-Week 25 Write Up- bulkheads, cabin sole, and engine installation

This week we had three new projects going on.  Drew, Oliver, and I worked on fitting, cutting, gluing trim to, and sanding the bulkheads, Brendan built the cabin sole and sides, and Dave completed the installation of the engine.

Now that the panels are done, Drew, Oliver, and myself have delved into the world of bulkheads.  I am glad we started with the panels, because our confidence level going into the much more difficult bulkheads is high.  To begin with, we must go inside the boat, and use a jig to find out exactly where the bulkhead will fit onto the stringers before we actually cut the notches into the bulkhead and trim.  This can be done with two people and requires a little bit of tinkering here and there.  We gather the bevels coming off each stringer and note whether the aft or foreward side is long.  Then we take all this information upstairs with us to the bulkhead and layout where the stringers are.  In most cases, they line up fairly closely to where the Mylars had put them, but some of them wander off close to half an inch.  Then we measure the distance between each bevel and give ourselves that much space extra when we jig saw out the notches for the stringers.  Once the notches are cut, we layout all the trim pieces that were cut almost a month ago, clamp them in place, and trace where the stringer notches will be.  Then we take into account the bevel, give ourselves the extra space, and cut those out on the ban saw.  Then we come back and layout the trim again, making sure everything is in the right spot, and begin the arduous process of gluing and clamping.  I will describe this more in detail next week when I have pictures to show for it.

Brendan completed the cockpit sole on Friday, and it really looks beautiful.  I tried stopping in and peaking over his shoulder as much as possible to try and pick up and tips and techniques I could.  Alfie has decided to glue in the teak boards instead of using fastenings with bungs.  The benefit of this is that you will get more life out of the teak.  Otherwise, after time the teak will wear down and expose the fastenings, maybe half way through the board if your lucky.  By using glue, you can wear the teak down to almost nothing before it needs to be replaced.  Although, replacing teak that is set in with G-flex would prove to be a huge bear.

Dave was busy with the engine all week, aside from working on the Pease's own work boat.  He got the shaft aligned, leveled, and set.  Then he cleaned up the slot it sticks through, applied a few coats of clear epoxy, and then bottom paint.  He painted the portion of the shaft that will be underwater to protect it from growth, then hoisted the engine in the boat and connected it to the shaft.

I will post a timelapse clip once we get some more action inside the boat!  all the magic is happening outside right now!  stay tuned!

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