Saturday, October 28, 2017

1980 AMF Sunfish Viper 28 Oct 17 Deck Primer Second Coat

28 Oct 17:

Sanded the deck with 120 grit on a random orbital sander. Rolled the second coat of TotalBoat Topside Primer, tinted with WetEdge Kingston Gray.


Build Log for Viper.

Longleaf Pine Oars 24 May 17

24 May 17:

Cleaned up a set of vintage oars. Our neighbor Al gave them to us, he said it looked like we would use them. His Uncle made them in the 60s from longleaf pine and used them on their Florida mullet boat. We gave them a very light sanding, to preserve the marks on the loom from where they turned them. Looks like there is a small plug in the handle, probably from the axle they used when they turned them. We applied a protective coat of TotalBoat Gleam Satin varnish. Then took them out for a row!





Here are my chicken scratch rough measurements.



27 Oct 17:


Friday, October 27, 2017

Porter Cable Wet/Dry Vac

27 Oct 17:

Tested out our new Porter Cable Wet/Dry vac, it did a good job sucking water out of the St. Jacques and getting sanding dust off of Viper.



Rowing Penobscot 14 ST JACQUES 27 Oct 17

27 Oct 17:

Took the cover off St. Jacques today to see if there were any leaks after last week's rain. The interior was dry, so we decided to fix that and went out for a row. Skipper practiced her pike drills.







Once we were done we took a few glamor shots.



Log of St. Jacques.


1980 AMF Sunfish Viper 27 Oct 17 Deck Fairing

27 Oct 17:

Faired the deck with TotalBoat TotalFair Epoxy Fairing Compound.



Log of Viper.

Thursday, October 26, 2017

1980 AMF Sunfish Viper 26 Oct 17 Float Test Take 2

26 Oct 17:

Dipped VIPER into the bay to see if we chased down all of the leaks. Paddled around for about 10 minutes, no leaks noted. Signed off, OK for floating.





Skipper wanted to check the fit of the deck edge trim after the bow rebuild.



Then we put the first coat of TotalBoat Topside Primer on the deck. White primer, tinted with a bit of WetEdge Kingston Gray.





Log of Viper.

Friday, October 20, 2017

Small Boat Cover for Penobscot 14

Making a cover for St. Jacques. First we bought some cheap sheets to make a pattern, used double sided tape to join them together and laid them over the boat.


Marked along the side where we want the cover to end, then added 9 inches for seam allowance, drawstring pocket and a little extra for fitting.


Ordered Sunbrella Pacific Blue fabric, thread, maul, mat, grommets and punch from Sailrite.


When we got the Sunbrella, it was wide enough that we could just lay it over St. Jacques, clamp it and mark the seam. Skipper added 1 inch for a seam allowance. We also marked the bow and aft corners.

Next Skipper sewed the darts into the corners, and we cut long 5 inch strips to make a drawstring pocket. Those were joined using a french seam.


The drawstring pocket was sewn onto the cover, with the string already laid in. Webbing was also sewn in to the seam about every 3 feet to make tiedown straps.




The cover fits great and looks awesome on St. Jacques.


We decided to skip the grommets and use webbing for tiedown points instead.






St. Jacques camping out in the Sunfish Shack, the cover worked great, kept out some rain that blew in over the weekend.

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Mainsail Battens 19 Oct 17

19 Oct 17:

Two of the tapered battens from the sail that we use on CYANE are fractured. The sail came off a boat that of Capn Jack built back in the 70s, it is a little smaller than the Daysailer main. Anyway, I tried repairing the battens with thickened epoxy and a strip of 4 oz fiberglass cloth on both sides. Will have to let them dry a bit to see if that is going to work. Hopefully it will, because it will take a lot of work to replicate that thickness taper.


...to be continued

Small Wagon Restoration and Mast Crutch 19 Oct 17

19 Oct 17:

The shop wagons needed a little love so we broke out the marine grade plywood, varnish, paint and silicone bronze screws to get them dockworthy again. Anything to avoid more sanding on VIPER.

Capn Jack's wagon needed a new bed of 1/2 inch fir plywood, new stainless wheel brace hardware, varnish on the bed, a new stake side and Rustoleum red paint.





Skipper's wagon needed a new stake front, screws to tighten the bed frame, JBWeld on the handle swivel, WetEdge Black wheels and undercarriage and a Kingston gray bed.



Since we were already "shaving a yak*" we made a new mast crutch for the O'Day Daysailer out of a nice piece of quartersawn white oak. Copied Capn Jack's original design, transferred over the hardware and stare. finished it with TotalBoat Gleam Satin Marine Varnish.




*Yak Shaving is the series of small jobs that get done while you avoid the primary task.
Example: "I need to sand the Sunfish today. Oops, the wagons are still broken. Let's fix those. Where is the wood? Behind the rotted mast crutch. Oh, let's fix that too. I'll need some stainless from Ace Hardware.....etc...etc...etc..."

26 Oct 17:

Delivered Capn Jack's wagon, he tested it out and gave it his seal of approval.


Wednesday, October 18, 2017

1980 AMF Sunfish Viper 18 Oct 17 Third Coat WetEdge

18 Oct 17:

Sanded with 220 grit. Rolled and tipped the third coat of TotalBoat WetEdge Kingston Gray, thinned 5 percent because temp was 80F plus.




Log of Viper.

1974 Drascombe Lugger For Sale $5400 USD Sarasota FL

18 Oct 17:

The Drascombe Lugger Roamer that we restored in 2015 is being offered for sale by her current owner Tim. She is in good shape with new oars and a 5hp Mercury outboard. Tim had fun adding a mast tabernacle and painting the bottom. Here are some of his notes about the boat.

It is a gaff (gunter) rigged yawl, a sweet sailor, a classic design.
Fiberglas
Spruce mast, in new mahogany tabernacle, easily stepped by one person.
Boomless mainsail.
Centerboard, boat draws about 12" with board up.
Rudder lifts out completely for beaching
Roller furling jib.
Approx.132 square ft. sail area.
All sails in good condition.
Teak trim, cypress floorboards
Includes 5 hp Mercury 2stroke.
Trailer in good condition, newer led lights, all work.
New wheel Buddy Bearings
Fiberglas in good condition, no cracks or other damage
Oarlock hardware in gunwale, oars included
Cover included
Fresh bottom paint.
Doesn't leak, not a drop.
Located in Sarasota, FL

The Lugger is one of the most versatile boats we have ever owned, great for raids in shoal water. Or sailing around the world if you are akin to Webb Chiles. The designer John Watkinson wanted a family friendly motorboat that could be easily trailered and also set up for a lively sail. We have had years of pleasure sailing our 1980 Lugger Onkahye and enjoyed sailing Roamer as well. Here is a nice video of Roamer during sea trials, singlehanded by the Skipper.



Roamer was a freshwater Michigan boat for her first 40 years, made a side trip to Utah and has been exploring Florida for the last few years.

Roamer's Story

The Lugger is easy to set up, and very versatile with a centerboard and 3 sails. The motor well places the motor in an area that is easy to reach. And the fiberglass construction means easy cleanup with minimal maintenance.

Offered for sale by Tim, current price $5400 USD. Sold 1/23/18 for $5100

SOLD.

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

1980 AMF Sunfish Viper 17 Oct 17 Second Coat Wet Edge

17 Oct 17:

Faired a few spot with TotalFair, sanded with 100 grit. Rolled and tipped the second coat of TotalBoat WetEdge Kingston Gray, thinned 5 percent because temp was 80F plus.





Log of Viper.

Ship Plans Smithsonian 17 Oct 17

17 Oct 17:

Sent off a copy of Barbashela's Restoration Report to the Smithsonian Ship Plans department. They are housed in the National Museum of American History and maintain an archive of ship plans. They will add the report, which includes line drawings and a Table of Offsets, to the archive.


Copies of Barbashela's Restoration Report may be purchased on Amazon.

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

1980 AMF Sunfish Viper 11 Oct 17 Watched Paint Dry

11 Oct 17:

Went out to the carriage house today and it was like a sauna. Paint was very tacky. 100F heat index here in Florida with high humidity. Pulled the boat out into the sun for most of the day and the paint started to dry a bit. At the end of the day we kicked the car out of the garage and moved the boat inside, there are two window units out there that can produce some cooler, dryer air.



Log of Viper.