1980 AMF Sunfish Viper 09 Oct 17 Sand and Prime

09 Oct 17:

We finished up the Sunbrella cover for St. Jacques. Skipper did the sewing, and got it done even with my help. She has made several covers and we incorporated the features we like to make a simple cover, robust enough to ride down the road as well.

Tie down straps as well as a drawstring pocket. Reinforced bow and oar lock points.

Back to work on Viper. Sanded off more old paint.

Sanded the hull with 80 grit on a random orbital sander. Vacuumed the hull then wiped with TotalBoat Special Brushing Thinner to remove sanding residue.

Poked holes in the rim of the can to help primer drain back into the can.

Time to prime, getting on to the fun stuff.

Rolled the TotalBoat primer.

Spilled primer, decided to make another floor Sunfish.

The primer covered great and will make a great "show coat" for fairing. It looks perfect from about 10 feet, but get closer and the little bumps and dips start to appear. More work to do.

No vacancy in the carriage house.

Log of Viper.

1950s Alcort Sailfish "Winnie"

Our friend spotted an Alcort Sailfish for sale up in NY, and he thought we might want it. So he bought it and brought it down to us during his annual Florida run. We in turn bought it from him and also scored a mast and spars for another restoration project on a Sunfish. Her name is Winnie.

The Sailfish is just under 12 feet long and it has a 65 sf sail. The spars measure 11'7" and it has a tiny rudder. This boat was taken apart for refinishing but the previous owner lost interest....17 years ago. It is in great shape and we'll get to it as we finish up on Barbashela and St. Jacques.

The bare hull weighs 92 pounds, came with all the parts. Just needs caulk and paint, yellow paint that is, like she was originally.



Alcort Sailfish logo.jpg

Kind of like a kit boat!

Rudder mechanism.

1950s Alcort Sailfish mast step and bow handle after a little teak oil, vinegar and metal polish.

Yep those are bronze rivets.

Check out that mast and wooden spars.

18 May 16: Winnie has her first top coat of Valspar Ultra 4000 Alkyd Enamel, Whipped Apricot. She will remind us of Barbashela. So much so that we decided on her final name, "Winnie."

19 May 16: Skipper loves Winnie, can't wait to get her on the water.

65 sf of sail, 11'7" long, 3' beam, 92 pounds.

65 sf Sailfish sail over a 75 sf Sunfish sail.

21 May 16: Winnie went to the Bagdad Riverfest with Zip. Notice where we painted the sides with Rustoleum Topside Oyster White and added an oak rub strip, stained and sealed with Minwax Polyurethane Mission Oak, attached with #6 brass screws.

23 May 16: Skipper takes Winnie out for the first time in many years. Nice light wind day for a test sail.

to be continued...

2003 Vanguard Sunfish Repair

18 Mar 2015:

Going to fix up "Crystal," a 2003 Vanguard Sunfish. She got damaged during a storm and need repairs to punctures and abrasions in her hull.

Transported her to the house, I think she is secure...

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

The keel was damaged by rocks on a seawall. We will use a blind patch for this repair. A blind patch is a cardboard/fiberglass/epoxy backer that gets inserted into the hull and pulled tight, once it dries you can build up layers of fiberglass to repair the hull.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Dock bolts punctured the chine.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

More seawall damage.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

We use a diamond file to remove broken gelcoat and crushed fiberglass. File til you get rid of the loose fiberglass cloth fibers and loose fiberglass. Then fair the edges of the hole, that creates more surface area for the replacement epoxy and fiberglass to attach to. We like epoxy resin vs polyester because it bonds well, has better structural qulaities and doesn't smell as bad.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

You can file all of this away or use a spiral saw to cut the big chunks off. Set the drill bit to only cut the hull, if it is too deep it can cut internal parts or the cockpit.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Filed, sanded and faired for patch.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

The finish on the hull is oxidized, stained and sunburned. We will sand off the oxidation, clean the stain with Iron Out, wet sand and wax. Patched areas will get touch up coverage of paint.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Half of the port hull sanded and started on the starboard side.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

14 Feb 2015: Crystal awaiting repairs. But a note here is that it is nice to have a spare cover to protect the boat while work is being done, in our case from pine sap, flying pine cones, dive bombing birds, bugs, dirt etc...that way work doesn't have to be redone.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

04 Mar 2015: Crystal got to be the first boat on the new finishing dolly. The dolly is a copy of the "finishing dolly" that is used at Laser Performance with their Sunfish and Lasers.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Feathered the keel with a dual action sander. The paint stick will be used to reinforce the backer patch.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

11 Mar 2015: Trimming out some heavy weight buckram cloth, about an inch wider all around than the repair. The buckram is stiff fabric that will add stiffness to the repair while it dries inside the hull. It also will keep the tie strings from pulling through the epoxy wetted cardboard.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Traced the repair area onto the cloth so we know where to put strings through. The strings are used to pull the patch tight against the inside of the hull while it dries.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Here is the blind patch, which consists of a paint stick, buckram, cardboard, woven roving fiberglass, epoxy resin, bridging filler and strings.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Here is the blind patch, which consists of a paint stick, buckram, cardboard, woven roving fiberglass, epoxy resin and strings.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Blind patch inserted into keel and strings tied tight to pull it into position against the inside of the hull. Then I wedged sticks into place to pull it tight and made sure epoxy was contacting the hull all the way around the edges.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Cut fiberglass for blind patches about 1 inch wider than the hole. Clean broken fiberglass away from edge of hole with a file and clean inside the hull with acetone or mineral spirits.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Cut a piece of cardboard to pull the fiberglass flat against the inside of the hull. This is a test fit, it need string or wire to pull it back flat inside the hull.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Used a screwdriver to poke holes for the strings (whipping twine).

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Patch pushed through and pulled tight against inside of hull. Tie the string off to a stick or more cardboard.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

I used Marine-Tex on the keel gouges. Main reason is that's what I had. Pettit EZ Fair would be easier to sand.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Blind patch drying.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

16 Mar 2015: The deck is oxidized, but not too bad. Waxed it with 3M Fiberglass Restorer and Wax, used different bonnets to apply and remove the wax, then buff and polish the surface.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Replaced the drain plug.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Peeled off an old Sunfish decal.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Used Marine Tex epoxy putty then Pettit EZ Fair to fair the repairs. Sanded with 120 grit on a DA sander then sprayed 4 coats of Rustoleum Gloss White.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Sat in the moaning chair for a while after some paint bubbled while spraying the hull.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

17 Mar 2015: All is well, last coat drying.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

18 Mar 2015: Bought a new random orbital sander.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Applied a new Sunfish sticker.

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -

Crystal loaded up on her trailer, waiting to go back home!

From SBR 4: Jun 2014 -