Not so fast Sole Man!

Has it really been almost two months since I last posted? Yes. Am I still removing the sole next? No. I am putting that on hold in lieu of repairing something else that has come to my attention. The decks! Hey, I was raised by women so I have no qualms with changing my mind regularly!

Actually, I came home from work one day and wished to do something simple yet productive. So, I removed the two fuel fills on the starboard deck. I was surprised how wet they both were and how rotten the core was on the older, original one.

Not good. This made me rethink the direction I need to go AGAIN, I know!













I then made it my mission to remove all of the hardware from the decks so that I can assess their shape. This took a looooong time. It seemed to rain every weekend during this period too, as is expected when I have something I really want to do. The rain really was not as bad as something else even more insidious. Very long, overly long, needlessly long and rusty bolts holding everything in place. Also, I am doing this without help so I had to be fairly crafty with small vise grips. In the end, I only had to cut three bolts and those were all upper chain plate bolts that I could not reach both sides of the bulkhead and were slotted.

Fore deck and cabin top with hardware removed.

Stern. Notice the packing tape over the holes. I removed the old caulk, scuffed up the surface and cleaned with acetone before placing the tape.

Starboard cockpit.

Port cockpit.

Starboard.

Port.

Hmmm....
That ice box lid....
And that compass cuddy.....
And the old gauges hole....









I am now only about three weeks behind with the blog and at a milestone in my boat project. It is now that I will move from demolition and destroying the boat to actually repairing it! I will start by "fixing" the ice box hole, the compass cuddy and the hole where the engine gauges used to be.

Anyone need dozens of 2", 3" #10 and 1/4" bolts? I hope to never go through that again...