A Beautiful Weekend...

So this weekend was the first since the back end of autumn that we've had two consecutive days of dry, reasonably warm weather;  the sun was out, clear blue skies and 15 degrees on both days!

Also for the first time we were able to tie the winter cover fully up and out of the way so that sanding yesterday and varnishing today was done in relative comfort - a great relief to my back!

Link to Winter Cover

At this point I should probably mention that this was the first time I've ever varnished when my working surface was warm and there was a gentle, but steady breeze.  This was a whole new experience!

I decided that this weekend would be a good time to give the cabin entrance woodwork a refurbishing coat as it had a reasonable chance of drying by the time we locked up at the end of the day.  Glad I opted to varnish this area before starting on the rest as it gave me a good idea how quick and slick I would need to be in doing the major stuff.

I was amazed how quickly the varnish started to dry, to the extent that I ended up using a slightly thicker coating so that my leading edge didn't dry too quickly.  Too little loading on my brush resulted in a distinct drag so I needed to increase it in order to avoid that.  I wondered whether to add a very small amount of epifanes thinner to help but decided against it.

I have ended up with a few small runs but am not too unhappy with this as they will be sanded out next weekend before the 6th coat.

The pictures I have uploaded this weekend show my efforts but I have also added in a couple just to show the varnish close up and how it isn't entirely perfect just yet. Again, I'm not too worried about this, the main thing is that I'm building up valuable microns of varnish depth.

Link to Cockpit Refurbishment

Finally, after running out of time last weekend I got the Locker Covers varnished with their 5th coat, and a refurbishing topcoat for the cabin cover.

Link to Locker Covers

On a final note, what a treat to spend the whole weekend in the sun, in short sleeves for some of the time and avoiding a red face by remembering to put some sun factor cream on!

A long day

The weather forecast for yesterday was better than today so domestic chores were ditched and off we went to the boat.

Charm has never been fitted with an anode so the other half set about lining up and drilling holes in the hull to install one we'd bought earlier.  Remembering the most useful piece of advice ever given in practical life; "measure twice, cut once" the anode has been installed without incident!

I carried on my usual task of sanding and varnishing so can now safely say I'm over half way! Yesterday took longer because I was working on my own for most of it (as the other half was otherwise occupied). Rain arrived towards the end of the afternoon but luckily I'd done the cabin sides and was able to finish the cockpit under cover before I finally lost the light.

Shopping and locker covers today so will update photos from this weekend's efforts on the relevant pages later.....

Another Weather Window...

Forecast for yesterday was dry, mild, a few rain showers and getting windier in the afternoon.  We were down at the boatyard by 9.30am!
We took the risk of tieing both sides of the tarpaulins up, which made life much easier.  Everything was lightly sanded to provide a key with 180 grit, vacuumed down and varnished with Epifanes at 85%. We were home by 2.30pm in time to watch the rugby!

Link to Cockpit Refurbishment Page

Calm Follows the Storm...

A full day today working on the boat!  The sun was shining, not a cloud in the sky and the tarp came off to do some sanding and get the second coat of varnish on.  The boat is booked to go back in the water in April so we're hoping the recent stormy weather over the past few weeks will now abate so we can start to build up those valuable extra layers of varnish.

Work today on the cabin sides and the cockpit ... Link to Cockpit Page

What to do on a Stormy Weekend ........

Simple really ...... you can't do anything on your boat at the boatyard as it's too windy and wet (apart from go to see that everything is secured and tied down), so you work on the stuff at home in your garage!

Third coat of varnish on the locker covers......  Link to Locker Covers page

Night Shift ...

So the night shifts begin ... locker covers sanded to 180 grit and second coat of varnish applied (75%).

Link to Locker Covers Page

Long Time No Report ................

What a frustrating few weeks! Sorry I haven't updated my blog but there hasn't been much to tell as the weather here, like elsewhere in the UK, has been shocking! The endless storms have meant that we have had to take advantage of any weather windows we could to get down to the boat to do some sanding.  We were hoping to be much further forward at this stage!

Our deadline has been relieved a little though as we've talked with Sam Heard (the son of the original boatbuilder) and decided to replace the gunwhales next winter.

Still, that said, good news today was that we were sufficiently sheltered enough in our spot on the quay to get the first coat of varnish on the cockpit and cabin sides!  Now we're cooking!  :-).  The nice thing also was that when the sun shone there was actually some warmth in it.........

Link to Cockpit Refurbishment Page

At home yesterday I got the first coat of varnish on the locker covers so good weekend all round really!

Link to Locker Covers Page

To be continued.....