Windows

This was just after putting the tent up and before removing the windows and rubbing strake.  Looks quite good from here but looks can be deceiving!

My son Tom putting his Karate skills to good use punching the old windows out.  The rubber was perished and badly fitted and the wondows were cracked and brittle.  Not sur eyet what or how to replace the wondows.  I was quoted for aluminium framed windows with toughened glass or perspex.  The price shocked me, more than £500 for the four!!!  A cheaper option will have to be found but I still want it to look good.

A view looking down as you step into the cabin.  I removed the wooden trim that houses the washboard.  The outer parts were rotten at the bottom.  The inner pieces were fine and just needed sanding.

Notice the wooden step that runs the width of the boat.  This had come away from the fibreglass so I mixed up lots of West Epoxy with some micro-fibres and put it in every crack I could and then clamped it back in place.  It is now bonded in the correct place and just needs cleaning up and a varnish,

This is a picture of the outer trim that was rotten at the bottom.

This is a top view of the old profiles as they fit together.

This is the new outer profile a bit wider than the original but will be more secure.  I routed the rebate and I am using the original inner profile.  I will post pictures when fitted.

View of ventilator on the deck just behind the mast.  The previous fitting was plastic and was cracked and broken.  Not sure if I will put a wooden ring round the inside to finish it off.

This is the mushroom vent I will fit.  I have had it for a long time and it was destined for a previous boat but now will look great on the Alactiry, something to polish!

Transom and through hull fitting

This is the transom taken just after getting the boat home.  Notice the small hole below the outboard tracks.  This was brass and had a pipe leading to the starboard locker.  It did not drain the cockpit but I am guessing it was to drain the locker if gas was stored there.  The locker was not sealed so not sure how efective it would have been.  I have removed the fitting and pipe. 

This is the transom now it has been sanded and painted with grey primer.  I have bought a new through hull fitting which is in place at the bottom of the transom.  I will either connect this to a drain at the aft end of the cockpit or use it as an outlet for a hand operated bilge pump.

View of transom

Rubbing strake

The next two pics are bits of the rubbing strake I removed.  It was in lots of different pieces and differnt woods and some was rotten and badly fitted or lose.  I decided to remove it, some was bolted on and some screwed through the hull leaving sharp screws sticking out inside.

  Whilst I would have liked a wooden rubbing strake I will replace it with a rubber one as below.

The sample on the left is the likely one I will use as it has a lip to accomodate the step where deck overlaps hull.  Plenty of room for some sealant.  The profile is screwed in place then the tube put in afterwards.  Comes in blue, black or red and different sizes.  The second profile from the same company is intersting as you can sand the surface to look like wood from a distance but it is flat profile where is goes agains the hull and I coul dnot get the white part to fit correctly so no use for the Alacrity unless I put an infill piece on the hull before fitting but that would be too fiddly I think.  If you see my link to Misty the Silhouette Edward has used the white profile and it looks great.

I wanted a woode strake on the stern so I laminated three pieces of teak over a former to get the curve and this will be bolted and screwed onto sealant oncce the hull has been painted.  I coatedthe wood with epoxy and it will be varnished to finish it off.  The picture below is looking across the stern from port side.

Below shows a bolt going right through the new strake with a brass plate.  This is on the centre line.

Mainsheet horse

This is the bronze mainsheet horse.  I have not cleaned it up yet but made some aluminium backing plates the same as for the rudder.

Rudder pintle

This is the bottom rudder pintle.  It is bronze and I just cleaned it up. 

The pintle has four screw holes and a bolt through the hull which goes through a backing timber in the transom. 

I made up some aluminium backing plates to spread the load.

The old and new galley sink

This is the old fibreglass sink that was on the starboard side of the boat. It had a hinged lid and very small outlet which drained through the hull. It was a formica top.




You can see the waste outlet after the sink was removed and more blue fleck paint...






This is the new sink surround with the hole for the new sink.







I had a stainless sink that I had on a previous boat, long story, so I used it here. Otherwise I would probably have just used a plastic bowl which could be thrown over board. Not sure what I will cover the wood in to keep moisture out.

There will not be a tap or anything just a plastic jerry can with a tap. Not sure where it will be sighted yet but it looks quite a good spot below but I have yet to see if my kettle will fit under the tap, very important....

Ribs

I closely inspected all the ribs when I bought the boat although I was not too worried if any needed replacing as I have done lots of laminating with wood and epoxy. I was please that they all seemed okay untill I found the forward rib was coming away from the glass fibre holding it in place.


With a bit of a tug the rib came clean away from the hull. There was no limber hole to allow water to run aft so any water would have sat against this rib. I am not sure whether to add any limber holes but I will decide before final fitting.

I had a piece of hardwood already cut in a curve and it was perfect so I just laminated two pieces of oak on top to make up the size.

Once dry I planed the wood down to the correct thickness. I then offered up the old rib and marked it out to cut. First time and the new rib fitted perfectly. Now just to epoxy it in. I might put some glass strips over the top as for the other ribs.

I might need to shave a bit off the top of the rib before fixing to make sure the floor sits level.

Galley Stove that was on boat when I bought it

This is a picture of the stove that was on the boat when I bought her. It was in it's own box with gimbals. It is a Swedish SVEA 153 stove often used by the Swedish Army. I may keep it or sell on eBay as there seems to be a following for Primus parrafin type stoves. Looks nice polished up and burns well.

New locker in progress

New extension to the locker simply added onto the existing locker.




Clamped ready to glass in with 50mm wide glass tape. I will then make a template to fit a new front to the locker going right along the locker.

Portside locker refurb...

The small locker on the port side was only just hanging together. Long periods of damp conditions and the front came away with a slight tug.




The plywood base of the locker was delaminated but I wanted to avoid ripping it all out. I also wanted to extend the locker forward to make more storage. I did this on a Silhouette I had some years ago. I will try to use the little door again though.

Anchor point for end of anchor chain

There was nowhere to attach the end of the anhor chain so I made up a plate out of 4mm aluminium. I drilled two holes to take bolts that would go through the new bulkhead and the sampson post. This would strangthen the sampson post and provide a good point to use a rope lashing to attahc the end of hte chain. Never use a shackle in case you need to cut the anchor loose in an emergency. This view is looking forward at the new chain locker bulkhead and you can see the teak trim and the sampson post.




Plate fitted and bolted in. Just need to shorten the bolts a little.

Anchor locker

The small bulkhead to store the anchor chain was rotten at the bottom no doubt through moisture sitting there for so long. After unscrewing the sampson post and pulling it through the deck I carefully cut down each side and removed the bulkhead.



This picture shows the delamination of the plywood and it was very soft. Lots of dried mud and sand fell out as I removed the bulkhead...


The new ply bulkhead shaped and sat in place prior to glassing in. I painted the chain locker with grey bitumastic.


The bulkhead fitted and now primed with all other wood and a trim of teak has been fitted across the top. I made an infill piece for the top and will allow it to be removed easily but it will hide the chain.

A place to work...

Well I must mention one great investment. I bought a small marquee to house Sea Witch...I wanted a 8m x 4m but for some strange reason they were far more expensive than a 9m x 3m so I went for the cheaper option. Put it up in no time and now I can work on it in all weathers. Well almost, when it is windy it does have a tendancy to take off and move quite a bit.

eBay is a wonderful thing...

The built in water tank

This was a filler hole for a water tank which was fitted under the deck on the starboard bow. It was a fibreglass tank glassed in so to get to the underside of the pullpit bolts required it to be removed and it had some foul water in the bottom. Originally the water ran through a pipe to a brass tap by the sink. No way I could clean it or want to use it so I thought the best use would be to open up the side and use it like a locker. I preferred to use a small jerry can for drinking water and keep it simple.

The filler hole had no water tight cap to seal it from the spray on the foredeck and just had a perished rubber cap! Also good to stub your toe on no doubt...

After the side of the tank had been cut open with a jig saw and after I had removed all the black crud at the bottom...

You can just see the bottom of the filler pipe protruding. This turned out to be a pain to remove as it was flanged between the underside of the deck and the top of the tank.

I had to remove the top of the tank anyway then I was able to remove the pipe and the pullpit bolts which were nicely rusty anyway. I will line this locker and make a neat frame in wood to finish it off. Another little job...

Well the Ball head toilet had to go...it took some removing at least the bottom section that was glassed in. A heavy hammer did the job but the plastic was very tough. I even removed all the stainless bits from it, nuts, bolts and even made a nice handle for my roller reefing from the handle that opened and closed the flap.


The space left after the BH toilet was removed. What will I use this for I am not sure but...



Possibly a space for a cool box? I think I will put a base in just resting on where the toilet was fixed, after sealing the hole of course. Then a shelf above to put a small single burner and then some storage for cooking utensils. This cool box fitted quite snugly though...

Hatches painted

Underside of main hatch newly painted in white



Underside of forehatch newly painted white with fresh varnish on the handle.