Re: Everyones thinking or doing.... WHAT?
Mattw79 said:
My ship is tarped and hopefully ready for this weekend's 6-12" of snow. This winter can't end soon enough...
Snow this weekend, Matt?
Guess I should get "Ophelia" under a tarp this morning.
After successfully using a 100 watt solar panel to recharge the batteries for the Torqeedo electric motor while on a mooring, you will have no trouble using a solar panel attached to the forward hatch to recharge your battery. I have been using a Ganz semiflexible 12 watt panel (
http://www.cbcamerica.com/microsite/res ... es0911.pdf) with a good MPPT charge controller (
http://genasun.com/all-products/solar-c ... ontroller/). The panel can be walked on and can conform to slight gentle curve.
It's been a busy travel year so many sailing projects have been delayed. The house addition is underway. It all started with a desire to screen in the porch. (Thank you for the design work, Matt. Both the contractor and building inspector are happy.)
I did pick up two project boats - a Ranger 29 (another Gary Mull design) and a Tripp-Angler 22 (I know, it's a motor boat, but it's a diesel powered lobster boat style and could be used as a RC boat). These two boats came as a pair. The price was low since the boats were "disassembled". The previous owner had started to restore them when he died. He was a carpenter and his father who originally purchased the boats and was a mariner by trade (got to see many of his certificates starting in WW2).
The Ranger has stand up room in the cabin and an Atomic 4 engine. I will pull the engine later this winter (the cabin area is stripped of all amenities so access is easy). Reading about it the Atomic 4, it is very much like the engine in my CJ2A Jeep (I have rebuilt these engines before). The hull needs the bottom paint removed, barrier coated, then probably new paint for the upper sides. But that will depend on how well the gel coat looks. The insides can wait a bit to put in the "pretty cushions and curtains". The sails are in decent condition and still quite crisp. I paid $600 for this boat.
The Tripp-Angler needs much more work. I originally didn't want to take it but the estate agent pleaded with me and gave me enough other things to justify the $300 price. The boat stands alone were worth the price. I tried to turn the motor by hand but it didn't turn. After researching the motor (Ford Leman 4L diesel), I understood why! There is a lot of compression in this engine that is as large as the one in my Grand Cherokee. This is going to be a total hull-up rebuild - just in time for retirement in a few years!
This past summer I got my O'Day 19 back to sailable condition and repainted it using Interlux 2-part polyurethane paint. There are a couple of small tasks remaining - just received the replacement smoked plexiglass windows (need to replace the ones on my Capri soon). This is the sailboat my wife and I first learned to sail on. It is easy to trailer, rig, and launch. It is more stable than a dinghy and sails similarly to a Rhodes 19 (similar Portsmouth rating). We will be using it when we want to visit different areas.
Four years ago we found a Cape Dory 25 that my wife told me to buy because she liked the classic design and woodwork (sometimes it is good to listen to your wife). Its hull was full of blisters. It was my first real experience with epoxy and barrier coating. The process has been slow - partly due to learning, partly due to having a Capri 22 that was in sailing condition (we kept going sailing). I have stripped the inside (similar to this link
http://www.reefroof.com) to thoroughly clean and refinish the interior. The original plastic windows were in need of replacing. We purchased a set of opening bronze ports. These are not exact fit. The four smaller ones need the rough opening to be enlarged. The two larger ones need some of the rough opening length reduced. My fiberglass/epoxy skills have improved to finally do this. My unplanned work travel kept me from getting time to do it last summer.
So, for my Capri 22, not much needs to be done. I will remove the fixed gooseneck and go back to the sliding one. I will move the traveler to the cabin companionway area. It will be an experiment. I am not a hard-core racer and would like to hear less complaints from my short legged wife. Beyond that, "Ophelia" is pretty well set. The The Interlux Micron Extra antifouling worked very well. It is a multi season coating. A few places need some touch up. The bottom was almost clean when I took it out of the water after six weeks of no sailing. It cleaned off with a garden hose the next day. Even better, this ablative paint did NOT rub off on me through out the whole season like others had. It was worth the extra cost in my opinion.
Okay, as Matt mentioned, it is time to get the tarp on "Ophelia" before today's storm hits.
