Forward frame is fit!

After a couple of hours of trying to get this frame in place, i finally figured out how to do it.  i put blocks aft of the frame to keep it from slipping and a couple of strategically placed sheetrock screws.  Then, I put a marine battery on top to weight it against the bottom.  It looks pretty good at this point. 

Will let it sit overnight and then begin tabbing in place.  

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Sometimes its the obvious things

I reserve the right to change my mind.

Yesterday, Id decided to just leave the globs of cured epoxy sandwiched between the chines and stem as-is. They were hard to reach, and it seemed like it was going to take me forever to make any real progress on them. So, I thought Id just write them off as large, malformed, out-of-control fillets. 

That was before I discovered the obvious: 

A chisel is very effective at removing cured bits of epoxy.

Certainly it will do it faster than sandpaper or files, which are of course still needed to smooth the surface. For what its worth, I noticed that the epoxy Id thickened with #2 silica is more brittle and breaks away easier than the epoxy Id thickened with mahogany sawdust.

So, with chisel in hand, I once again attacked the biggest glob of epoxy, which is behind the starboard chine. After making a bit of progress with the chisel, I filed away aggressively with a coarse round file. A little more work, and Ill have it reduced to something more acceptable.

Sure, it will still be a large fillet. But it wont be so malformed and out-of-control.

So with that, Ive made a blog post each day this week. I suppose its a fairly representative week in the slow-but-steady progress Im making on the Utility. God willing, Ill be able to put the little boat in the water this year.

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Its the little things

A caveat with this design.  Most of the instructions for building the basic hull are densely packed on the hull assemble sheet.  I did not do a couple of things correctly, and had to spend time correcting later.

1.  taper the stringers on the sides.  If you dont you will have problems when you stack and tape the panels
2.  Shape the stem BEFORE you unfold the butterfly.  You will get a nicer line.  My forefoot is too straight so is not as pleasing aesthetically.
3.  Get a helper when you unfold the panels,  this will limit breakage and surprises.
4.  Read, read, read.  I think I will put together a better punch assembly key step by step to help with the build of another.  It is not a difficult boat to build, but attention to detail is important.

Here are some pictures of the beginning of fitting the frames.  The center one is temporary.  The others get wired in for gluing.  Only after I am satisfied that all in in alignment will I epoxy any seams.

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