Saturday, December 29, 2018

Alcort Super Sailfish ZSA ZSA 29 Dec 18 Deck Fittings

29 Dec 18:

Trimmed the toe rail a bit to fit for the bow handle. The wooden Alcort bow handles have a tab that wraps the bow, and another strip attaches below and wraps the keel.


Keel strip wraps back about 16 inches.


Attached mast collar with #8 silicone bronze screws, drilled a pilot hole that matched the screw shank diameter and a countersink for the head of the screw. Attached the halyard cleat with the vintage Alcort bronze screws.


Drilled pilot holes and attached eyestraps with vintage Alcort bronze screws.


We like line bridles, the original boat would have had a 2 loop or 3 loop plastic coated wire bridle. 2 loop bridles are the standard today on new boats.


Attached the bow line and splashguard. Splashguard functions more as a handhold or foot rest.





Log of ZSA ZSA.

Tuesday, December 25, 2018

Alcort Super Sailfish ZSA ZSA 25 Dec 18 Hull Graphics and Varnish

25 Dec 18:

The stockings were raided, dinner finished and still a few hours left before sunset, so we rolled ZSA ZSA out to Skipper's boat hoist and flipped her.




Drew the arcs for the graphics on each corner of the hull. Extremely technical, only a few folks are qualified to do this step.



Applied a coat of TotalBoat WetEdge Fire Red with a 2 inch angled sash brush from Lowes. Skipper likes the short handle of the sash, it is lighter and easier to maneuver in tight spots. Taped along the seam with blue tape and free handed the arc.


I was thinking that the HEUER GARAGE sign should really be JACK'S BOATYARD, but he was not responsible for the acquisition of ZSA ZSA, that responsibility rests on Clark and Skipper. Jack was only responsible for ONKAHYE, CYANE, WAVE, MADISON, PHOENIX, SCOUT and LEWIS. SUGAR 2 to some extent.


First coat of TotalBoat Halcyon Amber Gloss on the blades and mast collar.


Merry Christmas!


Log of ZSA ZSA.

Merry Christmas and Happy Canoe Year

25 Dec 18:

We had Christmas wreath photos on small boats the last 2 years, so how about another one for 2018? A fun adventure on Christmas Day, our Grumman 17 SCOUT was the photo boat for this year.


Hope you are having a great holiday season with family and friends, and a geared up for a superb 2019!

Happy Canoe Year!

ST. JACQUES 2017


BARBASHELA 2016

Monday, December 24, 2018

Alcort Super Sailfish ZSA ZSA 24 Dec 18 Hull Paint and Stain

24 Dec 18

Brushed 2nd coat of TotalBoat WetEdge Fire Red and first coat of TotalBoat WetEdge BluGlo White. Minwax Mahogany Red on the handrails.




Log of ZSA ZSA.

Sunday, December 23, 2018

Alcort Super Sailfish ZSA ZSA 23 Dec 18 First Coat WetEdge Fire Red

23 Dec 18:

Lightly hand sanded the primer with 220 grit. Taped the lines for the center stripe, middle first, then the borders, then pulled the middle piece up.



Drew the arc from the center stripe out to the deck edge. Traced it onto wax paper and flipped paper over to check mirror image on starboard side.



Brushed on some TotalBoat WetEdge Fire Red.









Log of ZSA ZSA.

Saturday, December 22, 2018

Alcort Super Sailfish ZSA ZSA 22 Dec 18 Second Coat Topside Primer

22 Dec 18:

Rolled ZSA ZSA outside on the finishing dolly for some sanding.


Sanded fairing compound with 40 grit then 120 grit on a DeWALT random orbital sander, then lightly sanded the first coat of primer with 120 grit. This photo is before sanding.


Applied second coat of TotalBoat Topside Primer with a Mighty Mini roller.




All tucked in at the Alcort Museum!


Log of ZSA ZSA.

Friday, December 21, 2018

Alcort Super Sailfish ZSA ZSA 20 Dec 18 Fairing and Priming

20 Dec 18:

Removed the screws used to hold the trim on place while the epoxy dried. Mixed up some TotalBoat TotalFair to fill the screw holes.




The resin and hardener mix together to make a green compound. For today's application we used a syringe to inject the compound deep into the screw hole, then a spreader to lightly tip off the excess. We leave a little extra because the compound tends to suck into the hole as it dries and leave a dimple, necessitating a second application. The compound is easy to sand and dries fast, around 4 hours.


We have a little sanding to do, but while the fairing compound dried we applied the first coat of TotalBoat Topside Primer. We poured half of the primer out so we could mix up the solids that collect on the bottom of the can, then mixed it all back together. The primer was also strained, then applied with a Mighty Mini roller that came in an inexpensive kit from Jamestown Distributors









Log of ZSA ZSA.

Sunday, December 16, 2018

John Gardner Boatshop Stool Alpha

16 Dec 18:

We have built 2 stools to match the nice little stool we saw at Mystic's John Gardner Boatshop a few years back, they have come in handy. For the last stool we had made a pattern and wanted to test it out, so we went to Lowes and bout a 1x12 piece of select pine. We bough an 8 foot piece, so there will be material left over.

One thing that was off a bit on the last stool was the hand hold circle, we made a few adjustments to that.


Laid the pieces out on the pine and traced the patterns. The ends and sides are traced twice.


Cut the shapes with our DeWalt jigsaw. Made a starter hole for the saw blade in the circle with a 7/16th inch drill bit on the Kobalt drill. We do not cut bevels for the shallow angle of the ends. For some reason the handgrip hole looked odd, I think I have the center strip offset a bit. I'll make a new top pattern to clean that up. In the meantime I trimmed a bit of the new handhold.


We routed the edges that a hand or shin can get to with a 3/4 inch roundover bit on our vintage Makita router. Tried to leave the mating surfaces square, but goofed some of that up. We also leave the inner edge of the feet square, so the can dig in a bit.


Pile O Parts. CARMEN supervised, she is painted in signal flag Juliet colors. One of the features of the stool we like is the arch on the end, we made it big enough to hook a toe under there, so we can pull the stool to a new location as we work around a boat.


We used the patterns to get the screw holes in the right spots, then drilled #8 pilot holes and countersinks for a 1 1/2 inch screw with a Fuller combination bit. Attached the ends to the center brace first, then the sides, checked for square then attached the top.


This stool got signal flag Alpha colors, she will have pantry and dock gym duties. No nickname yet. Used leftover heels of paint for the custom job.


Next up we need to do a Bravo stool.


Then maybe a Sierra and a Romeo.



FMI: Gardner Boatshop Stool

Saturday, December 15, 2018

Alcort Super Sailfish ZSA ZSA 15 Dec 18 Toe Rail and Rub Rail Epoxy

15 Dec 18:

Released the rails, refastened the toe rail and rub rail with thickened epoxy. Screws to hold them to shape until epoxy dries. The thicker epoxy fills gaps and ensures a better bond between pieces. This product is good for use below the waterline, where ZSA ZSA's rail will spend a lot of time, it can be drilled, shaped, sanded and painted. It is also flexible, not as rigid as straight epoxy, so it will move with the wood a bit. We chose Jamestown Distributors TotalBoat THIXO because it mixes in the mixing tube, no guessing on how much filler to add to straight epoxy. It is also faster to mix up and use, but the cost is more per drop than resin/hardener/filler. Pettit makes FLEXPOXY, we used it a lot and like it, but it runs several dollar more per tube.




Epoxy for the deck edge seam, rub rail and toe rail.


As the pieces were pulled together with screws we looked for epoxy to barely squeeze out, which indicates that the joint is full. That is all the pressure that epoxy needs to bond, it does not need high pressure like glue, in fact too much pressure can squeeze the epoxy out of the joint. After the piece is attached we use a paint stick to remove larger bits of squeeze out, then slide a gloved finger along the perpendicular seam to make a curved fillet. This fillet helps shed water away from the joint. Be careful running rags or paper towels along seams as that can dredge the epoxy out of the seam. Another tip is to check the seam after it dries, sometimes the wood soaks the epoxy into the joint and it might be desired to apply another small bead of product. Here is a seam after we radiused the joint.


Coated the inside of the mast trunk and daggerboard trunk with epoxy.





3 tubes of THIXO for the seam, mast step and daggerboard trunk.




Alcort wooden collection, (L-R) 1950s Super Sailfish, 1965 Sunfish, 1950s Standard Sailfish.


Log of ZSA ZSA.