Winter 2017 to 2018 Completing the Refit: Part 2

Completing the Refit of Calypso

The Cracks in the Hull

In the last post I noted that Calypso had a fair number of vertical cracks as shown below and in the previous post.

The Vertical Cracks are Showing

This was puzzling to me, since cracks in the paint caused by the sun are spider cracks.  However, when I visited the Annapolis Boat Show on Oct. 5th and 6th, I met Tim Jackett, the designer of the boat and he had the answer for me.

Gelcoat does not adhere to the epoxy resin used in the hull.  So, Tartan inserted a bonding material in between.  Over the years the material cracked as did gelcoat, but one the epoxy resin in the fiberglass.  So the hull is sound and seaworthy, the Calypso just looks cracked.

October 10th: I found the boat in one of the paint sheds at Milford Boat Works.  It had been moved in sometime earlier.

The Shed

The location of Calypso is in the white plastic covered shed in the picture above.  After I did some work consisting of removing the solar panels and the bimini and taking some measurements of the lens of the crazed hatches and did some other minor maintenance, and after I discussed some items with Larry, the yard manager, and Cliff, the electrician, I took some pictures of Calypso's state.

The Deck

As can be seen from the pictures above, the deck of Calypso doesn't seem to be particularly out of order, but for the fact that the wheel is laying on the foredeck!

However, the topsides are still looking like a mess, though a well sanded mess as shown in the following pictures.

The Sides of the Boat

Obviously, I will have some difficulty taking pictures of the boat inside the paint shed and that's OK since it will have a much better paint job inside.

Work Continues

Now Calypso is completely surrounded by scaffolding as the work continues.  The first thing that I noticed was that there was some work on the bottom.  The last time I saw the boat the joint on the starboard side is shown in the following picture.

The keel joint on October 3rd

The epoxy covering the lead in the keel had separated from the actual lead.  Now, (October 17th), new epoxy filled in the separation.  Notice, also, that the some initial barrier coating has been done, apparently.

The Keel Joint filled

Preparatory work on the topsides looks to be about complete except at the stern.

The Starboard Side

The Port Side

However, there is still much work to do on the stern.  As shown in the following pictures, there are many spider cracks (look carefully at the blue in the pictures following).

Port Side Stern

Starboard Side Stern

While they are hairline cracks they are visible (looking carefully) in the pictures and will need to be repaired before the Awlgrip primer is applied.  I have been told that the reason for these cracks is the color of the boat, flag blue.  Dark colors absorb light converting into heat which causes spider cracks in the finish.  This one of the reasons that so many cruising boats are white.

So I suspect it will be another week or two before Jerry, the man refinishing the boat, will be able to start applying the primer, though I may be wrong.

Another item on the list was one that the surveyor of the boat noted, before I acquired the boat.  Many of the exhaust ports for gray water and water from the cockpit come through the stern above the waterline.  These ports are plastic that crazes in the sunlight and therefore were liable to break apart.

As shown in the following picture, these are being replaced.

The Exhaust Ports

Hatches and Woodwork

October 17th: went back to retrieve the companionway woodwork and hatches. The folk at Milford Boat Works deconstructed most of the woodwork of the companionway, exclusive of the two walls, one of which I did last spring and the other that I will do this winter.  

Here they together with the hatch lids in the back of my car.

Parts in the Back of the Car

You can see the lens crazing in the following photo.  While it really doesn't look like in the two photos above, the wood of the companionway needs some serious TLC. 

Crazed Hatch Lens

Apparently, crazed lens like the one you can see can split or cave in during a serious blue water storm.  So the lens need to be replaced if I actually use the boat for some blue water cruising.

And Calypso's deck looks very forlorn with no hatches.

The Deck in Deconstruction

Until next time, in two to three weeks.

Winter 2017 to 2018--Completing the Refit: Part 1

Completing the Refit of Calypso

As of September 18th, 2017, Calypso was on the hard.

Port Side

Starboard Side

Repairing and Refinishing the Hull

As of the 20th, the rudder has been removed.  While I was on a trip I received these pictures of the work on Calypso.

Port Side

Starboard Side

You can see from these pictures that the boat is really a fixer-upper project.  Jerry, the technician opened each crack and has started to repair it using a epoxy and fiberglass.  Notice also, that the rudder is missing.

On October 3rd I went to check on Calypso.  What I found would have made many a sailor and insurance adjustor turn green as shown in the following pictures.  Honestly, it looks like many abandon hulls that I've seen.

However, to me it looked like real progress.

The First Look

Like I said, Calypso looks more like an abandon hulk than a performance cruiser.  The following pictures show more detail of the work.

Starboard Side

Port Side

Like I said, Calypso looks like a hulk.  Jerry at Milford Boat Works (MBW) has sanded down the finish on the topsides and the bottom has been walnut shell blasted.  So the preparation for refinishing is well along.  Notice that in the "port side" picture the swim platform has been removed from the transom.

The Rudder

Here is a picture of the rudder that was removed.  While it doesn't look bad on this side, as pictures demonstrated in previous posts, the other side was not good at all.

The Old Rudder

Now MBW is getting ready to install the new rudder as shown in the following pictures.

The Transom from the Side

The Transom from Underneath 

Problems

As with all projects, be they a bathroom renovation or a boat refit, the farther you get into it, the more problems you find and the more you learn about how the product or system is constructed.  This is true for Calypso's refit as well.

The Swim Platform

First, there is the swim platform.  The hinges on the swim platform were held in place by aluminum straps inside the platform.  Over the years, saltwater found these and they corroded and expanded, splitting the platform along a seam.  The MBW team had to cut the swim platform open to repair the problem.

Jerry with the swim platform

From the picture above you can see the work that needed to be done to complete the repair of the bottom edge of the swim platform.

The top edge of the Swim Platform

There were also cracks where the external handle of the platform attached to the platform that the team repaired.  Shortly it will be ready for repainting with Awlgrip.

Cracks in the Bottom

Of more concern were the hairline cracks in the bottom of Calypso that showed up only after the bottom paint had been removed.  These cracks are mostly extensions of the cracks in the topsides of the boat as shown in the picture below.

The Crack Extension below the Water Line

There are a fair number of them and that is unexpected as well.  The good news is that none of the cracks are weeping, meaning that no water got into the hull.  Instead, apparently, the spider cracks were filled by the barrier coat and paint.  They only showed up when the paint was removed.  More on this soon.