April 16, 2020

Adeline 12

Thursday

While waiting for the deck repair to dry after water-washing the fresh epoxy, I took the opportunity to lay out and mark the fastener hole locations for the new mast hinge bottom plate.  Extrapolating measurements from the original template as needed, I determined the plate needed to be 3-1/2″ aft of the hatch, which was easier to measure than the 5-3/4″ from the hatch to the forward bolt location as per the template.  After adjustments and centering and double-checking, I made some reference marks on the deck, then partially drilled the four bolt holes, drilling deep enough to maintain the holes, but stopping far from going all the way through for now.

Sticking with the mast for the moment, I test-fit the new pin to secure the mast step to the spar.

Next, I completed the final rounds of sanding on the coachroof, by machine and hand as needed, finishing off the shaping work and smoothing the last coat of fairing filler before sanding the entire area through 120 grit, the last needed before primer.  While I was at it, I also sanded and prepared the nonskid paint on the rest of the coachroof, since I’d be repainting the whole area.  When the work was complete, I removed all the existing masking tape, including around the forward hatch since the existing masking had become rather ratty after the rounds of repair work.

There were some pinholes and such areas that I knew required more attention, but I preferred to leave that work till after a round of sealing primer, as it’s a fool’s errand to try and track down pinholes and minor imperfections beforehand.  To that end, I masked off the repair as needed for primer, including the raised coaming for the forward hatch, which would require repainting as part of the process.  Since I chose to spray the primer–it was frankly easier and far quicker, as I could get down multiple coats in just a few hours’ elapsed time–I masked off adjacent areas against overspray.

Over the course of the remainder of the day, waiting an hour or so between coats, I ultimately applied four coats of epoxy-based primer to the new work and hatch coaming, using a small disposable sprayer for the job.  I focused on getting good coverage on all areas, but particularly on the hatch coaming and mast platform, since this primer needed to form the basis for the gloss finish paint in these areas.  The larger field areas would require some additional pinhole filling and repriming later before the nonskid paint, but these epoxy primer coats were crucial not only to seal the fresh epoxy work, but also to highlight pinholes and lows, as well as “raise the grain” and allow fine sanding of any of the exposed fiberglass from the repair.

Total time billed on this job today:  4 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  25°, mostly cloudy.  Forecast for the day:  Partly sunny, 46°