Chain locker and deck hatch

Some time ago my brother sent me some pictures of the deck access hatch he made for the chain locker on his C&C. Since then I've been pondering converting the Alberg's chain locker into a deck access only, self draining locker and making the forward bulkhead a watertight bulkhead thereby keeping the chain locker smells out of the cabin. After finding some moist spots in the area on deck that I was going to have to re-core anyway, I decided to go for it! I cut the shape of the hatch out of the deck and set to work preparing the chain locker; grinding the areas to be tabbed etc.

Forward bulkhead

Bottom platform for the chain locker with 1st layer of biaxial glass

Procured an engine

We received a call to survey an O'day 27 sailboat that had fallen over on the hard and stove in the starboard side of the vessel. The vessel was a total loss. Several weeks later the underwriter called us and asked if we'd like to put in a salvage bid, we did so and bought the vessel. It had a nice little 8HP Yanmar diesel engine in it. The engine is on the small side for my project but the price was right so we set to work removing from the Oday. Since the boat was totaled we cut a hole in the side of the hull with a 4" grinder with a cutting disk in it, cut the cockpit out of the boat with a sawz-all, and lifted the engine out through the hole.

With a little work and several oil changes we had the engine running smoothly. Next spring the Alberg should be ready to receive it!

The Rains have come

With a rain front moving in we hastily placed a tarp over the boat. It was the first of many to come so we shifted our efforts to building a suitable shelter.

We had the frame for a portable "garage" shelter given to us after a windstorm had blown it across the boat yard and damaged some of the support legs for it.
The upper pipe frame was in good shape so we thought we'd attach it to some pipe brackets at the top of free-standing 4x4's anchored in concrete pier blocks. The idea looked good on paper but was impossible to execute. We did not have enough hands to line up all the posts with the frame as we tried to fit the frame into the pipe brackets over the boat. We'd get two posts lined up and the frame in the brackets and then move on to two others, then repeat the process with the rest. The frame started to twist, someone yelled "Timber!", and the whole think came crashing down domino style as the posts leaned and twisted sideways and gravity took over. The posts on the ground and the frame a twisted mess atop the boat.
Several days later we attempted "Plan B": Line up the 4x4's on the ground, screw in cross braces and a top plate, then raise them and lean them against the boat. Do the same for the back wall, then assemble the frame on the ground and carry it over the bow and place it in the brackets. Once that was done we put a post at the bow and cross braced the whole structure and pulled two large tarps over the whole thing. This provided us with a shelter with suitable head room to continue to work on the project over the winter.

Making Bulkhead Templates

With a round of summer colds hitting our crew we switched from grinding and sanding to making templates, a job we could do without wearing masks (except when cutting the wood).
We ripped 4x8 sheets of 1/8" mahogany plywood into 2" strips and then used the chop saw to cut them into various lengths; 2", 3", 2', 3', and 5'. Using a hot glue gun we spot glued the longer strips to the basic shape of the bulkhead and then glued the 2 & 3 inch pieces to those strips to form the complex curves. Using this method the bulkhead templates are formed quickly and easily and without the use of a tape measure, pencil, etc. The templates are then carefully popped loose and carried into the workshop and laid onto 1/2" OSB (oriented strand board /chip board). The shape is drawn onto the OSB and cut out with a jig saw.

The OSB bulkheads are then carried into the boat and fitted and adjusted as required. The OSB is only seven bucks a sheet and allows us to make adjustments and changes on an inexpensive piece of wood rather then going directly to a $165 sheet of marine plywood and risking a mistake.

Almost finished grinding the tabs

My brother Russ recently refit his C&C 35 and suggested hosing down the interior and using the wet vac to remove the sludge rather than vacuum it out dry which continuously plugged the filter. What a great suggestion! It worked like a charm. Blake, Chris, Ty, and I formed a bucket brigade: Me below with the hose, Blake in the cockpit manning the vac, Ty on the ladder, and Chris on the ground. I would grind away for an hour or so until the layer of dust made it difficult to see were I was working. Then the boys would come out of the house and lend a hand hosing and empying the vac for fifteen minutes. Then it was back to the grind for me, and the house for them until the next round. It made for a much cleaner and comfortable work environment.
At the days end we fired up the BBQ and had a great feast of ribs and burgers.

Sold the car to help finance the project

With the boat project taking up most of my time and resources it was time to sell the GT.
It was not easy to let her go (I loved that little car) but it was purchased by my stepson Blake and has stayed in the family. He has promised to let me drive it from time to time,.....if I'm good,.......and he's not grounded..........

I purchased a little Honda 80 scooter, mounted a basket on the back, and have been using that to commute to work and to run out for parts. It gets 115 miles per gallon and is the perfect vehicle for small part runs to the hardware store. The boys smirk and tell me its ok "for a guy my age", and that I still look cool,.......even on the scooter. Ya right!

Removing the Floor

There was a plywood floor that had been installed much higher than the original that had to be removed. It was bedded in a mixture of polyester resin and chopped fibers. Much of the mixture was improperly mixed when applied, and as I ground it out I kept hitting large pockets of uncatalized resin. The flap disk would bog down as the goo clogged the disk and the fibers wound around the shaft. It was slow going but eventually the floor was freed and tossed over the side.

Below the floor was a large holding tank that was poorly constructed and had to go. I heard the high pitched soundtrack of a horror film in my head ("reee,... reee,... reee,... reee") when I lifted the floor and set eyes on it for the first time, knowing it may have been used and had to be removed,....piece by piece.

I suited up for the job and went below with small sledge hammer, pry bar, and grinder.
After several carefully aimed swings with the hammer the top of the tank was loosened and then pried off. The tank was clean and dry and unused! Knowing I was not about to unleash a deluge of effluent I proceeded more aggressively and soon had the tank apart and the pieces tossed over the side.