Yesterday I went home to work on the rudder and help with the painting. Dad got 4 of the 5 hatch drain assemblies installed and we put a coat of paint on the decks and cabin. I glued the rudder cheeks together and installed the tiller as well.
Mom put a coat of varnish on the center thwart, oars and sprits and was applying a second coat of topcoat to the decks and cabin this morning. Saturday is a 50% chance of light rain so far so we are crossing our fingers that it will stay dry until in the afternoon.
The sails and line arrived today from B and B yachts. They had been waiting on the battens to send them out. Graham and Carla have without a doubt been the most dependable and helpful resources so far in our boat building experience. When we need that extra gallon of epoxy (which has happened more than once), POOF there it is on the doorstep. Like magic! But really they are just that good. Thanks a million Carla and Graham for all your help.
Today we will get a third coat on the decks and a coat (or maybe two) in the cockpit. The oars, sprits and thwart can be re-coated in 12 hrs and we need 3-4 coats on them so that is ongoing as well. We want to get 6 coats of paint on the boat total before the move. The "topcoat" is a hard shell enamel paint that goes on very thin and dries to the touch in about 30-45min and is then ready to be re-coated. But...it's backbreaking work so there is recovery time involved. Plus we are sanding the second to last coat lightly for a smoother finish and adding non-skid additive as well in some areas. It is 90% cure in 24hrs (I think) and then requires about 10 days to reach 100% hardness.
If it comes down to it, we will just install the hardware "as needed" when we push off the beach :) but hopefully it won't come to that because it sounds difficult.
