So I went to the boat on Wednesday, I had a weather window and needed to get the bottom finished. I had a recommendation from Rick, the guru of gurus, to get the bottom done now, because it takes a couple of weeks for the Interlux Interprotect 2000 to really set up. Otherwise it can let go when the crane straps put tension on it. I wanted to finish the boot stripe first, but is takes less time to set up, so can be done later. I probably won't get in the water until second lift in anyway, which is still a month away.
I must digress a little here, because Rick needs more mention. This guy has forgotten more about working on boats than most of us will ever know. Having him around the yacht club is like having the product engineers from the company in your hip pocket. This is what he does for a living, he works on our boats. I don't think he does engines, but other than that, if its on a boat, he'll do it. I personally like just talking to him about boat maintenance, sailing, and cruising, just because its a subject I love, and he knows so well. The only thing that really bothers me is that this is what he does for a living, and every little thing I learn from talking to him makes feels like I'm stealing something. I think he actually enjoys it, and doesn't seem to get too upset when people do something contradictory to his advice, which is usually bang on. In fact, going against his advice, although not infallible, is just asking for trouble. Ode to Rick, thanks man..
So, I get there Wednesday, after spending most of the morning loading the truck. Its raining.... ughh. In fact we had squall after squall come through, and I never got anything done on the boat. I spent all afternoon running around trying to find buss bar for my high voltage circuits, to find that the only way I am going to get them is to order the proper buss bars from "Blue Sea" at the marina next door. I worked my butt off on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday though, and got it all done up. See pics below.
Got the trailboard back on, it turned out well. I am going to leave the screw holes unplugged, as I am thing about removing the bow sprit next year and replacing the main timber. The previous owner had a little rot in there, and scarfed in a couple pieces of spruce, but I am not happy with the way the job looks, and would rather have a new one. We'll see, maybe it will be fine.
Taped off and started painting the white stripe through the red racing stripes. I couldn't effectively tape off the curly part, so I put 2" tape over the whole thing and used a new utility knife to cut the tape where the depression was. Worked out really well, except for the bleed thru I ended up with.
Looks great from ten feet away though don't it? Up close it isn't so pretty, but I will try some little touch ups and see if I can't fix it up a little. Or wreck it completely!! Three coats of Interlux's brighside off-white. The red was four coats. I put the first coat of off-white on without thinning, and my recommendation is, don't ever do that. It went on okay, but it didn't flow well, and the finish was not near as good as when I thinned it 10% with the proper thinner.
Here is the bottom after 3 coats of Interprotect. I did 4 total. The manufacturer recommends 4-5 coats, approximately 4 gallons for a boat my size, however it also says until the thickness of the dried material is 10 mils or more. Well...... what a controversy this creates. I had an epoxy barrier on the boat to begin with, so I was fairly confident that I could get away with a little less anyway. I asked at least 15 different people how thick 10 mils was, and not one person new exactly how much that was, funny perhaps, but some of the guesses were at least right. When I got home I Googled it, and it is in fact another way of saying "10 thousands of an inch". American speak I guess. Up here in ol' metric Canada, those things are apparently a mystery to us. The controversy was that Rick"the guru" said that the thickness should be between a dime and a nickel. As I said earlier, going against Rick, is like pissing on the Gods, but I measured a dime, at 44 mils, and a nickel, at 66 mils. So, in fact a dime is 4 1/2 times the required thickness required by the manufacturer in order to have a water tight barrier on the hull. I was so nervous about going against Rick's recommendation, that I almost didn't put the first coat of anti-fouling paint on the bottom when it was ready. The anti-fouling paint needs to be put on in the same day as the last coat of interprotect, so that they bond properly. Anyway, long story over, the barrier is thick enough, and it only took 2 gallons, 1/2 gallon per coat, and I painted the anti-fouling.
The final pictures of the first coat of anti-fouling paint. Black, Serena's choice, but it looks really good. I need to wait a couple of days to put the next coat on, and then it will be good for the season. I used Interlux's Micron CSC. It is okay, in fact for Canadian waters, its serious overkill, but the recommendations from other sailors is to use the upgraded version called Micron Extra VOC. As far as I can tell, the two paints are identical, and can be applied over one another. The only difference is that the Micron Extra has a Biolux additive that controls slime buildup. Unfortunately, Micron Extra is not available in Canada. So I will put a coat or two of that on next year before we leave for the Caribbean. I have a funny feeling that I will be moving the waterline up this fall anyway. Once all that cruising gear is added on, Vita is going to sit a little lower in the water.
Other than than, I redesigned our fridge, because the space was smaller than I thought. I start building that today. I designed a cockpit table. Figured out where my batteries where going to go. Came up with a preliminary design for a new table and seating that keep the original setee on the starboard side but get rid of that god awful table in the middle. Cleaned up the interior of the boat. Finalized the design on the high voltage panel, and determined the location, I think/hope. Installed the new Raymarine ST40 knot log. Although I am a little concerned that I didn't get enough sealant around the thru hull. I might see if I can't remove the locking nut and add some more sealant. Drank a few beers, and worked my ass off. I didn't get everything done I had hoped, but its coming. At least the outside of the boat is starting to look really sharp.
Kisses.
Rob
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