| Bolero
Project |
Wednesday, April 23, 2008 Today wasn't the most productive day in a physical sense, but I did determine the answers to several pressing questions that would lead me through other important parts of the project. I began, as usual during this week, with another cabin beam glueup--exciting stuff. Then, I moved onto the boat and water-washed yesterday's new tabbing (do I really have to say that every time I address new tabbing, or can everyone start assuming that I always wash new fiberglass and fairing compound applications with water to remove amine blush) and sanded it to remove rough edges, etc. I also sanded the dabs of fairing compound on the overhead. Afterwards, I cleaned up the mess, |
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At this point, I found myself at an unexpected transitional point: for all intents and purposes, the major work on the interior was done. Of course lots of trim remained, and the ceiling needed to be installed, and paint and varnish and so forth, but all the basic structures were in place and complete, briefly leaving me feeling a bit like a fish out of water. I decided to address a few loose ends during what remained of the morning. First, I measured the space in the cabin where I'd need to install the wooden hull ceiling, so that I could determine how much material I needed. This was simple enough; the overall length was about 7-1/2' (just under), and the maximum height was about 32", give or take. I used 36" for my calculations. Afterwards, I changed directions rather radically and cleaned the cockpit so that I could apply a bit more fairing compound to some of the areas that I'd previously filled--the old air tank locations and the transition between the cockpit liner and the new bulkhead tabbing at the forward end of the cockpit. I wanted to begin work on the cockpit benches soon, and I needed this basic prepwork to be out of the way before doing so. While I was at it, I filled some chipping around the elliptical hatch in the forward bulkhead to smooth the area for eventual paint. |
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I had an extended lunch break while I dealt with some unrelated business, and after my return I calculated the amount of wood I'd need in order to build the ceiling (that's the hull covering) in the cabin. The desired material was to be Spanish cedar, an unusual but interesting choice, and I found a supplier (not my normal hardwood shop) who had some in stock--coincidentally, almost exactly what I'd thought I needed for the job. Unfortunately, they were not prone to delivery to my area, other than for an steep additional charge, so I had them set the wood aside so I could pick it up sometime in the next several days. Next, I contemplated the cockpit and made a few test measurements. However, I realized that I needed some firm information, so I called the owner and we had an extensive conference on desired seat heights, widths, and other characteristics of the cockpit--all of which were extremely important in order for progress to continue. This consumed most of the usable afternoon, but I had a clear sense of how to proceed next. |
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