Project Log: Saturday, January 4, 2014
After consideration, I decided to create a boottop with
a 2-1/2" visual height. To effect this, I raised
the horizontal reference beams at stem and stern , which
I'd previously set up back at the waterline marks I'd
laid out earlier, by this amount, re-leveling them at
the new height.
|
 |
Tensioning a string between the two beams, and allowing
it to just contact the hull around amidships, I marked
the new line, taping the string in place where it
touched to hold it, and, after making marks, slowly
bringing the string in towards the boat in incremental
amounts, taping it, and marking--first towards the
stern, then towards the bow. |
 |
This left me with a series of tick marks representing a
planar line between the two main reference points, one
each at stem and stern, which line naturally accounted
for the shape of the hull in terms of the actual width
of the stripe, though the visual height, when viewed
from the side at eye level, was consistent with the
measured 2-1/2" height. |
 |
Now I masked to this line, keeping the top edge of the
tape at the tick marks and fairing by eye as needed.
I masked all around the boat, including at the bow.
|
 |
Afterwards I created a sheered effect to the forward end
of the boottop on each side, starting about nine feet
aft of the cutwater (a point I determined to be the
right point to start just because it seemed right to my
eye) and sheering a new line by eye, ending about one
inch above the flat, planar line at the stem.
This was not an exaggerated, swoopy curve, but rather a
gradual widening to offset the trompe l'oeil created by
the shape of bows in general, and this high, dramatic
bow in particular: if I did it right, the actual
sheering/curvature wouldn't be noticeable, but without
this gentle shaping the stripe would tend to look as if
it narrowed towards the bow. I did not create any
sheer at the aft end of the boat. |
 |
I completed final paint preparations by installing paper
below the masking tape to cover the boottop area, which
would be painted separately, followed by a final
solvent-wash, tack-off, and equipment preparations. |
 |
| |
Total Time Today: 3.75 hours
|
<
Previous | Next > |
|
|
