A major milestone: putting on the cabin roof

This went basically according to plan: I put 3 coats of epoxy on the underside of the two pieces, glued them together, and carefully checked its fit on the hull. I used lots of glue and temporary screws, working quickly to get it all done before the epoxy started setting up. Afterwards I used a router and a plane to trim off the excess.

This was the last major component to be added to the hull. The next steps are a lot of filleting on the cockpit, lots of sanding all over the upper hull, and glassing the entire cockpit and cabin roof.

Attaching a lot of stuff to the front of the boat

I installed the dorade boxes and their reinforcing blocks and cleats. Then I cut and installed the curved cleats on the front and rear cabin walls.. Finally, I installed the breasthook. All these pieces needed some routing and sanding, and three coats of epoxy.

Bending and clamping strips of wood

I finally glued in place the front sheerclamps. which I had steam-bent a couple of weeks previously. I also installed the transom skirt cap pieces. Both of these jobs required a lot of clamps!

Finishing the seatbacks

I cut lots of pieces of styrofoam insulation and put them in the buoyancy chambers. I also primed and painted the storage compartments at the rear. Next I glued the seatback panels into place. They are held in place with clamps, stainless-steel pneumatic brads, and a couple of weights. The last step was to glue down the top pieces.

The transom skirt, and steam-bending

I installed the transom skirt:

I decided that the forward sheerclamps were too stiff to successfully bend into place, so I decided to steam them first. I made a minimalist steam box from an empty paint can and seven feet of “spa vacuum hose” from Lowe’s. For a heat source, I naturally used the same LP gas burner I got for the lead-melting. After an hour of steaming, each sheerclamp bent easily, and I clamped them to the outside of the hull to dry out for a few days.

Installing the footwell and main deck

  • Installing the footwell
  • Gluing on backing strips for the lazarette hatch mounting screws (the deck pieces are temporarily upside-down)
  • Gluing down one half of the deck
  • And the other half!

Below is a shot of the centerboard pendant sheave, safely tucked away in the trunk. I 3D-printed the spacers on either side of the sheave.

Floorboards all done!

Actually, I still need to finish the removable sections, but that will happen much later. Now I have to cover them up to continue working on the hull.

Finishing and installing the floorboards

I have been finishing the floorboards with Danish Oil. It is slow work. Because the stuff is stinky I have to work in the cold garage, so the Oil needs a long time to dry. So far about half of the floorboards are installed, and the rest need one more coat of Danish Oil.

I also finished the centerboard trunk with several coats of clear water-based polyurethane. People will be able to look at it and know for sure that this is a wooden boat!