Commander 147

[Commander 147]

I really want to do right by this commander and I have not done a project like this before. So your help is very much appreciated.

[ebb]

I'm in the same position as you are.
It's just that I've been at it longer, longer, longer.

In the beginning and through the decades I've bought many books on every boat subject. I like books.
Very few concerning the actual work with products have been useful.
Which is natural enough since the reader has to supply his own experience.
There are standouts. But generally books are general.

Have my own brand of timidity to deal with - when it comes to new processes. I work alone on A338. It's my Zen.
Imagine I'm being helpful when I drag on about things Ariel. Trying to be specific.
Wished many times that somebody had clewed me in to the processes that I hope I'm sharing. Experience is public, we are compelled to trade info.
Hope everybody SHARES their experiences and observations and revelations - whatever they are,


Have been told by Admiral Bill that Ebb can be difficult to understand.
It's shop talk converted into language. It would be much better and simpler to see processes.
BUT, thinking that youTube videos are the answer, many instructional ones I seen seem to be as useless as printed talk. Whatever the knack is to put forward a TIP, I'll keep trying until the ax falls.
Never an expert. Just reformulating experiences.
AND always In My Considered Opinion. B.S. It's just the backboard, you have the ball.

Discussion is the life blood of a Forum. It's back and forth repartee. We have a great community and great boats to talk about. BEST SHOW AND TELL ON THE NET.
Actually we are all in the same Boat.
[criminny he does go on and on....]

[Commander 147]

The Florida heat and humidity were not as oppressive yesterday so I got some things done.

The first picture is a template I had made previously for the fiberglass bulkhead I wanted to stiffen up the keel with. The bulkhead was 2-1/2" wide at the bottom and 6" wide at the top. It was 18" tall. The bulkhead was made from 6 layers of 1708 biax and after it kicked I used my pattern to mark the size and cut it out on the bandsaw.

The second picture is the bulkhead installed with just the fillets.

The third picture is after I tabbed it in. The dark line down the center is a refferance line I drew on the bulkhed with a dry marker to help me line up the biax tabbing when I was putting it in. I left about 1 inch under the bulkhead so water can travel back and forth under it.

The forth picture is what the aft end of the ballast looked like after I had cut the fiberglass out that enclosed the foam the factory installed. You can see at the point where I stopped cutting out old glass that there is about 1-1/2" of foam between the glass and the lead ballast. I had to transision down from there to the top of the lead so I made a pattern of the area and marked and cut out the biax to the shape I needed. then I wet out a portion of the biax in the area where it needed to make that transision and let it cure on the bench. Then when I installed the glass in the boat this created a ramp down from the higher level to the top of the lead.

You can see the glass installed in the fifth picture. Following Ebb's advice I left the very end of the lead ballast open so any water getting into the keel forward of that point would have an escape route to the bilge.

[Westgate]

Bulkheads look great!

I am wondering what function these bulkheads serve? Does the hull need reinforcement along the bilge?? I am in a good position to install similar on Arthur...just need to know why!

Thanks for some collective wisdom.

Andrew

[Commander 147]

What I am starting to learn is that no two Ariels or Commanders are exactly alike. For example my commander had the foam aft of the ballast and fiberglassed over. Commander 227 tells me his had neither. His was wide open. And in just the few commanders I have personally seen all had some differances in how they were built. All similar but all differant.

When I took all the foam out of my keel the fiberglass on the sides was in my personnal opinion very thin. the sides would flex very easily. Which they did as I scraped off the foam that stuck to them. And this is one of the lifting points for the boat so just to be on the safe side I decided to strengthen the area with a bulkhead. My personality pushes me to eliminate any potential for failure so I added the bulkhead. Your boat may not it.

[ebb]

FLEX??
If you are thin down there, where you should NOT be thin, perhaps laying in some Xmat, or similar, should be done now.
I would lay the cloth along the hull interior up onto the bulkheads so that the hull is tied one side to the other - and made thicker.

Tying the boat together with those small blkhds makes a very STRONG 'I-beam' structure.

Consider doing this where the ballast ends also.

[Westgate]

Ok that makes sense. I have spent a bit of time in the bilge and have not noticed the flex you mention. Prob as you say no two were made alike. My bilge is wide open and the pins for the grundgen go thru solid FRP. Could be a PO removed all the foam?

I agree with the better safe than sorry approach so I'm going to ebb-o-fy with bulkheads too. Cant hurt and looks pretty straightforward.

Andrew