Finished the frame patterns, back to work on our 1963 wooden Alcort Sunfish CHIP. We picked this chippy boat up at OLDE TYME MARKETPLACE in Marshville, NC in 2013, CHIP is finally getting some attention!
Alcort INC, makers of Sailfish and Sunfish. It took me years to notice that the logo had both boat's logos on it. Serial number 11501 makes CHIP a 1963.
For measurements we wanted CHIP to be deck up, a nice flat surface for the tape measure and straight edges.
This horizontal hinge plate is the wrong part, the proper part for a wooden boat would have little ears on either side for screws back by the transom. The old screw holes are visible. We have the proper part! And check out the lonely keeper chain for the hinge pin, another pin lost on the shoulder of the road somewhere.
Popped out the wood plugs and removed the screws for the mast collar. We need a flat deck to measure the boat and we also need to reseal the mast step.
Interesting stripes underneath.
The official term for the bow is "chowdered up." But we can see where the starboard side plank overlaps the port side plank. Just behind the planks are the inner stem, the point of the stem is Station 0 for measurements, because the frames have to be put in place and stem, transom and deck/keel beams attached before the planks.
Taking a line from the aft face of the frame from the bottom up to the deck. This frame is one of the 3/4 inch frames on the cockpit bulkheads, the others are 1/4 inch thick. Because of how the side curve and how the frames are beveled, we took lines to the aft face of the frames for those frames that are forward of the widest beam. Aft of the widest beam the lines are taken to the forward face of the frames.
For our lines we are using the Feet-Inches-Eighths (+/-) format. As an example this measurement is 4 feet, 3 and 1/8 inches or 4-3-1. If it is a little over or under then the (+) or (-) is added.
Going to need some coffee for this! First Station, 1-5-2, aka Station 17.
We brought the frame face line up to the deck on both sides, ran a straight edge across, then measured inches aft from the stem, deck width and side height. Where we didn't have a frame, we lined up the square as a reference for the tape.
Stations, Breadths and Heights.
Position of daggerboard trunk.
Position of mast step.
Hiding under the deck panel is the point of the stem. The planks, deck beam, deck panel, keel beam and bottom panels attach to the stem. The frames attach to the deck and keel beams, so we use the point of the stem as the zero inch point of reference to measure where to place the frames.
Log of CHIP.
