Warren's Build Log, CAN 573

[admin]

Coming along nicely Warren! Don't envy the right-side uppers, I think there are downsides to both methods and when you flip the thing add see there is no measurable "twist" to the entire hull, you'll be a much happier camper. Mine came in somewhere about 6mm, which I thought was acceptable (measured top dead center of stem to farthest point outboard on transom). ALSO: Leon's long stringers to "trap" the stem is probably not a bad idea.

[Warren Nethercote]

Where am I? Still here but moving slowly. I had a trip to Poland for an end-of-season iceboating class meeting and a series of spring-time jobs - gardening and pothole filling call. And tomorrow I start a bathroom reno.

The other chine log went on well and I was careful this time so there are no flat spots aft. But the sheer stringers were another story. I had some lovely 19 ft lengths of Douglas fir milled to 1/4 x 1 1/2 for laminated chine and sheer, but there is too much edge-set in the sheer so the Douglas fir buckled when I tried to bend it around. I scarfed together a bunch more 3/4 x 3/4 spruce that was only intended for secondary structure. It was more torsionally stable so I could edge-laminate in the sheer strake without further difficulty. Looks a bit ugly with all the scarfs, but who will know?

This morning I tabbed in the first of the cant frames.

[Warren Nethercote]

Continuing progress, albeit interrupted. I am just back from judging at the USODA Team Trials on Little Egg Harbour, NJ. Bobble hats and boots were de rigeur: it was NOT t-shirt weather.

I completed the installation of the cant frames, together with chain plate doublers. It is easier to add doublers now, but to borrow from Mrs. Cratchet, "I do have me doubts about symmetry."

After the all the stringers were added, I was finally able to glue the stem to the extensions of the stringers. Time to start fairing soon, although I think I will glue in the longitudinal bulkheads before the plywood goes on.

Next week another interruption as I head off to the J24 NAs in Houston - judging again.

[Warren Nethercote]

Less haste, more speed - or at least no finger in the picture!

Started fitting the longitudinal bulkheads but didn't get too far: a honey-do list calls my name. I probably won't get back to this for a week or so: on Wednesday I am off to the J24 NAs in Houston and there is lots of gardening to do before then.

[Warren Nethercote]

Bathroom is done, been to J24 NAs on Galveston Bay (Houston YC) and back and got ahead of little chores like lawn-mowing and doing a liquor inventory at the sailing club (I have the house portfolio). Tonight I finished fitting the longitudinal bulkheads and glued them in. I don't want to disturb them while the glue sets so I will fillet the intersections tomorrow.

[Warren Nethercote]

I filleted the after longitudinal bulkheads this morning and made best use of workshop time and offcuts by adding longitunals between frames 53.5 and 89. I think I will install berth flats between frames 53.5 and 124 after the boat is upright, as well as a centreline bulkhead between frames 18 and 53.5 - all to stiffen the bottom. Berth flats in name, but not in application. If you haven't already guessed, this build might benefit from improved planning!

Now I can get on with fairing and addition of the previously scarfed skins.

[Warren Nethercote]

Measure once, cut twice. OH RATS, THAT's NOT RIGHT! My bottom panel is too narrow between frames 18 and 53.5.

Some time ago I scarfed and cut out the hull panels, and I just don't know what I was doing. When I went back to track my layout error there was no rime nor reason - my offsets near the bow were just plain wrong. Do I cut off the forward part of the bottom panel and re-scarf a new bit on or .... ?

Yesterday I reflected upon adding a centreline bulkhead after rolling the hull over. Maybe I will do it before the bottom goes on and allow the bottom panel forward to run out over the chine and rely on the frames to maintain the deadrise forward. The centreline bulkhead, if fitted with doublers along the centreline, will maintain the profile. I can add a plywood gore later. Not pretty, but that is what biaxial tape is for.

Grrrrr. I will sleep on it.

[Edit. I spent the next morning removing a set of rot-infested steps at the house so there has been lots of time for thought, albeit not relaxing. Upon reflection, a centreline bulkhead with doublers would be a kluge, so I think I'll do the right thing and replace the pointy bits on the bottom panel, although expediency will likely lead to butt blocks instead of scarfs. Shame to waste some BS1088, but I could have done it right the first time.]

[ryderp]

I would just scarf on a small strip of plywood to widen the panels a bit. I don't think that it would take more than a few minutes to accomplish this. I had the same problem with the panel for my cockpit which I cut too narrow, with the same solution.

Phil

[Warren Nethercote]

Phil,

That has a certain attraction. I will think about it while I am building new front steps for the house. Grrrrrr. My three-week regatta-free period has turned into a 'honey-do holiday'.

[mmarkomarko]

I would just scarf on a small strip of plywood to widen the panels a bit. I don't think that it would take more than a few minutes to accomplish this. I had the same problem with the panel for my cockpit which I cut too narrow, with the same solution.

Phil

Either that or start rounding off the chines to the front to improve the sharpie's sailing performance

[Chad]

Yeah, if you're confident that the chine is in the right place (the hull panels are what primarily determine the chine's location in the "standard" S&G method), then a sliver of missing wood will simply be lost in the noise as you round, bog, and tape the chine, and fair it all in.

[Warren Nethercote]

The challenge with the upside down method is that you may only discover errors when the panels won't fit, and by then it may be too late .... Of course, with my errors cutting out the bottom panel the stitch and glue approach would have been a struggle too. An obvious reason for buying the Tyvek patterns!

After lost days due to porch building I went the quick and dirty route with butt blocks to replace the too-narrow pointy bits on the bottom panel. The gap in the butt block allows it to straddle the bottom stringer. Tonight my wife helped me glue the bottom panel on. I clamped along the chine but drove temporary screws into the transom and the longitudinal stringers. It was a bit like wrestling with a pig: everyone got dirty (or sticky in this case) but the pig enjoyed it.

More diversions to come: finish the porch, refinish a club (wooden) Optimist that has been drying out in my workshop all winter, and then off to judge at the 49er Youth Worlds in Kingston. It will be the first week of July before I can get to side panel installation.

[Warren Nethercote]

Before starting on the Opti refurbishment I planed the edges of the bottom panel, but that's all. I 'lowered the build form landing gear' so-to-speak to roll the boat out of position enough to allow me to work on the Opti. Some of the interim repairs inflicted on that poor boat by the sailing instructors make me cringe ....

[Warren Nethercote]

A moment of truth, and relief. But first an interlude ....

Back from the 49er and FX Junior Worlds. A disappointing turnout (21 against an expected 75 entries - no profit on this regatta!) but good racing. Three days of fleet racing followed by a day of umpired stadium racing. Not quite as frenetic as Optimist team racing, but umpiring 49ers can be challenging.

With the honey do list under control I faired one side of the framing and dry-fitted the side-shell. I had wondered just how good the shell development was, because stitch and glue can cover a multitude of sins, but the plywood pulled into place quite easily. There is considerable twist forward, but in the picture, everything is held in place with just a half-dozen clamps along the sheerline and two at the transom. I think I will leave it in place while fitting the other one, with hope that their might be at least some memory effects. And the side shell fit well, except at the very bow where it looks like the rocker on the last 2 fit of boat is perhaps a quarter inch flat. So much for 'free-form' stem location.

[Warren Nethercote]

Two more regattas under my belt, judging, and now back to the build. Dry fitted the stbd topsides and realized that I didn't have a rocker problem: I just needed to fiddle with the lay of the side shell. I have also found that the forward frames should have even more 'round' than shown on the plans. I will need to pull the side shell into the topsides stringers with screws forward of the mast. There is about a 3/8th to 1/2 inch gap on 53.5, but nothing that application of a hip can't overcome.

Discovered some 'oopsies' too, but they can wait for another day to address.

[Edit: Why hang about? With wife in tow I went back out to the workshop and we glued the stbd side on. Of course it slipped slightly out of alignment again. Grr. The forward bit is definitely not developable, but that shouldn't be a surprise with wide flare going forward to a vertical stem. But it didn't take much effort to pull the side into the stringer. Gaps remain between the planking and parts of the forward frames. You will see when it gets flipped over. Nothing that filleting won't fix.]

[Warren Nethercote]

Sometimes I feel like weeping .....

Remember that Optimist I refurbished? Well it's back!

Talk about distractions from boat building.

[admin]

Aggressive port-tacker?

[Warren Nethercote]

Out of control CanSail 1 student in a Laser Pico.

[Warren Nethercote]

Progress, albeit slow. Judging at regattas seems to get in the way. A three-day dinghy regatta at my home club on the weekend and Friday I leave for 10 days at the Canada Summer Games in Gimli, MB. Lake Winnipeg is an interesting place for sailing, with a true horizon if you look North from the club. But yesterday we glued the second side on and tonight I added a spruce stem cap. After hopes that the second side would go on better than the first, it too 'slipped' low at the bow when hollow was forced into the panel by screws into the topsides stringer. It is not slippage at all, but rather the effects of panel distortion near the vertical stem. Maybe I should have screwed into the chine first, then released the clamps at the sheer line before screwing into the stringer, and then re-clamped the sheer. I will never know now!

[Warren Nethercote]

I couldn't leave it alone ... a bit of plane and belt sander time to expose the stem shape. I won't round off the edges until all the filling is done and I am ready for taping.

[Warren Nethercote]

Back at it....

Canada Games were good, if bothered by extremes of wind. Two days of absolutely flat, and one with winds to a measured 28 knots. Only the best 29ers enjoyed that!

Rounded the chines today and filled some more ... taping coming soon

[Warren Nethercote]

More waiting - in this case for glass to come in to the local supplier. He's out of 60 inch wide cloth. But I raided left-over bits of carbon from iceboat runner building to tape the stem, and taped the chines with biaxial glass tape. The stem and forefoot got a layer of 9 oz biaxial carbon, with a further layer of 12 oz uni carbon on the stem. Now some silence while I go off the the Etchells NAs and the the Sunfish Youth Worlds, and Worlds, as chief judge. I am contemplating going back to being an ordinary sailor with a life, when my certification comes up for renewal.

[Warren Nethercote]

Oooooh, carbon fiber .....

Back from the Etchells NAs in San Diego and the Sunfish Worlds in Brant Beach NJ, so after mowing the lawn I returned to the boat. I had bought some 9 oz biaxial CF for iceboat runners and bought extra to do the bottom of the boat. OK, an extravagance .... The topsides will get a layer of 6 oz glass and then the whole thing will be draped with 6 oz glass. Chad did something similar I think, but used uni-directional glass for the first layer.

But I did little more than trim the carbon fiber before getting a phone call that one of the judges for the next regatta (Sonar Worlds) broke her leg: need to find a replacement pdq.

[Warren Nethercote]

Sonar Worlds in Lunenburg last weekend and Canadian Women's keelboat Champs starting there tomorrow, but in between I tackled the glassing. Boy I hate that stuff ..... Not the greatest job with the odd wrinkle and bubble, not to mention dry spots, but progress is progress. Chad's time-lapse makes it look so easy, not like fighting with wallpaper. Some initial fairing next before turning it over for decking.

[Warren Nethercote]

Product Review ....

A friend recommended System Three 'Quikfair' when it came time for fairing. I gave it a try, but only bought a litre pack (actually a US quart). It's gone now and I wish I'd bought the four litre (US gallon) tub. Just mix the two parts, 2 to 1, and spread away. No more sneaking up on just the amount of micro-balloon in the epoxy to get the right consistency, and the 'spreadability' is much better. It is a bit harder to sand than West plus 407, but not unreasonably so. After reverting to epoxy and 407 fairing balloons after the litre of Quikfair was gone, I think a trip to buy a four litre tub is in the cards.

It's not cheap, but I think it's worth it. One litre was about $80CAD and the four litre pack was about $220CAD as I recall.