Starting new journey - build starts soon - Dreams Won't Wait

[afairaizl]

Finally building - added updates to blog - https://www.dreamswontwait.com/

[afairaizl]

Progress is happening.



Updated timeline so far:

Preparation
??? – Many moons ago in college I promised one day to build a sailboat
Oct 28, 2018 – ordered study plans and build guide
Nov 16, 2018 – moved to new house by water with a functional workshop garage
Aug 3, 2021 – requested shipping quote and verification of kit order sequence
Aug 10, 2021 – received shipping quote and initial invoice, created spreadsheet to track costs
Aug 21st, 2021 – Drove to Mystic, CT to see PocketShip #1 and place my order (PocketShip #1 no show, order placed regardless)
Aug 22nd, 2021 – ordered 125# of lead
Aug 23rd, 2021 – saw Hull ID number in order – became more real
Aug 24th, 2021 – Shipping date email update – time crunch, panic ensued
Sept 8th, 2021 – Scheduled shipping date from CLC – rush to complete restoration of kayak restoration
Sept 7th, 2021 – Shipped notification received – day early
Sept 8th, 2021 – Arrived 36 miles from the house at warehouse, panic sets in – must complete ongoing kayak restoration faster
Sept 10th, 2021 – Call received 15 minutes before delivery of a “pallet of chemicals” – Epoxy is here
Sept 11th, 2021 – final sanding of kayak epoxy prepping for coats of varnish
Sept 13th, 2021 – delivery of materials scheduled
Sept 11th, 2021 – final sanding of kayak epoxy prepping for coats of varnish
Sept 12th, 2021 – boat marine plywood and milled timber arrives
Sept 13th, 2021 – delivery of materials originally scheduled
Sept 14th, 2021 – unloaded sheet goods to add casters to pallets to be able to move around
Sept 14th, 2021 – Jeep sold to make room for boat to live down the road and pay off some costs
Sept 14th, 2021 – Cabinets arrive for moving brewing equipment upstairs out of garage
Sept 15th, 2021 – Jeep leaves with new owners
Sept 17th, 2021 – pool table support rebuilt into work table
Sept 17th, 2021 – new cabinets for upstairs arrive and we discover they wont go up to final location
Sept 18th, 2021 – maple base cabinet rebuilt into mobile sanding station
Sept 18th, 2021 – Pantry cabinets and butcher block returned and smaller uppers and more bases bought with longer butcher block. Those got moved upstairs okay.
Sept 19th, 2021 – Electrical outlet adds/relocation and install of cabinets
Sept 19th, 2021 – Butcher block sanded and oiled/waxed/installed. Everything hurts.
Sept 20th, 2021 – Fridge moved upstairs – never doing that again
Sept 20th, 2021 – Maple pantry cabinets installed in garage, lumber rack added
Sept 21st, 2021 – More cabinets arrive and wider butcher block island slab – sanded/finished that one
Sept 22nd, 2021 – Last set of cabinets installed and butcher block installed – finally done there
I’ve still not cut a single piece of wood for the boat yet but now have more space in the garage and will start full bore organization and prep to start.
Sept 23rd, 2021 – moved all brewing equipment out of the garage and into new space upstairs
Sept 24th, 2021 – reorganization of racks in garage, reduction of bins allowing for flat piece storage as well as completed assemblies
Sept 24th, 2021 – added plywood top to work table, layer of cardboard – cut to 36″ width x 8′
Chapter 1 Begins
Sept 25th, 2021 – First pieces cut from sheets – Centerboard trunk and centerboard! Stacked and re-stacked the sheets
Sept 25th, 2021 -First glass and epoxy applied to centerboard trunks
Sept 26th, 2021 – two fill coats applied to centerboard trunk, centerboard assembled and curing, keel nose block rough shaped
Sept 27th, 2021 – Centerboard blocking cut and epoxied. Layout of keel parts and blocking with angles transferred
Sept 28th, 2021 – Centerboard trunk blocking joints sanded and joined to other centerboard trunk panel. Keel noseblock faired and sanded.
Sept 29th, 2021 – unclamped the centerboard and mixed up very small batch of epoxy to fill holes in centerboard and trunk in preparation for drilling during quick lunch break. After work rounded over trunk and glued nose block to keel
Sept 30th, 2021 – Centerboard part alignment, final glue up and allowing to cure
Oct 1st, 2021 – sanding and general epoxy cleanup on the keel. Rounded over edges with router – made first mistake and dug a gouge – taped around area with blue tape to deal with in the morning
Oct 2nd, 2021 – fixed mistake first thing in the morning with epoxy fill. Lead casting day. Poured centerboard weight first. Filled largest aft cavity next. Melted the aluminum pot, finished off with a cast iron pot. Sealed the keel up.
Oct 3rd, 2021 – Keelson attached to the keel. Centerboard rabbeted and filled with thickened epoxy to reinforce leading and trailing edge.
Oct 4th, 2021 – Leading and trailing edge of centerboard sanded and faired
Chapter 2 Begins
Oct 5th, 2021 – Centerboard glassed and fill coated. Clean up of scrap and space in general. End of Chapter 1 and Start of Chapter 2 with the hull cradle assembly.
Oct 6th, 2021 – Reinforced the arms of the build cradle and some space cleanup
Oct 7th, 2021 – Joined the first hull pieces together by epoxying the puzzle joints
Oct 8th, 2021 – Continued joining the remaining puzzle joint pieces
Oct 9th through 11th, 2021 – Glassing and sanding of hull panel pieces along with sealing floor supports with epoxy.
Oct 13th, 2021 – Final panel sanding completed, Keel gets placed in cradle, bottom hull panels joined to keelson

[afairaizl]

I am starting to feel the progress towards Chapter 2 again after the floor glassing slog. I'm in the midst of cleat attachment and gearing up to start the interior sand prior to painting and the floor process. Another coat of epoxy is needed in a few areas but waited until the cleats were on so I can coat them in situ. I'm really working to get the key epoxy work done in this area complete since we're heading towards our first hard freeze here in New England. My garage is heated with electric and I want to turn that thermostat back when I can. I keep the epoxy on a heat mat to maintain a close to 70* minimum which has allowed me to drop ambient temps a touch. I'll bounce to a bit of electrical wiring runs before the floor and front deck gets attached making the easy access disappear.

[doug@dougbraun.com]

Looks good! But you will have to cut away the center portion of that cleat across the transom.

[afairaizl]

Good catch, that was a case of ' I'll finish up one more thing before calling it a night.' A quick and careful round with a Japanese Pull saw and a good sharp chisel took care of it. I'll do a quick sand and light epoxy coat over that area while sealing the rest of the cleats but there was zero wood damage.

[afairaizl]

Paint is starting on the interior. Other pics and more details are on the blog -

I've been building out the wiring harness here and there for when the paint is complete and before the floor goes back in.

[afairaizl]

Falling desperately behind in updates here and on the blog. I took a slower approach with the delays in trailer delivery. I'm glad I ordered it in Feb. or I'd be waiting likely until next year. Nearing the end of things.

Sails arrived
Trailer arrived and installed
MMSI acquired and set in VHF and AIS
Final topside coats going on
Trailer registration pending title which is still in the mail somewhere.
boat insurance in place as of July 1st
Boat registration acquired
Pending quite a few coats of varnish on spars

Fitting out and wiring installation will take some time but should go quickly since I wired a lot of the harnesses back in the winter. Oh, and I took a 20 hour coastal navigation course through the USCG Aux. First launch will be in a lake here in NH and then I'll be moving back coastal after the shakedown.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/KLetixY4uZyES2La7

https://photos.app.goo.gl/YGcifqeNkvzHvUBn7

[afairaizl]

First thing this morning when we planned again to move from the garage - more snow... It caused a delay the last round of storms that rolled through dumping snow across the US

https://photos.app.goo.gl/kuRooYBnXiNSUTbE7

We went for it anyways. If she's not watertight by now, she's not meant for the water.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/HvNAnLJgw1M7iVdh7

Safely at home on the trailer

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ponnXyuNnnwXpZrWA

Time to start cleaning up some things to prep for final rigging - once it's warmer again outside. We've got another Nor'easter coming through next week.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/SSxWm2xdGU3XxeHx5