Main Boom

Friday I took the time to cut out the main boom plywood panels. Here are a couple shots of my marking the taper with a batten and using a 1x4 as a cutting guide. I did make a mistake on one of the pieces. I read the plans wrong and cut one of the tapers too short. I had to remake that piece. 

I've got enough plywood for small mistakes, BUT not for any big ones. Better be careful!

I also had spent some time working on the staves that will complete the "box". I was trying to use left over Douglas Fir for that job. I actually had two pieces that looked pretty good and would only need a little "resawing" to make them fit. 

Today I wanted to start the glue up process. I started by looking at the staves. One was just too crooked so I cut some more wood. It would need a scarf but that wouldn't be too hard.

Here is a pic of two pieces being glued up into one of the two staves. I used the front edge of the workbench as a "straightedge". 

When I went to scarf the two sides of the plywood portion of the boom, I realized that I had cut two of the matching pieces short!!!! They needed to be 6'2" long. I cut them 62". Duh! Should have been 74". There's the old adage: measure twice - cut once. I measured twice but forgot what our math teachers taught us in elementary school. "Show your work" and "check your work". My math was wrong. I guess it was easy enough to be thinking 6'2" and measure 62". Oh, well. No harm really done. Just an extra half hours work. I used the piece I messed up earlier for the fix. 

What to do? I was going to have one scarf anyway, so I decided to just insert an "extension" into the two pieces leaving two scarfs each. I decided to take the chickens' way out and used butt blocks. They'll be on the inside of the boom and there is no curve, so it should be just fine. 

A couple pics of the "fix".

I used small nails to put pressure on the joints rather than weights or clamps. That way I was able to wipe away the squeeze out. The reason the butt blocks do not go all the way to the edge is to make room for the 1/2" staves. 

I'll start gluing the pieces together the next session. 

Just 1 Hour Today

I just put in one hour tonight. I sanded the rudder head and blade and then put a coat of epoxy on the blade. It's all coming along nicely; however, I'm not quite sure I like the looks of the tapered blade which is made from meranti ply. The dark lines look burned. I may wind up painting the blade and leaving the head, which is okoume, bright. We'll see. 

The blade is coated on both sides. It's sitting on a board with nails in it. It will leave small impressions in the epoxy on the underside, but they'll sand out.

I'm real happy with how the head turned out. The Rotozip did an excellent job. Do I see some finger marks on that blade? LOL. I guess that's where I handled it gluing it up yesterday. No matter, I'm going to coat it with epoxy anyway.

It Worked!

It's time to cut out the rudder head. It has an arc on the end around which the rudder blade with a matching arc will rotate. My skills with the jig saw are a bit lacking and the attachment I have for the Rotozip doesn't open enough to make an arc 6&3/4" in diameter. So I cut a piece of scrap plywood, cut a hole in it the size of the Rotozip (fortunately I had a bit that fit it perfectly), cut out a piece big enough for the adjustment knob to also fit, and gave it a try. Worked wonderfully!

Here's the jig:

And the jig in operation:

And the two matching halves to the rudder head:

I had wondered whether the bit would survive. I had previously broken several in trying to learn how the Rotozip worked. They seem to snap off easily. I ordered some new bits and decided it was worth a try. I was able to set the bit in it's deepest setting, meaning the tool was close to the board. I turned it on with no contact with the board and eased into it. Worked! I believe what snaps the bits is binding it in the board when you turn it on. Anyway: presto! I have a rudder head. 

I took a breakfast break and went back out. I needed to shape the rudder blade. I Used the same jib to cut the curve in the blade. It is supposed to have a 1/8" larger arc which is the diameter of the bit. The rudder used the inside of the arc and the blade uses the outside. There you have it. I drove a nail through the hole in the head and lined up the blade with it. Clamped it down and then put the zip jig nail through the same hole. Easy peasy.

After cutting the arc I had to cut a couple more angles and then plane the foil shape. Not perfect but it'll have to do.

I went down after church tonight to do a little epoxy work. I wanted to laminate the rudder head and glass the blade. Here's the result of an hour and a half's work.

Not sure whether I'm going to put the rudder "cheeks" on just yet. It calls for 1/4" ply and I haven't torn into any of it yet. Will want to use scraps to do it. We'll see. 

Epoxy Work

I did some epoxy work this morning. Didn't take but an hour or so. I put a coat on the second side of the daggerboard and glued a piece of fiberglass to the bottom of the board.

I also glued the doublers on the bulkheads, put a second coat of epoxy on the inside of the trunk, and laminated the rudder blade. Here's a shot of the strongback/work table.

In the process one of the clamp handles came off. Hoping it's just a nut and bolt. I found what appears to be a nut on the floor.

Here's a shot of two doublers. Notice the 2 small holes. I used the technique of drilling a 1/8" hole through the pieces while clamped and before gluing and putting a dowel in the hole to assure proper alignment. Saves having to fiddle with an epoxy coated board and having any slippage. Works great.

That's all for today. Next I'll be finishing the cut out of the rudder blade. I bought a set of bits for my Rotozip. Hope it can be used to cut the curve in the rudder blade and matching curve in the head. I also want to finish the daggerboard including painting so I can glue up the trunk. 

 

A Pile of Work Lined Up

I finished cutting out the bulkheads and doublers this morning. Now I've got a pile of work waiting for me in the workshop. Next session will be epoxy/glue-up time. I'll be working on the daggerboard, trunk, rudder, and bulkheads!

Oh, and I went to Home Depot and bought a pack of jig saw blades. I started cutting the plywood with a metal blade with 36 tpi. It's working much better. I also slowed the speed down on my adjustable saw. It's all helping. 
 

More on the Bulkheads

Tonight I cut out the bulkheads all except the horizontal (there's no measurements on the plans - waiting on Clint to give them to me) and two of the doublers.

 Right now I have a lot going on: finishing up the inner stem, daggerboard, trunk, bulkheads. A few more pieces and I think I'll be ready to set up the molds!

One issue I need to think about: I used the jigsaw on the inside curve of the doublers and there was quite a bit of "tearout". It won't be too bad on the doublers, but when I get to some of the more obvious and visible pieces I need to keep that to a minimum. 

I also have a hard time seeing where the blade is cutting on the jigsaw. I can't afford to make any big mistakes. 

Bulkheads

I spent 2 hours this evening drawing the 2 permanent bulkheads. It's a slow process with lots of measurements. I do need to check with Clint. I'm not sure what the dimensions are for the "seat tops". Not sure what to call it. Monday I'll try to cut them out and also cut out the doublers. I'll be able to use the outline of the bulkheads to draw them. Should move quicker than the bulkheads themselves. If you look closely, you should be able to see the outlines.