SPRING LAUNCH & FALL HAUL OUT

Well, we made it into the water on May 22nd and I'm a bit behind on posting information. The new bottom performed well over the summer months. Very pleased with the results.

And now the season is over and Hullabaloo has been pulled back out of the water.

Many plans for this winter. I'm working on putting together the list of things to do. So far on the list is:

1. Re-template the keel.


2. Touch up a few imperfections on the bottom that I did not have time to address before launch in spring.


3. Repair a soft spot in one of the cockpit seats.


4. Re-install the bulkhead that goes over the engine compartment.


5. Install a windward sheeting traveler and replace the main sheet cleat & pulleys (the existing cleat and pulleys have seen MUCH better days).


6. Figure out why the transmission is slipping. This began about mid way through the season this year.


7. Replace the batteries. I've been running on one very week battery for the season.

That's the list so far. And that is plenty to handle. Until the work begins, Hullabaloo is tucked away in heated storage next to another J/30 - Flock 'n Geese.

BOTTOM COMPLETE!

The bottom is complete! The last three coats of barrier coat were applied about 1-week ago. Last Friday and Saturday, the barrier coat was sanded out as it had a bit of an orange peel texture. Since the orange peel was somewhat pronounced, we used an 80 grit on random orbit sanders to knock the orange peel down then finished off with more fine sand paper, eventually finishing off with a 220 grit.

The two photos below are after sanding the barrier coat and the final product.



The final finish is VC17. I had contemplated other bottom paints but settled in on VC17 due to my familiarity with the product and the ease of application. The VC was rolled on in two coats over the course of a couple of hours.

The final finish is relatively good. There are a few areas to address that didn't sand out as nicely as I had hoped they would, but I am happy with the final product. We'll leave the fine tuning for next winter.

Hullabaloo is scheduled to launch May 22nd. Over the course of the next week, we will hopefully be buffing and waxing the hull, installing the windows, and (more important than the other items) installing the prop shaft.

A new prop shaft is being cut as the old one had been somewhat worn where the shaft passed through the stuffing box and cutlass bearing on the strut. The new shaft should be here tomorrow.

FAIRING COMPLETE - ON TO THE BARRIER COAT!

Well, fairing the hull is complete. Glyn and Joe helped out for a week night and we got most of the fairing complete, with the exception of a few pad locations.


The pad locations were faired out over the course of the next few days. Along with fairing these few locations out, we long boarded the bottom of the hull. The process of long boarding involves sanding the entire bottom of the hull with long boards (approximately 4" wide x 30" long boards with sandpaper attached to them). This allows for the hull to be sanded out without gouging the hull, as would likely occur with a small sanding pad. For this operation, we used 36 grit sandpaper.

The process of long boarding took the better part of the weekend. With this complete, I spent the next few week nights touching up areas of fairing that I felt needed work.

This past weekend we began spraying barrier coat. Prior to the barrier coat being applied, the hull was sanded lighting with 80 grit sand paper and then wiped down with Interlux 202 solvent. The water line was also re-taped to make sure the edge between the barrier coat and boot stripe was sharp. Then it was on to barrier coat.

I had decided to spray the barrier coat on in lieu of rolling. The barrier coat I had decided to use was Interlux 2000E. The spray gun used was an HVLP gun with a siphon cup. The gun had a 1.8 mm spray tip and ran at a pressure of approximately 50psi.

The first coat went on very slowly. The spray was very thin. I had assumed this was due to the thickness of the barrier coat product. After we had completed the spraying, I took apart the gun to clean it and discovered a very small paint filter that seriously restricted the flow of the 2000E. The filter was removed for subsequent coats of 2000E and allowed for a much faster application. There was a bit more splatter with the filter removed, but I do not anticipate this being an issue given how well 2000E sands out.

At this point, there are three coats of barrier coat sprayed. The bottom is looking good. There are some areas that will need attention. There are a number of pin head sized voids that need to be filled where blisters had previously existed and where the fairing process did not fill the voids. I will be experimenting this week with filling those voids, either with a brush applied 2000E or filling and sanding of the voids with Interfill fairing compound. In either case, I am hoping the bottom will be ready for bottom paint by the end of next weekend.

Here are a few photos of the bottom, after the 3rd coat of barrier coat.

FAIRING

The dreaded fairing process started this weekend...or as our friend Nate has dubbed it, 'the dreaded fairy process'. It really has not been that bad of a task thus far.

I'm using Interlux Interfill 830 as a fairing compound. It's a two part mix that mixes up in a 1:1 ratio to a paste like consistency. We're spreading the material on with plastic spreaders and then striking it off with a flexible aluminum ruler. The flexible aluminum allows for bending of the strike off tool to match the shape of the hull.

What we have learned is that you should mix up a very small batch of material. When you strike off the material, there is plenty that comes off that can be used to fill the next area.

I'm thinking, at this point, that it will take us the better part of the week to get all of the material on. Hopefully we'll be sanding it down towards the end of the week.

Here is a picture of the finish after applying and striking off and Nate in the background, inspecting...

EPOXY MADNESS

Yesterday we rolled a layer of Epiglass epoxy onto the bottom. Three of us accomplished the task. We had one person mixing the epoxy in small batches and pouring it into a roller pan. A second person rolled the epoxy onto the bottom with a foam roller. The third hand smoothed the epoxy out with a cut foam roller. The whole process took about an hour.

The day prior to rolling on the epoxy, we had wiped down the entire bottom with Interlux 202 Solvent to remove any surface contaminants. This process took about 1/2 hour. 202 is extremely smelly stuff, so respirators were definitely needed.

Thanks to a few of my crew who were able to help out - Nate, Austin, & Cathy.

Here are a few pics. The first is of the tools and products used.


And the second is a picture of the hull after the epoxy was applied.


The next step will be to rough up the epoxy with 80 grit sandpaper and then begin applying fairing compound. If all goes well, we'll be working on this over the course of the next week (and beyond).

EARLY APRIL UPDATES

The weather is beginning to warm up. I've placed an order for materials so that I can begin to put the bottom of the boat back together. The intended process for the bottom repair follows Interlux's recommendations and is as follows:

1. Apply a layer of Interlux Epiglass to the bare fiberglass. This application is to seal up the small voids in the glass where blisters had existed.
   
2. Fair the bottom. I am intending on using Interlux Interfill 830. I am guessing this will be the most time consuming of the steps of putting the bottom back together.
   
3. Apply Interlux 2000E barrier coat. Based on the information from Interlux, this should be about 4-5 coats.
4. Apply bottom paint. I have not confirmed the type of paint I will be using, but I'm leaning heavily towards VC-17. This is mostly because I am familiar with the product and it has a decent track record.

If all goes well, the materials should be here tomorrow and I will have step 1 completed towards the end of the week.

Other updates...I have the majority of the old sealant cleaned out from around the windows. I did a dry fit of the new windows this weekend. They look absolutely fabulous! Pictures will follow when the windows are installed permanently.

Rebuilding of the rotted bulkhead is in process. I was able to obtain a piece of marine plywood from a friend of a friend who installs road signs. 'WEST 12' will be hidden away in the bottom of Hullaballo, hopefully for years to come.

I used the old rotten pieces of bulkhead to provide as close of a pattern as possible and then fit the plywood in place using a jig saw to make minor adjustments.

Now that the bulkhead is cut to fit, I've been coating it in glass so that it will not rot again. I have laid up one layer of 6 oz. glass on each side of the bulkhead and am now in the process of laying up a much thicker layer of glass on each side.


This is probably completely overkill, but as I have not had much experience in working with fiberglass, I thought I'd use it as a learning experiment.

And the last update for this week...I have refinished the tiller. I had refinished the tiller last year. It had not been finished in many years so it was sanded down, three coats of cetol applied, and 6-8 coats of cetol gloss applied.

After last season, there was a bit of dulling of the finish so I decided to add a few new layers of cetol gloss. I thought I was done with the application but as the last coat was drying, I managed to bump into the tiller several times while working on another project. So I guess I'll be applying another coat.

RANDOM UPDATES

The gelcoat removal is complete! There is a bit of sanding with a random orbit sander that will need to be completed but the majority of the removal work is complete. Thanks to both Glyn & Eric for their hours in helping take the gelcoat off. Now it is a matter of letting the hull dry out before I begin to put it all back together.

In the meantime, I began with a few other projects. There is a bulkhead that is located just aft of the engine that I had known was rotten when I bought Hullabaloo two years ago. I figured it was time to tackle this project.

Removal of the bulkhead began with the removal of a window that is situated in the cockpit.


It appears as though the window was the culprit that led to the rotten bulkhead. After removing the window, it was apparent that the sealant at the bottom edge the window had failed or had not been installed during the original installation. There was plenty of 5200 along the sides and top of the window but a very limited amount of sealant along the bottom edge. The window came loose with a bit of cutting with a utility knife and prying with a screwdriver.

Once the window was removed, the interior trim panel could be removed. The interior panel is a 1/4" piece of mahogany plywood. The plywood was held in by six screws which were easily removed with a screwdriver. The picture below shows 1/2 of the panel and fasteners.


And a picture of the panel after removal...



Once the panel was removed, I could get to the structural portion of the bulkhead.


This piece was at one time a 3/4" piece of plywood attached along the top with four screws and at either side to the hull by a 1" x 1" piece of wood attached to both the plywood bulkhead and fiberglass hull. The bulkhead was completely rotten. The screws along the topside came out with almost no effort and the attachment to the hull had failed long ago. Once the top screws were removed, the plywood came out in two pieces.


The plan for repair is to build a new bulkhead out of either marine plywood or fiberglass and to construct a new mahogany finish panel. The window is still in decent condition so I intend on reusing it, making sure to bed the window properly in sealant so that it does not leak.

MORE GELCOAT REMOVAL

Well, I've changed the way the gelcoat is being removed. Most importantly, I've enlisted the help of my Friend, Glyn. Aside from this, the majority of gelcoat is still being removed with a grinder. After the majority of gelcoat has been removed, I'm switching to a random orbit sander with 80 grit sandpaper. This is working out relatively well.

Below are a few pictures of the progress. I was hoping to be a bit further along by this point but have had little time to work on the boat over the past month.




I have also picked up a moisture meter. I purchased a meter manufactured by J.R. Overseas Co.


In checking the hull, it appears as though there are no major moisture issues. This is very good news. The majority of areas checked were relatively consistent registering 5% - 8%. There are a few areas on the transom around the through hull fittings where moisture issues appear to exist. Taking care of these areas will be left to another project.