Killing Time

27 April 12


We started this blog to keep up with the rebuild phases, along with sailing and our adventures.  Since we are out of state working at the moment (working 72+ hours a week - each!), we don't have a whole lot to post about. One good thing about being away from the project is that it gives (forces) me to think about "The List".  You know what list I am talking about.  Every home owner, traveler, especially boat owner knows about the To Do list.

I keep mine in a cheap 3 subject notebook. During each phase I have kept a different color book, and I never throw them away.  They are carefully stowed away for reference, and I have lost count of how many times I needed to pull them out to flip through the pages to find a measurement. This justifies to the admiral of why she should support my notebook habit.


Being here and giving my plan a look through each night helps me catch any errors in the scope and allows plenty of lead time to order parts. I whittle my lists, doodle, draw technical pictures and prioritize the "must do X before Y" bullets.  Each week we receive a box or two in the mail. It is actually fun for us to open the boxes of do-hickies and mentally picture where and how they will be installed.  How many times have you purchased a product, got it to the boat, climbed all the way in to the back of the lazarette,  stood on your head while being a contortionist only to realize you forgot about buying a lock washer for the installation?  I have!


While we hate being away from the boat it is in fact a blessing in disguise because it helps us to effectively plan our boat work.


-G

Domino Dancing

21 April 2012

C on the East side of the stones

We both had today off of work, and since we only get one day per week we wanted to make the best of it.  There was a rumor we had heard;  it was about the so called American Stonehenge.  Here is the story.  A dude shows up in Elbert County, GA at one of there many Granite companies.  You see, Elbert County is "The Granite Capital of the World".  Anywho, the gentleman tells the company that he represents an out of state group of people that would like a huge monument built.  In short, he used a fake name but had the greenbacks to pay. In 1980 this big "Rosetta Stone" was unveiled.  Officially named the Georgia Guidestones. 

After packing our lunch, looking at the 2009 road atlas, we hit the road.  It took us a little over a hour to get to the town but another 45 minutes to actually find them. It seems the town has mixed feelings about  the stones so they don't advertise or put up any signage. 

The monument consist of six stones; one vertical in the center, four vertical in a fan pattern, and one horizontal on top.  The four outer vertical stones have a repeating message engraved on them in eight languages.  Each big side has it's own language with 10 suggestions.  The cap stone on top has shorter messages on four sides. 

I thought the holes cut into the granite was the coolest part of the site.  One hole indicates high noon and allows a sunbeam to account for the day of the year,  another lets you peer the North Star, and the last slot identifies the Sun's equinoxes and solstices. 

Other people did not think much of these stones and the vandalism was apparent.  Even though the site is in the middle of a cow field out in the country people have still attempted to destroy them. The quiet digital sentry watch from atop a telephone pole across the road.  Do you know of any interesting landmarks where you are?

~ G

30 Months: How Far We've Come

September 9, 2009: The day we bought the boat

20 April 2012


Over the past 30 months we have come a long way from the disgusting, dirty pile of rusted steel that we stumbled across in the boat yard at the END OF 2009.  We have been through more on our boat and with each other since that day than I could ever attempt to write about on this blog.  Our hearts have been in it 110 percent from the beginning, and while we almost reached our breaking point on a couple of occasions, we are very happy that we never walked away from the boat.  Looking back on all that we have accomplished together over the past couple of years helps us to remember that there is nothing that we cannot accomplish together in the future as long as we put our minds to it.  Looking back also reminds us not to take even the simplest joys for granted.

It is absolutely amazing the things that bring you happiness while you're living on a boat and rebuilding it at the same time.  We lived on The Hammer through the entire rebuild, with the exception of staying in a hotel on the days that we painted the inside of the hull.  This includes when it was gutted and had holes in it.  We slept on an air mattress in the middle of the boat squished up like a taco on top of the ribs and stringers in the dead of a Florida summer.  

Summer 2010: Swiss Cheese

Summer 2010: Largest section replaced

As G always says... "YOU GOTTA WANT IT."  

As construction on the boat continues, I become increasingly grateful for what we have.  After spending the scorching SUMMER OF 2010 working on an empty hull that looked like swiss cheese, I thought I would ball my eyes out with tears of joy the day we finally had everything welded back into one solid piece.  When we built a bed to sleep in I had the same sense of over-joy all over again.  

Summer 2010: We slept in the middle on an air mattress

The luxury of an actual bed

Eating out for every meal for the better part of a year is hard on the body and the bank account.  When we got the galley built up enough to cook in (JANUARY 2011), I was ecstatic to be able to cook right there in my own home.  I loved (and still love) that I can prepare wholesome meals for us and for half the price of eating out every day.  

2012: Saloon

2012: Galley

Eventually came the water system, and we had running water on the boat as of LAST SUMMER.  Now I could wash dishes in the galley instead of using a water hose to wash them out on the dock.  I couldn't quit giggling and talking about it for months out of pure giddiness over this simple addition to the boat.  


The list goes on, and on, and on...  

2012: Companion Way

2012: Settee

The strange looks I get from people are priceless when I express my excitement over the fact that we have working cabin lights in almost every compartment of the boat,  a toilet to pee in, a floor to walk on, a table to eat from, settee cushions to lay around on, a stereo to jam to, a decent mattress to sleep on,  an engine that cranks without too much trouble, etc...  

2010: Happy Day- First coat of paint

2011: Happy Day- First Splash Day

There have been many important and hard lessons learned over the course of our rebuild.  Many projects are still to come, as we are far from "finished," if there is even such a thing on a boat.  I feel confident that there are still many more lessons to come our way.  I appreciate them all, however the most important lessons that I will keep with me forever are:

1. Patience is crucial 
2. Be happy with simplicity 
3. Be grateful for every little thing we have  

~C

Signs of a Happy Dog

18 April 2012

9 Signs of a Happy Dog

1:  I give big hugs after work

2:  I roll around in the grass and snort like crazy (a dog's way of senseless giggling)

3:  I alway have a smile on my face

4:  I have my favorite blanky

5:  I love playtime

6: I loyally and fiercely protect my mom, dad and boat from those mean manatees 

7: I love to help with boat projects

8: I love to relax with my humans in the hammocks

9: I love happy hour with dad

~Johnny

Quit Belly-Aching!

16 April 2012


Medicine is a last resort for us, as we try to stick with natural solutions to our aches, pains, and minor illnesses over the use of man-made chemical drugs.  One of our natural secrets is ginger; it is our little miracle root.  We are never caught without a good hunk of it in the galley.  The range of benefits that ginger provides is impressive, and we find many of them extremely useful in our daily lives.  


Every day I make ginger tea for us to drink after dinner, and sometimes with breakfast as well.  Dried ginger tea bags are available at just about any health food market, however I prefer to go the fresher route because the taste is better and the benefits are stronger.  I grate up a good 2 inch section of the root and pour boiling water over it for 5 to 10 minutes before straining it.  Mixing honey into it gives it a little more flavor by adding a little sweetness to set off that spicy kick that ginger has.  Another way I add a little flavor to the ginger tea is to brew some white, green, or rooibos tea and add it to the ginger tea.  Because white and green teas should not steep as long as ginger I do not brew the two together, but mix them after I have steeped them individually.  Rooibos teas can brew longer, so the two can be steeped together.  If drinking ginger tea is too strong for your taste, cooking with it is a great way to incorporate it into your diet.  I often cook with either fresh grated ginger or dried ground ginger, and throw it in the pan with chicken and veggies fairly often.  
So, what is ginger good for, and why is it a must-have in the galley?  Studies (and some personal experience) show that...

1.  Ginger is great for easing motion/sea sickness, nausea, flatulence, heartburn, bloating, indigestion, and over eating.
2. Ginger is anti-viral, and can serve as a remedy for flu, bronchitis, cold and fever.  
3. Ginger is an anti-inflammatory herb, and may help with arthritis and joint problems. 
4. Ginger can aid with toothache, headache, menstrual pain, and pregnancy sickness.
5. Ginger aids in the maintenance of healthy circulation, cholesterol, and blood pressure, and in the prevention of blood clots. 

~ C

Murphy's Top 5

TOOLS FOR PLANNING, BUDGETING, ORGANIZING, AND DREAMING

14 April 2009


While we are at work we have plenty of time to organize our boat work, create our summer budget, order and purchase necessary boat parts, and plan our escape.  As our project manager, G has planned out the top five most important things we must do to get our boat sea worthy and ready for a little adventure.  Of course this list is subject to changes and modifications, but as of right now these are the priorities once we get back home.


Priority ONE: Permanently Secure Fuel Tank
To do this we need to permanently install our mounting brackets, cut a new hole in our cockpit for our deck fill line, connect the hoses, and fill the tank. 


Priority TWO: Finish Engine Work
We had to remove the water strainer and water lock to work with the fuel tank last week, so we will have to replace all the intake and exhaust hoses along with the newly rebuilt intake pump.  


Priority THREE: Reinstall Chart Plotter & Cockpit Electronics
We will have to reinstall the chart plotter and cockpit electronics; we removed them temporarily to keep them from "walking away" and because of the helm/pedestal work we did last week.  


Priority FOUR: Making Bug Nets For Hatches
We will be making our own bug nets for all of our hatches before we leave the dock.  We like to sleep with our hatches open since we do not have an air conditioner.  The lack of bug screens for the hatches makes for a miserable night on the hook in Key Largo in the middle of July when the forward berth fan craps out on a very windless night... yes, that is experience talking.  So needless to say, bug nets are a big must before we head out onto the water again.  


Priority FIVE: Building A Door For The Head
Obviously there are things that need to stay private no matter how close you are as a couple, and being out on the water away from marina bath houses will not allow for such privacy.  Therefore the door is a priority, and we will be building a mahogany door for the head.  


Only FOUR weeks until GO-TIME!


~ C

On the Road Again...

10 April 2012

Are we there yet?

We are now in the SC upstate working.  While we are always excited to fatten the Hammer Kitty it seems to get harder each time we leave the boat.  Not so much homesick for any place in particular, but rather homesick for her... after all, she is our home.  It won't be long though, and we will be planning and scheming like crazy until we are back.

~ C

Jack in the (Chain) Box

8 April 2012

Our final project for our week at the boat was finishing up the anchor chain box.  We began building the box back in February, but the final touches got put on the back burner for a bit (Perkins was the number one priority at the time).  

This is the space devoted to the chain box up in the foc'sle.  You can see the outline he drew as a guideline for the braces.  Also note the leak off thru-hulls where the green water will drain out of the box.

We over-built knowing that we have 250 feet of chain and could possibly add more if need be.  

With the substrate complete we moved onto the box itself...  

Three sides are angled so that when the chain comes in through the deck pipe, gravity will force the chain to the center of the box- important for balance and keeping the chain appropriately contained.

The next step was to glass in the box.  We took turns using woven cloth and West System to glass it all in.

After three layers of fiberglass, we let it set up and then took a sanding disk to take off the sharp edges. Several coats of paint were applied, and once dry we piled all 250 feet of anchor chain into the box.

Finally we added the braces (not pictured yet) to secure the box in place.  


~ C&G

Musical Tanks

5 April 2012


After our last post, it came to our attention through Dani's comment (S/V SUNDOWNER) that we never wrote about our fuel tank adventures before posting (HERE) that we alas, finally had a fuel tank sufficient enough to suit our needs.  And the story goes...

Original Old Rusty Tank

When we purchased the boat back in September 2009 the boat was equipped with an old 60 gallon mild steel fuel tank.  While the fuel tank was a perfect fit for our homebuilt boat (which mind you, is difficult to find... we know from experience), it was badly corroded around all of the fittings.  We could have attempted to repair this 30 year old fuel tank, but we decided against that route.  We ditched the whole thing all together, realizing that it was not worth the chance of an unnoticed leak allowing diesel fuel to make its way into the bilge and overboard, thereby earning us the big fat reward of a very expensive fine from the EPA.  


We unsuccessfully looked for a fuel tank that would fit our dimensions and our needs, without  the convenience of internet at the time.  Finally we found one through a marine parts store that would work, and the order was placed.  Two weeks went by with no word on the tank so we went in and inquired about the order. 


Maybe the order got over looked this week?  Perhaps it didn't make the truck in time?  Check back next week.  


A week later we checked back and it was discovered that the company that it was ordered from had gone out of business.  Ha. 



So we looked around some more and found a tank that would work.  It was not perfect dimensions, and it was smaller than we wanted, but it was on sale and we didn't have too many options because the space devoted to a fuel tank is pretty specific on our boat.  We were in the boatyard at the time, and anyone who has spent time on the hard knows TIME IS MONEY; every day we spent there was costing us extra.  Because of this reason we went with this fuel tank; we had to start building bulkheads and other things around the engine room and really didn't have the time/money to spend fretting over the perfect fuel tank.   This day tank was installed, and over the next year or so we built around it.  


This past winter we fussed with the engine for quite a bit.  We knew there was air in the fuel lines, but we could not figure out where it was coming from.  The tank was full, so we assumed there was a breach of integrity between the tank and the secondary filter... not giving our new tank a second thought.  After pulling our hair out for days we finally decided that it had to be the tank; draining the tank only proved our suspicions correct.  The suction tube had broken off inside of the tank, preventing us from picking up fuel, but instead a mixture of fuel and air.  On this specific tank the pick up tube and fitting were pressed into the tank.  Realizing the problem, we decided to back up and punt.  


We were fed up at this point with the whole situation.  We even tossed around the idea of going "Pardey-style" and totally getting rid of the stupid engine all together... But we didn't.  We had after all, gotten the engine to finally crank after plenty of abuse over the course of two and a half years, so the hardest part was over.  

New Tank

Instead of trying to Redneck-Rig it, we made the decision to cough up the money and have an aluminum fuel tank custom built to fit perfectly into its designated spot.  G designed it, and the guys that did the work did a great job.  We are really happy with it (finally).  I am, however, not very happy with the holes in the two bulkheads.  "We can't leave the dock without a fuel tank... we CAN leave with a hole in the bulkhead," is what he said to me right before he took a Sawz-All to our precious bulkhead... but he has promised me that it will be repaired soon, perhaps as early as tomorrow.  


~ C

The New Phonebook's Here!!!

04 April 2012

...I mean the new Diesel tank is here.  Our long awaited custom tank was finally finished this morning.  It was like Christmas morning for us as we went to pick it up.

Unfortunately we had to cut two bulkheads to allow us to get it into the engine room.  After a minute with the Sawz-All the pathway was clear.

There you have it; our new 59 gallon diesel fuel tank snug as a bug under the cockpit.  Now all that needs to be done is to secure it with brackets, connect the hoses and wire the gauge to the sending unit.

-G

Signs Signs Everywhere Signs

03 April 2012

This mystery sign has showed up at our marina.  Nobody knows who put it here.  The funny thing about it is that each of these activities ARE allowed.  We know because we pay extra for 3 out of the 4.


What's the funniest sign you have ever seen?

Nip and Tuck

02 April 2012

Mission #1

Our first mission today was the helm pedestal.  The pedestal was a home build at some point in the past.   It was fabricated well except for the undersized hole in the base.  The steering chain and cables kept hanging up on the lip.  After transporting the pedestal to our storage area we opened up the hole for more space.

Itsy bitsy hole

Cutting the Stainless

I used a 90 grinder with a cutoff wheel to cut through the Stainless Steel base.  If you are looking for the safety guard you won't find it.  It went with the cardboard box the day I bought the grinder.

My sexy assistant helped with the most important part of the job, the clean up.  She used the same 90 grinder but with a sanding disk we call a tiger paw.  She used it to take off all of the sharp edges.  Come to think about it maybe I should put the guard back on the grinder.  With her around it's hard for me to stay focused on what I am doing and pay attention.

Mission #2

The Quadrant

Our other big project was the Quadrant.  Surely misnamed, this one is a whopper.  Just like everything else around here it is a home build also.  The small snag with this one was that the cable brackets (I call dog ears) were welded in to close.  Being in that position left no room for a turnbuckle at this end of the steering cable.  The fix was simple, cut off each dog ear and weld it further away form the break in the edge.  Now comes the fun part.  Most of all the welding around here is done with the splatter gun (MIG), but not today.  Today I got to drag out my little buzz box.  It's a 115 Miller stick welder.  The reason being was because the dog ears were stainless and the lateral deck of the quadrant was mild steel.  I keep a few special rods just for times like these.

Marking the new location

Stick welding

Relocated dog ears

At the end of the day the Quadrant and Pedestal were back home onboard and bolted up.  If all goes well, tomorrow we will be picking up the new fuel tank!




-G