Monday, July 23, 2012

We have finally finished ALL of the non-skid coating on the decks.... and it looks AWESOME! We are beginning to see an end to the madness. That LOOONG list of 'To-Do's" is getting shorter. I so EXCITED! The next item on the list is to get all the wood oiled and repair the hatch covers fore and aft. Ben is going to build new hatch covers with a smoked Plexiglas. Should look really good when he gets them finished.  The whole boat is looking so GOOD!

Last night Ben pulled the old headliner out of the bedroom. That will be our next big project.... installing the new vinyl in the bedroom and main salon. I don't think that is a project that Ben is looking forward to. This whole boat repair thing has been kinda a 'learn as we go.' Trying to get the new ceiling installed is gonna be an interesting adventure... I sure hope it turns out at least halfway decent looking. LOL

We are gonna take a day off today... Ben took another spill on the back deck, he is pretty stoved up soooooooo, I guess he can have ONE day off.

Sat. July 14, 2012

As usual... Ben and I spent the week working on the boat. Today Ben is going to putty and bondo the last few repair spots on the main deck then sand them smooth and I think, I hope... that we will be finished with ALL the sanding. YEAH! I am SOOOOO tired of EVERYTHING being covered with sawdust! By the time we finished last night we both looked like we were covered with flour from head to toe. LOL. After he finishes sanding those spots then I get to start the job to cleaning up the mess.

I can't take a hose to the wood as it will bring up the grain and I will just have to sand all over again.... So I am going to start at the top and work my way down with a damp rag and clean as I go. That's gonna be a job, it's a BIG boat to wipe down by hand. Ben will take a hose to the boat house to try to knock down some of the dust on the walls before we start putting the teak oil on the wooden rails and windows. We did get the non-skid on the upper decks and it looks really good. I love the color.

Once the dust is all cleaned up we will tear the head-liner out of the bedroom, clean the dust outta there... then put in the NEW head-liner and new carpet! YAH, I am so tired of working on the DANG boat!

Sun. July 8, 2012

Today we put down the primer for the non-skid decking. FINALLY, progress! The primer is a 2 part epoxy that seals the surface and preps the area for the "Gorilla Grip" non-skid. It was easy to put down and only took a few hours to tape the deck and paint it on. Now we wait 24 hrs and then put down the 1st coat of non-skid... Then wait another 24 hrs and put down the final coat and the fly bridge and Aft deck will be done.

The coating is like a rubber, kinda cool. The non-skid will be a little darker blue, I can't wait to see it. Finally we are starting to see some results from all our hard work. Ben is sealing the rubber non-skid to the edge of the wood that surrounds the aft deck, hopefully that will help seal the deck from anymore water damage. Boy that blue primer sure brightened things up... WOW

Sat July 7, 2012

Today was Dustin and Lani's anniversary so they decided to spend the day on their boat and invited us to tag along. The sun was shining, we had a gallon of Margarita mix, a dozen doughnuts and a cooler full of beer... Life is Good! It was nice to take a break from working on our boat and finally go boating for a change. So the plan was to meet them in Kingston at noon. They keep their 26 footer moored in Everett and Dustin figured it would take an hour to get to Kingston..... Wrong. Ben and I got to Kingston around 11:30 and waited. and waited, and waited..... Apparently it takes about 2 1/2 hrs to go from Everett marina to Kingston. Who knew? So FINALLY around 2:30 they showed up and we spent the rest of the day just wandering around the bay, picking up driftwood (Is that illegal???) and just lounging and having a great time.

We saw several harbor seals and about 7 cruise ships heading out to open water. Holland America, Norwegian, Princess Cruise Lines. I tried to get Dustin to cruise close enough for me to throw a gaff hook so I could stow-away but he wouldn't do it. It was kinda weird seeing them all lined up one after the other all heading out.... Without me. Ben ended up taking a nap, Dustin refused sun screen and got BURNED like a boiled lobster, I drank so much Margarita I ended up with a touch of alcohol induced sun sickness.... Lani did just fine. Bitch! We got home around 8pm. Tired and sun burned. What a great day.

Friday July 6, 2012

Well, we ARE making progress. Ben has the entire back deck stripped, filled with Bondo and sanded. It looks like today we will be doing some touch up with the white paint on the fly bridge and Ben has to fabricate the aft hatch cover.... THEN tomorrow we should be ready to lay down the first coat of primer for the blue non-skid. GOD what a job this has been! Now that we have a few days of nice weather it would be nice to be able to actually take the boat out in the water. Oh well... Maybe next month the boat will be ready.

EVERYTHING is covered with dust from all the sanding. I have the upper decks vacuumed and wiped down and ready for the paint. I will be glad when all this sanding and painting is down! It will also be nice to see the finished product.... It seems like we work and work and all we have to show for it is more dust! Once the upper decks are done, I will again head to Lani's so Ben can do the main deck WITHOUT Chloe walking through the seal coat.

Tomorrow is Dustin and Lani's anniversary, I think we are going to go out in their boat and spend the day..... At least I will get to do a little boating. LOL

Wed. July 4th. 2012

We had a nice 4th of July. The day started out cloudy but soon turned to blue skies and temps in the low 70's. WHOOO-HOOOO. We took a break from sanding the boat, we were both so sore and tired from working we really needed a day off! Ben and I watched the fireworks from a friend's boat moored at the Port Orchard Marina. We just left our car parked here at the Yacht Club and walked downtown... Parking was horrible and it was just easier to walk than try to find a parking spot. We did have a good time, a nice BBQ on-board with some cocktails. The park and marina was PACKED with boats and people. The fireworks started around 10:30 so it was after midnight when we finally dragged ourselves home. Not quite the same as spending the 4th with family..... but I had a nice time.

Saturday June 30, 2012

The last day of June.... Pouring down rain. WIll summer EVER come? The locals tell me that summer doesn't start untill AFTER July 4th. so there is still hope. Right???? Ben has been spending everyday working on the boat. He has everything cleaned off the fly bridge and the back deck and is removing the old cracked fiberglass. Once that has all been removed he will fill all the holes and bad spots with bondo and then sand everything. Once that's done we MIGHT be ready to start putting down the non-skid deck coating.

It has been a horendus job, Ben has been working every day. It looks like we will have to strip the entire back deck before we can coat it. SHIT!