Gloomy weather

The summer-in-spring weather went away this weekend and cool rainy weather ruled the weekend which kept me indoors.

On Saturday, all the countertops had their undersides coated in epoxy. With random bits and pieces scattered all over my basement there really wasn't any where else to work so I had to call it a day at that point.

Sunday, I started by glueing up the storage box that will fit outboard of the sink.

Then, I cut and fit the pieces for the top step. I needed to use the sander to continue on to final installation and with my 'sanding station' a few feet from my furnace air inlet, I decided to stop at that point. It's no fun filling my whole house with sanding dust via the forced air heating system.

So then I glued the front lip onto the center section of the countertop. The lip will lock the front engine cover panel in place and keep it from pitching forward when clumsy people jump on it.

and that's it.

I hope to seal the rest of the drop box in epoxy and when I can work outside I will do the final sanding on the step pieces and install them.

With luck I might even install some of the countertops more or less permanently. Sounds hopelessly optimistic given my track record right?...

Bis spaeter, Freunde

Countertop Tuneup

Well, Saturday turned out to be a bust but I managed to get three quarters of a productive day Sunday before I ran out of gas.

First. This is why I need a table saw. Ripping with a skilsaw is an annoying operation.

Yes, bitching comes naturally to me. Its in my genetics I think.

So, the day started with me looking over the countertop and fussing with it so that everything fits the way I wanted it to. Then I started working on the step layout since the absence of a top step is another of my greater annoyances with the boat project.

I have a hard to visualizing things in 3d so the carboard cut to the outside dimensions made it all clear. So clear in fact that I realized all my ideas for a top step were not going to work. In my head I had a step that sat on the center section and was hinged to flip down with the bottom extending the counter top equal to the side pieces. In reality this was not going to work. I tried a few different ideas including a step that was hinged on the side by the sink but in the end I went with a simpler design.

I think I am going to run the side pieces all the way back to the aft bulkhead so that they act as dividers for eventual storage under the bridge deck. Or if I change my mind I will cut them shorter. For now, the end pieces will be secured to the center section. I debated about putting a piece along the back of the step but decided to leave it open. I may close it up later.

I took some measurements for the front panel of the dish storage area.

and then turned my attention to the drop storage bin.

I cut out templates for the end pieces of the storage bin. Cutting and fitting scrap plywood is way easier in my mind than cutting the final product from measurements. My first thought was to use some okoume plywood and paint the inside of the bin. Later, I realized that I have some leftover cherry plywood from the interior paneling so I might use that instead. I don't expect it to be very visible and I am not sure whether nice varnished cherry, or clean white paint is the best option at the moment.

Then I cut out the lid for the storage bin under the port side countertop. I wish now I had set up the bandsaw to make those cuts. The kerf from the skilsaw is a bit overly big. I guess I won't have to worry about the wood swelling and making the lid difficult to remove.

Funny, in my mind that lid had a bigger opening. I could have extended it further under the bridgedeck but since its awkward getting my hands any further aft I left it at that. Or maybe I could have made the forward cut wider but that would cut into the front supporting lip. I guess it doesn't matter. I made the cuts.

So that was about it. I hope to do some glueing during the week and seal the undersides of the countertops with epoxy. I should do the final fitting of the drop storage bin and top step next weekend. The temperatures have made a drastic change in the past week and it should be warm enough to start with the varnishing too. I probably better get started on that before it gets TOO hot for varnish. Sometimes I feel like goldilocks. Its either too cold or too hot; rarely just right. Okay, I am bitching again...

Sayonara

Bit by bit...

The week ended with some pretty sucky personal stuff which limited activity on the boat. The visual progress was good however.

There is some final fitting to be done and details to work out. The storage area around the sink is the biggest thing on the list at the moment. Behind the sink will be a cherry face with cutouts for the dishes. There is the drop down storage bin outboard of the sink with a shelf overhead. And then there is the question about what to do with the aft starboard corner. Not sure what to do there yet. I think once I get started with the other bits it will make more sense.




Back over on the port side, I need to figure out a stove that will fit along the front edge of the counter top and cut a lid into the storage bin below. Along the outboard edge I also want to put in a low storage box for navigation tools. I have been using that part of the counter for a navigation station for years and it was my plan to keep it for that purpose. Making the decision to put a stove top there might put a wrinkle in those plans but I think it will still work out okay. I will probably mount the stove below the level of the countertop and make a hinged section of countertop that will cover the stove when it is not in use. I forgot about the countertop also being the top of a storage bin on the aft port end of the settee. I will have to figure out how to cover that or make it an open bin. Perhaps a piece of tile so I have a place to put a hot pot to cool?... I have time to figure that out.

Oh. I also made a decision this week that I have been postponing for awhile. I took a good hard look at my finances and I have decided that putting the boat in the water this season is going to hurt too much. I could do it but it would be painful and I definitely wouldn't have the funds to continue working on the boat. I will miss sailing this year but I am excited to see the galley coming along and I think I can tie a lot of interior projects together this summer and have a real cruising boat for the 2013 season.

So I am both sad and happy to have that decision behind me. Now I can focus on what I CAN do this year and what I can do should be fun. More coming soon...

Ikke noe mer idag. Had det godt venner! :-)

Sanding

So, this week the new supply of sandpaper arrived and I was able to finish up the rough sanding of the butcher block counter tops. The belt sander was too wimpy and the DA left some dimpling but I figured better to be dimpled than to leave the surface uneven with glue puddled in the low spots. I sanded, keeping the surface as smooth as I could until I had just nice looking wood showing.

I ran into the same high end carpenter friend of mine that helped me out earlier and the first thing out of his mouth was 'when are you coming by to plane that butcher block down?..." I explained the counter top was too wide for his 20 inch planer and he just said, "bring it on by and we will see what we can do". I figured he could only make it better and it would only cost me a breakfast tab so I stopped by later this morning.

He was right. There was a tool in his shop that would work much better than my DA.

It is good to have friends with industrial tools... Thanks Barry :-)

With the countertops sanded smooth I decided to cut them closer to the final dimensions. I need to go back to the boat for final fitting.

I didn't glue the two halves of the starboard side countertop yet figuring I might not have to and it might be nice to be able to take them apart independently later. Not sure how that will work. I cut and glued a piece of 3/8 inch okoume plywood which will form the bottom of the storage section aft of the starboard countertop. My plan is to store my dishes here under the 'bridge deck'.

The outboard drop down storage bin is on hold until I have a chance to check the dimensions in the boat. I am thinking of about a 6-8 inch drop to accommodate bottles of oil, vinegar, dishwashing liquid, maybe cooking tools etc. with a shallow storage shelf above. It will be easier to explain when I build a mockup in the next few weeks.

Next week I should be making a trip to Jenny to do the final fitting of the counter tops. I think they are going to look really sharp.