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Hull Assembly |
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Typical panel. With all the panels precut
from the plans, we're ready to start assembly. |
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Glue and temporarily screw one end bulkhead
and bed base. |
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Glue and temporarily screw other end
bulkhead. |
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Glue and temporarily screw watertight
bulkheads and w/t compartment floors under bed |
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Prop the bow and stern up, glue and
temporarily screw the lower floor, collision b/h (not shown),
w/t bulkheads and stern landing. Temporarily screw bow deck into
place. Coat internal surfaces with epoxy that are inaccessible
once inner skin glued on. |
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Glue and temporarily screw hull inner
side skin on. Remove all temporary screws once the epoxy has
cured, fill the holes and remove the bow deck, epoxy coat(s)
to required surfaces, cove lower bow floor with cabosil thickened
epoxy, drill bow drain holes on inner hull skin, glue and temporarily
screw bow deck. Use pipe cleaners to wet out holes with epoxy
and for the few stainless steel screw holes that are left permanently
in place. Where a bolt hole is required, drill an oversized hole,
wet out the hole with 3 coats of epoxy then fill with Cabosil
thickened epoxy, allow it to cure, and then drill the required
size bolt hole. |
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Shape and roughly fair bow, hull skin
to deck, transom and landing and bed side to b/hs, floor and
roof. Lower the hull to the ground and roll it over. This can
be easily done by one person. Fit and glue keelson (1 full scarfed
length) and shape it and the chines. |
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Apply a second coat of epoxy to internal
surface of hull bottoms, and a further third coat to internal
surfaces of water tanks |
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Glue and temporarily screw hull bottoms.
Remove screws when epoxy cured. Glass tape to chines, keelson,
bow and stern, followed by glassing the hull bottom to the waterline.
Glassing the whole hull really only aids in abrasion resistance,
at the expense of weight, so is not worthwhile for this craft.
Fill and fair hull bottom to waterline. |
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Apply 1 coat of anti foul when the epoxy
is still just tacky. |
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Cove bed floor to inner hull skin and
b/hs, cove fore and aft bulkheads to outer skin with Cabosil
thickened epoxy and glass over the coves with double bias tape,
wet on wet. |
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Double bias tape over Cabosil thickened
cove. |
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Roll the hull onto it's side. Apply
any epoxy coats required. Mixing all 2 pack products by weight
is very accurate, especially for small quantities. Glue transom
step, roof hatch opening surrounds etc in place as usual with
temporary screws and remove latter. Cabosil epoxy coves (fillets)
to internal corners on hull. Double bias tape to fore and aft
b/h corners where hull to pod connections bolt on and to all
corners and edges of bulkheads. Glass tape to bow, hull skin
to deck joins, transom and landing corners, and the hull is complete,
ready for the next stage. |
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