13 June 2010

Glue, Glue Glorious Glue!

Monday was productive, I managed to glue in the wae’s and ring frame. During the week I marked out a line in the hull to cut out at the bow and stern for the decking to go and by Friday evening I’d even managed to cut the stern portion with a hand saw.

Saturday I wizened up and used my jigsaw to cut the bow. Then it was back to mixing up more epoxy, this time adding sawdust to make a strong filleting paste. This mix I used for the fillets that will bond the ring frame to the inside of the hull. The idea is that it will make a stronger bond than if I use fairing powder. Unfortunately I ran out of suitable sawdust so it was back to a conventional fillet for the bulkheads. That evening I was back in mixing epoxy to add strip of fiberglass to the fillets on the ring frame. Because the mast attaches here, it is a major stress point hence the extra reinforcements.

I’ve decided not to strip plank the decking and use the 4mm ply instead. This should speed things up, although I will glass both sides for extra strength. By the end of today I’d cut the deck blanks, drawn the outlines of the bow and stern and glassed the first side. Later tonight I will give it an extra coat of epoxy.

End of week eighteen and the wae’s, bulkheads and ring frame are in place, inching the hull ever so closer to completion:

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