Κυριακή 4 Νοεμβρίου 2007

Modifications.

One of the major advantages of building your own boat is that you can modify the original plans to adjust them to your personal needs. Wharram cats, with their flexy-space designed interiors and open decks, give you this opportunity to the maximum. Most of the internal volume of the Tiki 31 is sacrificed for the large open cockpits on the center of each hull. This for me is a disadvantage, because I would like to use my boat not as a day sailer but as a liveaboard for periods up to one month at a time. By permanently enclosing the cockpits I could create enough space bellow decks for a toilet in one hull and a galley in the other. These two features are essential for long time cruising ecpecialy when you want to spend the night in a harbor, next to other yachts. Moreover by having coocking and toilet facilities separate from the sleeping cabins you don't have to worry about unwanted smell, gass leakage e.t.c. I don't intend to increace the height of the cabins as this would affect wintage, nor will I try to change any other aspect of the original design. I love the scooner rig and the open deck area. That was the reason I chose to build the 31 instead of the Tiki 30 in the first place! In the photos bellow, Antonis, a friend, is helping me sand the bulkheads and give them a final coat of epoxy before installation.




Πέμπτη 1 Νοεμβρίου 2007

Preparing bulkheads.

The next step in the process is to install the floor bearers, bunk bearers, bunk supports and the deck beams to the bulkheads. Nothing difficult in this except for the deck beams, which are made out of 70x19 mm planks. Their upper side must be curved to give to the deck pannels (that they will support) their lateral curvature. Furthermore they must have notches for the deck stringers.
The fastest way I have found to cut these planks in the required shape is by making templates out of scrap 8mm plywood. I then clamp the plank with the template and cut it by using the router. In the photos bellow you can see the router mill I am using, with a ball bearing on its edge. This bearing uses the plywood template as a guide to give shape to the softwood deck beam.
As soon as I have managed to cut and glue all these pieces I then have to give to the bulkheads two coats of epoxy before I permanently install them to the hull. Hopefully I will finish these tasks within the next couple of weeks as the weather in Greece is still warm and epoxy work is easier.