Where Did The Time Go?

Having received a comment on one of my links it occurred to me that I ought to let you know that we continued work on Charm but I just never got a chance to sit down and publish a record!  I have lots of photos of what we continued with and I guess one day I will get around to ‘catching up’ my blogs .....

The other piece of news is that we actually sold Charm last year after much deliberation and debate but are pleased to say that her new owners are very happy with her and are out in her more than we were!  Don’t let the fact that we’ve sold her prevent you from asking questions or commenting - the experience of working on a boat like this is one you never forget or tire of talking about!

What did we buy after the Tosher? A Horizon Hunter 26 - far less maintenance as we get older but more polishing (I get to use my electric polisher!).  I do have one piece of wood to varnish though - the tiller was in sore need of attention so I’ve taken it back to bare wood and guess what? I’ve given it the ‘Soup’ treatment and am currently on coat 5 of varnish .......... won’t bore you with the pictures ..... there are plenty on here already :-).

Back on the Water

The lift back into the water went well on Tuesday, in fact by the time we got down to the harbour at 9am she was already on her berth.
The mast was stepped back in place later that day and we've spent the rest of our time to date getting the rigging back in place and making adjustments.
I took advantage of the rain showers on Tuesday and treated the deck with the first two stages of Teak Wonder (cleaner and brightener) and then followed up with the final step of the sealer yesterday as the sun had come for most of the day and dried it out to finish that particular job off.
We managed to get the jib on yesterday with the help of a break in the breeze and are pleased to report that a triangular fixing that the other half rigged up when the mast was off seems to work really well; the halyard no longer twists.
The cockpit cover fits well now I've rigged up the elastic fixings to final size and it was tested for water pooling points on Tuesday as we had heavy rain overnight.
The forecast today is light winds so we're planning on bending the mainsail on and even going for a quick sail to test things out.
It's all coming together at last, but it's great to be back on the water and the right side of Summer!

Sail Cover in Production

Nearly at our launch date so I'm having a break from woodwork and doing some sewing!
I made a sail cover last year by making a very simple 'boom tent' design that protected the cockpit as well as the sails.  That worked well, but we decided that a separate cockpit cover and sail cover would be better.

Having been inspired by the 'Sewing Bee' programme on the TV I have now set about altering the boom tent into the cover for the cockpit.  I've also started work on the sail cover with the fabric I had left over from our original purchase last year (we bought enough to do a sail cover too if we needed it).

Mum taught me to sew on an old Singer treadle sewing machine as soon as I could reach the treadle and I've kept it ever since; it still comes out on occasion for jobs like this!

I'll post progress as I go on a new Page .....

Long Time No Update ....

Time flies when you're busy and up against the clock!
We've booked our lift back into the water on the 22nd of this month so we're on serious countdown now to get things done.
We had a week off work recently with a plan to get us well on our way to completion but true to form the weather wasn't brilliant so we were restricted in terms of what we could do.
Good news is that I've finally managed to get to my 7th and final coat of varnish on the cabin and cockpit and Toplac on all the white areas.  I'll post photo's on the relevant pages when I get a chance in the next day or so.
In the garage, we managed to sand down the bilge covers and re-treat with Teak Wonder so they're back to looking loved and sanded down the locker covers ready for 7th (final) varnish coat and primed the undersides with Pre-Kote ready for Toplac.
Busy, busy, busy.......

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.....   

Weather Gets in the Way .....

Things have been quiet over the last couple of weekends as Christmas shopping and the weather has got in the way!

We've popped down to the boat to check her over a couple of times after some nasty weather fronts but pleased to say the winter cover has done it's job. We made a minor adjustment to it yesterday to extend the frame further over the stern as the tarpaulin was letting a bit of rain in, but apart from that all ok.

A few days off over Christmas so we're hoping to get some real progress made - weather and socialising permitting!

More Sanding........

This weekend, more work sanding the cockpit and starting to strip the cabin sides (link to Cockpit )

I've also managed to strip one of the locker covers at home so I can now see the potential of how nice they'll look when they're all done (link to Locker Covers.

We're both suffering from the effects of using flimsy disposable gloves that don't stand up to 60 grit sandpaper. Lots of handcream will be in use this evening to limit the damage!

One lesson learned last weekend of not wearing filtration masks resulted in us both having difficulty with our noses / sinuses during the week. However, this weekend we were sensible and bought some masks suitable for sanding dust that weren't too uncomfortable to wear for long periods - pleased to report that so far we're not feeling any ill effects like we were this time last weekend!

This weekend's work...........

This could start to get boring but sanding has started on the cockpit........  one point though... we're so pleased to be close to a power source (directly behind us - a bonus this year as we're normally two extension leads away!)

Latest update here ..... Cockpit Page

Today's Efforts....

I'm going to change the way I'm setting up my posts I've decided.
Rather than describe what we're doing each day in some detail on a 'post' I'm going to give an overview, and create a page for each area of the boat we're working on.  That way I can include a 'link' to the relevant page and I can keep the progress all in one place.

Winter Cover

Having started to build the frame yesterday we've now finished it off and covered it with the tarps.

We're all ready to go....Winter Cover Page

Cockpit

I've treated the area of the fungus so am leaving any further sanding in that area until it's dry.

We've replaced the locker covers with temporary MDF versions cut using the originals as a template and taken them off home to start work on.

Follow progress here..........  Cockpit Page

Started on the Cockpit............

So the big task today was to start to construct the frame for  holding the tarpaulin away from all the exterior woodwork.  We want to be in a position to be able to fold the tarp back if weather permits or work underneath it if it turns cold but without it touching the sides to ruin our efforts on varnishing when we eventually get to that bit.

The other half outlined the plan for how it was going to be fixed in place and we duly set off to the local DIY shed to procure the necessary.  We also got a couple of sheets of 18mm MDF to make the temporary locker covers for use whilst the originals are at home.

Final treat was to buy a new paint and varnish scraper!  We already have a heat gun that we used last year but the scrapers that came with it weren't brilliant.  In view of the amount of varnish stripping being done this winter the least we could do was buy a decent one.  In all our years of tackling jobs we've always learned that good tools are half the battle!

Luckily we don't have another boat parked up next to us currently so we had plenty of space to spread our stall out.  The other half started work on the measuring and preparing of his timber for the frame and I started scraping varnish in the cockpit.

I was anticipating using the heat gun but found that the scraper was actually doing a good enough job on it's own - especially as the panelling is tongue and groove so I'm working on the grooves first on each section before doing the flat bits.

Progress on the frame today?  Well it's in place and measured up ready for the purchase of the tarpaulin.

Photo's below of the current state of the varnish and the slight trace of fungus I found when I started (things are never simple - the first diversion off the plan...)

Follow the progress on the cockpit on the page directly relating to this:

http://heardtosher.blogspot.co.uk/p/cockpit.html

The Gaff Saddle.....

So, not having much time this evening, what to do?

The leather covering the Gaff Saddle, Jib Traveller and Boom 'bit' were in a very dry state when we bought Charm last year and so, having done my research on the internet tried various things in an attempt to put some life back into our basically sound leatherwork items. 

This year, during the summer, I treated the gaff saddle with Ko-cao-line (once I'd got over the shock of it being a rich pinky red colour when I opened the tin) as used by horse lovers as I'd read that it fed leather, waterproofed it and didn't rot the stitching  (unlike the Neatsfoot Compound I'd previously been using). 

Tonight I've applied a generous amount in to the leatherwork items (more than I was able to when installed on the boat) and will now wait to see how it works over the next few weeks. To be honest, we'd decided to replace the leatherwork this year, so if I've used the wrong stuff and it all goes pear shaped then we haven't lost anything!

As with everything these days I guess I should caveat my blogs with the phrase that I'm telling you what products we're opting to use for information rather than out and out endorsement - it's up to you whether you use the same if you're refurbishing like us......

Pics below for interest.......... and signing off.... :-)

The Gaff Saddle, Boom 'bit' and Jib Traveller

The 'red' stuff .... told you it was a good colour! 

First Jobs After Lift Out

Charm came out of the water on Friday so, having taken half a day's holiday to go down to the boatyard to secure her up and find where she was we set about jet washing the bottom before she had the chance to dry out.

We used Seajet Shogun antifouling last winter as we'd used it before with good results.  However, as we'd had a 'racing scrub' mid season courtesy of a mix up with the boatyard our efforts with our baby jet wash was a whole lot quicker and easier than normal!

When we purchased Charm her bottom had been stripped and primed by the previous owner so, not knowing how long it had been since it was done we primed it again and slapped on two coats of Seajet.  We have a little bit of work to do on the keel at the stern where the 'racing scrub' had taken the antifoul off completely but generally we're pleased with how it's ended up.

We also gave the hull a wash and rinse so that we could see what damage / discolouration would need attending to;  luckily again, very little.

That was Friday, yesterday was wet and a 'domestic' day so, today's jobs amounted to the following:

• Flushing the engine with fresh water - carried out with me holding the hose into the sea cock (and getting thoroughly wet in the process...) whilst the other half did the dry bit
• Cut and polish - cutting the hull with Farcela paste compound to get rid of some annoying little rust spots that had appeared from somewhere and the yellowing along the waterline.  Following that, a good layer of Mer (the version in the black bottle that's supposed to last 6 months) left for 30 mins and polished off with an old linen tea towel (no posh cloths for me - I have a favourite that does the job better than anything else I've used and just needs a good boil wash).
• Removed the tops of the lockers to bring home ready to strip and varnish over the winter

and finally

• measuring up to enable us to work out what we need to construct a cover that won't touch the woodwork when we start to varnish the cabin sides and cockpit.

A sign that winter is upon us is the fact that the garage has now turned into a chandlery and woodworking shop and the car is outside on the drive!

Getting Started...

Having bored my facebook friends mercilessly last year with updates on the work we'd completed on our new boat I decided to create a blog to a) record what we are doing this winter for anyone who is interested and b) enable a sigh of relief on fb for friends who aren't!

I'll post some details of what we did last year to bring our progress up to date in the next few days....