Lackey Sailing | Arietta Phase 2-1

October 26, 2021

Arietta Phase 2-1

Tuesday

Arietta was back for another round of work, this time focused mainly on completing the remainder of the deck refinishing, after completing the cockpit and hull phase last year. After clearing space in the shop following summer break, I moved her indoors and prepared to get to work.

The first order of business this season was to get the preliminary work done on a new winter cover, which Jason, my canvas subcontractor, would be taking care of. The new cover would use the mast as a ridgepole, and until the initial fitting was done, the mast had to stay in place on deck. After an initial consultation and some basic measuring, Jason had the information he needed to build a rough blank for the cover, and now I’d wait till that was complete and patterned before I could get into the bulk of the deck work.

In the meantime, however, I planned to pick away at the work list and get done whatever I could in advance, so I started by removing the lifelines and stanchions, which needed to be out of the way for the cover in any case. I also removed and secured some rigging that had arrived still attached to the chainplates, preparing not only for the new cover work, but, afterwards, for the removal of the mast during the bulk of the project.

Next on my list of early projects was to remove the bronze port trim rings in advance of the deck preparations and painting. These were secured with bronze screws from outside, and removal was straightforward. The trim rings had been bedded in abundant silicone, which I’d later have to remove. The trim rings were in good condition and would require minimal cleaning, since the bulk of the old sealant had remained on the gelcoat.

Next, I removed the teak eyebrow trim from both sides of the cabin. All the screw heads were exposed (but buried beneath a substantial coating of finish) except for one I found on the port side that still had the last vestiges of a bung, suggesting that at one time all the screw holes had been bunged. This trim was easy to remove, and other than the inevitable damage to the gummy coating as the screws came out, remained intact. However, I planned to mill new trim here, since it would be quicker and easier than attempting to save and restore the old trim; this would also allow bunging the screw holes during installation.

With a bit of time later in the day, I began to assess another one of the projects on the list: Replace the backing pads beneath the scupper seacocks. The original pads of plywood, while still generally sound, were beginning to deteriorate after years of moisture and condensation.

This would require removal of the hoses, valves, and through hulls. I hoped to be able to unthread the through hull mushrooms from the valves from outside, after which I could unbolt the valves and replace the pads as needed. However, the through hull installation wrench I had, and which works well for new installations, wasn’t suitable for removing these fittings, as I found I couldn’t apply enough leverage to break free the threads. After a fruitless attempt, I ordered what I hoped would be a better tool for the job, one to which I could apply a wrench, and set this project aside for the time being till the new tool arrived.