Day 346

As the weather becomes more cold and the wind more fierce, we must refocus toward getting the rest of the boat sealed up. The portlights still require frames to be cut and drilled before they can be mounted. In order to do this, the lexan must be fitted and drilled so a template can be marked from those for drilling. The 4 port lights in the galley/ dining area have priority because they need to be sandblasted before it rains again.

Filled in mistakes on detail stripe

These will be painted some brownish color to match the general look in the area. The forward area will be straight polished stainless as I want it to have a clean look up there. ( Not to mention a "tech" feel for the music studio/electronics shop! )

Unfortunately, Gena had decided to cut and drill the mast plate which is over 1/2" thick. Being less experienced than I with the plasma cutter, she didn't realize the tip was overheating the tip assembly and it carbonized into coal! This meant I wasn't going to be cutting out my port light frames this weekend.

Blue Hippo-coat thar needs trimming!

Drilling the holes visually through the glass works really well, and templating the holes on to the SS made a perfect match! Yay!

The photo to right shows how the sticky seal bead spreads out nicely. Once the frames are in place they are squashed down some more, then trimmed if necessary.

As a gesture of peace, Gena sandblasted the uncut frames so I wouldn't have to. She then drilled the holes in the mast plate for the large bolts that will secure it to the bed. Because the mast is keel stepped, the plate must be fairly well connected to the keel.
It got dark and miserable so we quit for the day.

The fresh painted areas along the stripes were covered with saran wrap to prevent chafe, as it was still softish.

Day 346:
9 hours: Portlight fitting/drilling, frames blasted, painted white fills etc