October 2, 2020

Skeedeen Phase 6-7

Friday

After a bit of office time compiling a list and ordering materials for the upcoming paint work, I got back to work on the through hull patches, starting with a quick water wash and sanding as needed inside and out.  In the engine room, I just needed to lightly scuff the surface and remove any sharp edges, while on the exterior of the hull I sanded the new patches flush with the adjacent hull as needed.

Afterwards, I applied a coat of epoxy fairing compound to the exterior of the patches.  Inside, to prepare the fresh epoxy for engine room paint as soon as possible, I applied a coat of epoxy-based primer over the new work, acting as the needed tie coat to allow one-part paint to cure atop the epoxy without waiting weeks for the epoxy to completely cure.

The engine box was now in the way in the cockpit, so I reinstalled it on its hinges over the engine room.

After a few undocumented odds and ends, I removed the center swim platform bracket from the transom, since I could reach the nuts from the centerline hatch in the cockpit.

Checking again the two outboard brackets, as well as the trim tab mounts, I thought that maybe, just maybe, it would be possible to get a wrench on the nuts if I had a helper outside to turn the screws.  The trim tabs looked like I could pull the fluid lines out of the hull from the outside and disconnect them there, which was helpful since there was no way I could get to those from the narrow locker openings in the cockpit.  In any event, that would wait for another day.

Total time billed on this job today:  2.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  48°, overcast.  Forecast for the day:  Clouds and showers, then light rain later, 62°