Wow+

What more can I say.  I'm really impressed with the paint.  It flowed with no runs or sags. I used a 1/4 inch nap roller. We'll do another coat on Sunday.  Update...  We got the second coat on the boat and it just looks like a million bucks.  I didn't do any of the work!  Shane did it all.

 

Boot stripe

We're getting rid of the red on this boat.   Shane gets to do the paint.  He ran a painting company during college so he knows how to paint.  Two coats on the boot and then we will tackle the hull.   I bought 4 quarts of Rustoleum Topside marine paint.  Going to do that job next Friday.
Update on the bootstripe
  I put the second coat on and pulled the tape.  I also made a tiller cover.  I'm getting quite good at the sewing machine!

Woodwork is done

I finally got a fair day to re-install the cockpit coamings.  When I took these off last November the 1/4 round molding that covered the gap disintegrated.  I have a solution for that but it can wait for a while. I also rebuilt and refinished the drop boards. Main thing is the cockpit is back in order.  Next up is a pressure washer for all the dirt.

The marina where we are is under new management and they are going full tilt on rebuilding the docks and generally getting the place in nice shape.  They even put a little  house back on the dock.

Other parts

I haven't done too much lately because the weather is still not behaving.  I did get one nice day this week and I finished sanding the hull, getting it ready for paint. I'm going to paint the hull Navy blue and the boot stripe white with blue bottom paint. I've been doing the woodwork back at my shop..  I got the cockpit combings varnished.  I'm using a urethane varnish.  I'm finding that the urethane is better than regular varnish.  My opinion!    I contracted with  the marina to do the stuffing box so we are getting down to the end of the winter punch list.  

 Stainless steal rubrail is off and the hull was sanded with 60 grit paper.  I did the teak too.  Looks good.

                                               Seat locker cover.  I fiberglassed both seats.

Rudder's back on (With May update)

Shane and I got over to the boat.  Great day for work.  Sunny and 60 degrees.  I drilled out the shoe with an 11/16 drill.  That made room for the bronze bushing I made from tubing I got at Fawcets.
We manhandled the rudder back in place and put the bolts in the gudgeon.  As soon as we started to put the bolts back in the rudder post we ran into the first and only problem  The upper two bolts would not clear the hull.   I guess the reason we got them out was because the pin in the shoe was missing an we could use the extra space it made.  The space was gone with the new pin in place.  So off with the gudgeon bolts.  We then put the two upper bolts in most of the way and then repositioned the rudder pin back into the shoe.  The rest of the bolts went in ok.  I stuffed the opening with silicon and tightened all the bolts.   Back in business on the lower end.
In the cockpit I made a new flange bushing out of a Delrin.  That will serve as a base to reattach the brass collar.  I also made a top bushing just because.

It's now into May and one final update to the rudder.  I put two layers of 6 oz fiberglass over the three lower bolts.  I did this because I think two of the nuts holding the bolts on were stripped.  The glass should keep the pins in place.

The slightly dark area is where the glass is.  It wraps around to the other side. Two layers went on nicely.

Shoe with the new bushing.

                                                    New pin in the shoe and a bronze washer.

                                                        Delrin bushing

                                                          With the brass flange

With the top bushing.

Flange with delrin bushing installed.

Rudder pin

When we pulled the boat we noticed that the pin holding the rudder to the shoe was missing. The last post got the rudder off the boat.  It is now in my garage getting a new pin.  I referenced the Alberg 30 web site that has a library of repair and maintenance procedures.  The pin installed by the builders was a 1/2 inch bronze pin.  It was unclear to me as to how they installed the original.  My solution was to drill out what was there and replace it.  I started with a 1/4 inch drill bit for a pilot hole.  I then used a 7/16 in bit to finish the hole.  I drilled it apx one inch into the rudder shaft.    The next step was  a 1/2 x13 tap to put threads in the hole.   I found a 1/2 inch silicone bronze rod at Jamestown Dist.  It was expensive.  Thirty five bucks for a one foot section.    I used a die to cut threads.  I cut it to size and rounded the bottom.  Next post we'll do the reinstallation of the rudder.

          

    

                     Bottom of rudder. Bronze rudder shaft with tapped threads.

                                                              Pin in the rudder

                                                                    Test pin.

Rudder repair

Been awhile since I've posted here.  I got the boat mainly sorted out for sailing and we had a good summer.  One ongoing problem was the condition of the bottom.  The boat had been in the water for over 7 years with no bottom cleaning.  We lived with that for the summer but the boat was sluggish and actually not a very good sailor. A good example of this was the knot meter didn't work because there was so much crud on the bottom the wheel would not make contact with the water!
 All boats in our marina are stored in the yard for the winter.  Probably not a bad thing because the marina is on an unprotected body that gets some heavy weather during the winter.  The boat was pulled in November and the yard crew cleaned the bottom.  Didn't see that but the evidence from crustaceans told the story.  We are currently working on removing that residue.  After the boat was on it's cradle we had a good chance to survey the bottom.  Any residue of bottom paint had been removed.  At some point the bottom has had a protective layer applied.   Shane noticed the  big problem.  The bottom pin that holds the rudder onto the boat was missing!  The only attachment to the boat was the gudgeon at the mid station of the rudder and the pin that held the two together was worn in half.  The plan of attack was to remove the rudder and see how to fix the pin and renue the gudgeon. 

 Removing these screws became a big problem.  The biggest screwdriver was not big enough!  We went to HD and bought the biggest screwdriver they had.  That worked and we removed the 5 bolts that held the rudder to the post.

 Gudgeon were next.  Four bolts that came apart relatively easy.

 The two Gudgeon.  We don't have a Pintal. the Pin that held them together was worn in half.

  Rudder off and on to the next phase.  Fixing the shoe pin.