All Fired Up

Just a quick post today cos I wanna share.

With the help of my dad on the ignition key I pressurised the fuel tank and got the engine to fire up.  Even without the exhaust connected it sounded sweet.

Earlier in the day I connected up the cooling water intake and with the aid of a hose pipe from the mains I started up the generator and was able to run it at duty speed.  Previously I had only been able to run it in a protected mode because there was no cooling water, and then only for a few seconds  Seems that if there is not enough water flow it will run in protected mode only.

So all diesel powered systems are working.  Central heating boiler, generator and main engine.

Photos to follow.

I have now connected the new power take off cables from the battery pack. 95mm/square cables which needed end terminals put on.

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All Frames Standing!

Excitement at the boat shop today...

Here Im tightening the last bolt on the last frame that needed to be installed!

Done! Shes framed. Cold beer ensued.

Ramon sawing out those chine notches like a champ.

View from the "inside"

The little trailer looks like a superheroine with a big, flowy cape during the dust storm that followed the boat shop success. This photo was taken about an hour and a half before sunset.

Dust. This was taken about an hour before sunset.

And then, it rained. Hallelujah.

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All about the Boat

Some 3 years ago I first researched this boat as a possibility to build my own boat,
Having been away from the sea for years, the need to be back on the water didnt go away.
I was lucky to have grown up on boats and skippered angling boats for most of my summer holidays.
Now, with 3 boys of my own, I want to enjoy it again and share with my boys as my Dad did with me.
The Euro 14 will be a perfect boat for us all and we will enjoy it for years to come.

The steel Kit will arrive late October 2007 and a projected launch in May 2009.
Having dealt with Bruce himself I was then passed on to the Holland base where the kit is being cut.
Dealing with Edgar, the process of making changes, specifying openings and stern gear was so easy to deal with. I thank him very much for all his efforts.


link to Actual boat specs.
http://www.bruceroberts.com/public/HTML/EURO14.htm

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All Hands on Deck

The next task in the deck planking was to fit and epoxy down all the longitudinal planks. Beginning at the center king plank, I worked my way outward fitting and "clamping" each board in place using 3/16" fender washers with #8 round head sheet metal screws 3/4" long. I used the grid lines already on the subdeck to establish hold downs every 4" along each plank. A pilot hole was drilled prior to putting in a screw. Where the leading edge of a plank mated to the perimeter cover boards, a rough angle cut was made on the chop saw or band saw. Then holding the plank in place, a final line was marked using a spacer. I sanded to the line on my 1" stationary belt sander. (Actual work took a lot longer than writing about it.)

A box of 100 washers allowed me to get two or three rows done on each side of the boat at a time. I used pieces of luan plywood as spacers which happen to measure 3/16" thick. Once I had a batch ready to go, all screws were removed and the unthickened epoxy spread on the subdeck areas to be glued and the underneath side of each plank. Then thickened epoxy was spread on each plank and the plank put in place. The washer/screws were hand started and then beginning at the forward end, spacers put in place and the screws tightened to lock the plank in place.

After a set of planks were fit and screws tightened, the spacers were removed so they wouldnt get bonded in place. I put in some 3/16" tile spacers just to make sure nothing moved, but they were not necessary. After the epoxy set overnight, the screws and washers were removed. Any washer that stuck to the wood was unstuck with a chisel. I put the rounded edge of the spacer towards the wood to reduce the chance of marking the wood and helping with removal if stuck.

The process was tedious and my shoulder hurt at times from holding the cordless screwdriver, but seeing the deck transform from boring to way cool was worth all the fuss. It took four days of work but Im ready to move on to the next step if I can figure out what that is. On the last day of epoxy work I made some sample boards with planking scraps so I can experiment with staining, finishing, and gap filling.

However, I have a few more screws to remove first.

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