I’ve been off last week working on the boat. And work it is. I’ve been flat on my back, and on my knees, and on my stomach, crouching and bending like a pretzel to fit in a space not meant for my size. The winter canvas cover is still on the boat which means the frame is up, making the small area between the life lines and cabin top even more constricted. It’s like working on the inside of a whale, the bones of its ribs digging in my sides, knocking me on the head or perhaps I’m knocking it considering it’s stationary while I’m moving. Several times I had a cleat rammed into my back, or a boat fitting in my thigh, oh my! The wishbone boom is running down both sides of the deck supported by plywood boxes and always in the way. Several times I’ve tried to stand up in the cockpit and crashed my noggin into the end of the boom and I have an indent in my skull to prove it. I’ve tenderized most of my limbs and buttocks; even the soft tissue of one of my breasts is sporting a large bruise all shades of the rainbow. I don’t even remember hitting it but perhaps all the aches elsewhere trumped it. I suppose the above comes off as complaints but I swear I’m having a friggin ball! Really! I LOVE this kind of work!
The teak eyebrow is a strip of wood that runs along the entire deckhouse cabin, is purely decorative and high maintenance. This particular piece of teak doesn’t look like it has been stripped in 28 years. Hubby made a comment that some boats have a painted stripe that’s less work, and I gave him a “talk to the hand motion”, wood trim on the boat is what attracts me, the more the merrier, perhaps I’ll find some spots to add more! Besides, this is my job, even if it kills me, so let me worry about the teak maintenance.
I have this quirk; I grow attached to inanimate objects and project feelings on to them. Silly me I know, but it helps me keep my possessions in good shape and there’s nothing off about that. I swear my car runs best when it’s been detailed, the motor purrs and rides as smooth as glass. Of course, I know in my head that my boat doesn’t have any feelings, but in my heart, my love for her feels reciprocated, and today, while I stripped her of imperfections the wind was blowing and pushing the canvas boat cover along the length of my body as if it was hugging me, the pressure along my back felt like a massage. In a delightful way it was comforting, as if she was saying thank-you for the attention and care although this feeling could have resulted from the epoxy fumes drifting up from the cockpit where hubby was working on a repair.
This year I’ll be doing a lot of stripping and refinishing the wood with Epiphane Varnish and then all it will need is a light sanding and recoat each year to keep it fresh. Our friend says I’m doing a stripteak and considering I’m dancing around the frame poles with all kinds of gyrations, well I just might have a new career!
Right now the wood is covered with Cetol and it’s become my nemesis. It was applied carelessly and let build to a clumpy, cloudy, orangey brown that hides the beautiful grain of the wood. To me, teak is the pearl of wood. It boosts a patina that makes a gal swoon. It’s expensive too, so it shouldn’t be draped in a cloudy finish, just like you would never paint a diamond with orange shellac.
Luckily the Cetol is baked on and brittle so the removal isn’t as bad as it could be but it takes about an hour to strip and sand an area three feet long. Scraping with a card scraper and paint scrapers, takes force to pull either tool along to remove the layers and this is hard on the fingers. It took a total of 12 hours to strip and sand it all.
Half of the teak plugs that cover the screw holes are gone on the starboard side so those will need replacing. Clean out the old bits, glue in the new plug, saw off the excess and then sand it flush with the wood around it. No job is simple; there is always something else that needs to be addressed. I suppose a 33 foot boat has its drawbacks when it comes to maintenance, but like labour pains, it’ll be quickly forgotten after the baby is on the water and the wind is in my hair.
The boat is still on the hard and hubby and I are working on the things that need fixing to so we can remove the cover. Hubby is doing the heavy duty stuff like locating where the leaks are, we’ve been having drips of water in the cabin; probably due to a gasket problem in the ceiling hatch but there are other suspiciously loose fittings, like stanchions that support the lifelines, that all need removing and then rebidding.
Right now, he and Chris, our friend and fellow Nonsuch owner, are working side by side, recessing the ignition panels on both of their boats so it’s protected from the elements and comfortable for someone to sit against. They’ve cut a hole in the boat and fabricated a wood and fiberglass panel to hold the instruments. It’s really great having a boat bud to work with and of course, Chris has been a Nonsuch owner longer and is a wealth of knowledge.
Hubby is going to spend a lot of time fixing things that will never be noticed although very important and necessary, while I’m in charge of the cosmetic stuff; the jobs that will show the results of my labour. The canvas cover is still on the boat and will be for weeks until we get all the repairs done to the deck, it’s critical to address those leaks before we take it off. Then joy of joys, we will buff and then wax the topsides of the hull and apply the bottom paint.
The previous owners of our boat, or perhaps the owners before them, used Cetol and didn’t apply it properly. They slopped it so it dripped and smeared on the white gelcoat above and below the wood. Each time we rowed out to the boat last summer it was always there, haunting me with its staining, detracting from our beautiful vessel. Those ugly orange streaks on the white gelcoat made my stomach churn. Stripping this mess is not for the faint of heart. You need to have a death grip on the scraper handle until the fingers cramp and the blue veins pop out on the back of the hand like water filled garden hoses. It’s also important to be careful so the sharp blade doesn’t slip and slice into the wood or worse, fingers. After the final sanding the teak will need to be bleached and varnished 6 to 8 coats, until I can see my tired eyes in the sheen.
There are so many things we can do on the boat to spiff her up, like cleaning off the Cetol, polishing the chrome, refinishing the teak, replace the two Lexan hatch lenses that are crazed and cracked, rebed the various deck hardware, strip the teak dorade vent bases and scrub the heck out of the deck. Next year there will be more jobs…there will always be more jobs. Like the buildings we’ve renovated, she’ll end up with one old board left in her and shine like a new penny.
We not only work on the boat, we also put time in the garage in the evenings. We are working on the teak parts we could remove and being able to stand up to do the job is a plus. The hand rails were a potential leak source and of course they are much easier to strip and refinish while off the boat. Of course they didn't come off easily and one split so we had to epoxy it and tape to hold as it cured.
I am also still working on the cockpit table, the wheel and the floor grates but these can be done after the boat is in the water whereas the jobs that stay with the boat, above deck, can’t. The weather is going to be lousy this week, cold and damp with the rain and not conducive to painting so I’m hoping next week plays better.
I’m also using paint stripper on the chrome swim ladder as it is covered in Cetol. Someone painted the teak steps without taking them off first and brushed it all over the metal bars. What should be a mirror finish is caked with a hard layer of brownish orange that takes several soakings of chemicals to soften. Paint remover is really smelly and needs to be done in a ventilated area so that job is postponed until after the rain.
After the bright work is finished my job is repairing where we were rammed last year below the gunnels and then painting the cove stripes, one wide navy and then a thinner red. After this is done then I’ll buff the gelcoat to remove the oxidization and then wax it to a mirrored finish. I’m learning all these new and exciting things. I’ll be buying an electric polisher as I don’t have enough strength to hand rub 33 feet on each side. As an added perk, I’m hoping the vibration will shake loose a few pounds.
Despite the pain and aches I’m having a ball. I've always said I was more man than woman, not that women can’t enjoy this kind of work although I haven't spied any in the boat yard helping their hubbies. Hubby calls me a trooper. Really, although I’m stiffer than a cadaver, and have a list as long as my arm of jobs to do, the only downside to owning our boat is not being able watch her sail by because I’ll be in her. I have to settle watching other Nonsuches in the water and there could be as many as five moored in Mahone Bay harbour this summer, it would be a show to get together and do a parade of sail, capturing the wind, riding the waves with their beamy hulls, tall masts and big proud sails, all side by side, heading out to the islands for a day on the water. What a spectacular sight it would be......
The teak eyebrow is a strip of wood that runs along the entire deckhouse cabin, is purely decorative and high maintenance. This particular piece of teak doesn’t look like it has been stripped in 28 years. Hubby made a comment that some boats have a painted stripe that’s less work, and I gave him a “talk to the hand motion”, wood trim on the boat is what attracts me, the more the merrier, perhaps I’ll find some spots to add more! Besides, this is my job, even if it kills me, so let me worry about the teak maintenance.
I have this quirk; I grow attached to inanimate objects and project feelings on to them. Silly me I know, but it helps me keep my possessions in good shape and there’s nothing off about that. I swear my car runs best when it’s been detailed, the motor purrs and rides as smooth as glass. Of course, I know in my head that my boat doesn’t have any feelings, but in my heart, my love for her feels reciprocated, and today, while I stripped her of imperfections the wind was blowing and pushing the canvas boat cover along the length of my body as if it was hugging me, the pressure along my back felt like a massage. In a delightful way it was comforting, as if she was saying thank-you for the attention and care although this feeling could have resulted from the epoxy fumes drifting up from the cockpit where hubby was working on a repair.
This year I’ll be doing a lot of stripping and refinishing the wood with Epiphane Varnish and then all it will need is a light sanding and recoat each year to keep it fresh. Our friend says I’m doing a stripteak and considering I’m dancing around the frame poles with all kinds of gyrations, well I just might have a new career!
Right now the wood is covered with Cetol and it’s become my nemesis. It was applied carelessly and let build to a clumpy, cloudy, orangey brown that hides the beautiful grain of the wood. To me, teak is the pearl of wood. It boosts a patina that makes a gal swoon. It’s expensive too, so it shouldn’t be draped in a cloudy finish, just like you would never paint a diamond with orange shellac.
Luckily the Cetol is baked on and brittle so the removal isn’t as bad as it could be but it takes about an hour to strip and sand an area three feet long. Scraping with a card scraper and paint scrapers, takes force to pull either tool along to remove the layers and this is hard on the fingers. It took a total of 12 hours to strip and sand it all.
Half of the teak plugs that cover the screw holes are gone on the starboard side so those will need replacing. Clean out the old bits, glue in the new plug, saw off the excess and then sand it flush with the wood around it. No job is simple; there is always something else that needs to be addressed. I suppose a 33 foot boat has its drawbacks when it comes to maintenance, but like labour pains, it’ll be quickly forgotten after the baby is on the water and the wind is in my hair.
The boat is still on the hard and hubby and I are working on the things that need fixing to so we can remove the cover. Hubby is doing the heavy duty stuff like locating where the leaks are, we’ve been having drips of water in the cabin; probably due to a gasket problem in the ceiling hatch but there are other suspiciously loose fittings, like stanchions that support the lifelines, that all need removing and then rebidding.
Right now, he and Chris, our friend and fellow Nonsuch owner, are working side by side, recessing the ignition panels on both of their boats so it’s protected from the elements and comfortable for someone to sit against. They’ve cut a hole in the boat and fabricated a wood and fiberglass panel to hold the instruments. It’s really great having a boat bud to work with and of course, Chris has been a Nonsuch owner longer and is a wealth of knowledge.
Hubby is going to spend a lot of time fixing things that will never be noticed although very important and necessary, while I’m in charge of the cosmetic stuff; the jobs that will show the results of my labour. The canvas cover is still on the boat and will be for weeks until we get all the repairs done to the deck, it’s critical to address those leaks before we take it off. Then joy of joys, we will buff and then wax the topsides of the hull and apply the bottom paint.
The previous owners of our boat, or perhaps the owners before them, used Cetol and didn’t apply it properly. They slopped it so it dripped and smeared on the white gelcoat above and below the wood. Each time we rowed out to the boat last summer it was always there, haunting me with its staining, detracting from our beautiful vessel. Those ugly orange streaks on the white gelcoat made my stomach churn. Stripping this mess is not for the faint of heart. You need to have a death grip on the scraper handle until the fingers cramp and the blue veins pop out on the back of the hand like water filled garden hoses. It’s also important to be careful so the sharp blade doesn’t slip and slice into the wood or worse, fingers. After the final sanding the teak will need to be bleached and varnished 6 to 8 coats, until I can see my tired eyes in the sheen.
There are so many things we can do on the boat to spiff her up, like cleaning off the Cetol, polishing the chrome, refinishing the teak, replace the two Lexan hatch lenses that are crazed and cracked, rebed the various deck hardware, strip the teak dorade vent bases and scrub the heck out of the deck. Next year there will be more jobs…there will always be more jobs. Like the buildings we’ve renovated, she’ll end up with one old board left in her and shine like a new penny.
We not only work on the boat, we also put time in the garage in the evenings. We are working on the teak parts we could remove and being able to stand up to do the job is a plus. The hand rails were a potential leak source and of course they are much easier to strip and refinish while off the boat. Of course they didn't come off easily and one split so we had to epoxy it and tape to hold as it cured.
I am also still working on the cockpit table, the wheel and the floor grates but these can be done after the boat is in the water whereas the jobs that stay with the boat, above deck, can’t. The weather is going to be lousy this week, cold and damp with the rain and not conducive to painting so I’m hoping next week plays better.
I’m also using paint stripper on the chrome swim ladder as it is covered in Cetol. Someone painted the teak steps without taking them off first and brushed it all over the metal bars. What should be a mirror finish is caked with a hard layer of brownish orange that takes several soakings of chemicals to soften. Paint remover is really smelly and needs to be done in a ventilated area so that job is postponed until after the rain.
After the bright work is finished my job is repairing where we were rammed last year below the gunnels and then painting the cove stripes, one wide navy and then a thinner red. After this is done then I’ll buff the gelcoat to remove the oxidization and then wax it to a mirrored finish. I’m learning all these new and exciting things. I’ll be buying an electric polisher as I don’t have enough strength to hand rub 33 feet on each side. As an added perk, I’m hoping the vibration will shake loose a few pounds.
Despite the pain and aches I’m having a ball. I've always said I was more man than woman, not that women can’t enjoy this kind of work although I haven't spied any in the boat yard helping their hubbies. Hubby calls me a trooper. Really, although I’m stiffer than a cadaver, and have a list as long as my arm of jobs to do, the only downside to owning our boat is not being able watch her sail by because I’ll be in her. I have to settle watching other Nonsuches in the water and there could be as many as five moored in Mahone Bay harbour this summer, it would be a show to get together and do a parade of sail, capturing the wind, riding the waves with their beamy hulls, tall masts and big proud sails, all side by side, heading out to the islands for a day on the water. What a spectacular sight it would be......
This is the Teak eyebrow that I stripped. You can also see the areas where the handrail was removed and those were a pain to clean up as well. 5200 is a great product for sealing, but it doesn't remove easily.
Tape was used to hold the split area together after it was epoxied.
The heat gun is my new BFF!
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So much easier to work in the garage than under the canvas cover.
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