07 April 2012

Still here

My apologies to all the folk who have been checking back for updates and to see my beautiful boat out sailing.  Well I'm not there yet!  Shortly after my last post I managed to fall down the walkway hatch and damaged both shoulders.  This put me out of action for quite a while and only came right around Christmas, after a good dose of Cortisone allowed everything to free up a bit and removed the pain.  Then a month in England further slowed any progress, and of course the fun voucher stock running low has meant that I am back at work.  The boat won't be going in the water until I can afford to keep it there, but there are a few things that have been done.  When I have been busy I have been focused on the topsides, which have required a screed of epoxy bog and a sand with 40 grit.  The gelcoat was completely knackered and after a good heavy sand there were thousands of holes to fill.  Sanding is very tough work and I can only manage a couple of hours at a time.  Once the filler has cured, I wipe on sanding guide coat and then sand it all off.  The guide coat is really useful and it allows you to see any areas that need re-filling.



In the cockpit, I have installed the remote anchor windlass control, a manual bilge pump and the diesel system breather.


My mate Ian came down and we put the prop shaft in, aligned the engine and set up the dripless stern seal.

The galley has cleaned up nicely, just a bit of varnish work to finish off on the teak at deck level.


The steering pedestal is now in place, you can see the foam and glass plinth that the pedestal stands on, replacing the old lump of teak.  The grab rail is through-bolted from below and is nice and sturdy, as well as leakproof.