Reenie K

In spite of being on call for the second week in a row, I managed to get some things done this weekend.

Brian and I remounted the centerboard. Be nice to go in the general direction we're pointing at, huh?

The anchor light that was mounted yesterday was wired in and tested. We have lights - well light anyway. The horn got mounted but not wired in yet. I need to put the centerboard cap (that reddish wooden piece I worked on really early in the blog) in place and a channel for the horn switch wires needs to be cut.

I found the mount points for the forward two batteries and the mount point for the bilge pump. Tomorrow if the weather is decent and the call volume is low, I'll wire the horn and cabin light and mount the rest of the batteries.

I might even take some pics!

I really hate winter... It's snowing again!

I braved the snow long enough to mount the centerboard cap, wire in the horn and finish the wiring for the anchor light. There's still a bit of wiring to do - the pump, the cabin light and the running lights, but now is the time to pour a glass of brandy, climb into my wubbies, and see if there's an old movie on TCM.

Well, I'm back at school...

The first safe boating class was tonight. It's typically geared for power boat people, as it should be. Of 20 people in the class, 2 are sailors. I don't think Brian and I will have any trouble passing the class..

It was actually above freezing today - at least until I ended up laying in a puddle of ice water wiring the lights.

The running lights, horn and anchor light are all done. Next step in wiring it the bilge pump, the cabin light and wiring for a lighted compass. I don't think I'm going to do much night sailing, but it would be nice to have the capability. Better to have and not need than to need and not have!

Tomorrow if the weather is decent, I'll finish the wiring. If not, I'll mope around....

My fingers are numb! It's COLD outside.

I didn't finish the wiring, but I got the two stern battery packs mounted. (And yes, I did a McGiver - I took 2 pieces of plastic that hold up a paper rack on a large printer and used them to level the batteries!)

I also mounted the bilge pump hose and fitting. I like it and when my fingers thaw out, I will probably take some pics.

I ran in to a problem with mounting the portholes. The screws I have are a little short, so one more trip to Lowe's.

And now the sun is over the yardarm, so it's time to draw my ration of rum or grog or whatever.

Next weekend, I want to do the portholes, finish the wiring, swab her stem to stern and start patching the holes in the deck.

Early Daylight Savings Time is GREAT!

I came home to daylight! I was just starting on the boat when a neighbor came over. I woke up and found myself working on his rototiller!

I did manage to clean up the boat a bit and mount the bracket to hold the cabin light. I also ordered a tiller lock and a compass. Eventually, I'll need them if I EVER get the boat IN the water!
I have to check regs for lighting too - I might need to put yet another running light on. Damn!

Oh, well...

After talking with the guys who are teaching my class, I don't have to add another light to the mast! The anchor light will do double duty as a steaming light if I run the sailboat at night on the motor.

I don't plan on doing that very often, so I hate to spend the money and the effort for something I might need once.

I looked again at putting a tent over the boom for camping. It's doable, but that might have to wait until next year, unless I try making my own tent. Hmmmmmmmm...

I don't believe it! Just before spring, we get a sleet and snow storm! And here i had visions of taking the Reenie K out for her first shakedown cruise this weekend!

All the inside work is pretty well done, too! I need to mount the compass, replace the tiller lock cause the first one doesn't work correctly. The lock is fine, but the angles of the lines are wrong. I need to wire in the cabin light, wire in the light for the compass once I figure out where I'm mounting it, I need to wire in the bilge pump and mount the portholes.

Then I need to start the painting process.

Not really a lot of work left to do, but it's all outdoor stuff! This may push back the launch date by a week or two. Damn!

This is sooo cool.. I got Image-magick to work on this server....

I'll be going back and changing all the images to thumbnails in the next couple of days....

(hey, if I can't play with the boat, I can play with the software about the boat at least!

I feel a case of "boatitis" coming on.....
If I am lucky, I can get the boat out on the water for her shakedown cruise during the first week of April. To do that, I need enough time to finish wiring the bilge pump and fix the rudder. Everything else is cosmetic or optional - filling screw holes, painting, installing the new tiller lock, finishing the portholes. That can all wait...

I just need to take a day off to get the boat in the water for a test... I cannot WAIT!!!!!!!

Here's what the portholes will look like when finished:

Any day I'm on call and manage to get some work done on the Reenie K, I consider a moral victory. I can only do short jobs, or things I can leave in a hurry. Between the rain and standby, it seemed that nothing was getting done lately.

Well, today I managed to mount the cabin light and wire it in, mounted the new compass and checked it out, added hatch closures for the two cabin hatches (so if I do flip her, all my stuff doesn't end up at the bottom of some lake), got the rudder apart and re-painted and started painting the box of emergency supplies and test wired the bilge pump so it will run automatically with a float switch.

We're getting there and still are planning on a shakedown cruise in early April.

Whoo hooooo

I finally set the trailer up for the boat so the tongue weight is 200 pounds as it should be. I also took the wheels off. Thank God I planned on replacing the bearings! Both bearing nuts were so loose the hubs had play in them! One set of bearings was water fouled and had started to rust the shaft. Tomorrow, new races and bearings and a healthy addition of grease.

Best boat in the world isn't worth spit if you can't get it to the water.

This is actually an upgrade, not a repair. The cuddy cabin is small, about the size of a fairly expansive coffin! It would be a little disorienting to wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to see. (If I sit up suddenly, I'll bash what few brains I have left on the overhead)

So here's the fix...

The light is actually chrome, but it's reflecting the interior color of the cabin, which adds another task to the list - Paint the interior!

You can see some damage to the overhead above the light.. I'm planning on doing some fiberglassing to that area to improve the look and make the cabin slightly more watertight.

Here's what the interior looks like from the cockpit. It's still a work in progress, as evidenced by the parts and tools scattered about. The two nets you see are going to keep things from sliding around and hopefully keep things inside if we capsize (not that we'll ever do that!)

On the starboard side (the right to you landlubbers), you can see the cut out for the portholes I'm going to install. That might be the next project. I don't mind doing the shakedown cruise with the boat needing paint, but I'd rather not put her in the water with great gaping holes, even if they are above the waterline!

We are Ready for the shakedown cruise!

I bought life jackets today, which was the last thing on my "need to be legal" list!!

I also put the new bearings on the trailer today, which turned out to be a major chore.

Tomorrow, more work after I take the car in for brakes. I think I'll need them towing

Although I really want to paint her this year, I think that's going to wait until the fall. I found out to do it right, I need to sand, clean the dust, prime, paint, sand, clean the dust and paint (the paint is 67.00 a quart!!!!) So this year, we'll sail her as she is, I think.

That means I'll be hand lettering her name this year.

I also decided on a personal flag to fly along with the ensign. This is the rough version...

We had our first annual voluntary boat safety inspection today. We passed!

Tomorrow if it doesn't rain, we're taking the boat out for the shakedown and the dechristening ceremony. Everything looks to be ready. Damn, I can't WAIT!