October 31, 2013

Carol was in New York this week, so I had no excuse not to work on the boat over the weekend.  I was pretty worn out by the end of the longer work cycle, but happy with what was accomplished.  I finished installing one of the big ABI ports, which is a big job for several reasons.  Among the many steps is a lot of unpleasant grinding of fiberglass and the need to hoist and manipulate the 25 lb port time-after-time while grinding and fitting it in the new cutout.  But it's nice to have more light and openness in the saloon.  So I started the installation for one on the starboard side.

The threat of rain forced me to turn to inside projects, so I finally replaced four of eight indicator lights on one of the electrical switch panels because they weren't working.  I also moved the ship's clock from the place it lost to the new port into the aft cabin.  It looks nice with the brass oil lamps and it's nice to be able to glance up from the berth and see what time it is.

Finally, I finished the refurbishing of the port side cockpit seat. It just needs to be remounted.   No wonder I'm pooped!

Oh, I almost forgot!   BOO!!!

October 24, 2013

I remounted the hardware on the companionway doors and continued work on the cockpit seats.  Finished the starboard side and made good progress on the port side, which needed some remedial work on chips and gouges.  The stain in the Primo stain/sealer came through and did a good job of hiding the imperfections. 

I also started work on putting in another of the ABI bronze ports I bought some 3 years ago.  (I installed the first one back in December of 2010!)  I used the same method I used before, with one little improvement.  I got a tip from a neighbor who is a shipwright and second generation master craftsman:  cutting off the bristles on a cheap paintbrush allows it to function as a combination brush and spreader/squeegee.  Thanks John!

Annual kinetic sculpture race was this week, too.  Always fun!