slockhart's blog

The attached photos will depict the boat on its maiden voyage in Bogue Sound between Morehead City & Atlantic Beach, NC.  We launched the boat on sunday afternoon with an approximate 8-10 knot south wind.  The boat is not equipped with a motor so getting away from the boat ramp/dock proved to be the greatest challenge.  However, once we were "at sail" this little boat really impressed me with its speed and seaworthiness.

By the way--a couple of the photos depict my boat resting on a sandbar ----- that was done intentionally for a rest.  We did not "run-a-ground" :-)

The attached pictures will illustrate the topside paint  after the first primer coat (Interlux Pre-Kote) as well as the final paint job.  After finishing the paint job, I can see several places that could have stood a little more sanding....but as I said in an earlier post, there comes a time when patience runs out and you just want to get'r done!

My next post will show the boat on the day of its maiden voyage --- Memorial Day Weekend 2010.

Here are some more pictures of the gunwales.  These photos show the 1.5" inner trim which is intended to "dress-up" the gunwales.  These peices are attached with techbond waterproof glue and #6 1" screws.  I decided to use button plugs to cover the screw holes. 

When finished the gunwales will be dyed with a water-based Mahogany dye.  The I plan to cover that with epoxy.

This week with the help of a 3 neighbors, I turned the boat over to begin working on the topside.  In the photos you can see where I have decided to try and "dress-up" the gunwales on each side of the boat.  Also you can see some peices of wood positioned diagonally in the bottom of the boat.  These peices are epoxied in place and will serve as the cleats for 3/4" wooden slats that will be the flooring in the boat.  This should only increase the weight of the boat by about 20-25 lbs. but I think it will really do alot for the appearance.  Just in case one may wonder---they are placed diagonally to keep any water from being trapped when the boat is tilted to drain.

After several days & nights sanding, I finally came to the conclusion that it was time to put a coat of primer on the bottom.  I think anyone will tell you, that eventually you just have to come to the point where you've sanded enough! I finally reached that point after a approximately 20 hours---some by hand and some by using a orbital sander.

On Saturday, 3-27-2010, I applied the first coat of primer.  The brand I used is Interlux Pre-kote (gray).  The I sanded the entire exterior surface by hand with 220 grit paper.  The paint I chose to cover it was Interlux Brightside.  Although I have heard that this particular paint was not recommended for the bottom, I have had success with it in the past when I painted a 16 footer.  This boat will not stay in the water for any real length of time so I'm hoping for the same level of success as before.

In this post you will see that I have begun glassing the bottom of the Corsair 13.  As I stated in earlier posts, I initially used 8" tape on all of the outer seams.  Afterwards, I proceded to cutthe hole on the bottom for the daggerboard. 

Because of the cold weather and many other distractions, I haven't been able to devote as much time lately as I would have liked.  However, I am back to work again and this past weekend I was able to complete the application of fiberglass cloth on the entire hull of the boat.  In the pictures that I have attached, you will see photos taken from different angles depicting the completion of the first coat of epoxy. So far I am very pleased with my joints and especially the bow joint. At the bottom of the bow stem you will probably notice that the epoxy is a little thicker.  I actually mixed up a batch of epoxy and thickened it so that I could shape the area where the bow joint and the bottom of the boat meet.  This extended the length of the bow point by about 1.5" from the point of the bow down to the front point of the bottom panels.

Well after a couple of months of inactivity, I have gotten back to work!  Last week I finished the gunwales and trim.  The attached photos will better explain. Photo# 089 shows that I used five .5" strips of pine for the gunwales in addition to the .25" marine plywood.  On the outside, I used another .25" peice of pine trim along with a piece of .75" molding (rub rail).  The rubrail was installed in peices since the trim only came in 10' and 8' lengths.

I have begun installing the gunwales on each side of the boat.  Currently, I have not downloaded all of the pictures from my camera but the attached photos will show my progress so far.  These gunwales are made of 1/2" X 3/4" strips of pine.  I bought the strips at Lowe's and used them simply to save on the time and effort involved in ripping a board on the table saw.  These pieces,  even though they are about $3-4 each, are nice and smooth and provide good flexibility in the construction of the gunwales. I used 4 strips on the inside.

Prior to their installation I cut 14 braces (7 for each side of the boat) that the gunwales will rest on (see photo 024).  These braces were installed about 13-15" apart and are attached to the inside of the boat with epoxy and on the outside I use 2 brass screws ( 1" #8 size screws).  Yesterday I did a little sanding and I think I will be very pleased with the smoothness and final look of the finished gunwales.  By the way---I plan to leave the gunwales in wood finish while the rest of the boat will be painted.

Over the past weekend I built the daggerboard box.  This box is constructed of 1/2" plywood with 1.5" fur spacers.  I used the fur because it was some of the better pieces of scrap wood I had laying around.  As recommended by several other builders, I built the box 1/2 at a time so that I could use epoxy and fiberglass tape on the inside.  Hopefully this will prevent any moisture issues in the future, not to mention reducing the chaffing /abrasions.

Also in the photos, you may be able to see that I used a little trim on the bottom edge of the box, as well as the top edge.  The bottom trim was done simply to give me more surface for the epoxy to bond with the bottom of the boat.  The top trim was used so that I would also have a little more surface area to epoxy a a piece of plywood trim along the top.  This gives the box a little "neater" or "finished" appearance by covering the edge of the fur spacers.

I have finally decided on what I will use for flotation.   In photos 167-170 you will see that I decided to use milk jugs and various plastic containers (obviously with the lids still on). 

I also changed my mind about the storage beneath the seats of the boat. As you can see in  a couple of the photos, I decided to eliminate the two front storage hatches and I epoxied them closed.  This allowed me to place the plastic containers in 4 of the sections below the seats.  Even though I coated the interior framing and sidewalls under the seats, the elimination of the 2 forward hatches will minimize the likelihood of additional water getting below the seats, not to mention increase the flotation.  As you can see, the hatches were cut fairly large & I will have sufficient room to store life jackets, lines, etc. underneath the seats.

Also during the last week I installed the first 1/2" X 3/4" strip of wood trim on the top of the side walls.  On the outside of the sidewall I have initially placed a 1/4" X 1" piece of trim.  Eventually I will place a piece of molding on top of that piece of trim to serve as a rub rail. Inside of the sidewall I will laminate at least four strips of 1/2" X 3/4" wood trim.  I can't remmber what that part of the boat is called but it should be of sufficient width for any block & hardware installation.  I have clamped a few of the pices in place and I think I will be pleased with the final look.  Those photos will come in a later post.

 This weekend I will attempt to complete the daggerboard box / case.  My goal is to get this boat in the water by the first weekend in October!