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Thursday

I began with a light sanding of the most recent round of fiberglass work on the rudder, including the upper portion of the leading edge and the top edge of the blade, bringing the fill work down to the final contours at the top.

Some slight depressions remained on top, and around the rudder post, so I installed some thickened epoxy over these areas to do the final smoothing.

Afterwards, and while the new epoxy was still uncured, I wet out and installed two layers of 1708 fiberglass over the top of the rudder, wrapping around the rudder post and overlapping slightly the new glass on the leading edge.

Total time billed on this job today:  2.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  55°, cloudy.  Forecast for the day:  Mainly cloudy, increasing sun, low 60s

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Tuesday

I continued work on the first stage of the rudder repair, starting with a light sanding of the new fiberglass and related work that had cured overnight.

I used my plywood template to check the contours of the leading edge of the rudder over the new repair.  As I’d hoped, the two new layers of fiberglass brought things back to where they needed to be, without making the shape too large.

With the lower section glassed, I used my jack and blocking to raise and support the rudder at a greater height so I could access the top portion of the leading edge.

After final preparations, I installed the corresponding two layers of fiberglass over the top, with the top layer overlapping the bottom section by three inches as planned.

At the top of the rudder, I used a thick mixture of strengthened epoxy to build up the forward section near the rudderpost, bringing it back close to the original shape,. working only by eye at this stage.   This application would later serve as the basis for the final shaping once cured.

Moving on, I turned to the topsides, beginning with vacuuming and a solvent wash to remove residual dust from an earlier round of sanding following the high-build primer.  Afterwards, I went closely over the hull with a strong light, looking for small flaws and pinholes that required filling, just as I’d done on deck before.  I marked these with simple pencil marks as I found them, since it was very hard to see them otherwise.  This would make filler application easier.

Mixing up a batch of epoxy fine filler compound, I troweled it into the various spots as needed, including filling the remnants of the recessed scribe line from the top of the original boottop.

Total time billed on this job today:  4 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  64°, mostly cloudy.  Forecast for the day:  Cloudy, maybe a stray shower as what’s left of Florence passes to the south, 77°

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Monday

I’d originally planned on removing the rudder at some point when I lifted and moved the boat, since there was not enough clearance to the shop floor with the boat in the shop to allow a complete removal of the shaft.  However, for the moment I planned to keep the boat where she was, and after some consideration I decided I could attack the rudder repair now without completely removing it–barring unforeseen circumstances, of course.

The main problem with the rudder was at the top edge, where the blade had hit the hull over the years since there had been no rudder stops installed in the steering system to prevent such an occurrence.  This had crushed the fiberglass and crumbled the interior structure of the rudder (basically a mix of solid putty).

(Photos from earlier in the project)

There was also a crack along the seam at the centerline on the leading edge of the blade–a common issue with rudders on many boats–plus additional damage to the bottom edge of the blade, which would also require some rebuilding work. (Photos from earlier in the project)

A bit earlier in the project, I’d prepared for the rudder’s removal by releasing the interior stuffing box nut and partially removing the bolts securing the bronze shoe on which the rudder shaft rested.

I set up a jack beneath the rudder to help me lift it off the pintle on the bronze shoe, and also to help me control the rudder’s descent.  There was little clearance to lift the rudder given its relatively tight fit against the shape of the hull, but it was enough to ease the pressure on the shoe and allow me to remove the bolts, after which the shoe dropped to the ground of its own accord; there was only a little bit of silicone sealant behind it.  Then, with relative ease, I could lower the rudder the rest of the way to the floor (after dropping it partially and removing the jack and blocking).

With the rudder down, I could access the top part of the blade–the most-damaged area–and also the leading edge, at least roughly half at a time.  I hoped the scope of repair would fit within the limitations of the access, which indeed it appeared it would.  The bottom of the blade I could deal with later, once I’d dealt with the top and leading edge.

Clearance between the rudder and the skeg and hull was tight, and there was no room to add extra material to the rudder in the course of repair, particularly at the leading edge, which had virtually no clearance between it and the skeg.  So to reinforce the cracked, curved edge, I’d need first to remove sufficient material to accommodate the thickness of new reinforcement.  To ensure that I maintained the existing shape and contours, I began by making a simple template–first from cardboard, then eventually from 1/4″ plywood–of the leading edge.  This would guide me as I ground off material and built up the new.

I also made a quick cardboard template of the shape of the top of the rudder, using the relatively-intact starboard side as my guide.  The template would help me keep the rebuilt top in the correct shape, though this wouldn’t be much of a challenge since the top of the blade was basically a straight line from the rudder shaft aft to where it curved down to meet the trailing edge.

Templates complete, I ground the leading edge of the rudder as needed to remove paint and gelcoat, and also deep enough to accommodate several layers of fiberglass that I planned in order to better reinforce the cracked edge.  I ground a bit into the crack running along the edge (the crack was simply where the two halves of the rudder came together but had been inadequately reinforced).  At the top of the rudder, I ground into the damaged areas enough to remove all loose fiberglass and the damaged filler in between, and also sufficiently down onto the blade to allow room for new fiberglass that I’d wrap over the top during the rebuilding process.  The round areas lining the edges of the rudder are filled areas covering the heads and bases of bolts that someone had installed long before in an attempt to reinforce the rudder.  I saw no reason to remove them, as they’d end up fully encapsulated within the rebuilt blade.

Holding my leading edge template against the rudder according to some reference marks I’d made before grinding, I could see that I’d removed enough material to allow for the rebuilding.

I also sanded the skeg around the edges of the rudder shoe recess, to clean and prepare this area for eventual reinstallation.

Despite these shortfalls, the blade itself, over most of its area, seemed sound enough, and short of starting from scratch I felt that the repair scope was such that I could–and would–proceed with the repair in place, despite the fact that ideally it would have been nice to fully remove the rudder.  But I didn’t see the need to spend the time and effort to lift and move the boat in order to drop—and then later reinstall–the rudder given what I’d found so far.  I had full access to the top and (later) bottom of the blade, and I could address the leading edge reinforcement in two overlapping sections, since the skeg interfered with part of the rudder even with it dropped as far as possible.  But raising the rudder part way after fiberglassing the lower part would allow me the access to the upper section as needed.

Now that I’d cleaned out loose and broken material within the top of the rudder and exposed solid material all around, it was time to build up–in several separate applications to avoid undue heat during curing–the interior of the rudder, now with a solid epoxy mixture of structural components like chopped strand and high-density filler.  After two applications during the afternoon, I reached the top of the existing sides of the blade.  Additional material to bring the rudder back to its final shape would have to wait till these first stages cured overnight.

Meanwhile, I got to work on the lower section of the leading edge, beginning with some strengthened epoxy filler in the groove I’d ground out over the crack, then following with two layers of biaxial tabbing set in epoxy.  I left room on the second layer so that the second layer from the top section could later overlap and conjoin the two sections accordingly.

While I had the rudder dropped, I removed the packing nut from inside so I could replace the packing before reinstallation.    The old packing (5 rings, though the fifth disintegrated to dust upon removal) was well-worn and overdue for replacement.  I’d cleanup the bronze nut and corresponding threads on the rudder tube before installing new packing and reinstalling it once the rudder was done.

Total time billed on this job today:  5.75 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  64°, foggy.  Forecast for the day:  Fog, then eventual clearing, around 80°

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Wednesday

The fine fairing compound had cured overnight, and now I sanded it smooth with 220 grit, removing the excess.  A few of the tight corners in the cockpit, including the locker lid gutters and other select areas, would require some additional hand-sanding work in the near future, as during this session I avoided getting bogged down with detail-oriented hand work in favor of the broad strokes of the bulk of the deck surface.

Total time billed on this job today:  4 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  64°, cloudy.  Forecast for the day:  Clouds, rain and possible thunderstorms developing, 70s

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Tuesday

I began the day by vacuuming thoroughly the entire boat, deck and hull, to remove excess sanding dust from the previous days’ efforts.  Afterwards, I solvent-washed the deck areas to clean them and prepare for the next step.  I’d eventually do the same to the hull, but only once I’d finished the decks.

The next step was to apply a fine epoxy fairing compound to portions of the deck as needed to fill various and sundry pinholes, small voids and any other areas requiring extra attention as highlighted by the high-build primer.    Because of the extensive nature of the deck repairs and related sanding, there were widespread pinholes to deal with, as anticipated and expected following the primer application, and in both areas of new work and the original surfaces, where sanding had exposed the natural small air pockets in and just beneath the gelcoat, and also a few areas requiring a bit of fine-tuning, such as the fillet around the forward hatch frame and some gelcoat voids in the companionway rails.

Total time billed on this job today:  4 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  48°, clear with low fog.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny, 75°

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Monday

Continuing on the hull, I worked during the morning to sand the starboard side with 220 grit, smoothing the fresh primer.

After resetting the staging so I could reach the decks again, I finished up the work on deck, sanding the foredeck, sidedecks, poop deck, and cabin trunk/outer coamings as needed to smooth the primer.

Total time billed on this job today:  7 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  50°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny, 75°

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Saturday

I got started sanding the high build in the cockpit, sanding all surfaces with 220 grit:  cockpit well, seats, bridgedeck, coamings.

Afterwards, I moved on to the coachroof, as well as a small portion of the foredeck and forward end of the cabin trunk near the centerline where I knew I’d not be able to easily reach later from the staging.

I’d sand the sidedecks and cabin trunk later, but for now, with the staging still set up at hull height, I turned to the hull, starting with the counter on both sides (reaching up as high as I could from the ground) and the transom, then continuing forward along the port side till I reached the stem, where I called it good for the day.  I sanded the fresh primer smooth with 220 grit on a vibrating finish sander and by hand as needed.

Total time billed on this job today:  6.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  71°, clouds and fog, humid.  Forecast for the day:  Cloudy, showers, fog, a thunderstorm, 73°

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Friday

High build primer is essentially a surfacing primer, and as such represents one of the last most important steps in the hull and deck repair work and surface preparation.  This primer helps to even out the various textures left behind during the previous work–original gelcoat, new fiberglass cloth, and fairing compounds–and serves to highlight pinholes and areas requiring additional fine filling, all of which are an inevitable part of the overall process.

The primer is also an important psychological step, as it signals new beginnings and fresh hope, and marks a significant change of appearance of and direction in the project.  On a large, long-term project like Scupper, I like to do the high build earlier in the process and at the end of repair work, a true dividing line between structural work and finish work, and this also gives me the opportunity to approach the final fine filling and detail sanding at a more leisurely pace while continuing work on other areas of the build.  Finish primer and paint would come substantially later in the process.

After final preparations, I began the high build application with the most central portions of the deck:  the cockpit well, bridgedeck, and coachroof.  I trod upon the masking paper I’d set up previously to avoid stepping on the clean, prepped deck.  I applied three sprayed coats of Alexseal epoxy high-build primer to these areas, then removed the paper and applied three coats of the primer to the remaining deck areas, including the cockpit seats, coamings, remainder of the coachroof, foredeck, cabin sides, and sidedecks.

With three coats on all deck areas, I moved the staging planks down to the lower height required for hull access, and sprayed three coats of the primer on the hull as well, completing the day’s work and transforming the appearance of the boat.

Total time billed on this job today:  8 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  48°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny with increasing clouds, chance of a thunderstorm later, 74°

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Thursday

I spent the morning working on the final details of pre-primer prep, including setting up spray gun equipment, pre-stirring the always-settled paint cans, final deck and hull preparations including tack-off, and other related tasks.

Next:  high build primer.

Total time billed on this job today:  2.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  Mostly cloudy and low fog, 68°.  Forecast for the day:  Partly sunny, 82°

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Wednesday

Moving forward with the final preparations leading to high build primer, I began the day vacuuming the interior and decks, and cleaning up the boat and shop to remove dust.  Afterwards, I solvent-washed the decks so I could start to mask off the various openings before spraying, starting with forward hatch and any other openings accessed from the cabin, including the two forward-facing port openings.  In the engine room, I masked over the cockpit scuppers and compass hole from beneath, and I crawled aft to mask over the new lazarette hatch from within as well.

With interior work complete, I masked over the companionway opening and wooden slide rails, as well as the large opening port in the aft end of the cabin.  In the cockpit, I masked the rudder post and the two locker openings.

To continue working on deck, as well as prepare for spraying ahead, I had to set up the staging to deck height again.  Before I did so. and while access to the hull was clear, I applied some masking paper below the previously-masked waterline mark, to protect the bottom from overspray when I sprayed the hull.  Then, I set up the staging as needed.

Continuing on deck, I solvent-washed the cabin sides and sidedecks, then masked over the six elliptical port openings in the cabin sides.

Now I solvent-washed the hull, getting what I could reach from the staging, then moving to the floor to finish up the last parts.  Like the decks, this was a basic solvent wash with paint thinner to remove the bulk of the dust and/or prepare for masking  tape.

With all the other prep now complete, I washed down the staging and floor with water to calm and remove any final dust, then turned to the final solvent wash of hull and deck, this time with the paint system’s proprietary wipe-down solvent intended for the task.  On the decks, I added some paper, well-taped in place, on which I’d need to stand or kneel during the first parts of the spraying later on, so I could reach the centermost portions of the coachroof and the cockpit well.

Several final preparation steps remained, and I’d complete those next time.

Total time billed on this job today:  7.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  Clouds, fog, drizzle, humid, 75°   Forecast for the day:  Clouds and sun, humid, chance of showers or a thundershower, low 80s°