The Tricks Of The Trade, The Nix Of The Tirade And The Nail Through The Nail, No Denial

This week I utilized a technique I learned from the epoxy Guru at the boat show, Pay heed boat assemblers.

​Going through this process, one picks up a set of skills. This is knowledge. Mostly you cannot share this as no one really cares about what you know. They are too busy telling you their knowledge. I realize that these small bits are yours and no one wants them. One becomes an assemblage of skills and abilities that are unique. This is not to be foisted upon random strangers lest you become "that guy". The one that tells random people their stories in a quest for remaining meaningful and useful. The person listening to these rambling is politely attempting an escape.

I made some extra steps for the forward cabins. While in the hull, rivulets of sweat just dripping off me, I had to glue on some supports. I was crouching down working mostly blind and holding an epoxy coated cleat in place and tacking it in  with a brad nailer. In the process, pneumatic brad nail gun in hand, I drove a one inch chisel pointed 304 stainless steel 18 gauge brad through the tip of my finger and out through the fingernail, I didn't get a picture of the brad sticking through my finger as I couldn't focus the camera what with all the hopping about and yelling. I got out my do -it-yourself doctor kit (It's called "Suture Self") consisting of a needle nose pliers and a bandaid. I cut the brad off shorter and pulled it out with the pliers, then slapped the bandaid over it, It's OK. I missed the bone................and the cleat.........

The new phone, properly armor plated and protected. I'll rarely turn it on. I don't give the number to anyone, lest they call me and who wants that? It's a nice color..............

So this is what consumed  my week. Ben put the stairs in the two forward cabins He never liked them but we moved on anyway. Now that I'm going up and down them every day, I find them to be terrible. Each step was 14-15 inches up (35-38 quarks in metric, I think). This made things difficult. I added 3 steps in each cabin, making the rise about 7", plus or minus. I had to glue in the support braces to the exterior hull and finally decided to use a trick I learned from the epoxy Guru at the wooden boat show. He tacked things in place with CA (super) glue. I thought that would be the best method to hold some pieces to the hull sides: No brad nails through the hulls. I took a couple scraps of plywood and stuck them together to test the concept. I let the glue penetrate through capillary action and TA-DAH, it worked! I only used the CA glue on the pieces where there was no alternative (hey: video!).  I pre-coated all the pieces with epoxy, making it easier than doing it inside the hulls. It was hot, sweaty work. I decided to only do one cabin at a time so I could keep the parts organized, I am doing better with my hate relationship with epoxy. I only mix a small amount and cultivate a Zen state rather than a fugue state to begin with. Before Ben left, we developed the phrase "You can always mix more" so when in doubt, we would mix a lesser amount so it could be managed in a short time. Believe me, all I have is a brief moment.

Phyllis (you remember Phyllis, don't you?) showed up waving her swatches around (cover your eyes). She was supposed to show up a week ago but seems to be a mite cavalier about such trivialities as appointments and promises. Sounds like Rocky (you remember Rocky, don't you?) Anyhoo, the decision was made about the cockpit canvas. It's going to be.....................Tan! Hmmmm that doesn't sound very exciting. Let me try that again. It's going to be .................TAN!! Ahhh, that's better.

The Music♫: Steeleye Span "Cam Ye O'er Frae France"

Music written it the 18th century, rocked out in the 20th.