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Project Log:  Saturday, July 28, 2012

I found myself somewhat at loose ends.  Overhanging my head was the need (but unfortunate lack of desire) to rebuild the cockpit, incorporating new closed-in lockers, lids, and a proper propane storage area.  I continued to wish I'd done this long ago, but I didn't do it long ago.  It still needed to be done, but I just didn't feel like it in the summer temperatures, frankly.  So I made the more or less official decision to put this off for a while longer, and get it done in the fall so I could paint the boat sometime before launching.  Funnily enough, I noted that I was whining about this very same project just about a year earlier on July 30, 2011, when I'd actually ordered the materials I needed for the job...amazing that I managed to put the work off for so long, and still.

While I'd had visions of painting the hull and deck later in the fall, I decided realistically that it would be better to do over the winter, perhaps at a time when I could shift the boat to the cleaner, more open work bay next door, where things were better suited for this extended part of the project.  This new idea took some of the pressure off my initial thoughts and timing, and, more importantly, opened my mind to focus on other progress, rather than avoidance of unsavory tasks.

So, with most of the ongoing systems wrapped up to the extent possible under the current state of the overall project, I looked for new directions.  To begin, I thought I might get to work on the exhaust and intake for the diesel boiler, the last components of the installation other than wiring.  Pulling out my box of parts, I soon realized that the intake fitting I had was the wrong size.  Since the final locations of exhaust and intake were interdependent to an extent (both piping runs needed to be roughly the same length, and the intake had to be 20" or more from the exhaust), I couldn't very well start these installations till I had the correct fitting.  So I ordered the new fitting and moved on.

This led to the specification for the engine exhaust outlet, another hose run I hoped to get over and done with soon.  I spent some time looking at a variety of fittings, searching for something that would look nice and also featured a drip edge to hopefully minimize exhaust staining on the hull.  I planned to mount the outlet somewhere near the transom, and well above the waterline, unlike the original location right at the waterline and closer to amidships.  Eventually, I settled on a Vetus 2" stainless fitting incorporating a built-in flapper (check valve) to close off the outlet when not in use--not one of those rubber external flaps, but a slimmer stainless flap built inside the fitting for a cleaner appearance.

I decided my next focus would be to continue work in the interior, this time in the forward cabin.  I needed to install ceiling (hull liner) supports and the ceiling itself, as well as some overhead support strips beneath the foredeck and sidedeck for cosmetic paneling, as well as complete the wood trim, and some chainlocker work.  But the immediate goal would be to install at least the ceiling support strips, so that I could order a mattress for the area sooner than later.

To this end, I removed various tools and other things from the v-berth, distributing them elsewhere around the cabin, to provide a clean workspace.  With a new direction, I looked forward to getting back in the groove, but with other things to do later in the day I called it quits for now.

         

Total Time Today:  2 hours

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