This weekend I finished up the deck framing. I cant believe how fast this has gone. I only flipped two weeks ago.

None of the new parts aft of the dashboard are permanantly glued/screwed yet. They fit so well they are all just wedged in place. I need to glue/screw them and then fair the top edges even with the contour of the deck. Its neat to see the basic layout.

I put in 56 hours of build time in during Feb. Dad put in 16.

Next I will be building the splashwell just in front of where the engine mounts.

I have only worked about 3 hours on the boat since the last post. I started cutting out the front seat back frame yesterday but then my new r/c helicopter arrived. So I played with that the rest of the afternoon. I might have too many hobbies and an undiagnosed attention disorder. This afternoon I finished up cutting it out and sanding the part. I almost forgot to recline it. At first I installed it with no recline. That might be uncomfortable. Its not glued in yet, I am waiting until I make the side carling that butts up to this.

Deck Battens finished. Fuel tank arrives.

Today I attached the aft end of the forward deck battens to the blocks behind the dash. Im a little concerned the steering mechanism might interfere with the starboard most block, cross that bridge when I come to it. Also faired the forward end of the forward deck battens to the sheer at the bow of the boat. The final task tonight I measured and marked for the seat backs and carlings. I should be able to get to Northwest Lumber to get the material for those tomorrow and work on them on thursday.


The 12 gallon fuel tank also has arrived. A nice place to store it for the mean time is right up in the front of the boat where it will go to even out weight distribution. This tank comes with a fuel guage sending unit, a fuel fill neck, vent fitting and supply fitting already installed.
I also took my plans to a r/c modeling friend that works for an architecture firm and we blew up the 1:12 plans 202% to 1:6 scale. We both plan to build r/c models of the Zip at 28.8" in length powered with electric outboard motors.

Long Weekend

This weekend was a 4 day marathon of boats. My Dad came down from Chicago friday to help on the boat and visit my brother who lives nearby for his birthday. We started off by going to Northwest Lumber and getting the lumber for the forward deck framing. They had a beautiful strip canoe they have been working on for 2 years getting its varnish coats put on.

We measured and cut the notches in frame 5-1/2 for the deck frame members. Then we made blocks for the front and back of the members to sit on and attach to. The blocks prevent you from having these members notched in the dashboard/frame 4 and showing through the dash.

Before we fit the deck frame members we faired the Sheer all around the boat. This gives a level surface for the deck to attach to with the same contour of the to of each frame. This process took a lot of time, around 10 hours using a electric hand planer and elec hand belt sander.

We took a break from the boat work to go to the Indianapolis Boat, Sport and Travel Show. The highlights for us were the Michiana Outboard Boaters display of vintage outboards and wooden boats, including a Chris Craft Cobra. As well as the Indy Admirals R/C boat display. http://www.indyadmirals.org/

Sunday we watched the race, worked on fairing some more and fitting of the forward deck frame members. Also had to take a break to go buy and install a new battery in the wifes Jeep. She was leaving to go to the store and it finally gave up and wouldnt crank. After dinner we epoxied the forward portion of the forward deck frame members in place and clamped them overnight.

Today, after I got back from a quick early morning flight for work we cleaned out the boat and put on a 3rd boat of encapsulation epoxy to seal the interior wood. (no pic) Then Dad heading back to Chicago

Tomorrow I'll bend down the other end of the forward deck frame logs and attach them.
Overall Dad and I logged 16 hours working on the boat this weekend.

Encapsulation

Since the flip on saturday I have been busy on the boat but it doesnt appear so. I removed the building form and the 2x6 block spacers at the breasthook in the front of the boat. Then I removed most of the epoxy runs in the inside of the boat with a chisel.

The last couple days I have been encapsulating the interior of the boat with epoxy resin to waterproof the wood. I have one coat on the entire boat now.

I still need to do a second coat. I roll the big areas but to get in the corners I have to use a small brush and it takes a while. Then it takes a long time to cure in these cool temps. Since I took down the plastic enclosure I am now heating the entire garage and the warmest I can get it on a 25F day is about 55-60F.

The FLIP!!!

Couldnt have asked for a nicer day around here for the Flip. The snow gave us a really soft spot to roll the boat over in the grass. I rented some muscles with pizza for payment. Those that helped were my father in-law and a college/flying buddy, as well as two buddies from the local r/c boat club. Im in the grey coat and black pants.

This photo is now my desktop photo and shows all the muscle that made it possible. More photos below.

I spent a little time adjusting the bunks first. Then took down the plastic structure that enclosed one half of my garage, where I work on the boat. I added two wood spacers between each 2x6 of the building form where they meet the transom. The spacers fit between the 2x6 and the transom frame so that when you you pick up the aft end of the boat the hull does not try to lift off the form. It kept everything sturdy.

After that it went over in just a couple minutes. I cleaned out the garage and am ready to fill my days working on the boat next week. Lots to do now but I better spend a little time with the sweetie this weekend too

Trailer is here!

The trailer arrived just in time for the weekend. By the time I got it home it was dark so no pictures. Rounding up some troops for the flip tomorrow.

Hurry up and wait.

Nothing new happening on the boat. Just some small odd tasks while I wait for the trailer to arrive. It should be here early next week but I may need to wait until next weekend to flip the boat when more helpers are available.
Also ordering more screws and epoxy while its on sale.

Bottom paint finished

Finished the bottom paint today, 4 coats, sanded between every coat working up to 400 grit.
Its not perfect but its the best I can do. Its got a little lint in it but most of that should buff out. Its hard to get a flat surface in a garage to not attract any dust.

Now its going to cure for a couple weeks before the trailer arrives which is perfect. It's going to be slow going unless I can come up with some more ways to progress while watching paint dry. There will be lots to do after the flip. I will be able to multi-task again and I need to make sure I have the materials ready.

3rd bottom paint coat.

I sanded with 400 grit and painted the 3rd coat today. It really looks great. I got a chance to check it out with the garage open today and it looks even better with the natural light on it. I did not tip it this time and I ended up with some tiny pin-hole sized bubbles. So after cure I'll knock those off, re-coat and tip as usual.

I also got a couple thin spots in the paint again so I'll have a chance to fix those also, even though I'm the only one that would ever notice them. You can see in the photos I took the tape off. I was getting worried about having a ridge at the tape line with all these coats. I'll sand the edge and apply tape again before I re-coat and pull the tape about 1 hour after the final coat.

I worked on the boat for 41 hours last month. Pretty good progress for January.

Trailer ordered.

Today I ordered a brand new trailer for the Zip. It's a Shorelandr SLV15, black, with 13" wheels/tires instead of the standard 12".
http://www.shorelandr.com/pages/t_specs.aspx?type=boat&productID=193
Its a 2009 leftover so I got it for a pretty good deal. I pick it up in 2 weeks, its coming from another location. My bottom paint should be finished and cured enough to flip the boat and put it on the trailer by then so the timing is perfect.
I looked at a lot of used trailers for sale online and by the time I fixed them up to look presentable and function correctly the difference in price would only be a few hundred dollars.

A little more cure time and i'll be able to sand the boat for the next coat of paint.