Ariel 387 -"Arthur"

[Westgate]

Faced with another rainy weekend which for me means inside work. (Really need to build a shelter!) Decided to grind the forepeak. As I'm sure others would confess who have done similar...not a fun job! Dirty, dusty, hard to reach, glass in your eyes, cramping arms...yes just plain hell!

Anyway the bulk of the hard grinding is done. I have some finish sanding, then plan to do some fairing then prime and paint.

Speaking of paint what have others used for forepeak paint application? Brands, types?

Well hope we get some drier days ahead....

[Commander227]

Thats one of the nastiest jobs you can find on a boat!
I've had good luck using two part epoxy paint for garage floors. it is bright, glossy & easy to keep clean. It doesn't yellow or mildew. It is also quite inexpensive compared to marine products, like $70.00 for the 2 gal. kit.

[CapnK]

I'd been dreading the sanding forever. Tried different things, to avoid it. Was almost convinced I was gonna have to get one of Ebb's fancy Fein sanders, when I tried "CitriStrip", an orange-colored stripper for about $10/quart at WallyWorld. It doesn't have any fumes, is non-toxic (so long as you don't drink it, I guess), and does a bang-up job on old latex. Below you'll see what I mean - that was an easy afternoon, no sanding whatsoever, used a little less than a quart per side of the v-berth. Probably woulda spent that much on paper, sanding...

That other bottle of stuff there is not paint stripper. At least, not when mixed properly with some ginger beer...

The whiter part of the hull (running diagonally up towards the bow) is a thicker layer of glass, & might even be a slightly different kind than the rest.

[Westgate]

I could have used a shot or many of the old Black Seal last w-end.

Your strip job looks great. Of course you are not out of the woods yet if there is any fairing in your future. My forepeak looks like it was glassed by, well, Black Seal imbibers!

[CapnK]

My forepeak looks like it was glassed by, well, Black Seal imbibers!

One of 'em grabbed a side grinder and applied it with great abandon while they were down there, too, from the looks of mine...

I'll be tabbing in small bulkheads directly to the hull; so along the line of the glasswork I will be applying sandpaper, but more to get down to 'virgin' surface for bonding purposes than for cosmetics.

Once the bulkheads are in, then I will be encapsulating a layer of sheet foam direct against the hull inside the compartments created, topped with doorskin or luan ply and a layer of glass over that. The end result should be pretty even and paint-ready without needing much in the way of fairing, so I might be able to dodge that bullet also.

The overhead I am still trying to figure out. I would like to get at least a thin layer of foam applied there (for insulation purposes).

My work results tend to be more of a "workman-like finish" (I love that phrase, it covers defects better than Bondo), rather than the polish and perfection of Master Craftsmen here like Ebb, Tony, Geoff... One of the few trades I have never participated in as a way to reap a paycheck is carpentry, so there is a lot more of trial and error and "acceptable results" in what I am capable of than the beauty I see in others work around here.

[Westgate]

It was a fantastic w-end at the boat. Mid 70's, Carolina blue sky. That means outdoor work.

Putting off the recore job I figured I'd get started on the bottom. My plan here is to prep., fair, barrier coat and then bottom paint. Started by sanding everything down with 80 grit using the DA. Tried to get most of the sander marks out that were left when we stripped the 14 layers of bottom paint. The gel coat below the water line is not in great shape so I didn't mind sanding it down to smooth things out a bit. After a good cleaning with soap and LOTS of water I let it dry before hitting it with a 202 solvent wash. This was prob not necessary but I figured it was prob good to be careful. Next I rolled on a nice layer of epoxy using a 9" foam brush tipping with a foam paint applicator. This took about 26 pumps per side using West System (sorry Ebb). I did it in in 4 x 13 pump applications. This worked very well although the roller burned up pretty much 5 mins after I finished each side. Fuming epoxy is never pretty!

While this kicked I got to work finishing the hatch fairing job and the backstay reinforcement (yes that needed to get fixed too!).

Got a almost final layer of fairing gunk on the ice hatch cover after a detailed sanding job using a variety of tools. I was trying to be very careful not to spread epoxy tailings all over my wet hull so I enlisted the help of the shop vac. An aside... my boat sits right next to a VERY dusty road (8 feet away!). So the w-end was punctuated with manic spraydowns of said road at 30 min intervals. Aside number two... so 'ya see some hairbag working on his boat. Aforementioned hairbag is using a paint roller to apply something to the boat. Hmmmm interesting...Make sure you wave because this is Sneads Ferry and that's what people do BUT do 'ya slow down...no way! Dust city!!! Before the paint job I'm installing speed bumps!

So ice hatch cover is close to a memory. I will not miss it. On to the backstay. So PO had do a very nice job of replacing the chainplate to an external type. Very heavy duty, very overbuilt ( I like!). I wasn't happy with the plywood backing he built up on the transom so decided to reinforce it up a bit. Started with fillets to the sides of the existing plywood. Next layed down 3 layers of biax. Finished up with a bit of fairing and some external fillets. Looks much stronger now. Encapsulated the old fibreglass/ply with a serious fiberglass lamination. I think if this sucker parts it will take the whole transom with it

After I hit the hull with some fairing while the epoxy was still pretty green. Tomorrow (taking a day off) I will go over everything with a sand then start the barrier coat. I am looking forward to seeing how the Interlux 2002 seals/covers everything up. I have enough for at least 5 coats. Stand by for results on the 'morow!

The boat and I went through a serious rough patch during the blue days of Feb but we are back in LOVE now it's March and DST to boot!!

Here are a few pics in no particular order Backstay job then a few pics of the hull. If you look carefully you can see some gloss! Final pic of icebox hatch?......

Just realised the boat has been on the hard for just over a Year! Man that sure wasn't part of the original haulout plan

[commanderpete]

WOW...that's some hard work.

I think it helps when laying up the biax to add a layer of cloth on top. Makes fairing it smooth a bit easier

Love your work. It will all be worth it.

[Westgate]

I applied 5 coats of Interlux 2000 barrier coat. After an entire year of taking stuff off the boat it was sure nice to put something back on! Stuff went on without a hitch except at the get go when I tried to use a foam roller which promply dissolved. So traded for a traditional paint roller and everything was good. After sanding the bottom and cleaning with soap and water we rolled on 2 coats at a 2.5 hour interval (it was 80 yesterday). When back today and rolled on 3 more coats. They say that you need 10 mils but how do you determine paint thickness?

Also finished the ice hatch and Laz fairing/ sanding. I painted the laz with a coat of Bilgecoat. After painting the anchor locker with plain grey I decided that was too dark so this time I mixed it 50/50 with white. Created a much more pleasing colour! I left the motor well for now because am not sure what I'm going to do with it

I have read that you really need to get your boat in the water no later than 2 mths after applying Trinidad bottom paint. I am assuming that is because the Cu in the paint oxidizes in the air. I really need to get the bottom paint on the Interlux ASAP so I was thinking of hitting it with a single coat and then putting the second one on before splash. Any thoughts/suggestions here would be a great help!

Thanks for the tip C'pete. I have some glass mat that I will use as a top layer next time around.....like say during the recore!

Andrew

Hey you get action shots today thanks to my wife who was a great help this long weekend.

[Westgate]

Got out to the boat for a few hours the other day. Was able to dry fit the new sea-cocks. I first drilled holes in the backing plates that I previously had cut out of some 5/8" plywood. Next I used some old conduit that was lying out in the yard to align the backing plate with the old hole. I was worried about using the actual thru-hull for this because of epoxy squeeze out. The plastic I figured would pop right out. So the bit the bullet and mixed up some thickened and laid this on the backing plate and set them into place. I fussed with it for a bit but then walked away and waited for the epoxy to kick. Once things had set up I pulled out the plastic and things looked pretty good. I dry fitted the sea-cocks and thru hulls and got the positioning down. I ran out of time so didn't get the bolt holes drilled or the thru-hulls seated in but next time. I plan to use pipe dope on the threads and 4200 as the sealant. I need to order some sil-bronze 5/16" machine screws and hardware since nobody in town seems to carry those. I lost count as to how many times I was up and down the ladder during what should have been a very easy task but felt like 100's!

[ebb]

Things are charging right along there, Westgate
- and looking good!!!

Pvc can be glued by epoxy. It's not the best bond, but it sticks.
Seran Wrap film (polyehylene) works great as a barrier to epoxy.
When the epoxy sets up the film falls off.
That means you can wrap nearly anything in the plastic to get the shape or barrier ypu want.
You got lucky if that piece of pvc conduit didn't stick in the hole there.

[Tony G]

Nice work going on there! Are those the two cockpit scupper drains you are showing in the photos above? It appears they are. If so, it also appears you have added some or repaced some wood work in that area. Spill the beans, man.

We may need to see some photo work of the area just to get up to speed with any changes/mods in the area. While it has been balmy in your neck of the woods it's still way too cold to do boat work here. So if you would...indulge us in a little boat work voyeurism.

Thanks in advance.

[Westgate]

Work (real work not fun boat work!) has impeded progress on Arthur this past month. I am going to try and get out sometime in the next few days.

One development of note...was able to pick up a "new" Lewmar Ocean series hatch on Craigslist. It was manufactured back in 1999 but was never even taken out of the box. Smelled a bit musty but looks to be in perfect shape. The price was more than perfect. It is a flange model which I didn't necessarily want but couldn't past up the deal.
Our plan is to enlarge the existing forward hatch, trim it up with a wood base and screw it down. This is a 70 series which I believe is a few inches wider all round than the existing hole. Should make movement in out easier as well as stuffing sails. I am really looking forward to getting some light in our dark forepeak!

Oh yes Happy Easter/Passover

[Westgate]

Finally got back out to the boat today.
Started by test fitting the new forward hatch. Looked pretty good and should be very straight-forward to install. Too bad one couldn't just screw it down as is.

Finished the thru-hull installation. Was a simple job really but consisted of many steps and many trips up and down the ladder! Cross that one off the list!

The plug for the motor well had never been removed from the boat. The PO (after removing the A4) cut a hole thru the plug so he could use an outboard in the well. I removed the plug from the boat last year during the hull stripping. I wanted to rebuild the plug so I could use it for its intended purpose. Today I sanded it down as best I could and layed down three layers of biaxial over the hole. I will grind, fair and paint it in the near future.

Also test hung the newly rebuilt rudder. Naturally I had to first dig a trench to allow the rudder to be lowered down so the post could be fitted into the tube. This took some time! Once the trench was finished the rudder went on w/o a hitch. I wanted in ensure that the rudder fit after the expensive work that I did on it and also wanted to size up and fit the gungeon strap. Really the trench digging was the time consumer, the rest only took a few minutes.

I find after some time away from the boat it takes awhile to get a good head of steam up. Today was one of those days, productive of sort but lots of time spent looking and thinking.

I few pictures of course.

Andrew

[Westgate]

Has it really been 2 whole years! Very sad. We have made some headway but I must admit that the progress has been mimimal. We did end up buying a new trailer. Had it made by a shop outside Atlanta GA. Boat fits on it very well. We moved the boat from the marina (last July) to a "temp" storage facility. The plan is to get her home so I can at least putter at it. In sight in mind kind of thing!

Hopefully some new real updates soon. Still lots left to do. Be would like to splash by the fall but remember the original "haulout" was only going to be a few weeks. Where does the time go????

Hope everyone is well. It's feels good to be back!

Andrew