PocketShip.net

Has anyone had issues with the glass wearing on the bottom of the keel? I'm about to pull the Chucky b. off the trailer and roll it over to check since it's been sliding on and off that trailer for four years. At the same time I'm going to put aluminum strips along the bottom to prevent any problems in the future. Anyone ever tried using an air mattress as a cusion while flipping too?

Thanks,

Chris

Just an update. We pulled the Chucky B. off the trailer and the only wear on the keel is from the tip to the front edge of the center board slot. The keel was coated with a mixture of epoxy and graphite when originally built and that's showing almost no wear at all. Surprisingly the worst wear is under the side bunks but I think that can be limited by lowering the rear of the bunks after repairs are made.

Chris

That's valuable information. I hope you update us on any and all maintenance you do. I've been curious about wear on the keel, but hadn't even considered any from the side bunks.

I'm loath to drill holes in the keel for metal wear strips, but I have been considering epoxying on a 1/2" or so sacrificial wooden keel shoe when I get to that point in the build and fairing it in neatly. Or I might just load it up with some extra glass there.

I think the wood keel shoe (glassed) is a much better idea than screwing on aluminum, it also raises the keel just enough to enhance drainage out of the CB trunk.

Herb

I ran into a rock and tore up the keel nose block. To repair it, I sanded down and glued in a 1/4 inch rope saturated with epoxy , then added thickened epoxy to make everything smooth and sanded down. It's been rammed into the boat ramp a few times now with no additional damage. I haven't seen what the underside of the keel looks like, but I haven't felt the need so far for a shoe. The most exposed area is that nose block, at least for the recovery and beaching that I do when sailing.

I like that rope idea for the nose block. What type of rope did you use? It's to late for this time around but the lake levels are down this year and I'm bound to run into something sooner or later. This time around it's got three layers of glass on the bottom and around the nose with the graphite mixed into the final coat of epoxy. Maintenance usually consists of refinishing the spars about once a year since they seem to take the most abuse in the boat and most materials to build them aren't very rot resistant. I usually do them at the end of the season but put it off last fall and seemed to be worse then usual by spring. The rub rails usually need some touch up through the year and have been completely stripped and refinished ounce since the boat first launched in 2011. Generally the bright work is what's going to need the most attention. This year I had to add repainting the sides to the list due to a missing rub strip on the dock I launch at last year. Judicial use of fenders would have prevented that. The nose block to the keel has already been mentioned and I've got a variation on the front bulkhead/ tabernacle separation issue to deal with. I had a minor separation of the bulkhead but the tabernacle to bulkhead and deck joints have opened up and are letting water in. I'm going to fillet and glass them next if the weather cooperates.

Chris

I used 1/4" nylon but I don't know that the type would matter. I just soaked the rope in unthickened epoxy for 5 minutes or so while mixing and mashing it to get out all the air bubbles, then taped it as tightly as I could to the nose block. There was still areas that needed fairing with thickened epoxy, then I sanded everything down. I used two layers of fiberglass while building but the concrete and rocks on my lake just laughed at that. I don't have access to a dock at my ramp, so exodus is a matter of lining it up and dropping sail at the last moment. Timing is everything and my timing leaves something to be desired..... Every time I see paint flakes in the water I apologize and promise to fix her next winter.

Don't make the mistake that I made, though. If you overlap the rope with the bottom of the keel, running the boat off the keel trough will rip it off. Cut it sharply at the bottom of the nose block pointy section and do NOT overlap the keel bottom.

Rather than rope to beef up the noseblock (and possibly keel) why not use the kayak rubstrips offered by CLC? http://www.clcboats.com/shop/products/boat-building-supplies-epoxy-fiberglass-plywood/kayak-rubstrip-kit.html. They include several layers of Dynel fabric embedded in epoxy mixed with graphite. I bought one of these kits for my kayak and had more than enough material to do both ends. I have used the left-over graphite in several places on the Pocketship and plan to use it on the noseblock and keel. I would think the Dynel cloth is quite a bit tougher than rope, so I'm going to buy another kit for that purpose (used the last of the Dynel cloth on the centerboard).

The dynel would be great for abrasion but part of the failure I had on the nose block was actually from compression. Right where the nose block hits the roller at the end of the keel trough the wood had compressed slightly and separated from the glass. A crack developed and let some water in which had just started rotting. It was about 1/4" square so it filled in easily. The rope would be great at spreading the load over a larger surface and the Dynel would great for protecting the bottom. I'll have to remember this next time around. I scrapped the shoe idea too since putting a hole through the glass is just inviting a rot problem and the condition of the keel just didn't warrant it. Even after missing the keel trough a couple times on the trailer. Hopefully the bottom will be patched up tomorrow night and the rest of the repairs done by Wednesday.

Chris

Makes sense. Good luck with the repairs.

I'm sorry to say they also use a lot of concrete and what they call "rip rap" (broken up concrete) in our lakes too. It's been extremely hard to protect my Skerry from damage, but one advantage of its light weight is that it has always been forced to a stop before any serious damage was done. I'll have to be a lot more careful with the PocketShip which will have a lot more momentum. Thankfully we've had a lot of rain lately in Oklahoma and all the lakes around here are back up to normal levels. I just hope they stay that way long enough for me to get the thing built.