The continuing adventures of Koinonia

[Bob23]

JT:
   I know others have installed these also. I will be getting them from Superbright LEDs. Previously, I installed an anchor light at my masthead. I wish I had put in a tri colored light but seeing how the original Perko nav lights on my 23 work just fine, I saw no need.
In other news:
   It's no secret that we've had virtually no rain here in the Northeast. We also had virtually no snow (3 inches in 2 separate dumpings). Everything is so dry and we've had some local fires that were a potential problem. So, the question is: How to get it to rain? A raindance? No, don't think so. Cloud seeding? First you need clouds and it's probably expensive. But, not to worry: I have found the secret: Uncover your sailboat. All winter Koinonia sat in her canvas PJ's protected from snow that never came and rain that didn't show up either. I uncovered her this past week for her pre-launch spring prep and just noticed that we are forecast to get between 2 1/2 and 5 inches of rain in the next 2 days. What a revelation!
    So, let's end this drought, skippers. Let's get those boats uncovered today! The water table is depending on us!
bob23

[Bob23]

Koinonia's winter pj's are off and she's home in the driveway for spruce-up before her spring splash. Here are 2 secret spy photos of her mast foot, clevery designed and built by her humble skipper, yours truly. Although I never had any water intrusion into the cabin via the mast foot screws, just a sealed stainless steel plate against glass didn't seem the best route. I made a pvc pad inserted between the foot and the fiberglass, sealed in 4200. It hasn't been painted yet so gimme some slack, will ya?


bob23

[hockeyfool]

wow, that block of pcv looks thick , like a fat klondike bar. Now do you have another 2 inches
height to your mast ? When I added a big mast plate from garhauer , I added a 1/4" of height.
  It is large in overall dimensions also , like 9"x 11" , so I wonder if that will help with the pressure
   exerted from raising the mast. I tend to worry about pulling too hard on the mast deck area
when raising the mast - as I had to do a big repair on it from PO's leaking/warped conditions at the fiberglass cabin
top, the inbedded backing board and the deck mounted board . 

[Bob23]

Because those shots were secret spy photos, they are blurry. The pad is only 3/4" thick and I plan to cut 3/4" off the bottom of the mast so there will be no changes to the standing rigging. I may have added a slight amount of area to the mast foot to spread the load a bit but my primary reason was to achieve a watertight seal. Even if the stainless steel mast foot were to work loose, there should not be any leaks into the deck.
Bob23

[Bob23]

STANCHION REBED WARNING:
   Do not use black, sticky butly tape to rebed your hardware. Like the kind you can get from a glass shop. Not knowing the difference, I bought a roll from my glass guy. Using it in hot weather is like being in black bubble gum hell. To say it is sticky is the understatement of the year. Sure, it will work fine but it was very messy to use. Fortunately, the excess (there was much) came off with acetone but it makes a real mess. Couple that with a hot, humid afternoon and you have a recipe for new curse words to be invented. I'll seek out a roll of grey or use Lifecaulk as suggested by Mac on another thread. It pays to listen to the experts!
   In other news, the re-varnishing of the teak bow pulpit is coming along with the 3rd coat of Flagship varnish being applied tonight. I'll probably go for 8 coats. I did 7 coats originally and got about 7 years out of it before I ground it down to bare wood last week. Not bad, huh?
   More other news: I'm doing a barrier coat bottom job this spring before launch. There are no signs of blisters but she's 27 years old and she's worth it.
bob23

[Bob23]

Rebed update:
   Ignoring my own advice above, I rebed the 3 remaining stanchions using the black butyl tape I had acquired. The project went smoothly and I decided to wait to scrape the ooze-out (new word) until a cooler day. It really isn't all the bad to work with...I just picked the wrong one to start with and on too hot a day.
   Using the original bolts and nuts, it's a good idea to rethread them to clean up the threads. Mine must've been cut off flush at the initial build so the ends of the bolts were ragged, to say the least. I think this contributed to my frustrating first stanchion nightmare. I filed each bolt end smooth, running the file to a 45 degree angle then after applying a little oil, ran the bolt through a die clamped in my vice. After each one, I put a nut on each one to make sure all was well.
   Where I could, I used a new stainless steel fender washer for added strength. This rebedding should be the last the boat ever needs unless it lasts 50 more years in which case, I'll be sailing with my Pilot so it'll be the least of my concern. More news as it unfolds!
Bob23

[Bob23]

HOW TO TELL IF YOUR BOAT'S BEEN OUT OF THE WATER TOO LONG:
   I'm sure there are many ways but yesterday, as I was below pondering my plight of being overdue for a sail, I saw a wasp looking to make a nest. Really? C'mon...the boat hasn't been out of the water THAT long, has it? I know that wasps and bees like to nest in abadoned sailboats for some reason but did he really have to rub it in? I'm only overdue for my spring launch by a month or so. Some years I'm in by April 15th but here it is, May 28th, and I'm still working. Having the weekend off really helps and I got a lot done. Rebuilt my chart table using some rift grain white oak flooring for the stock. Wonderful wood and I like the light wood/ dark wood contrast with the teak and cumaru down below already. I removed my forward passive vent from the foredeck in prep for the dorade box/cowl vent project. Today I remove and rebed the bow rail. The bottom paint removal project may start today. I really don't need to do this but it just seems that after 27 years a barrier boat project might be nice.
   Another problem with the wasps is that I'm allergic to thier stings. It could  kill me which would mean that Koinonia would be available for sale but you'd have to finish what I didn't. I just got my Epipen prescription but haven't refilled yet. Guess it's time, eh? My wife says that if I die from a bee sting, she'll kill me. Sometimes, it seems you just can't win.
   Other projects are: new depth sounder (Raymainre ST-60 series) to be installed this week sometime. New gold striping below the rub rail. Repaint the boot stripe after the bottom job is sone,. And of course a thorough cleaning and waxing before launch.
   See you on the water!
Bob23

[mrtoad]

my little yacht sat for a year at a local boat yard - it was a mess inside - we found one wasp nest, a large one in the front - but the dirt/mud dobber was the bad guys - we counted 21 different nest - some as large as your palm -
very difficult to clean - not good

going to west marine today - waiting on repair from signet marine - "mr toad" back into water next week

mr toad

[brackish]

Bob, my boat stays in the water and rarely goes more than two weeks without use.  I still have to hunt down and remove the wasp and dirt dauber nests and mud huts in the late spring/early summer.  Last week I chased off a few wasps from a fresh nest, then went out.  When I returned the wasps were back to continue adding to the nest.

I've heard that Pennyroyal (not sure spelling is right for that) oil left in a tin near hatch covers will keep them away.  I haven't tried that yet.

[Bob23]

Thanks, Brack:
   I'll hunt the oil down and try it out. Being on a mooring all summer, I don't seem to have a problem with wasps/bees getting in the boat. Of course, there's not a lot of ways in either. Until I change my venting system that is. If all goes well, I'll have 2 cowl vents in for this summer- plenty of room for those stinging varmits to enter.
bob23

[mrtoad]

please keep us informed of cowl vent installation
photos would be nice

thanks - mr toad

[Spartan]

Bob23,

It is definitely good idea to get the epipen and have handy.  I share your affliction to wasp and bee stings.  The only time I have had to self inject was about 10 years ago when I put my hand in the cowl vent of my then CP16 that was dry moored at the lake.  A wasp was in there just waiting for me.  I asked the marina attendant where the nearest hospital was and explained why.  She offered to have a Park Ranger take me.  I had already injected so drove myself, but in hindsight should have taken the offer, just in case and for the safety of others if something would have happened while driving the 10 miles to the ER.  So in this case the Admiral is right, get the prescription filled.

Your fellow allergic sailor
Tom

[Bob23]

BOTTOM PAINT REMOVAL UPDATE:
   A good friend recommeded Peel-Away#1 as an efficient, inexpensive way to remove all the bottom paint. I commandeered some and, on a hot saturday afternoon, began applying it. The thing is with PeelAway is that you can't let it dry, hence the reason for applying the paper over the sauce immediately. However, the hull was hot, the air hot and dry so it began to dry before I could even get the paper on. In talking about this with my buddy Dennis, who recommended the stuff, he noted that he did his in the late fall. Hence his success and my failure. Bottom line: It's great stuff but choose cooler weather.
   The bottom line is, I've made quite a mess and also discovered another feature of PeelAway: It dries to the consistency of 4000# concrete and is almost impossible to get off. I'm seriously considering having the bottom soda blasted (at considerable expense) then proceeding with my barrier coat/ new bottom paint project.
   I'm also considering having my head examined for starting such a project during sailing season.
Other news: The new Raymarine ST-60 depth sounder came it so it'll be installed after the bottom paint is removed. Varnishing, cleaning, striping and painting continue. She'll be real pretty when she finally gets wet. Hopefully soon.
bob23...land bound and not happy about it.

[Bob23]

   Well in attempting to deal with the above mentioned layer of "concrete" on my boat, I did what any true-blue American would do: I fired up the powerwasher. The idea came to me in a revelation this morning and this afternoon, after a nice 8 mile row, I hit it. Of course, it removed all the PeelAway and the bottom paint that was loose, but lots of the original bottom paint remained.
   As of this writing, I'm probably gonna touch up the bottom paint, finish my projects and get to sailin'!
   Epipen update: When I went to pick it up, the nice CVS girl noted that it would be $200.00 with my insurance. That's $100.00 per pen. I told her, fugedaboutit, and I'm looking online for a cheaper source...maybe Canada? Last time I bought these they were about 50 bucks for the pair. If this madness continues, I won't be able to afford to keep myself from dying from a wasp sting!
Bob23

[Bob23]

GREMLINS IN THE BILGE ...and other repairs.
   Well, Koinonia is nearing her splash date, so I did what I do every year: test the bilge pump. All went well. I filled the bilge with the hose and waited for that sound: the sound that never came. For some reason, during the winter I suppose, my pump decided to head south and ain't been seen. So some quick phone calls found a replacement- Rule RM750. The base is glued to the bottom of the bilge using the dreaded (by some) 5200.
   Varnishing is going well but everyday I discover something more I'd like to varnish so, a-varnishing I go. At this point, I've added about 12000 pounds of paint and varnish to this boat making her the first Compac 23 counter-ballasted with varnish.
   When I first bought her, there was a mysterious piece of hardware that no one could explain. The Grand Pooba of Compac, Gerry Hutchings reassured me that it most certainly wasn't original equipment. Here's a shot:

A very ugly, non-stainless eyebolt with a 3/4" bolt diameter. Not sure who put it there but I endured it until now. Out it came and I replaced it with this:


Yep! a gunuine cork from a genuine bottle of Italian Chianti. Eat yer heart out, MacGyver- let's see you yard guys do a repair like this!  I reached it when I cut the hole in the rear deck for the aft cowl vent:

  Speaking of vents, I decided to go ahead with a forward dorade and cowl vent. I cut the box down a bit and tapered it to appear more level. It should provide some constant air flow through the boat while on her mooring:

So, new Raymarine depth sounder installed, 2 new coats on the boot stripe, Flagship varnish on the face of the board with the cabin step on it...don't know the proper name, new gold stripe, 6 new coats of Flagship varnish on the bow pulpit, and I can't remember everything I've done to the boat this spring...except sail her! I think I hear her yellin': "Stop prettying me up and let's get to the dance!" Patience my sweet, patience.
Bob23