Some nice winter sunshine today....cloudless skies as a high from North west sits over UK; freezing mind! But, no wind means no dust.......and so I romped home finishing off the scraping along the outer gunwale and cutting out some of the rotten bits.
After scraping back, a sanding job was needed and this was slightly awkward. I don't know what possessed me to do it but when I originally fitted the outer gunwales - I shaped them slightly with a router.........which then makes them bloody awkward to sand at a later date...serves me right. KISS - keep it simple stupid - should be branded on my forehead! Anyway, I did my best and then it was time to stain with the Burgess hydrosol wood sealer. It sort of has a teaky colour to it - just soaks in and dries rapidly. It does alter the wood colour slightly but no so much as to annoy me.
The colour is different to the rub rail below so now I have to decide whether to scrape back the rub rails or varnish the upper outer gunwale. The gunwales take quite a hammering despite the use of fenders and I have taken chunks out of them in places (better them than the hull planks is what I say)....so varnishing seems pointless in one sense...so can I live with varnished rub rails and matt gunwales.......only time will tell!
Well, there is now one more to do which hopefully I can get done next weekend; I'll also take the opportunity to paint over some of the chips that have happened - bare aluminum paint primer is showing through in odd places.
On a different note, my birthday is coming up in March and I'm thinking off odd things, when asked for pressie ideas (how it works in our household is you can ask for one or two things but then get a host of surprises as well)......I've been thinking about my VHF radio - I have it in a waterproof radio aquapac around my shoulder/back and I try to secure it somewhere up near top front chest so that I can hear and speak into it......but it keeps rotating down during the day to my waist which really irritates me. anyway someone suggested fitting in a smaller aquapac bag and then in a chest pocket and running an external mic with PPT and Vox which would clip into my ear and also to my collar. I'm told, but haven't confirmed myself, that it is easy to operate and hear especially if single handed, less cumbersome and works just as effectively. A quick email to Midland who make the radio and hey presto they suggest this one.......
...which can be seen for further details at http://midland-uk.com/ma21-l-two-way-radio-headset.html
I haven't quite decided yet - I'll talk to some people I know and see what they think; also I need to find out what happens if I go for an unscheduled swim....is it waterproof?
Steve
upper rail after scraping and before sanding compared to bottom rail - epoxied and varnished
Don't look at my poor wood working skills especially cutting and fitting plugs
remember, when I started building Arwen - I knew absolutely nothing about woodwork - shows doesn't it!!
After scraping back, a sanding job was needed and this was slightly awkward. I don't know what possessed me to do it but when I originally fitted the outer gunwales - I shaped them slightly with a router.........which then makes them bloody awkward to sand at a later date...serves me right. KISS - keep it simple stupid - should be branded on my forehead! Anyway, I did my best and then it was time to stain with the Burgess hydrosol wood sealer. It sort of has a teaky colour to it - just soaks in and dries rapidly. It does alter the wood colour slightly but no so much as to annoy me.
sanded back and sealed with Hydrosol but you can see some pitting in the wood where the scrapper got carried away and the sander didn't do enough sanding to remove (in both cases that would be me!)
The colour is different to the rub rail below so now I have to decide whether to scrape back the rub rails or varnish the upper outer gunwale. The gunwales take quite a hammering despite the use of fenders and I have taken chunks out of them in places (better them than the hull planks is what I say)....so varnishing seems pointless in one sense...so can I live with varnished rub rails and matt gunwales.......only time will tell!
Well, there is now one more to do which hopefully I can get done next weekend; I'll also take the opportunity to paint over some of the chips that have happened - bare aluminum paint primer is showing through in odd places.
On a different note, my birthday is coming up in March and I'm thinking off odd things, when asked for pressie ideas (how it works in our household is you can ask for one or two things but then get a host of surprises as well)......I've been thinking about my VHF radio - I have it in a waterproof radio aquapac around my shoulder/back and I try to secure it somewhere up near top front chest so that I can hear and speak into it......but it keeps rotating down during the day to my waist which really irritates me. anyway someone suggested fitting in a smaller aquapac bag and then in a chest pocket and running an external mic with PPT and Vox which would clip into my ear and also to my collar. I'm told, but haven't confirmed myself, that it is easy to operate and hear especially if single handed, less cumbersome and works just as effectively. A quick email to Midland who make the radio and hey presto they suggest this one.......
distributed by ALAN in the UK on behalf of Midland communications..and priced at £17
...which can be seen for further details at http://midland-uk.com/ma21-l-two-way-radio-headset.html
I haven't quite decided yet - I'll talk to some people I know and see what they think; also I need to find out what happens if I go for an unscheduled swim....is it waterproof?
Steve
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Thanks for taking a look at my blog. All comments and advice are welcome - drop me a few lines. You can always find videos about Arwen at www.youtube.com/c/plymouthwelshboy. Look forward to hearing from you.
Steve