Saturday, January 24, 2009

Flipping main hull half

My brother in law, Ole Johan, and I flipped the main hull half over and supported it on a couple of stringers and secured it with two straps to the ceiling, last night.Being only two people, and the hull being 7m * 2m, although very light, probably around 40 - 50 kg, and surprisingly stiff, it was not possible to get pictures of the process as the tight space made the procedure a real challenge. We succeeded in our struggles, though. Here, OJ inspecting the aft cabin, and probably the aft strap to hull interaction, half way trough:


It was a great feeling being able to study the hull shape in reality. It seems to have turned out really fair.

This is the look "in trough the out door" in my workshop at the moment. The provisional supported hull half on top of the not yet reversed molds. The hull will be suspended from the ceiling, resting in some kind of a cradle. I might lower the strongback a bit before starting on the next half, to provide more working height. This will cause the free underneath working height to decrease though, already being quite tight.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Finsihing first main hull half

I finally finished the laminations on the first main hull half, just a bit of inspection and final fairing left before demoulding.

The front bunk was glued in place using provisional supports:


Then the taping starts. It is amazingt how time consuming it can be to make the putty fillet, make and place the tapes and wet it out until satisfying results using peel ply as the last layer. The good thing is, when done properly there will be no need for any fairing, just a layer of a sturdy paint.


Detail of the bottom end of the front beam bulkhead taped to the underside of the front bunk


And the storage compartment under front bunk seen from the keel.


I attached the settee fronts to the settee tops using supportive tools, then I taped the inside join and finally rounded the outside corner....


..before fitting it in the hull


More taping details, here seen from the aft bunk, looking up and forward, showing the bulkhead passageway and the undersides of the cockpit floor and the port settee. Extra reinforcing layer wrapping around the settee front also seen. This is a fabric I got hold on on my latest shopping tour to Oslo, it's a 300g plain fabric. Turned out well.


A peek look in through the main cabin doorway....

Sunday, January 04, 2009

Front bunk

I've been able to build a bit again the last couple of days. I infused the front bunk before Christmas, but due to a leak in my vacuum table the result was unsatisfying. I ordered a new table top and this was installed on new years day. I was then able to salvage the front bunk and no losses other than another batch of epoxy.

Yesterday I cut out the hatch for the storage compartment under the front bunk (I made the bunk as one big part to be cut in the sagittal plane later) and then I made the flange to keep the hatch in place. Here the front bunk underside in the foreground and preparations of the infusions of the settee fronts in the background:


Infusing the settee fronts:


The flange after the front bunk has been divided. To be trimmed back a bit after hull join:


I made the flange by laying one tape of 600g/m² on the table, glueing the bunk on top and then one layer of 200g/m² overlapping from the top side of the bunk and down on the flange. The foam edge is closed at he same time. I inserted the hatch and weighed it all down to cure. Here a close up of the flange:

Then I made the glueing flange along the centre line. The bunk half upside down on the table, another panel along the cut and one 600g/m² tape on top. Then I weighed it all down tu cure:


The finished front bunk half with glueing flange:

Then it was fitted to the hull. This is a picture from the bow, looking aft in the cabin:


And looking in through the main hatch opening: