Git Her Done Continues

 

The Worlds Only(?) Skidder Powered Travel Lift

 The wind blew westerly today which on the southern Flathead portends poor weather ahead. But with clearing skies it was enough to be working on the boat. I need to ensure we're at least able to go sailing this weekend if not aesthetically perfect. This means that the leeboard guard needs to be reattached. I also wanted to redo my peak and gaff halyards. So to work. 

The night before I glued up my leeboard guard. Mixed it to a peanut butter like consistency and clamped and screwed it. Set it in the utility room to cure overnight. I was overjoyed to see that it had done exactly as it should and was solid as could be. Almost like it never broke. I was very pleased with this development. Then it was into the truck with a quick check this time to make sure I had the tools and supplies I needed and it was north. 

 Thankfully the work went quick. Because we had taken both parts home it was a simple matter of setting the bolts back into the guard. Then a bit of work getting the board back in and just like that the boat was whole again. According to my friend Carl I'm a Class 2 Boat Builder now which means I can use epoxy without fear. And that has made jobs like this so much easier. It's not pretty but it's functional. So with the guard on it was time for the next set of projects. I should note so far less then a half an hour has passed and I had budgeted three hours for projects. On top of that I am planning on coming up later in the week to finish what I don't get done here. This is why this is a blog and not a vlog. There isn't enough moving content to make it interesting. 

It's nice to have a chandlery just a click away

 I could stare at the line set up of Katie M. for hours. There is so much detail that I can use it's amazing. And it set me on a course to change my line setup for my running rigging. On the starboard side of the boat at least. That includes four lines: Throat Halyard, Peak Halyard, Leech Line, and First Reef. The halyard blocks are in a rather awkward position forwards and in a case of It Came Thatwayitis it's never been changed. But it's time. I ordered new bronze deck blocks to replace the Ronstan Jib Blocks that were in place for my halyards. This is directly from the Katie M. and it should work a bit better. The blocks went in quickly with all new stainless steel hardware and were bedded with butyl tape. The interior of the boat means that the original plan of giant fender washers in the 1/2" deck wasn't possible but I'll be VERY surprised if the blocks go anywhere. Since the bronze jam cleats I picked up are shorter in profile my plan is to elevate them with a nice piece of wood to make them easier to use.

This layout needs updating

 In the process of getting the blocks to a place where they will work I found all the lines forward need to change. I also need to remove a bunch of hardware that is now superfluous and fill all the holes, sand and paint. The cabin roof presents challenges in directing lines aft. I think I'm going to move to a fixed leech line and eliminate it's run aft. That just leaves the forward first reef line. More staring is needed. I also added the new quarter boards from Matt Cline of Salvation Navy fame. They are just in place with wood screws for the time being but they look so much better now.

A good overview of the work completed today

 Five days remains until the official launch for 2023. The goal is a functioning boat and continuous work throughout the next few months. Having the boat on the hard and not at home is a game changer when it comes to working on the vessel. This means afternoons can be devoted to projects that distractions at home always seem to put off. If all goes well we'll take the boat home better then when it came up and do it again next year.