Re-Installing Brightwork...

Yesterday I re-installed most of the brightwork (woodwork) that I re-finished.  I think it looks great. 

Today I began the long job of removing all of the existing wiring.... What a mess!  There are wires that go everywhere and there are wires that go nowhere...  There are also wires that could have caused the boat to burn up!  Yep, that's right, I found a main 250 amp fuse block where someone had just moved the main wire from one side of the fuse to the other after the fuse blew...  Thus we had an unprotected circuit....  I am so glad we are replacing all this mess. At least we will know that the boat is safe when we are finished...

New Panels Are Wired and Ready to Go...

Over the last few days I have rewired the electrical panels from the boat.  To be honest I really am surprised that there was not a fire on the boat!  there has been some pretty bad wiring jobs done to that poor boat over the years...  That said, as soon as the steering is re-installed, I can start to re-wire the boat...

This is What it looked like before I started:

This is the same panel after I was finished:

On Friday a good friend, Sam from Nova Scotia was in town and his wife was busy... that was all the incentive I needed to invite him over to the boat to help out for a few hours.  Sam is a licenced boat captain and an all round good guy, so he lent his knowledge and time to me as we re-finished all the exterior brightwork (wood for the land lubbers). At the end of the day we had the first epoxy finish coat on and a pair of happy guys....

A Change of Pace..

Yesterday, I changed jobs on the boat.  With tornadoes touching down in the area, I did not do any work at the boat. Instead, I took over the kitchen at home and began the process of wiring the new electrical panel.  Here are some pictures of the progress:

In the end, it looks great and it actually WORKS! Who knew?  Now it can be installed into the boat and connected up with very little trouble...

Still Bedding Hardware...

After days and days, I am still bedding hardware... Today I made it to the aft of the boat and I think in another day or two I should be finished...
Here are some pictures of the progress:

Bedding Hardware...

Here are some pictures of the hardware getting rebedded...

This Has Nothing to Do With the Boat, But....

Yesterday, nothing got done on the boat because our son and daughter-in-law brought us our 3 week old granddaughter from out west to visit....  Mackenzie is a really beautiful little girl...  What a blessing...

By the way, on Sunday Bill S. and I did get all the shroud plates re-bedded on the deck. On Saturday, I got all the anchor gear re-bedded.  it is a slow process, but I am sure when it is done it will look great.  I will post pictures of the finished product later...

The Deck is PAINTED!

Thats right, at 12:03 today the last stroke of Kiwi-Grip was rolled out thus completing a major job on the re-fit list... Shelley and I spent about 10 hours yesterday taping and masking the deck getting ready for today when at 8am this morning we arrived and rolled out the non-skid.  IT LOOKS GREAT!

I never would have believed that it could have looked so good...  We purchased 4 gallons of Kiwi-Grip and when we were finished we had only used 2.  (If anyone wants or needs this stuff, we will sell 2 gallons for what we paid, just call me). 

Following are some pictures that show first, the taping:

then the rolling on process,

then the finished job...

The key step to getting this to work well is to take as much time as you need to get the taping neat and tidy.  It will make the application go really easy.  And by the way NEVER scrimp on the painting tape, we had one roll of cheap stuff and it was a complete waste of time.  Make sure you use only the really good painting tape and your results will look great...

Making Good Progress...

Yesterday and today I have been dodging rain but managed to get the finish coat of white and the cream accent lines done...  We hope with good weather Friday we should get the Kiwi-Grip down.  This is a job that requires a few hands.  If anyone can help us on Friday that would be great, just let us know.

We got a call today from the glass company and it looks like we may get our windows and hatches back as early as next week!  That would be great if that happened....  Yesterday I also re-installed the Lazarette doors.  They are not seating just right but at least they are in and it makes walking on the deck easier.  I will sort out the problem with them in the next few days I hope....

Here are some pictures of where we ended up today...   It is beginning to look like we really are making progress...

Primer.... DONE!

Today Shelley and I got and early start.  At 7am we went to clean an office and at 9:30 I left for the boat and Shelley left for work... As I drove to the farm the sky opened up! I began to think that there wouldn't be any painting today...

When I got to the boat I spent about an hour tidying up the trailer and when that was done the rain passed on.  I then took off the cover, did the last little bits of sanding and then finished priming the whole deck!

What a great feeling to have that done.   Tomorrow I have to work for a few hours so after that I will try to get the primer sanded with 320 grit then paint the cream trim getting things ready for Tuesday when we will mask off the trim and get the Kiwi-Grip down...   A tall order...

Paint Is Happening!

As I write this blog Shelley and I are driving to Hamilton to buy more primer.... I have run out! If we pick up some today I can get the rest done tomorrow (Sunday). That said it may be by Tuesday that we may be getting some Kiwi-Grip down.

 The picture below shows what things will look like when we get the KIWI-GRIP down.  We experimented with one of the lazarette doors.  We think the deck will look pretty good when the rest of the boat looks like this...

A Busy Week...

I haven't spent much time blogging this week, but I have spent a ton of time working on the boat...

Monday was spent getting the lazarette painted and getting some sanding done, Tuesday was all about sanding, sanding, sanding and oh, more sanding...., Wednesday it rained so I took the time to go to Niagara Falls NY, to pick up our KIWI-GRIP, a product from New Zealand that promises to make an incredible low maintenance, non slip surface for the deck...  We have seen it on another boat and think it looks great, I just hope we can get the same kind of results...  It cost over $500 for 4 gallons, so I hope it works....

Today I got to the boat early this morning and worked through until almost 8pm.  Crazy... but I really need to get the deck finished and I only have one more week of holidays... It is going to be close...

Many things got done today. I finished sanding the fairing epoxy and have just a very few spots that need to be touched up. I made a template for a new floor for the lazarette and asked a friend, Jake who is a real carpenter to cut it for me. This floor was cut out of 3/4" marine grade plywood (remember the stuff for $130 per sheet), so I really didn't want to make any mistakes... He came by around 4 and withing about 20 minutes had it cut out and looking great.

I ended the day by getting some primer sprayed on the aluminum at the bow, one side of the lazarette doors, the helm seat and the new floor for the lazarette...  Tomorrow, I hope the get the rest of the deck primed ready for the finish trim paint to happen Sunday or Monday...  That will leave all next week to get the deck done in the Kiwi-Grip, and the hardware re-bedded.  THEN the boat should be watertight (if the windows are back by then).

Making the Most of a Day Together...

Shelley and I started early this morning getting one of her office cleaning jobs done up in Waterloo... After that we treated ourselves to a great breakfast out... With full tummies we went to the boat and got many jobs done... I epoxied the area on the helm seat where I laid the fiberglass yesterday... then I finished getting the lazarette ready to prime tomorrow by grinding high spots and epoxy drips, vacuuming and finally washing out the area....

 

All the while Shelley dedicated many hours to cleaning up the inside of the boat.... With the windows and hatches off, much of the dust from grinding made its way into the boat.... It is all gone now... She also got busy getting rid of a small shelf in the galley that apparently she didn't want anymore... As I was working quietly in the lazarette I looked up to see a shelf flying over my head and off the boat... There is no doubt in my mind that she did not want it in the galley any more...

A part of my day today was spent complaining about the tips of my fingers. The other day when I was grinding, I wasn't paying enough attention and I slipped and gouged the tips of three fingers.  I thought that it wasn't a big deal, except now they are still hurting 3 days later and it seems like the healing process may take a while...  Also, I have not been vigilant in covering up when sanding epoxy and fiberglass and I now have a rash all over my arms... What a mess.

I am glad that we got to spend the day together, lately we have spent more time apart that ever before...  It has been hard on both of us...  We just keep remembering that in the next few years our time together will increase exponentially.... We can't wait...