Ariel #24

[ebb]

Tim, I think the tube itself is fiberglass pipe and looks fine.
It is all that sloppy Pearson work around it that looks dry.

The trouble is when you are working with polyester that it is an undependable glue. So if they stopped for lunch and went back later we get joins that have no strength in sheer.

You can find white fiberglass showing at times that was soaked at the time of laminating. Liquid plastic doesn't really soak into the fibers, just surrounds it. But it looks like you may have found another area that was not saturated when the boat was made.

It also could be a 'major' leak area. I would fair the hole, as I'm sure you are doing, and add some epoxy insurance inside where the tube exits the hull.
Thanks for the CSI photos!!!

[Tim Mertinooke]

I ground it out a little last night after posting and found staurated laminate which is good. I can imagine though water that slowly migrates through any imperfection there and finds its way in to the bilge. I'll post some photos tonight after further grinding and investigation. Shouldn't be a biggie, I imagine smearing some epoxy up there so that it is fair with the bottom of the rudder tube. That ought to do it. How did this boat stay afloat again?

BTW- My little cherub likes his Ariel. The indoctrination begins!

[bill@ariel231]

Tim

excellent job on the recruiting side of your refit team! He'll fit in all of the places where adult sized humans don't. Very handy when it comes time to rewire your boat.

cheers,
bill

[joe]

Too bad that Hobbit's aren't for real I could sure use some.

[Tim Mertinooke]

hehe. Actually the boat was rewired prior to purchase so that department is all set, he did however come in handy when I emptied the keel void...

[Tim Mertinooke]

My new bronze port came in. The locations are approximate as I work out the fine details, but here is a preview of what's to come.

Cockpit view (I like these ports because they are almost flush so if you lean against the bulkhead it comfy)



Interior view. I coughed up a couple more bucks for the bronze interior finish ring. It will match nicely with my "someday ports" which will be 12" opening bronze beauties to replace the windows.


The fit is perfect as planned!


A-24 is slowly but surely gaining back her integrity.

[Tim Mertinooke]

My surprising find last week, to me at least, was indeed a propeller aperture filler as Bill suggested. The filler is hollow with an opening in the top and bottom. When I tapped the filler with the handle of a screwdriver it was definitely thin and hollow. I duct taped the nozzle to my shop vac up to one of the holes to suck out any debris or water that might have been hanging out in there. Nothing came out, but I could here a whistle noise so I knew air could somehow get into the void inside the filler. The air was soming in from the other hole. This void would have definitely filled up with water every time the boat was in the water. The apperture is tabbed on with a layer of fiberglass. THe ends were beginning to delaminate a little bit. I grinded off these ends until there was only saturated laminate left. I sanded and prepped the area then coated it with thickened epoxy. I forced some epoxy into the holes so they are now sealed. After the epoxy cures overnight, I'll put a fairing coat of thickened epoxy over that, then sand again. I'll post some pictures of the area coated with epoxy tomorrow after I fair it.

[Tim Mertinooke]

I dremmeled out the dry laminate found underneath the fiberglass rudder tube using a flap wheel attachment. In very localized spots there was some discoloration of the laminate which indicated to me that water had penetrated. I took a fine grinding attchment and drilled out these area like a dentist. Once all of the discolored areas were removed it was ready for a gooping of thickened epoxy.


You can see the areas that were dark after grinding with the dremel. I forgot to take a picture after I drilled out these areas.