The morning’s round of sanding removed the bulk of the skim coat of fairing compound from the cockpit, and highlighted the areas requiring additional attention, as expected.

With a finishing sander and by hand, I sanded the foredeck fillets and other areas where I’d spot-applied fairing compound around the rest of the decks.  This left most of the transitions between deck and toerail in good shape, with just some minor marks to fine-tune.

After cleanup, I applied additional fairing compound to the cockpit areas, mainly at the edges where I was blending the raised nonskid pattern areas with the surrounding decks.  At the four scupper locations, I chose to leave the original contours and end the new fairing at a pre-molded corner near each of the drains, which would maintain the shallow sumps around these fittings.

Next, I went around the boat and spot-applied fairing compound as needed at the toerails and nearby fillets, along with the toerail scuppers.

I finished up the day’s work by removing the old sealant from the ports and deadlight openings on the port side.  Soon I’d be sanding and preparing these cabin sides, one of the last untouched areas so far (along with the cockpit well), and removing the rest of the old sealant was the last obstacle to the next steps.

My focus turned to the cockpit, which hadn’t seen much direct attention yet beyond the repairs at the aft end.  Now, along with sanding the fairing compound on the repairs, I sanded all the cockpit nonskid as I’d done elsewhere on the boat, removing the bulk of the texture and preparing it for additional work.

Continuing, I worked on the foredeck to sand as needed the most recent application of fairing compound, which had been concentrated along the edges and centerline.  A few minor tool marks remained here and there, but otherwise the foredeck was ready for final filleting work along the toerails and other areas.

Along the quarters, I sanded the fillets I’d installed along the toerails.

With the day’s sanding complete, I cleaned up the cockpit and applied a skim coat of fairing compound to all the nonskid areas, as well as some additional work on the repairs at the after end.

After cleaning applicable areas of the main deck, I applied fillets along the toerails at the foredeck, blending them into the existing fillets along the sidedecks.

At the aft end of the boat, I spot-applied fairing compound where needed to fine-tune the new fillets.  The filleting tended to leave a thin, low/unsanded line on the deck just inboard of the fillet, from the way the application tool interacted with the two surfaces, so most of this round of filling was a basic skim coat to clean up this tiny void, along with dressing up the toerail scuppers where needed and some related areas.

 

Another good round of sanding to start the day, and finish off the week.  This time, I sanded the coachroof with the finishing sander and 80-120 grits, leaving only detail and hand work for another time in order to finish off the prep there.

In the cockpit, I sanded the instrument patches and cockpit bulkhead with the same finishing grits, then moved on to the three recent repairs at the aft end.  Since I was in the area, I chose to sand the nonskid in the after part of the cockpit as well, saving the rest of the cockpit for next week’s agenda.  Then, I lightly sanded with the finishing grits the minor repairs to the top edge of the transom, and the counter through hulls.

On the foredeck, I sanded the skim coat, which left only the expected low spots at the edges and centerline, where I was blending the nonskid with the recessed smooth borders.

After a thorough cleanup of cockpit, sidedecks, and foredeck, I applied additional fairing compound to the cockpit repairs and foredeck as needed.

Next, I focused on some detail fairing, using my little filleting squeegee to install epoxy fillets along the after sections of the toerail, in the toerail scuppers, and a few other areas around the boat.

This work set me up well for a brisk start to the next week.  To finish up the day, and begin knocking off a low-tolerance task on my list, I worked on removing old sealant from around the opening ports, beginning on the starboard side.  The owner had removed the trim rings but left the well-bedded port bodies in place, as there was no need to remove them, and now there was plenty of butyl sealant left behind that I needed to clean up before final surface prep on the cabin sides, which I’d yet to touch.  I used a small and larger scraper to remove the sealant, which was tenacious in its own way even though it wasn’t too difficult to remove.  I also scraped away old silicone from the edges of the fixed deadlights on this side.  With bright sun streaming through the windows in the late afternoon, belying the frigid air outside, this less-favorite job proved a quiet and productive way to end the week.  I’d do the same with the port ports some other time in the near future.

Using a 6″ finish sander, I sanded the entire coachroof, blending in the most recent round of fairing compound and smoothing all areas.  Only a few small lows and minor voids remained.  I also began removing the one-part paint from the center hatch coaming.

With the same tool, I sanded both sides of the forward cockpit bulkhead, not only to smooth my latest fairing compound on the instrument holes, but also to remove a coat of one-part paint over the entire area.  This exposed previous repairs of older instrument holes as well.

Continuing, I dressed up the starboard sidedeck outboard of the cockpit, where I’d finally achieved the shape I hoped for, as well as the top edge of the transom and the three though hulls in the counter.

Switching to a more aggressive tool, I sanded the new repairs in the cockpit, bringing the edges flush with the surrounding areas as required, and lightly scuffing the centers as needed.

The bulk of the foredeck was still untouched, and now it was time to sand the nonskid and prepare for skim-coating and final fairing work.  (First picture:  before)

After cleanup, I applied a skim coat of fairing compound to the entire foredeck, fairing in the edges of the raised nonskid areas as needed.  First, though, I added an oblong of fiberglass to one test hole I’d drilled in the foredeck earlier, which hole I’d also previously filled with epoxy.

Moving on, I added small areas of fairing compound to the areas requiring it on the coachroof, and instrument holes in the cockpit bulkhead.  I skimmed over the older, previously-filled openings that my sanding had uncovered earlier in the day.

Next, I troweled a layer of fairing compound over the new cockpit repairs, and some spot filling for the transom and counter.

With what was left of the day, I finished up work on the sea hood, smoothing in the spot fairing repairs from last time, then finish-sanding the part through 12o grit, the final required before high-build primer.  This piece was finished except for some quick hand work at the corners and edges.

I got the day started with some sanding on the coachroof.  After the second round of fairing compound, most areas were where they needed to be, but a few tool marks and minor voids remained.

Afterwards, I spot-applied more fairing compound where needed.

I continued work in a similar vein with the patched through hulls in the counter.

Next, I turned to the ongoing repairs in the cockpit, which were ready for core and top laminate.  Because of the small size of the repairs, and the flat nature of the new inner skins I’d installed, made from prefab panels, I saw no reason not to install the core, then the top laminate all in one operation.  So in turn, I wet out the core, prepared the openings, installed the core in epoxy adhesive, then, because the core was a bit below the surrounding edges, installed three layers of 1708 over the core (in the propane locker opening and pedestal opening) before installing the final two overlapping layers to complete these repairs.  For the engine panel, located in the uncored vertical side of the cockpit,  I installed two layers within the opening to bring it flush, then two additional layers over the top to tie it in.

Later, I sanded the sea hood once more, bringing it mainly to its final state of readiness, though there were a few tool marks that would require spot filling shortly.  First, however, I lightly sanded the underside, mainly to prepare the old paint for new coating, but also to prepare the slots left behind from removing the old structural ribs so I could fill them flush with an epoxy mixture.  ONce that was done, I could flip the part back over and apply fairing compound where needed on the top surface.

At the transom, earlier I’d ground out some cracking where the hull and deck moldings met, and now I installed some fairing compound to fill these areas.

I used up the remains of that batch of fairing compound to fine-tune a couple areas on the starboard sidedeck, and fill some of the smaller repairs and fastener holes that I could easily reach in the cockpit.

 

With the large area of the coachroof, plus other areas to address, I spent the morning sanding fairing compound and patches, and cleaning up afterwards.  This left the coachroof in generally good shape overall, with low spots in the expected areas:  at some of the edges, where I was blending in between the molded nonskid and the surrounding areas; and around portions of the core repair to starboard, in particular.  The sidedecks were shaping up nicely with only minor work remaining ahead.

In the cockpit, I sanded flush the laminate over the instrument holes, and scuffed as needed the beginnings of the repairs to the larger openings at the aft end.

I sanded the first coat of fairing filler on the sea hood, and also the new laminate on the three patched through hulls in the counter.

In the afternoon, after final preparations, I applied more fairing compound to the coachroof, along with the instrument hole repair and the counter repairs, and some additional work on the starboard deck outboard of the cockpit.  Then, I applied more to the sea hood as well.

I made simple patterns for the core and laminate, as needed, at the cockpit repairs, then finished out the day cutting fiberglass and 1/2″ balsa core for these repairs.

 

I would have liked to have been able to apply fairing compound to the coachroof last time, but just didn’t have time on that day, so my first order of business was to get this underway.  Before I could begin, I had a couple small preparatory tasks, starting with the mast wiring through-deck fitting, which I hoped to remove to clear the decks for the work ahead.  The nut unwound easily enough, but I couldn’t get the well-bedded fitting to budge; it was plastic and I didn’t want to destroy it, so ultimately I left it in place.  With the nut removed, I could lightly sand, fair, and later paint the decks right up to the fitting, then the nut would cover the seam later.

I took a moment with a 3-3/4″ hole saw to redrill the starboard cowl vent hole, then remasked it from below to prevent any epoxy from going inside the boat.

Finally, I removed the metal tracks on which the companionway hatch slid, which would later allow me to remove the hatch to allow proper preparation and painting in the area.  For now, I left the hatch in place.

After vacuuming and solvent-wash, I applied a coat of epoxy fairing filler over the coachroof, skim-coating the nonskid and beginning to fair in the various repairs.

There were several large openings in the cockpit requiring patching, including the instrument holes on the bulkhead, the old engine panel location, an unused propane locker opening in the lazarette, and the steering pedestal opening between the two cockpit sections.  During earlier sanding phases, I’d already prepared these openings for new work.  To begin, I started with the instrument holes, and, after masking from behind, filled the round openings with a thickened epoxy mixture before installing two layers of fiberglass over the top.

At the transom counter, I installed two layers of fiberglass over each of the three circular repairs to fill the through hull openings from the exterior.

For the large cockpit repairs, I cut prefab fiberglass (1/8″ thick) to fit the openings from the engine panel and propane locker, then epoxied them in place from behind/beneath, using temporary screws as needed to hold the panels while the epoxy cured.  I actually forgot all about the pedestal opening till I was in the process of installing the nearby repair panels, so I hurried to find another suitable piece of prefab that I epoxied in from the underside, using hot-glued braces from above in this case to hold it securely while the adhesive kicked.

Next, I applied a coat of fairing compound to the sea hood, beginning to fill the cloth texture and smooth in the transition between the overlay and the original hood on the sides.

To round out the day, I spot-applied fairing compound to the sidedecks as needed, mainly in those areas outboard of the cockpit, where there were transverse trowel marks from the last application that required easy filling.  The starboard side did have a pesky transitional spot where there had been a (more substantial than I first thought) change of elevation in the inner skin, leading to a bit of additional and ongoing work now to fair it properly from above.  Otherwise, this round of fairing was focused on some fine-tuning around the deck edges and fillets, outboard of the molded stanchion bases, and another pesky–but I thought now resolved–low area in way of a previous repair near the port chainplate.

In a short half-day, I got to work on the coachroof, sanding not only the new core repair, but also all the small fiberglass repairs and a first good round of sanding on all the existing nonskid pattern to begin to smooth it out and transition the edges to the smooth areas.  Later, I’d skim coat and fair all this, though I didn’t have time at the moment.

In the cockpit, I sanded flush the various small hole repairs, and lightly scuffed the inside laminate of the counter through hulls.  Sometime later, I’d laminate and patch the outsides of these openings.

Next, I sanded the most recent application of fairing filler on the decks outboard of the cockpit, and the foredeck repair.

 

The next steps for the coachroof core repair, after removing the weights and a light sanding, began with a simple paper pattern of the area so I could cut the top layers of fiberglass.   For the first two layers, which covered only the core and were necessary to bring the inner area flush with the surrounding flanges, I used the pattern I’d made for the core, and found I could use up some offcuts from earlier glasswork for these pieces.  Once I’d cut the two layers, I wet out and installed them in epoxy resin atop the core.

Next, I cut two final layers to tie in with the adjacent decks, and installed them as well.  I went right over the top of the large cowl vent opening at the forward end, as it would be easier to redrill the hole later than to try and cut material around it.

There were numerous small repairs to be dealt with on the coachroof, as well as in the cockpit and the through hull openings in the counter–places where I’d ground small dishes to accept fiberglass over permanently-unused fastener holes that I’d filled.  To prepare, I marked and cut two different sizes of fiberglass patches, which shapes would fit all of the repairs needed.  I cut some larger circles to fit the counter through hulls (both inside and outside), as well as some to fit the unused cowl vent opening on the port forward coachroof.  For the through hull holes, as well as a couple larger openings on the small deck forward of the transom, I masked over the holes from one side and filled the holes with a thickened epoxy mixture first.

Next, I wet out all the little circles and other patches and applied them all over the boat where needed.

The foredeck repair, and the decks outboard of the cockpit, required additional fairing compound in places to begin to fine-tune the shaping, and I did this next, along with a second layer on the accessible screw holes on the sides of the coachroof here and there that I’d worked on earlier.

I had enough time left in the day to make progress on the sea hood, starting by cutting away the excess fiberglass from the aft (open) side where I’d let it run wild during installation, then lightly sanding the whole piece to prepare it for fairing compound.