try it in the hull. Once the template was cut out we took measurements from the hull stating at the bow and marked the front of all the bulkheads on it. Next a notch is cutout to allow for the thickness of the bulkheads. There was a question as to rather we had frame “c” marked correctly because of the angle so we sliced the template just forward of the frame worked from there. As it turns out we were off by less than assumed. The template fit surprisingly well and made us fell good to know our hull was properly shaped. The aft end once laid in place became abundantly clear as to its odd shape. The sole doesn’t follow the chine in this area but flares into the aft section nicely.

Only minor adjustments will need to be made and then the plywood can be cut from the template. This should all take place in the next couple of days.

Time this segment: 1 ½ hours
Total Project: 103 hours

It took a long time to do nothing!

It’s been to long since I have updated the blog and I apologize to my loyal readers. It’s been tough the last few months. Loads of work one week nothing the next. My moral has been just as unstable. Then it got bad. With all the extra time on hand I should have had the project much further along, but motivation was hard to come by. The economy is officially in the toilet now and I have come to accept things I guess. No work means more time to finish up the boat, although it also means less money to work with.

Because not much has taken place on the build it won’t take long to bring everyone up to speed.

First to correct the keel error we wrapped it with another 5 rounds of 12 oz glass. I noted in the forum that this was the least pleasing part of the build so far. Just as the first 5 layers the glass/epoxy wants to float off if you turn the keel to soon to complete the other side. No solution was found and we just let it cure most of the way and then flipped it. It’s finished now though and my estimate is about 2 hours of actual work but it was spread over about 3 days.

The spinnaker pole tube is also now in place. The hole for this is pre set during the layout process on bulkhead “E”. We carried the line forward through the hull and drilled a small hole to check alignment. After a few adjustments the hole is enlarged to accept the 3” PVC tube. We ran this long so we could be certain it would be lined up and then cut it back after the epoxy had cured. To keep the tube in place while we tacked it we used wedges and as it happened a plastic cup that was setting empty on the work bench. By roughing up the PVC the epoxy held very well. This had be a concern from the start but the designer reassured me it would be fine. The time to complete this I estimate at less that 2 hours spread over 1 or 2 days to allow curing.

As you can see we have the keel box installed. Because it was so cold in the shop we found we could get the fillets smoothed out only after they have been warmed up and to rest for about an hour with the whole cabin area covered and warmed. I don’t run the heat when it gets below 55 in the shop because it never shuts off. By butting a small portable heater and a flood lamp in the cabin and covering I can raise the temperature well into the 80’s very quickly.

Lining up the box was fun. No less than 3 levels used at a time, wish I would have had some pictures. I was concerned that it would be out of square and plumb and the boat would just sail in circles. What I ended up doing was installing the three sections separately and allowing that to cure before setting the next in place. Checking for square and plumb each time. Took longer but I’m confident that the keel will run true.

You will notice the “extra” timber in the box. We had to add this to compensate for the error in sizing earlier. We could have cut the box down to fit but felt this would be fine. We decreased the size of the forward most support to maintain the center as designed.

The box it’s self contains a foam wedge for collision protect.




The time for all steps of the keel box construction and installation is 6 hours.

Next a layer of biaxial tape over all the fillets and unless we have overlooked something the sole can go in. I look for that to happen over the weekend.

Time: Additional 5 layers on keel including sanding 2 hours
Install Spinnaker Tube 2 Hours
Build and install Keel Box 6 Hours
Total this segment 10 hours Total Project 101 ½ hours