Coat one: Interlux 2000E

After each barrier coat the bootstripe tape comes off an the ridge is sanded

Pencil marks from the factory in the glass.

17288 stamped number in the prop

It took two gallons of Interlux 2000E to cover the bottom, rudder and prop. The first coat is supposed to use more than subsequent coats. My guess is that the next coat will take 1-1/2 gallons. The 1/4" length nap roller-covers work great. A paint brush is miserable to use--the material goes on too thick.. Pinhole voids are a real problem. A bunch of time was spent eliminating them. We put a good paint masking tape along the top of the of the old bootstripe. Another layer of tape, that'll be removed after each coat of 2000E, will extend downward from the bootstripe tape. The ridge left from the 2000E/tape interface will be sanded off before the next layer of 2000E is applied.

The Last Sand

Today we sanded off 90% of the fairing material that was applied yesterday. A 5" random orbital sander with 80 grit paper doesn't have enough power to cut through the filler quickly. Whereas an angle grinder with the same paper rips through the job. After the sanding was done we washed the boat (yet again).

As the photo attests, our trunk contains all the tools necessary for a DIY bottom job.

Fairing On Again

Lots of fairing on the starboard bow

The second fairing coat went on today. Fairing seems to beget fairing as the filled areas make surrounding voids more visible. Gotta remember the mantra, better is the enemy of good enough.

What, Sanding Again?

Not sure why but we both thought sanding the Interlux filler would be easier. Actually it did come off easily enough, it was just that there was so much of it. Being up-close and personal also helped us spot more areas requiring fill. We used a 5" random orbital with 80 grit and a 7" angle grinder with 60 grit. Hands down the better tool was the angle grinder. Dust covered Nellie yet again, so the last job was to wash her with soap and water.

The idea now is to make each coat of Interlux 2000E 1/2" higher up the waterline than the previous coat. The last coat will be about 1/2" below the top of the bootstripe.

Fairing

The Interlux two-part fairing goes on very nicely.  It was ~85F today and so the epoxy fairing was firing quickly.  Lost some of the first batch but never had a problem after that.

The fairing is used to smooth any gouges. 

Paying special attention along the water line 

Sand and Wash--Part II

After one more lap checking for blisters the hull and bulwark were washed with soap and water.  Tomorrow before beginning to fill we'll wash the areas again with acetone.

A few of the holes I'd drilled in the shoe were overflowing with water.  After drying the holes out as best as possible with a paper towel, heat, via a heat gun, was they applied.  The holes were then filled to the top with epoxy.

The holes after being dried, heated and then filled with epoxy

Learned from Phil to use a 1/4" nap roller to apply the Interlux 2000E as a thicker nap may leave ridges.  The first coat of 2000E will use a lot more material than subsequent coats.  The guesstimate was 2 gallons versus 1-1/4 for coats 2, 3, 4, and 5. Yea, five coats in all.  Can put on two coats per day--about 8 hours between coats.  The first coat will be white, then gray, then white...  I'm thinking about running the 2000E right to the top of the bootstripe.

Feels good to be done for the day

Sand and Wash--Part I

Washed the house, inner bulwark, and decks with soap and water.

As the fiberglass dries the remaining blisters become very apparent.   Found about 10 that needed to be ground out.

The blisters wet interior looks dark against the fiberglass

The blister area after grinding

The shoe was leaking rusty water from about five places.  Per Tommy Chen's instructions, a 1/4" hole was drilled about 1/2" deep in the area where the water was manifesting itself.

Tapping the source of the shoe's rusty water

One more day...

Getting the bottom paint off from around the thruhulls was laborious and required a Dremel Tool with a small sanding drum.

Tomorrow we'll wash the hull with soap and water then wipe her down again with acetone.

The Gel Coat is Off

South winds have been rare as hens teeth this spring. They were blowing this morning so we got some time on Nellie. Phil had moved the stands and blocks giving us access to the only unfinished areas. After today's work there's just a little bit left around the through hulls to finish.

Among other things the picture shows the boot stripe and the black bottom paint below it. While the hull was being laid up it's pretty clear that the gel coat was applied at several different times because the barrier coat is below the gel coat in the lower part of this photo, and on top of the gel coat in the middle of the photo. Perhaps the white, below-the-waterline gel coat was put on first--but only to just above the waterline.  Then the barrier coat was applied over the gel coat and stopped just a little farther up the hull than where the gel coat stopped.  Finally, gel coat was sprayed the rest of the way up the bulwark.  The straight line of gel coat in the picture shows that they taped off the lower part of the hull before spraying gel coat on the bulwark.