Final Word On Portlight Configuration

Once again, I've made a change to how the fixed portlights in the outboard sides of the cabin will be installed.  My portlight saga is beginning to resemble Neil Hawksford's long-lasting "tumblehome saga" in the building of his Tiki 38, Gleda. 

This is the final change though, and the modifications have been completed and the window panels will be installed this week.  I decided against the overlay method as described in my last post because with the outer ring frames removed, the openings were of course larger and to have enough bonding surface for the overlay style of installation, the plastic window panels would have to be 1.5 inches wider than the openings all the way around the perimeter, creating disproportionately large windows that would adversely affect the lines of the boat.  Though it took a bit of extra work, I decided to do it the right way and the way that windows are installed in practically all modern boats and yachts - with an inner flange for bonding so that the window will be flush with the surrounding cabin side surface.  This is what David Halladay recommended from the beginning and I should have listened to him then.  It is also the way the windows are fitted in the GRP Tiki 8-Meter, a design David and the Boatsmith crew have now built three examples of, counting the new one under construction in his shop now.

Following David's instructions over the phone, I made new inner flanges from 6mm ply.  The flanges must overlap the inside cabin surface around the hull by 1 1/4 to 1 1/5 inches to have sufficient glue surface.  Then they must overlap the opening by 1 1/4 inches to allow for enough bonding surface for the acrylic window panel, which is cut 1 1/4 inches smaller than the opening all around the perimeter to allow for expansion.   The two adhesives of choice are Sikaflex 295UV or DOW 795.  I'm using the DOW 795 as it does not require a primer and seems simpler to use.  Both are incredibly strong and quite capable of permanently bonding the windows with no fasteners.  The key is to bed the window panels on a sufficient thickness of the sealant to  allow for movement.  To achieve this, I laminated a spacer layer of 6mm ply between the cabin sides and the inner flange rings.  That way, when the windows are installed, there will be a 1/4" bed of sealant and the window itself will be flush with the outside cabin surface.  More explanation of this later when I do the actual installation and take photos.    Here, I am laminating the ring frames with the spacers to the insides of the cabin:

And this is how the inside frames look now that they are glued in with epoxy.  I don't have a shot of the interior side, but on the inside the frames were finished to a nice radius with the router and will be varnished along with everything else inside the cabin. 

The 1/4 inch smoked cast acrylic that I ordered for the companionway drop boards also arrived last week and I cut those to shape using my plywood patterns:  The inboard sides of the cabin are not completely faired or painted and won't be until I move the hulls out and fit the beams.  Because I don't know the exact dimensions of the cockpit and where the seats will land on the cabin sides yet, I will wait until I can mock that up for accuracy before making and installing the rail upon which the seats will rest on the cabin sides. 

The opening Lewmar portlights for the aft cabin bulkheads have also been dry-fitted and will be installed this week.

Still Working to Close in the Cabins

This week I've been able to get back to work on Element II  on a daily basis, at least for a couple of hours each morning.  As some of you who have stopped by my other website or blogs may know, my latest book, Bug Out: The Complete Plan for Escaping a Catastrophic Disaster Before It's Too Late, has just been released this week.  I am now on a mostly full-time writing schedule working to complete my next book, which according to my contract has to be done by September 1.  Since I won't be taking on any other outside work until at least that date, I now can devote some time to the boat, as I certainly can't spend all day writing.  This is a good time of year to make progress too, as epoxy and paint cures fast.  Since I'm doing the boat work first thing in the morning, the temperatures are not unbearable.  I'll try to update here a little more often, but most of my keyboard time will be spent working on the new book and promoting the just-released one.

Here's a shot of  where I'm at today with the hulls - after just putting a first coat of paint on the cabin tops and sides:

The walk-on surfaces of the cabin tops will get non-skid on the next coat, laid out in patterns similar to those on the foredecks.

Other than endless sanding, filling and fairing to prep all these surfaces for paint, the other jobs I've been working on this week were fitting the main companionway hatch covers.  This involved making and shaping teak receiving blocks for the stainless steel tubing upon which the hatch covers slide. 

When building the coaming for the forward ventilation hatches a few months ago, I planned the layout so that there would be just enough room for the hatches to fit comfortably aft of the Bomar hatches when slid forward and resting on the cabin tops in the open position. 

I can't imagine sleeping below in a Tiki 26 in a hot climate without those forward opening hatches.  While sleeping aboard the Tiki 30 Abaco in the Florida Keys a couple of weeks ago, the open Bomars funneled the breeze right onto my bunk, forcing me to look for covers before morning.   The Tiki 26 should have such hatches shown in the plans.  If I had an older boat without them, I would be figuring out a way to retrofit them if I were sailing South. 

Here's another view of the cabin top with the main hatch closed.  The sliding system works beautifully. 

After making sure all the angles were correct and pre-drilling and fitting the teak receiver blocks, I took all this off and proceeded with fiberglassing the hatch covers.  Abaco's varnished teak hatches are fine to look at, and mine are trimmed out in teak as well, but I want no bright work to maintain above decks, so mine will be glassed and painted.

Fairing, Fiberglassing and Priming

I'm in the middle of a labor-intensive stage of boatbuilding at the moment - still working on all the details of fiberglassing, fairing, sanding and eventually priming and painting of the decks and cabin sides.

The cabin roofs have still not been installed, as I am waiting to finish up some more interior details before closing them in and making access more difficult. But in the meantime I am working to completely finish all other exterior glassing of the cabin trunks and details such as the hatches and lashing cleats so that the decks can be painted. This involves spreading lots of fairing compound (see below) and sanding it smooth so the glass can be laminated over it.

All the joints between the decks and cabin bulkheads get a strip of fiberglass tape to reinforce them in addition to the sheathing on the main surfaces.

The outer surfaces of the hatch coamings, being made of plywood, also have to be sheathed with fiberglass to protect them from checking in the sun and to bond them to the surrounding deck surfaces.

The twelve beam and four shroud lashing cleats are also made of plywood and are separately sheathed with the cloth wrapping around the radiused edges to prevent delamination.

These small details are time consuming but essential to the longevity of the boat.

All the corners of the cabin trunks are reinforced with a separate strip of fiberglass.

And then the main surfaces are sheathed, as you can see below in the example of the aft bulkhead of the starboard cabin.

Working from the bows back, I'm slowly getting the fairing finished and have began applying the undercoating primer, as seen here on the forward part of the foredecks, stems, and bow hatches.

Fairing and priming the decks and cabins is a much bigger job than the hulls, as there are so many surfaces to work around. After the final coats of primer are applied and sanded, the green topside paint will be cut in to the bottom of the sheer stringer. Everything from the sheer stringer up will be painted an Off-White, with symmetrical patches of non-skid on the decks.

Installing The Inner Cabin Sides

Most of the detail tasks I've been completing on the boat have had little visual impact and things have looked much the same for many weeks. Yesterday, I changed this when I installed the inner cabin sides. I've been holding off on this until most of the interior work was completed, as these will make it harder to get in and out of the hulls with my low shed roof overhead. But at this point it was time to get them on so as there is a lot of finishing work to be done on the inboard sides that can only be done after the sides are on. Having the sides on will also discourage my cat from hanging out in the hulls, (I hope) and cut down on the amount of dust and other trash getting in there.

Here's a view from the inside of the port hull, looking through the drop board opening towards the starboard hull. You can see the top shelf/step under the opening, and just forward of that, the lower shelf where the two-burner stove will live.

Here's another angle looking forward inside the port hull, the corner of the sink barely visible in the foreground, stove shelf on the inboard side, and the unobstructed inner cabin side in the bunk area. I'm thinking that instead of a fixed shelf on that side, I will make custom canvas storage pockets.

Here's a view from forward in the port hull, looking aft into the galley and main companionway area.

A similar view from forward in the starboard hull shows the companionway steps and the hinged attachment point for the drop-down chart table on the inboard side.

I'm a step closer to having enclosed cabins, but there is still much work to be done before the cabin roofs go on. I will be ordering hatches for the forward ends of the cabin tops and portlights for the aft bulkheads in the next few days.

When the closing in of the cabins is complete and hatches and ports installed so that the hulls can be closed tight against the rain, Element II will at last emerge from the tiny shed I'm building here in so I can spread her hulls to their assembled width and put the beams in place.

Fiberglassing Outer Cabin Sides and Hatches

With the Lexan portlights cut out and ready to be installed, I realized I've got some catching up to to in preparing the cabin sides for the installation. Before the ports go in, I want the outer trim rings completely finished with glass sheathing, primer and paint - that way I won't have to risk damaging the ports working near them with sanders and other tools. So at this stage, I went ahead and applied the fiberglass sheathing to the outer cabin sides. I want to install the ports before the cabin tops go on, as it will be easier if I can reach inside from the top, and will eliminate needing a helper to do this.

Using my usual method of applying masking tape to define the perimeters first, the glass was epoxy saturated and then cut away on the inner sides of the tape.

Before doing this, I built up smooth fillets around the edges of the raised portlight trim rings, and sanded them to a nice transition into the surrounding cabin sides. There were no issues with getting the 6-ounce cloth to conform to the different levels with these fillets in place.

While in the fiberglassing mode, I also removed the front hatches and laminated a layer of 6-ounce on them.

While sanding the fillets on the outer cabin sides, my 5-inch random orbital sander gave up, so I had to make a quick trip to the local building supply and get a replacement. None of these sanders of this design hold up very long to the continued abuse of building a boat. But they are relatively inexpensive. I bought the same model that I purchased about this time last year. This one might see me through to the end of this project if I'm lucky, but keep in mind, I also use my tools for paying work on other people's projects as well.

I have larger sanders for the big jobs, but I find this 5-inch size indispensable for many of the tight spots on the boat. The semi-soft pad allows it to conform around fillets and smaller overall size gets it into many places that otherwise would have to be sanded by hand or my Fein Multimaster.

Glassing Stern Decks, Fitting Inner Cabin Sides

The stern decks have been neglected for awhile as I've been working on fitting cabin interior parts in both hulls. I had planned to put this off for later, but an usually warm day for January yesterday gave me the idea that I should go ahead and get the protective sheathing on the decks. Condensation in the shed caused by changing temperatures has been giving me problems with discoloration of unprotected wood, so getting these decks glassed sooner rather than later was a good thing.

I taped off the perimeters and did the big, main sections of the decks first. The edges overlapping the sheer stringers can be done at a later time. Below is a view of both decks with epoxy-saturated fiberglass extending out to the tape lines. I used fast hardener and spread it quickly with a squee-gee so that I could get the second filler coat on the same day.

Here is a another view of the stern decks a couple hours later. The tape has been cut away and the second coat of epoxy, thickened with silica and phenolic microballoons, has been applied to fill the weave of the fiberglass. This was left alone to fully cure until another day, when it will be sanded fair before applying the edge sheathing.

Today I fitted both of the inner cabin side panels. Since they are straight at the top edge, it is a simple matter to offer them up with temporary screws holding them in line with the top corners of the bulkheads. The curving bottom edge is then scribed from the inside so the panel can be cut to fit when it is removed.

Here is a view of both inner cabin sides temporarily fitted. The gap at the bottom front corners is caused by the panels being cut slightly over sized and resting on the outside of the sheer stringer, rather than fitting on the top edge of it as they should. For final fitting I will belt sand the bottom edges to a matching bevel until the panels slide in place nicely against the bulkheads. After this test fitting, the panels will get epoxy coated on the inside, but will not be permanently installed until the few remaining cabin interior details are completed.

Stern Decks and Starboard Cabin

The current priority in the construction is to get the stern sections of both hulls decked so that I can focus on finishing the cabin interiors. As with the forward decks, the compartments beneath them will be completely finished before the decks go on, so that once these sections are covered with decks they will be out of sight and out of mind. Completing entire sections like this is always a good feeling as I can then move on to other areas without having to think about this again.

Stringers of Doug fir were first cut to length and fitted in the deckbeam notches. These stringers all have radiused corners on the bottom edges where they will be exposed. They were held in place by temporary screws while I marked and cut the deck panels, which are made of 6mm plywood.

There are only three stringers supporting the deck in these stern sections, but their stiffness will be enhanced by large fillets bonding them to the underside of the deck panels. Combined with the sheathing of 6-oz. fiberglass on the top surfaces, this will make the decks plenty strong while keeping them lightweight.

Here you can see the assembled deck panels with the stringers glued and filleted in place.

Below are the completed stern decks ready for installation. All the parts have been sanded and second coated with epoxy. They will be installed later this week after I get the final coats of paint in the stern buoyancy compartments and varnish in the aft bunk areas.

The outer cabin side for the starboard hull has also been installed and filleted to the shelves and bulkheads.

There will not be as many built-in fixtures as in the port hull. In addition to the panels for the electrical switches and the VHF radio and other instruments, there will be a removable chart table that will span across the navigation station and a hinged seat back that will allow comfortable seating at the chart table. Companionway steps identical to the ones in the port hull will be built on the inboard side.

More Deck and Interior Progress

Work is ongoing on the port and starboard cabin interiors, as both forward decks have now been on for several weeks and the plan is to work my way aft with completing the main interior areas and then making and installing stern decks. The port hull is still a bit ahead of the starboard, as can be seen below. Here the galley sink and shelves have been installed and the outboard cabin side is filleted in place. Only a small amount of cosmetic filleting remains to be done in this area.

Here's a view looking into the port galley hull from the area where the companionway will be. Another small shelf will be added on top of the middle stringer on either side of the sink, to utilize an otherwise wasted space. The companionway steps are also installed but not visible from this angle.

Here's an exterior view of the port hull with the outer cabin side installed.

From this angle you can see the plywood portlight trim rings and how they have been filleted to the cabin side. These will be fiberglassed over right along with the surrounding surfaces. The Lexan will be fitted from the inside with matching trim rings to hold it in place.

Below is a view of the port foredeck just after installation. The temporary screws have been removed and the holes filled with epoxy.

Here's the starboard foredeck after fairing and pre-coating with epoxy. The decks will be fiberglassed next and then the hatch coamings will be built.

Inside the starboard hull I'm working on the layout of the shelves and panel faces that will house the 12-volt switch panels, battery voltage monitoring meter, VHF radio, SSB receiver, stereo and an AC inverter.

Most of these items will be mounted under the shelf in the companionway area of the hull, where you can see the open vertical framing here.

Removable panels of teak-faced 6mm ply will be screwed to the outside of this vertical frame. The instruments will be fitted in the removable panels, and all wiring organized inside under the shelf and accessible by removing the panels. Now that these sheer-level shelves have been fitted in the starboard hull, in the next couple of work sessions I can finish and install the outer cabin side.