Time to get some sun

More fussy details the past couple of weeks. Some fun fussy, and some not so much. On the not so much side, I've been to Hamilton Marine everyday the past week buying screws, rivets, bolts, nuts and washers, since every piece of hardware I have requires a different type of fastener.

On the more fun side, I made the shiv for the main halyard. Typical boatbuilding. . . make something nice, then put a big hole in it. The little bent over piece that will line the hole was tricky. One bend is easy, just clamp it in a vice and pull on it. But how do you get the 2nd bend? It's pretty easy to make it ugly, but you need a really good block and a big hammer (preferably metal) to make it look good.


Here are all the pieces put together. Ready for some running rigging!


The spreaders are also now installed on the mast.


A little detail shot. . . the pieces on top of the little brackets I made are called tangs. They hold the ends of the shrouds, wires which support the mast. There are actually 3 sets of shrouds on this mast, the usual uppers and lowers, but also another set which runs from the spreader to the top of the mast thru something called a jumper strut. I'll have pictures of that set up next time, as the jumper is still being fabricated.


Now to explain the title of this post, and maybe clarify this whole spreader/shroud thing to folks not familiar with sailboat rigging. As I just mentioned, the shrouds are wires that attach the mast to the boat. Sure, I have plans that tell me how long they should be, but just to be sure, why not measure? So we pulled the boat out of the shop and stepped the mast.



Well, maybe this doesn't explain much. . . tough to see in this picture, but if you look closely you can see lines. One running from the top of the mast to the back, one about 3/4 of the way up, thru the spreader, and down to the side of the boat, one from just below the spreader to the side of the boat (remember the chainplates? that's where they attach), and one about 3/4 of the way up to the front of the boat. I can now measure these and tell the sail guy what length of wire we'll need.

And that's it for the shop. The weather is forecast to be fine the next week, so I'm working outside for a little while. You can see the big white shed in the background. A big (40') boat is coming out of there this week, so we'll move inside the shed for final finish work. It will be nice to get away from all the dust in the shop for final painting and varnishing.

A new mold is already being set up in our spot for the next boat, a Buzzards Bay sloop. On the other side, the Haj is coming along quickly now, with the cabin top in place and the laid deck going on. Six people working on the boat all at once. . . must be nice.


One last shot.

Rudder

The last major piece to go on the boat is the rudder. Here it is in pieces.


The rod is attached to the oak with 1/4" bronze bolts countersunk into the oak and peened over flush with the rod. The little cut out at the bottom of the rod will accept a bronze strap which will be attached to the deadwood later on. Backing the rod in order to peen it over was quite a task, since there was no real good way to hold/clamp the rudder and back the rod at the same time. This is the best we could do. . .

2 of us held the rudder while the 3rd hammered away at the bronze until it was flush. Ready for installation. . .


Remember all that fussy drilling a few weeks back? Well this is where it pays off. Below is pictured the flange, containing a 1 1/2" pipe which slides all the way through the keel, into that hole we drilled. The pipe accepts the rudder, which is sticking out a few inches in this photo (the tiller will be attached at the top) and points the rod directly towards the bottom of the keel. By the way, I can't take credit for this beautiful bronze work. It was done by a local metal worker named Bill Lowe.

Sure enough. . . right where we want it. It helped that the aft piece of deadwood had not yet been installed so we could custom fit it not just to the boat and the lead, but also to the aft face where the rudder lies. The bronze strap near the bottom lies in a chiseled out section of the deadwood so everything is nice and smooth.

She's a boat now! Note the chain hoist had to be hooked up again in order to lift the boat up to install the rudder.


In other news, I made the spreaders, which are short pieces that stick out of the mast about 20' or so in the air. Their purpose will become clear later if you aren't familiar with the rigging of a sailboat.


I do get to take credit for the metalwork on these guys. This is a perfect example of why the apprenticeshop is such a great place to learn. It takes more skills than woodworking (although that is the big one) to build a boat, and at the shop, you get to try them all. I've never done any metalworking and frankly never thought I would. But after seeing how easy it is and how few tools you need to do a lot of things (shaping and drilling will take you a long way), I start imagining how to incorporate metal into everyday woodworking projects. Bronze is beautiful stuff.


Speaking of bronze, the collection is pretty much complete.

Finally, the twins are back in the water! She got a little upgrade this winter. The sternpost now has a ring which will act as a traveler, so we don't have to move the sheet back and forth every time we tack. Again, if you aren't familiar with sailing rigging, this will make more sense later once we get everything put together. Since the mermaid will be done in plenty of time for launch on June 18, I'll have some time to do rigging work on the twins.


Happy Spring!