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Epoxy paste
I used a lot of PC-7 Epoxy Paste building the Bearospace Schooner Irene (my Deborah). It works easily, sands nicely, and has taken three seasons of sailing with no problems, looking "good as new" and ready for more. I also found that dipping a finger of a rubber glove in alcohol allowed shaping the paste without it sticking. PC-7 has a long working period, plenty of time for shaping and application. It's thick enough to not sag. I'm using it again building Annie.
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Limber Holes
Hi Paul,
I'm thrilled to know you are building "Annie" About #3 bulkhead and Limber Holes - I did not show Limber Holes here because the Main Mast Step sits right up against the Bulkhead. This results in Two Bilges to look after, a compromise of sorts, though one could argue points for or against this arrangement. Don't slow down, carry on! Cheers, Gary |
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Thread OP
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fin trunk
Got in a hurry and glued the bulkhead on before drilling. The fin is shimmed front, rear, and top with thin wood strips (popicle). Here's a couple of pilot drill bits left in the holes to keep things from shifting. I've drilled for four bolts ala Irene.
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Thread OP
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I even made limber holes through the mast steps for Deborah and will do the same here. Not that she's taken in any water yet. Yes, I like having a project going |
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Center Assembly
Here's the fin trunk epoxied to bulkheads 2 and 3 with the waterlines aligned.
Drilled for the fin and ready to accept the hull sides! |
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Hi Gary!
1. just one note, I think there is a small error in the plans, the the fin trunk waterline is measured from the top as 2 inches, but then marked as 25.1mm .. after double check 2 inches make sense, but not the 25.1, it should be 50.2 mm (Here in continental Europe we use only S.I. ) 2. By the way ... hull must be fiberglassed as well? 3. I've already cut the hull and realized when I joined the mosaic (A4) of hull bottoms they were not align and now it is too late as I've already cut the parts. I am wondering if wood putty/filler could solve the problem since I am too lazy to buy and cut more ply. Anyway, still I do not now how much is the offset until I will join the lateral hull panels. As you can see I am extremely poor builder and I have in live a very low frustration threshold, but Gary&co have built an very lovely community and now I feel part of it so I will keep learning. Edit: 4. fin can be done in fiberglassed ply as well instead of alu? Thanks a lot guys! |
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Reimus.
1: No idea.. someone else will.,though. 2: No, if it were it would be getting well away from the intended design and entirely unnecessary.. Just use top quality enamels (oil based , not water) and (as Gary says) use a premium brush. Also, as I found out the hard way, leave double the recommended time between coats, actually the longer the better. I actually add 10% thinner (mineral turpentine) as it flows on ever so easily, then add an extra coat, or even two, to gradually build up the finish. Because our venue has rock lined shoreline I wait a fortnight then apply two separate coats of thinned Marine quality varnish (the modern stuff with high U.V. tolerance) to give a tough finish. 3: Only careful lining up of the overlapping marks will avoid errors . I am no perfectionist but nearly all my hull panels needed redoing. I just used the rejected pieces to cut smaller pieces from. I still got a few gaps, and used car body dent filler to fill them in. If the gap was too wide (more than 2 mm) I would glue some tapered ply in to minimize the gap. I'm sure I'm not the only one to apply cosmetic surgery. 4. The fin does NOT need glassing unless you have to use thinner aluminum. Made from the plan specifications it does everything you want it to do. Just make sure the inside of the fin box is glassed, even with just fibreglass cloth and warmed up epoxy glue. The top of the fin needs to have a bit of play when it is fitted into t he box, the bolts will hold it up and water pressure will keep it snug. Have fun, and ask if in doubt . |
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For the Irene plans, the entire hull, inside and out, is first sealed with penetrating epoxy. It's a very thin liquid that soaks into the wood and then hardens, much like fibreglass epoxy. But there is no need for fibreglass cloth on the hull. However, as Rob mentioned, the inside surfaces of the fin trunk are fibre-glassed with cloth. That adds a lot of strength as the fin trunk needs to support quite a lot of stress. Quote:
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When we finished pouring the lead bulb and attached it to the aluminum fin, I was seriously wondering whether the boat would even float with this much mass suspended from its bottom. But, it is perfect this way. I don't know whether a plywood keel fin, even fibre-glassed, can support that much load. It would surely flex a lot more than an aluminum fin, which may eventually de-laminate the fibreglass. If you cannot find a suitable piece of aluminum, you could try making the fin from plywood and let us know how that works. But an aluminum fin will certainly be stronger and more durable. |
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Reumius
Saw your question about TRYING to use glassed plywood for fin (as noted above) ... as well as the reply from Zbip57. Having not built either of Gary’s yachts but I have built several other yachts ... I would say it would be risky to build fin with plywood especially WOULD NOT EVEN CONSIDER trying use of doorskin which is plywood in name only and has VERY LITTLE STRENGTH... you might get away with aircraft or similar plywood (some hobby stores might have this plywood) Would be best to use Aluminum as plans call for ... I see from your profile that you live in / near Munich Germany ... I am certain you can find a metal fabricator in your area ... might even have SCARP FOR FREE ... I did a Google Search “Metal Fabricator Munich Germany” and found 10 locations |
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OOPS on the Annie Plans !
Hi Reimius,
#1 - Thanks for pointing that out, my Boo - Boo ! I will make a correction ASAP. The 2inch measurement from the top of Annie's Fin Trunk to the waterline is correct, and the conversion should read 50.8 mm. Sorry everybody ! #2 - There is no need to fiberglass the entire hull if it is given a good paint job. That said, I believe "Annie" could tolerate the extra weight of a layer of light fiberglass cloth set in epoxy resin (with excess resin squeegeed out). #3 - Gap filling is best done with epoxy putty (or thickened epoxy resin). Polyester auto body filler can be used for filling minor imperfections, but must be kept painted to assure long life. It does not have the structural strength that epoxy does. #4 - The Fin, Aluminum is the right choice. As suggested by slo.ca6, metal fabrication shops will often have scraps on hand. Working with the aluminum will prove easier, and probably cheaper, than making up a wood/glass/epoxy fin and will assure success. Questions & Comments are always appreciated on my end, and a big Thanks to those who pitch in with answers and solutions. What a swell community! Cheers Everybody, Gary |
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Thanks a lot everybody for your very detailed feedback! That was tons of info! I really need to learn a lot. I will follow all your advice as best as I can.
I will look for a supply of aluminum and I hope to be able to cut it with an jigsaw. I will keep updated and send you pictures as soon as I will be able to put the hull together. I am a bit anxious about that step, actually, every step since I have a feeling I am making too many mistakes. I will buy body filler as I guess it will be harder than wood filler for correcting misalignments. I thought this hobby will relieve some stress, but it is not! |
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Ply or aluminum for fin
Aluminum or aluminium is right for the fin, and don’t fret too much about cutting the metal, it will cut easy enough if you have a sharp blade. I marked a line then tried to stay as
straight as possible then finished with a file to shape edges and any wobbly bits I am definitely going to build my own Annie. I have the door and am getting bits and bobs together to begin building. Wrong place I know but was sailing my sloop yesterday and had the time and the conditions to play around with the sails, tightened up the jib and she sails way better now. Seems counterintuitive but it worked. |
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If I screw up this step, there's no going back. Is there something else I should do first before committing to this step? The most stressful part by far was permanently gluing the deck to the hull. Once that's fixed in place, it becomes not impossible but significantly more awkward to access areas under the deck. So you want to make sure everything is in place below deck before then. |
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As Zbip57 suggested ...
BEFORE glueing on deck Make sure ALL INTERNAL SURFACES are WATER SEALED ... and don’t make mistake of MISSING UNDERSIDE OF DECK ... This will prevent wood rot and swelling of wood that is unprotected from whatever little water gets inside. Remember - Before glueing deck on. |
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I bought yesterday the aluminum plate and is like stone! I really appreciate your encouragement, I am going to need it! Anyway, first I want to build the fin trunk as I already can use the plate for assessing the dimensions.
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