Windy picnics

Today was the first time in two weeks that I set foot on the boat. It was windy. I, and my girlfriend, had a picnic. She then read, and I worked on the boat. A perfect day.

First though, I was not pleased to see my decks littered with the remnants of last week's fireworks.



After I cleaned up that debris I started looking at installing the jibsheet cleats. I ordered some 6 inch Herreshoff styles but I am not so sure. They look puny crowded in between the 6 inch high coaming and the 2 inch high toerail. I need to think about that. They look much better on the coaming itself and would probably be easy to use in that location but I think its more stress than I want to subject the coamings to.





Then with visitors on the boat, a functioning head seemed like a high priority item.

I installed a pre-made shelf and inside liner to the storage area behind the head and then attached the hoses with the new clamps that arrived from Hamilton Marine. The hoses run through the back panel so the panel had to be hung up at the same time.



I need to revisit the panel and inside construction. Next year. I always thought the outlet hose for the toilet, which I cut about a year ago, was a bit too short. I had a new section on hand so I cut it to fit. It was too long so I trimmed it. Then I ran it through the panel which put a small bend in it. Now the new hose is too short again . That killed my hopes for a working head this weekend and sent my partner home early for better 'facilities'. I will order another $10-a-foot hose this week.







Yet another plastic fitting that doesn't seem to match the hose well. I measured the hose. Its a 3/4 inch hose that is more like 7/8 on the inside. I thought the fitting on the toilet was 3/4 but it was a bear getting the hose on and there was definitely no way to get it on far enough to double clamp the connection.



With the need to depart I only spent a little more time applying oil where the varnish was getting thin. Tomorrow I hope to put another coat of varnish on but just in case I wanted something with UV protection on the wood. Anything. The four coats of varnish is just not holding up at all.

Before I left I drilled the two holes where the mainsheet block attach fitting will mount behind the cockpit. Then I filled the holes with thickened epoxy to be drilled out later for the fitting. The fitting is a bow tow fitting left on my shelf from another project that I think will work fine for connecting the mainsheet block to. I might have to trim it down a bit.



Yup, that poop deck looks a bit ... poopy. Tomorrow, (hopefully) is cleaning day, and varnishing day, and bow skene chock day, and stanchion day, and... well, now I am off a real schedule and its all about having fun on the boat this summer. No schedules really. I want to sail but I am not going to kill myself over it. Life is too short.

I also measured and located the new positions for the middle stanchion tubes. The aft and middle ones were originally very close together and now I am moving them more equidistant. That puts the middle stanchion at the forward edge of the forward deadlight and leaves more room for the jib sheet track. The last time I sailed I always wished I could have moved that jib car just a bit more forward and now it looks like I can. If I get to it :-)