I was searching online to get hints on how to improve my tipping, and on one of the sailing forums, I guy recommended contacting the Interlux hotline for help, and left the number, so I called.
The guy at Interlux was really nice, and after I explained the problems I was having, he told me that tipping the primer wasn't really necessary, and can sometimes make things worse. I mentioned that I'd gotten this technique from an Interlux "how to" video, but he said that it really depended on a lot of factors, and doing it myself, I was still probably better off not tipping. He also told me the the polyurethane I'm going to use, Profection, lays down much better (like night and day) and that I should just save the tipping for it. It's really designed for the tipping method, as apposed to spraying.
Based on what I did on Sunday, I think he's probably right; However, I'll keep a piece of roller handy (the brush didn't really work well at all) to tip when I touch up the primer -- perhaps this afternoon. It's still overcast, but the humidity is down to just over 60%. He said that as long as it was under around 70-75%, I should be okay.
Zoe watch:
She finally ate and is feeling better, but now it's me that isn't feeling too great. It's probably the weather, but I've had headaches all day, didn't sleep well, and now my stomach is acting up.
30 September 2010
Wet Day
It looks like we're in for a couple days of heavy rain. The street in front of the boat yard is flooded, so we had to go out a side gate next to the supermarket to get out for our walk this morning. I'm not sure If I'll be able to get much done today, but I'm going to try to finish up the sanding. The third coat didn't go on as well as I'd hoped, so it needed a good deal of sanding.
I'll try to use the shop light to finish up. I just need to do the starboard side deck, the vertical sections, the curves, and the sliding hatch -- I finished the rest of it yesterday. Unfortunately, there are still a few rough stops in the deck, mainly the port side near the companionway, so I think I'll fill/fair them this afternoon and touch them up tomorrow or Saturday. Hopefully that won't take too long. If all goes well, I can roll a finish coat on Sunday. The forecast calls for more rain next week, but if I can get a finish coat on, I can start remounting hardware. The non-skid and further touch ups will have to come later.
I also need to caulk under the toerail. The inside edge is mostly ready, I just need to remove the tape and clean it; However, I still need to scrap the old caulk out of most of over half the outside edge. I also have a couple places that need to be repaired. Anyway, I may try to do most of the inside edge this week. I'm going to mask off the toerail itself and the deck and try to force the caulk into the crack. I don't want to leave a bead at this point, however, I may come back and lay one down after I'm done painting.
Zoe watch:
She seems to have an upset stomach today -- she's been eating grass lately. She didn't eat much last night and had some issues this morning on the walk, but I think she'll be okay. She's under the boat right now, but I'm going to go down and take her for another quick walk then bring her on board. Maybe she'll eat now.
I'll try to use the shop light to finish up. I just need to do the starboard side deck, the vertical sections, the curves, and the sliding hatch -- I finished the rest of it yesterday. Unfortunately, there are still a few rough stops in the deck, mainly the port side near the companionway, so I think I'll fill/fair them this afternoon and touch them up tomorrow or Saturday. Hopefully that won't take too long. If all goes well, I can roll a finish coat on Sunday. The forecast calls for more rain next week, but if I can get a finish coat on, I can start remounting hardware. The non-skid and further touch ups will have to come later.
I also need to caulk under the toerail. The inside edge is mostly ready, I just need to remove the tape and clean it; However, I still need to scrap the old caulk out of most of over half the outside edge. I also have a couple places that need to be repaired. Anyway, I may try to do most of the inside edge this week. I'm going to mask off the toerail itself and the deck and try to force the caulk into the crack. I don't want to leave a bead at this point, however, I may come back and lay one down after I'm done painting.
Zoe watch:
She seems to have an upset stomach today -- she's been eating grass lately. She didn't eat much last night and had some issues this morning on the walk, but I think she'll be okay. She's under the boat right now, but I'm going to go down and take her for another quick walk then bring her on board. Maybe she'll eat now.
29 September 2010
Bilge Pump
I finally reinstalled my bilge pump yesterday. It was originally installed on the starboard side of the cabinet below the companionway, but I didn't like it there. There's not much space on that side and that's where the fuel filter and overflow water reservoir are located, so it's already pretty busy. Also, it connects to the port side drain, so the hose had to cross over the engine, which really cluttered up the space. This is another case of non-standard equipment added by the previous owners that ended up with wires and hoses going all over the place -- it looked like a bird's nest when I bought it -- which makes it really hard to do anything.
Anyway, I decided to mount it on the port side next to my fresh water pump. I put the pumps next to each other facing opposite directions to keep the hoses from interfering with each other. I had to move the fresh water pump a little to make room, but it looks pretty good now, and both are easily accessible if need be. I still need to wire up the new pump, but I did test it to make sure it worked. I have a lot of rewiring to do, so I'll wait and do it all at once when I'm done with the deck.
It looks like we might have a nice day today. If the humidity drops below around 65%, I can paint. I still need to sand the deck, but hope that won't take too long. After I get the first coat on, I can start remounting hardware. We are supposed to get rain most of the week, so I'm planning on cutting the mast on the next rainy day -- perhaps this afternoon if I can't paint.
Zoe watch:
She stayed under the boat for most of yesterday while I was working on the pumps, but I brought her on board around 5pm during the tornado watch. We got a little rain and some strong wind, but nothing too dramatic. As soon as I finish my coffee, we'll go for our morning walk.
Anyway, I decided to mount it on the port side next to my fresh water pump. I put the pumps next to each other facing opposite directions to keep the hoses from interfering with each other. I had to move the fresh water pump a little to make room, but it looks pretty good now, and both are easily accessible if need be. I still need to wire up the new pump, but I did test it to make sure it worked. I have a lot of rewiring to do, so I'll wait and do it all at once when I'm done with the deck.
It looks like we might have a nice day today. If the humidity drops below around 65%, I can paint. I still need to sand the deck, but hope that won't take too long. After I get the first coat on, I can start remounting hardware. We are supposed to get rain most of the week, so I'm planning on cutting the mast on the next rainy day -- perhaps this afternoon if I can't paint.
Zoe watch:
She stayed under the boat for most of yesterday while I was working on the pumps, but I brought her on board around 5pm during the tornado watch. We got a little rain and some strong wind, but nothing too dramatic. As soon as I finish my coffee, we'll go for our morning walk.
27 September 2010
New Brush
I walked up to Home Depot Saturday night around 8pm, just after dark, to pick up a new brush for tipping, more sandpaper, a bunch of rags, and some spring clamps for the cover. It's a couple miles away, so I walked Zoe first and left her on the boat. I still need to get a couple sheets of marine plywood and a bag of play sand for the non-skid. I knew I couldn't carry the plywood, but hoped to get the sand. However, the bags were 50 pounds, so I decided to wait till I can find someone with a truck to go down with me to pick up the plywood and sand together.
Sunday was a nice day, so I used the clamps to pull up the edges of the cover. I sat on the edge of the deck and used my feet to pull up the edge of the cover and roll it up to about a foot and a half above the deck and used the clamps to hold it in place. It worked great and provided enough light to allow me to finish the sanding and clean the deck before painting. The clamps also make it easy to drop the cover if it rains -- like today.
I mixed up smaller amounts this time, about pint, and used a bit more thinner, about 25%. I tried to work more quickly this time and tip with the new brush, but I still wasn't satisfied with the tipping. I tried waiting longer as Paul suggested, but that still didn't seem to work out all that well. It seemed like I either tipped too soon or too late, and in either case, wasn't able to keep a wet edge. However, it still looks pretty good, but due to the rain, there's not enough light to get a good look at it or sand, but it feels smoother.
The rain also kept me from getting much work done, but I did refill my tanks. I also started to prepare the hardware I need to remount. I replaced the old winches with new self-tailing ones, so I've been thinking about changing the way things are laid out . For one thing, I've decided not to remount any cleats on the coach roof. With the old winches, the only way to secure the line was with a cleat, but self-tailing winches secure the line themselves, so the cleat isn't needed. Also, I'd already added line stoppers to the coach roof so each winch can be used for multiple lines, so the coach roof was already too busy. Even though the jib sheet winches are dedicated, I think I'll remount those cleats anyway since they could always be used for something else.
I'll wait to make any other changes until after I've had a chance to test it out.
Zoe watch:
She spent the whole day under the boat today and is down there right now. It's raining off and on, but she's nice and dry down there. I'll walk her again in a few minutes, then bring her up for the night.
Sunday was a nice day, so I used the clamps to pull up the edges of the cover. I sat on the edge of the deck and used my feet to pull up the edge of the cover and roll it up to about a foot and a half above the deck and used the clamps to hold it in place. It worked great and provided enough light to allow me to finish the sanding and clean the deck before painting. The clamps also make it easy to drop the cover if it rains -- like today.
I mixed up smaller amounts this time, about pint, and used a bit more thinner, about 25%. I tried to work more quickly this time and tip with the new brush, but I still wasn't satisfied with the tipping. I tried waiting longer as Paul suggested, but that still didn't seem to work out all that well. It seemed like I either tipped too soon or too late, and in either case, wasn't able to keep a wet edge. However, it still looks pretty good, but due to the rain, there's not enough light to get a good look at it or sand, but it feels smoother.
The rain also kept me from getting much work done, but I did refill my tanks. I also started to prepare the hardware I need to remount. I replaced the old winches with new self-tailing ones, so I've been thinking about changing the way things are laid out . For one thing, I've decided not to remount any cleats on the coach roof. With the old winches, the only way to secure the line was with a cleat, but self-tailing winches secure the line themselves, so the cleat isn't needed. Also, I'd already added line stoppers to the coach roof so each winch can be used for multiple lines, so the coach roof was already too busy. Even though the jib sheet winches are dedicated, I think I'll remount those cleats anyway since they could always be used for something else.
I'll wait to make any other changes until after I've had a chance to test it out.
Zoe watch:
She spent the whole day under the boat today and is down there right now. It's raining off and on, but she's nice and dry down there. I'll walk her again in a few minutes, then bring her up for the night.
25 September 2010
Cover
I don't think I'll try to paint today. They regraded the gravel driveway today and now there's dust everywhere. I spent about an hour watering down a large section, which helped a lot, but there's still too much dust floating around. I'll try to water the rest of it this evening.
I've also been experimenting with the cover over the last few days. I need to keep it on both to protect against the rain -- most of the hardware is off which leaves holes into the cabin, and the toerails haven't been refinished or caulked yet -- and to keep the deck shaded while I paint.
However, it gets really hot and cuts down on the light. The light's been the big problem lately since I can't see the deck well enough to find and fill all the nicks, scratches, and rough spots. We aren't supposed to have any rain until Monday, so I'm trying to find a good way to pull the cover up on the sides in order to increase the light and keep it cool (which also increased the dust today). My first try was to fold the lower edge up underneath between the cover and the frame and let the weight of the cover hold it in place. I tied tennis balls or small pieces of foam in the lower edge and used that to tie it down.
That worked okay, but with the rain coming in a few days, I knew I couldn't finish in time and would have to undo it at some point in order to keep the deck dry. So I decided to add grommets to the cover about a foot and a half above the deck and tie it down from there. I tied stoppers, figure eights, in one end of the line, passed one through on both sides, and tied the two ends together under the boat. I put in three grommets on each side, but have only used two so far. The rope is going under the cover, so I can roll up the cover on the outside (of the line, but I roll them inside while sitting on the deck and letting my feet hang over the side).
I've temporarily tied a few lines over the cover to hold up the edges while they are rolled up, but will pick up some hand clamps tonight. That'll work much better and allow me to pull them off and quickly drop the cover if it starts raining. Once I've dropped it, I can re-secure it normally while leaving the other lines in place.
When they started grading the driveway this morning, I figured I wouldn't be able to paint today, so I pulled the cover completely off, added the new grommets, and put it back up. I'm not sure how much it weighs, but it's about twice the size of my mainsail and made of lighter material. Even so, it was a pain taking it down and climbing back on the boat with it. I don't think it's a quite hundred pounds, but it's at least twice as much as Zoe -- she's 35.
I cleaned the deck and sanded the filled areas this afternoon, but with the better light, discovered about half a dozen more nicks. I haven't decided it I'm going to fix them or not, but since I can't paint anyway, I may go ahead and fill them this evening before it gets too dark. I'd do it now, but I'm beat from fighting with the cover all day, so I'm just going to take a shower under the boat and take Zoe for a quick walk. I'll probably walk down to Home Depot later to pick up the clamps, as well as more sandpaper, etc.
I called Paul this afternoon to ask him about painting. I don't think he's done much of it lately, but he used to do it for a living, and taught me most of what I do know back when I was a teenager. Anyway, he thinks that I'm probably trying to tip too quickly, which is why it's not turning out well. I'll give that a whirl and also try a better brush (if I can find one tonight) the next time I paint.
Zoe watch:
I kept her on board most of the morning due to the grading. The noise bothered her, so she was happy to hide in the forecastle. She didn't even try to come on deck the whole time I was redoing the cover.
I've also been experimenting with the cover over the last few days. I need to keep it on both to protect against the rain -- most of the hardware is off which leaves holes into the cabin, and the toerails haven't been refinished or caulked yet -- and to keep the deck shaded while I paint.
However, it gets really hot and cuts down on the light. The light's been the big problem lately since I can't see the deck well enough to find and fill all the nicks, scratches, and rough spots. We aren't supposed to have any rain until Monday, so I'm trying to find a good way to pull the cover up on the sides in order to increase the light and keep it cool (which also increased the dust today). My first try was to fold the lower edge up underneath between the cover and the frame and let the weight of the cover hold it in place. I tied tennis balls or small pieces of foam in the lower edge and used that to tie it down.
That worked okay, but with the rain coming in a few days, I knew I couldn't finish in time and would have to undo it at some point in order to keep the deck dry. So I decided to add grommets to the cover about a foot and a half above the deck and tie it down from there. I tied stoppers, figure eights, in one end of the line, passed one through on both sides, and tied the two ends together under the boat. I put in three grommets on each side, but have only used two so far. The rope is going under the cover, so I can roll up the cover on the outside (of the line, but I roll them inside while sitting on the deck and letting my feet hang over the side).
I've temporarily tied a few lines over the cover to hold up the edges while they are rolled up, but will pick up some hand clamps tonight. That'll work much better and allow me to pull them off and quickly drop the cover if it starts raining. Once I've dropped it, I can re-secure it normally while leaving the other lines in place.
When they started grading the driveway this morning, I figured I wouldn't be able to paint today, so I pulled the cover completely off, added the new grommets, and put it back up. I'm not sure how much it weighs, but it's about twice the size of my mainsail and made of lighter material. Even so, it was a pain taking it down and climbing back on the boat with it. I don't think it's a quite hundred pounds, but it's at least twice as much as Zoe -- she's 35.
I cleaned the deck and sanded the filled areas this afternoon, but with the better light, discovered about half a dozen more nicks. I haven't decided it I'm going to fix them or not, but since I can't paint anyway, I may go ahead and fill them this evening before it gets too dark. I'd do it now, but I'm beat from fighting with the cover all day, so I'm just going to take a shower under the boat and take Zoe for a quick walk. I'll probably walk down to Home Depot later to pick up the clamps, as well as more sandpaper, etc.
I called Paul this afternoon to ask him about painting. I don't think he's done much of it lately, but he used to do it for a living, and taught me most of what I do know back when I was a teenager. Anyway, he thinks that I'm probably trying to tip too quickly, which is why it's not turning out well. I'll give that a whirl and also try a better brush (if I can find one tonight) the next time I paint.
Zoe watch:
I kept her on board most of the morning due to the grading. The noise bothered her, so she was happy to hide in the forecastle. She didn't even try to come on deck the whole time I was redoing the cover.
23 September 2010
Wine bath
Hope to roll the final coat of primer on the forward 3/4's of the deck today. The second coat went on better than the first, but it still wasn't as flat as I would have liked. I need to do a little more sanding before I wipe it all down and get it ready for painting, but I should be able to start before noon. That'll give me a lot of time to roll and tip it while the light is good.
I plan to mix up smaller batches and take more time for each. The pot time is a few hours, but it's tough to keep a wet edge, especially once it starts to kick. Perhaps the smaller sections will allow me the opportunity to tip more carefully -- the better you lay it down, the less you have to sand, and I'm pretty well worn out sanding at this point. If this coat goes on well enough, I'll be ready to put down the first finish coat in the next few days. Once that's done, I can start remounting all the hardware, varnish the toe rails, and caulk along the edge between the deck and toe rail.
At that point, I can remove the cover, at least on the forward section. I still have to finish the cockpit, but hope to have it painted by the time I get all the hardware on the forward section remounted. I have lots of hardware to remount in the cockpit too, including the teak coamings, so I anticipate that section will take at least as long as the forward section. But at least I'm making progress and she looks pretty good.
There are a lot of other things I still need to do, but I don't know now many of them I'll be able to tackle before I'm forced to put her in the water and sail South. I do have to trim the mast first, and mount the stove, etc., but everything else can wait. However, once she's ready and I'm waiting on the weather to leave, I'll see how much else I can get done. I just need to do one at a time and make sure each task doesn't take too long, e.g., less than a couple of days.
Zoe watch:
I've been really tired lately, so I figured we'd walk down early and have a nice dinner and get back to the boat before the thunderstorms hit. However, we'd only been at the bar for a few minutes and hadn't even had a chance to order when the waitress knocked over a glass of wine and soaked Zoe. It pretty much hit her right on the top of her head, and when she shook it off, it went all over me.
I don't know how common this is, but I've been soaked by waitresses several times myself, and it isn't fun. I'll have to write about them sometime, but worst was on a winter evening at an outdoor French cafe with my friends Laurent and Annick. It was the girl's first day, and she dropped an entire tray of drinks all over me; I thought I was going to get hypothermia, but since a couple of them were pastis, at least I smelled good. Later, she spilled piping hot moules frites down the back of the dress of a woman sitting near us -- at that point, I felt lucky.
Anyway, I cleaned off Zoe with a towel and we left. She got a bath as soon as we got home. Thankfully, it wasn't cold out. She's fine, but with all the commotion, I ended up not eating at all -- had to get the boat ready for the storms, and was so tired, we went to bed early. Feel better today, but still tired.
I plan to mix up smaller batches and take more time for each. The pot time is a few hours, but it's tough to keep a wet edge, especially once it starts to kick. Perhaps the smaller sections will allow me the opportunity to tip more carefully -- the better you lay it down, the less you have to sand, and I'm pretty well worn out sanding at this point. If this coat goes on well enough, I'll be ready to put down the first finish coat in the next few days. Once that's done, I can start remounting all the hardware, varnish the toe rails, and caulk along the edge between the deck and toe rail.
At that point, I can remove the cover, at least on the forward section. I still have to finish the cockpit, but hope to have it painted by the time I get all the hardware on the forward section remounted. I have lots of hardware to remount in the cockpit too, including the teak coamings, so I anticipate that section will take at least as long as the forward section. But at least I'm making progress and she looks pretty good.
There are a lot of other things I still need to do, but I don't know now many of them I'll be able to tackle before I'm forced to put her in the water and sail South. I do have to trim the mast first, and mount the stove, etc., but everything else can wait. However, once she's ready and I'm waiting on the weather to leave, I'll see how much else I can get done. I just need to do one at a time and make sure each task doesn't take too long, e.g., less than a couple of days.
Zoe watch:
I've been really tired lately, so I figured we'd walk down early and have a nice dinner and get back to the boat before the thunderstorms hit. However, we'd only been at the bar for a few minutes and hadn't even had a chance to order when the waitress knocked over a glass of wine and soaked Zoe. It pretty much hit her right on the top of her head, and when she shook it off, it went all over me.
I don't know how common this is, but I've been soaked by waitresses several times myself, and it isn't fun. I'll have to write about them sometime, but worst was on a winter evening at an outdoor French cafe with my friends Laurent and Annick. It was the girl's first day, and she dropped an entire tray of drinks all over me; I thought I was going to get hypothermia, but since a couple of them were pastis, at least I smelled good. Later, she spilled piping hot moules frites down the back of the dress of a woman sitting near us -- at that point, I felt lucky.
Anyway, I cleaned off Zoe with a towel and we left. She got a bath as soon as we got home. Thankfully, it wasn't cold out. She's fine, but with all the commotion, I ended up not eating at all -- had to get the boat ready for the storms, and was so tired, we went to bed early. Feel better today, but still tired.
20 September 2010
Tipping
Just finished rolling the second coat of primer on the forward 3/4's of the deck. Although I followed the instructions pretty closely this time, I found I wasn't a very good tipper -- perhaps I didn't add enough thinner. I started off tipping with a 3" boar's hair brush, but found it wasn't working well at all, so I quickly switched to a section of foam roller and that worked a lot better, but it still didn't flatten out as well as I'd expected.
I think the trick is to add the right amount of thinner, however, I initially thought I'd added too much, but now think it needed a bit more. I'll test it next time on a piece of scrap, and keep thinning until I get it right.
I'm also completely exhausted from climbing over the deck like a monkey all morning. I had to clean it first, then prime, so I climbed on all fours back and forth about a dozen times today. I can't wait till I get the cover off and can walk back an forth instead of crawl.
Zoe watch:
It's nice and cool, so she's hanging out under the boat. They were mowing next door this morning, so we avoided them and took a shorter walk -- I was in a hurry to get started so I could make sure I could finish painting today -- but I walked her around the yard several times this morning when I took breaks, including just before and after painting.
I think the trick is to add the right amount of thinner, however, I initially thought I'd added too much, but now think it needed a bit more. I'll test it next time on a piece of scrap, and keep thinning until I get it right.
I'm also completely exhausted from climbing over the deck like a monkey all morning. I had to clean it first, then prime, so I climbed on all fours back and forth about a dozen times today. I can't wait till I get the cover off and can walk back an forth instead of crawl.
Zoe watch:
It's nice and cool, so she's hanging out under the boat. They were mowing next door this morning, so we avoided them and took a shorter walk -- I was in a hurry to get started so I could make sure I could finish painting today -- but I walked her around the yard several times this morning when I took breaks, including just before and after painting.
18 September 2010
Crew
Ever since I bought the boat, I've been trying to get it setup for singlehanding. However, since I don't have a ton of experience and have only sailed Aurora a couple times, I'm a little concerned about taking her out alone. Once I get her in the water, I do plan to shake her down for about a month before I take off.
However, I have had a couple of people offer to crew for me, so I've been thinking about taking someone on my initial trip South. The only problem with that scenario is that you never really know what you're going to get. Since I'm not from here, I don't know these people or have any way of checking them out. Also, I still don't know when she'll be ready, so I don't have a departure date or initial destination -- destination will be somewhat dependent on the date, as well as the weather.
Anyway, I'm leaning toward not taking any crew at this point. I don't plan to take any chances, but an unknown crew seems like a bigger risk than relying solely on myself. Over the years, I've become aware of the huge difference in skill level and competencies of people in all sorts of activities and professions. I have a good idea of what I know and and what I don't know, but it's really hard to tell about other people unless you spend some time with them, and time's not something I have a lot of right now.
I've also found it sort of amusing what people consider as must haves for sailboats. I spoke to a guy a few days ago who claimed to have over 30,000 sea miles who was adamant that I must have a generator, water maker, and radar. The generator is required because the water maker and radar use so much power. I've already decided that I don't want a radar -- my AIS is probably better -- and as long as I don't have a lot of crew, I can carry plenty of water and replenish my supply while at sea during rain storms. People sailed long distances long before generators, water makers, and radars were invented.
I plan to keep it simple. The less you have, the less that can go wrong or break. Obviously that goes for equipment, but I think you can apply it to crew as well.
Zoe watch:
We're both beat, so we've already had our walk and are ready for bed. I'm listening to the Yankees game and following the Stros on my phone, but since the Yanks are winning big, and the Stros loosing big, I'm not sure how long we'll make it -- Zoe's already lost interest and is about to fall asleep.
However, I have had a couple of people offer to crew for me, so I've been thinking about taking someone on my initial trip South. The only problem with that scenario is that you never really know what you're going to get. Since I'm not from here, I don't know these people or have any way of checking them out. Also, I still don't know when she'll be ready, so I don't have a departure date or initial destination -- destination will be somewhat dependent on the date, as well as the weather.
Anyway, I'm leaning toward not taking any crew at this point. I don't plan to take any chances, but an unknown crew seems like a bigger risk than relying solely on myself. Over the years, I've become aware of the huge difference in skill level and competencies of people in all sorts of activities and professions. I have a good idea of what I know and and what I don't know, but it's really hard to tell about other people unless you spend some time with them, and time's not something I have a lot of right now.
I've also found it sort of amusing what people consider as must haves for sailboats. I spoke to a guy a few days ago who claimed to have over 30,000 sea miles who was adamant that I must have a generator, water maker, and radar. The generator is required because the water maker and radar use so much power. I've already decided that I don't want a radar -- my AIS is probably better -- and as long as I don't have a lot of crew, I can carry plenty of water and replenish my supply while at sea during rain storms. People sailed long distances long before generators, water makers, and radars were invented.
I plan to keep it simple. The less you have, the less that can go wrong or break. Obviously that goes for equipment, but I think you can apply it to crew as well.
Zoe watch:
We're both beat, so we've already had our walk and are ready for bed. I'm listening to the Yankees game and following the Stros on my phone, but since the Yanks are winning big, and the Stros loosing big, I'm not sure how long we'll make it -- Zoe's already lost interest and is about to fall asleep.
NV5L
Got my new call sign yesterday, and it showed up in the FCC database this morning. So now it's NV5L instead of the longer and harder to remember KF5HBT. Once the actual license arrives, I'll ask Karen to send it to me so I can keep it on the boat.
Radio watch:
They're cleaning up the yard getting ready to pull boats for the winter and spent yesterday morning sorting a big pile of old stainless steel halyards, lifelines, stays, and shrouds that were taking up a large area in one of the corners of the yard. Tommy let me go through it and pick out an old halyard I can use to make an antenna. A lot of sailboat owners will cut their backstay and put in a couple of insulators and use it as an antenna, but I think that might weaken it, so I'd prefer to leave it alone and run the additional one up alongside.
I'll attach it to the masthead on one end and the aft pulpit on the other with a few feet of line at both ends as insulation. I'll probably use about 3' at the masthead and try to keep it at least 6' off the deck so no one will grab it and get shocked (actually an RF burn) when I transmit. My mast is 39', and the backstay is around 44', so I should be able to get a good 30' or so. I've got a tuner, so the length isn't that critical, but I'll review the literature before I cut it.
However, I may go ahead and setup one end and use it as a temporary antenna so I can check out the radio. I want to connect to Winlink 2000 to setup an email account with my new call sign, but I need to check to see if the Ham frequencies are open on my radio first. If not, I'll need to get it modified in order to open them up. Not sure what that entails, but I'd prefer not to have to send it back to Icom to get it done.
Boat watch:
I finished sanding the forward part of the deck yesterday, and it looks really good. Not perfect, but really good. I'm going to fill a few places this morning, and sand them this afternoon and try to lay down the next coat late in the afternoon. I'll also continue working on the cockpit area and try to get it ready. Other jobs I can start on this weekend include cetol'ing the teak, and connecting the bilge pump.
Zoe watch:
My friend dropped by again and took us over to a dog park yesterday afternoon for about an hour. It was really nice and Zoe even got to swim a little. Later, Zoe and I went down to the local bar to watch the ballgame, but since she was so tired out from the walk/swim, she was asleep in my lap before the end of the game. She's hanging out under the boat today. It's a beautiful day, so I'll leave her down there all day so I can paint without getting any hair in the paint.
Radio watch:
They're cleaning up the yard getting ready to pull boats for the winter and spent yesterday morning sorting a big pile of old stainless steel halyards, lifelines, stays, and shrouds that were taking up a large area in one of the corners of the yard. Tommy let me go through it and pick out an old halyard I can use to make an antenna. A lot of sailboat owners will cut their backstay and put in a couple of insulators and use it as an antenna, but I think that might weaken it, so I'd prefer to leave it alone and run the additional one up alongside.
I'll attach it to the masthead on one end and the aft pulpit on the other with a few feet of line at both ends as insulation. I'll probably use about 3' at the masthead and try to keep it at least 6' off the deck so no one will grab it and get shocked (actually an RF burn) when I transmit. My mast is 39', and the backstay is around 44', so I should be able to get a good 30' or so. I've got a tuner, so the length isn't that critical, but I'll review the literature before I cut it.
However, I may go ahead and setup one end and use it as a temporary antenna so I can check out the radio. I want to connect to Winlink 2000 to setup an email account with my new call sign, but I need to check to see if the Ham frequencies are open on my radio first. If not, I'll need to get it modified in order to open them up. Not sure what that entails, but I'd prefer not to have to send it back to Icom to get it done.
Boat watch:
I finished sanding the forward part of the deck yesterday, and it looks really good. Not perfect, but really good. I'm going to fill a few places this morning, and sand them this afternoon and try to lay down the next coat late in the afternoon. I'll also continue working on the cockpit area and try to get it ready. Other jobs I can start on this weekend include cetol'ing the teak, and connecting the bilge pump.
Zoe watch:
My friend dropped by again and took us over to a dog park yesterday afternoon for about an hour. It was really nice and Zoe even got to swim a little. Later, Zoe and I went down to the local bar to watch the ballgame, but since she was so tired out from the walk/swim, she was asleep in my lap before the end of the game. She's hanging out under the boat today. It's a beautiful day, so I'll leave her down there all day so I can paint without getting any hair in the paint.
16 September 2010
Lloyd Neck Beach
Zoe got to go swimming a couple days ago at Lloyd Neck Beach, a few miles West of Huntington. A friend dropped by to see the boat in the afternoon and offered to show us around. We ended up at the beach and Zoe got to swim -- she loves to swim. One end of the beach forms a narrow peninsula protecting a small channel that feeds the marshes. The channel is nice and deep and drops off quickly, so Zoe got in and was able to swim just a few feet from the shore.
I ended up walked along the edge to the end of the beach with her swimming along side the whole way. I kept her on the leash because I didn't want to have to get in or chase her -- whenever she gets off leash, she takes off and runs till she gets tired, normally about 20 minutes at full speed.
Without a car -- I got rid of it when I moved to Manhattan -- we've been limited to a mile radius around a the boat yard since we got here. I've walked to and from the train station, 2 miles, a few times, and probably got out a couple miles on my runs, but other than that, we haven't seen much of the area.
Boat watch:
I'm still working on the deck. I got the first coat of primer on the forward 3/4's or the deck, but wasn't able to finish sanding it yesterday. For some reason, I thought I only needed to "tip" the final coats, not the primer, so it was a little rougher than it could have been, which required more sanding. I didn't have any thinner either, so the thicker paint was more difficult to lay down and probably exacerbated the the "orange peel" finish.
I bought more primer, thinner, and a 2-part polyurethane for the finish coat, so once I'm done sanding, I'll follow the instructions more closely and roll another coat this afternoon. I'll thin and tip this time, so hopefully, it will turn out better. But, as Paul likes to say whenever something bad or unexpected happens, "it's better this way," i.e., if it had turned out perfectly the first time, I wouldn't have learned anything, and trust me, 8 hours of sanding has taught me a lot.
I also did some more filling and fairing in the cockpit. It'll need a couple more rounds, but it's getting close. Since I still need to use the cockpit area, I can't do the whole thing at once or I couldn't step anywhere. Also, I switched to the "slow" hardener, which gives me more time to work it, but also requires more time for it to get hard enough to touch. In any case, it will be ready to paint once I'm done with the forward area.
Zoe watch:
I woke up early this morning, so she's still sleeping. It's just getting light out now, so we'll go for our walk in a few minutes. She's on a schedule, so I can't walk her too early, or I'll have to walk her again anyway. However, since the days are quickly getting shorter, I'm going to try to start getting up earlier to make the most of it -- my shop light doesn't give off enough light to really do anything in the dark, but I can still make coffee, blog, and walk Zoe.
We're really pushing to finish up by the end of the month.
I ended up walked along the edge to the end of the beach with her swimming along side the whole way. I kept her on the leash because I didn't want to have to get in or chase her -- whenever she gets off leash, she takes off and runs till she gets tired, normally about 20 minutes at full speed.
Without a car -- I got rid of it when I moved to Manhattan -- we've been limited to a mile radius around a the boat yard since we got here. I've walked to and from the train station, 2 miles, a few times, and probably got out a couple miles on my runs, but other than that, we haven't seen much of the area.
Boat watch:
I'm still working on the deck. I got the first coat of primer on the forward 3/4's or the deck, but wasn't able to finish sanding it yesterday. For some reason, I thought I only needed to "tip" the final coats, not the primer, so it was a little rougher than it could have been, which required more sanding. I didn't have any thinner either, so the thicker paint was more difficult to lay down and probably exacerbated the the "orange peel" finish.
I bought more primer, thinner, and a 2-part polyurethane for the finish coat, so once I'm done sanding, I'll follow the instructions more closely and roll another coat this afternoon. I'll thin and tip this time, so hopefully, it will turn out better. But, as Paul likes to say whenever something bad or unexpected happens, "it's better this way," i.e., if it had turned out perfectly the first time, I wouldn't have learned anything, and trust me, 8 hours of sanding has taught me a lot.
I also did some more filling and fairing in the cockpit. It'll need a couple more rounds, but it's getting close. Since I still need to use the cockpit area, I can't do the whole thing at once or I couldn't step anywhere. Also, I switched to the "slow" hardener, which gives me more time to work it, but also requires more time for it to get hard enough to touch. In any case, it will be ready to paint once I'm done with the forward area.
Zoe watch:
I woke up early this morning, so she's still sleeping. It's just getting light out now, so we'll go for our walk in a few minutes. She's on a schedule, so I can't walk her too early, or I'll have to walk her again anyway. However, since the days are quickly getting shorter, I'm going to try to start getting up earlier to make the most of it -- my shop light doesn't give off enough light to really do anything in the dark, but I can still make coffee, blog, and walk Zoe.
We're really pushing to finish up by the end of the month.
12 September 2010
Rainy Day
It's cool and overcast with a little rain today. The humidity just dropped below 50%, so I'm going to clean the deck, mix up some more primer, and try to finish the first coat up to the companionway.
I had planned to use a single part polyurethane over the epoxy primer on the deck, but after talking to one of the professional painters here in the yard, I'm leaning toward using a 2 part polyurethane. It's a lot more expensive, just over twice as much, but the results are much better. I've been looking online today, but haven't placed an order yet. The problem with the single part is that you can't paint over it with a 2 part later, because it will make the single part peel. So, if I ever need to do any more work, I'll have to strip it off, but if I use the 2 part, I just need to sand it smooth. In either case, I still need to order more primer and a flattening agent for whichever I end up using -- need to cut down on glare.
Zoe watch:
We took a long walk this morning and I left her under the boat afterward, but once it started to rain, I brought her on board. She's sleeping on my bunk right now, but sneaked up on deck as soon as I went down to get the hose to refill my water tanks. Normally, that would be fine, but since I'm trying to keep it clean so I can finish the painting, I need to keep her off it right now. So now I have to replace the companionway boards so she can't get out of the cabin whenever I go on deck or climb down, or she'll follow me on deck and then go forward to look for bunnies in the yard -- she just can't help herself.
I had planned to use a single part polyurethane over the epoxy primer on the deck, but after talking to one of the professional painters here in the yard, I'm leaning toward using a 2 part polyurethane. It's a lot more expensive, just over twice as much, but the results are much better. I've been looking online today, but haven't placed an order yet. The problem with the single part is that you can't paint over it with a 2 part later, because it will make the single part peel. So, if I ever need to do any more work, I'll have to strip it off, but if I use the 2 part, I just need to sand it smooth. In either case, I still need to order more primer and a flattening agent for whichever I end up using -- need to cut down on glare.
Zoe watch:
We took a long walk this morning and I left her under the boat afterward, but once it started to rain, I brought her on board. She's sleeping on my bunk right now, but sneaked up on deck as soon as I went down to get the hose to refill my water tanks. Normally, that would be fine, but since I'm trying to keep it clean so I can finish the painting, I need to keep her off it right now. So now I have to replace the companionway boards so she can't get out of the cabin whenever I go on deck or climb down, or she'll follow me on deck and then go forward to look for bunnies in the yard -- she just can't help herself.
11 September 2010
Painting
Finally started painting today. I rolled the first coat of primer from the peak to just aft of the mast this afternoon. I'm using a 2 part epoxy, so I only mixed up about 32 ounces, and ran out a couple feet aft of the mast. Although I didn't get quite as far on the starboard side. That means that I'll need just about the same amount to get all the way to the companionway. It's not as far, but the boat gets wider as you go aft, and is widest at about the companionway.
I'm a little mixing container and roller tray poor, so I need to let the paint harden so I can clean them up and mix the next batch, but I think I can get another round before it gets too dark. The directions on the can say that you should thin it by 20 - 25 percent for brushing (I'm rolling, which is essentially the same thing, vis-a-vis spraying), however, they didn't have the thinner here, so I went without it.
I guess the thinner would have made it go a littler further, but probably wouldn't have covered as well. However, I think that would have been better, since I had trouble getting it to fill small pin holes in the deck -- it was just too thick. I may have to put on a second coat, and if I do, I'll see if I can get the thinner from West Marine.
It looks pretty good so far, i.e., you can't see where I patched the deck, which was the main test. You can see a little bit of a wave, but that's normal. I also fixed a few defects in the non-skid from the factory, so I hope it will look better than brand new once I'm done.
I got a bit of a late start because I ended up pulling the mast step. I'm going to trim the mast and build up shim out of fiberglass scrap, so I wanted to go ahead and pull the existing step and paint under it since it had to come off anyway.
I need to get back to work, but I'll post and update tomorrow on how it all came out. I'll try to take some photos too.
Zoe watch:
She's hanging out under the boat, and happy not to be breathing paint fumes. I closed up the cover a little to keep down the wind while I prepared the deck, mixed the paint, and painted, and it's a little strong. Since I don't do any drugs (other than a little wine and beer), I have zero tolerance for that sort of stuff, so it threw me for a loop when I started mixing -- had to open up the cover door in order to breathe, but I'm okay now.
I'm a little mixing container and roller tray poor, so I need to let the paint harden so I can clean them up and mix the next batch, but I think I can get another round before it gets too dark. The directions on the can say that you should thin it by 20 - 25 percent for brushing (I'm rolling, which is essentially the same thing, vis-a-vis spraying), however, they didn't have the thinner here, so I went without it.
I guess the thinner would have made it go a littler further, but probably wouldn't have covered as well. However, I think that would have been better, since I had trouble getting it to fill small pin holes in the deck -- it was just too thick. I may have to put on a second coat, and if I do, I'll see if I can get the thinner from West Marine.
It looks pretty good so far, i.e., you can't see where I patched the deck, which was the main test. You can see a little bit of a wave, but that's normal. I also fixed a few defects in the non-skid from the factory, so I hope it will look better than brand new once I'm done.
I got a bit of a late start because I ended up pulling the mast step. I'm going to trim the mast and build up shim out of fiberglass scrap, so I wanted to go ahead and pull the existing step and paint under it since it had to come off anyway.
I need to get back to work, but I'll post and update tomorrow on how it all came out. I'll try to take some photos too.
Zoe watch:
She's hanging out under the boat, and happy not to be breathing paint fumes. I closed up the cover a little to keep down the wind while I prepared the deck, mixed the paint, and painted, and it's a little strong. Since I don't do any drugs (other than a little wine and beer), I have zero tolerance for that sort of stuff, so it threw me for a loop when I started mixing -- had to open up the cover door in order to breathe, but I'm okay now.
09 September 2010
Cooling off
The days are noticeably shorter and it's finally started to cool off. It was hot yesterday, but will only get up to around 74 today. We're supposed to get some rain today, but after that, it should be dry until Sunday. I need to do a little more sanding, but hope to use those days to get the deck painted.
It was so nice last night, that I used the parking lot lights from next door to work on cleaning up the handrails. I had to use the heat gun on some spots, and didn't finish, but it was nice to sit out under the boat, have a beer, and follow the Astros game on my phone while I scrapped off the old varnish. I was out there until around 10pm.
Creamer watch:
I read some of Creamer's book yesterday during the hot part of the day and read a few more pages this morning while I was having my coffee and almost finished. He's crossing the Gulf Stream and approaching Cape May, so he's almost home. I liked the book, but it wasn't nearly as good as some of the others I've read. It's never been published, so I doubt a good editor ever worked with him to tighten it up. Part of the problem surrounded complaints about his crew on his trip around the Horn -- it just seemed petty and should have been cut.
Boat watch:
I'm going to do the final deck sanding forward of the companionway today, and work on the toe rail and deck in the cockpit area. There's not much to do back there, so hopefully, I can make some progress. The goal is to have enough area ready to paint so that I don't waste any of the epoxy primer after I mix it up. I also sanded the patch I made the the bow yesterday, so it's ready to prime too.
Zoe watch:
She got to meet and play with three little dogs on our walk this morning, so she's pretty happy. It's cool and overcast right now, and she's hanging out under the boat. I gave a biscuit a little while ago, so I think she's sleeping now. I may go take her for a short walk around the yard before I start sanding -- should be a good day.
It was so nice last night, that I used the parking lot lights from next door to work on cleaning up the handrails. I had to use the heat gun on some spots, and didn't finish, but it was nice to sit out under the boat, have a beer, and follow the Astros game on my phone while I scrapped off the old varnish. I was out there until around 10pm.
Creamer watch:
I read some of Creamer's book yesterday during the hot part of the day and read a few more pages this morning while I was having my coffee and almost finished. He's crossing the Gulf Stream and approaching Cape May, so he's almost home. I liked the book, but it wasn't nearly as good as some of the others I've read. It's never been published, so I doubt a good editor ever worked with him to tighten it up. Part of the problem surrounded complaints about his crew on his trip around the Horn -- it just seemed petty and should have been cut.
Boat watch:
I'm going to do the final deck sanding forward of the companionway today, and work on the toe rail and deck in the cockpit area. There's not much to do back there, so hopefully, I can make some progress. The goal is to have enough area ready to paint so that I don't waste any of the epoxy primer after I mix it up. I also sanded the patch I made the the bow yesterday, so it's ready to prime too.
Zoe watch:
She got to meet and play with three little dogs on our walk this morning, so she's pretty happy. It's cool and overcast right now, and she's hanging out under the boat. I gave a biscuit a little while ago, so I think she's sleeping now. I may go take her for a short walk around the yard before I start sanding -- should be a good day.
07 September 2010
Day off
Was really tired yesterday, so I ended up taking the day off. I did a few things in the cabin, but stayed off the deck. I ended up spending most of the day reading Creamer's book. He's approaching the Horn.
Zoe watch:
As soon as I finish my coffee, we'll go for our morning walk. Ever since I cleaned up the cabin and stowed more gear in lockers, she's been sleeping on the sole up in the forecastle. She likes it up there because at the very peak, it's only as wide as she is, and she can curl up in a ball. The sole is only flat in the center, and curves up along the sides and as it goes forward. It doesn't curve as much as the hull, it more or less follows that shape. So, in addition to being smaller, the forecastle is also a little higher, and she likes that too.
She also likes climbing up on things to get a better view. That's why she loves being on deck, because she's about 15' above the ground and can guard the entire boat yard. She's mainly on the lookout for cats, rabbits, and raccoons -- that's mostly what we see around here. Unfortunately for her, I've been keeping her off the deck lately to cut down on the hair while I work on it. Hopefully, I'll be able to give her back the foredeck soon.
Zoe watch:
As soon as I finish my coffee, we'll go for our morning walk. Ever since I cleaned up the cabin and stowed more gear in lockers, she's been sleeping on the sole up in the forecastle. She likes it up there because at the very peak, it's only as wide as she is, and she can curl up in a ball. The sole is only flat in the center, and curves up along the sides and as it goes forward. It doesn't curve as much as the hull, it more or less follows that shape. So, in addition to being smaller, the forecastle is also a little higher, and she likes that too.
She also likes climbing up on things to get a better view. That's why she loves being on deck, because she's about 15' above the ground and can guard the entire boat yard. She's mainly on the lookout for cats, rabbits, and raccoons -- that's mostly what we see around here. Unfortunately for her, I've been keeping her off the deck lately to cut down on the hair while I work on it. Hopefully, I'll be able to give her back the foredeck soon.
06 September 2010
Labor Day
There are lots of people on the water, but the boat yard is completely deserted, which is fine with me. Zoe and I walked down to the town dock this morning and watched the boats for a while, but since I've still got so much to do, we didn't hang out too long.
Boat watch:
Still working on the deck, but it's getting really close. I need to sand the last bit of fairing I did yesterday, but depending on how it looks, I might be ready to paint. I'm also going to fill the areas on the bow today. I want it to be ready so I can roll on the primer when I start painting the deck. I'll need to get a small amount of blue paint to match the rest of the topsides, but don't have time to redo the whole thing right now.
In fact, I've been thinking about changing the color, maybe even back to the original robin's egg blue -- it's dark blue right now. However, I'm not sure if I want a dark hull or a light one. If I spend most of my time in warm/hot climes, then a light color, either the original light blue or white, would make sense, but I'm not sure where I'll be or how much it matters. Most boats are white, which is a little boring. I'm going to make my decks all white, even the non-skid which was a cream color originally, but I'm not sure I want white topsides too.
There is a really nice 40 something foot ketch in the harbor with dark red topsides, which looks really good. Red's one of my favorite colors, so we'll see. Maybe I'll finish up soon enough to go ahead and do it this season. Also, I need to get her in the water to see where the water line's going to be once she's loaded. Until then, I won't know where the boot strip needs to go. I think it's a little low right now.
Sewing watch:
My other sandal broke the day after I wrote about fixing the first one, so I fixed it as well, and did a much better job of sewing the second time. In fact, I had to redo the first one a couple days later, but didn't need a needle the second time; I just had to tighten it up and tie it better.
The only other sewing I've had to do was on the boat cover. One of the seams at the bow had come loose, and with the hurricane coming, I figured I'd better go ahead and fix it. I had to pull back the cover and stand in the peak of the bow and sew it up by hand. It was only about a foot and a half, but it took a lot longer than I would have thought. The first few stitches looked pretty bad, but after a while I got the hang of it. I had to use a sewing palm to get the needle through some of the thicker sections with seams, but other than that, it wasn't bad.
Zoe watch:
She's all dusted off and sleeping under the boat. She played tug on her leach most of the way back -- she's the happiest dog I've ever seen.
Boat watch:
Still working on the deck, but it's getting really close. I need to sand the last bit of fairing I did yesterday, but depending on how it looks, I might be ready to paint. I'm also going to fill the areas on the bow today. I want it to be ready so I can roll on the primer when I start painting the deck. I'll need to get a small amount of blue paint to match the rest of the topsides, but don't have time to redo the whole thing right now.
In fact, I've been thinking about changing the color, maybe even back to the original robin's egg blue -- it's dark blue right now. However, I'm not sure if I want a dark hull or a light one. If I spend most of my time in warm/hot climes, then a light color, either the original light blue or white, would make sense, but I'm not sure where I'll be or how much it matters. Most boats are white, which is a little boring. I'm going to make my decks all white, even the non-skid which was a cream color originally, but I'm not sure I want white topsides too.
There is a really nice 40 something foot ketch in the harbor with dark red topsides, which looks really good. Red's one of my favorite colors, so we'll see. Maybe I'll finish up soon enough to go ahead and do it this season. Also, I need to get her in the water to see where the water line's going to be once she's loaded. Until then, I won't know where the boot strip needs to go. I think it's a little low right now.
Sewing watch:
My other sandal broke the day after I wrote about fixing the first one, so I fixed it as well, and did a much better job of sewing the second time. In fact, I had to redo the first one a couple days later, but didn't need a needle the second time; I just had to tighten it up and tie it better.
The only other sewing I've had to do was on the boat cover. One of the seams at the bow had come loose, and with the hurricane coming, I figured I'd better go ahead and fix it. I had to pull back the cover and stand in the peak of the bow and sew it up by hand. It was only about a foot and a half, but it took a lot longer than I would have thought. The first few stitches looked pretty bad, but after a while I got the hang of it. I had to use a sewing palm to get the needle through some of the thicker sections with seams, but other than that, it wasn't bad.
Zoe watch:
She's all dusted off and sleeping under the boat. She played tug on her leach most of the way back -- she's the happiest dog I've ever seen.
04 September 2010
Clear and Windy
Looks like Earl missed us completely. It got overcast yesterday around noon and we had a little light rain for a couple of hours, but that was it. It cleared up over night and we woke up to blue skies, but the wind didn't pick up until this afternoon. It's breezy now, with a high around 78, and the wind gusting to around 30.
Boat watch:
Still working on the decks. I think I've got about half the area before the companionway faired, but the last half should go really quick. I also started cleaning up the forward edge of the hull, above the water line. There are several old repairs that looked pretty bad, so I'm going to redo them. I'll eventually repaint all the topsides -- that's the area you see, from the waterline to the toe rails -- but don't have time right now, so I'll just fix the holes and try to match the existing paint.
Mast watch:
I haven't decided whether or not to trim the mast now or wait till later. If I can figure out how to beef up the mast step on the deck, I'll probably go ahead and do it now. I figure it's only a couple days work total. I need to get her in this month, so I don't want to add too many things to my list and get delayed.
Zoe watch:
She got her bath the other day and looked really good until this morning. When we got back from our walk, I started talking to Bill, the yard mechanic, and Zoe took advantage of the pause to roll around in the dust -- by the time I noticed, she had already turned a light gray. I guess she's happier that way, but I prefer black.
Boat watch:
Still working on the decks. I think I've got about half the area before the companionway faired, but the last half should go really quick. I also started cleaning up the forward edge of the hull, above the water line. There are several old repairs that looked pretty bad, so I'm going to redo them. I'll eventually repaint all the topsides -- that's the area you see, from the waterline to the toe rails -- but don't have time right now, so I'll just fix the holes and try to match the existing paint.
Mast watch:
I haven't decided whether or not to trim the mast now or wait till later. If I can figure out how to beef up the mast step on the deck, I'll probably go ahead and do it now. I figure it's only a couple days work total. I need to get her in this month, so I don't want to add too many things to my list and get delayed.
Zoe watch:
She got her bath the other day and looked really good until this morning. When we got back from our walk, I started talking to Bill, the yard mechanic, and Zoe took advantage of the pause to roll around in the dust -- by the time I noticed, she had already turned a light gray. I guess she's happier that way, but I prefer black.
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