It’s all coming together
Applying Antifoul
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BOTTOM COAT
As we were not far from putting the beautiful Grace to sea, our thoughts turned to antifouling. We chose Awlcraft Blue to match the soon-to-be-created clears and covers. It was easy to apply and, most importantly, easy on the wallet.
SARAH’S TURN
While I was excited about what was happening to Grace’s exterior, my wife Sarah was equally excited about starting on the interior. One early disagreement was the colour choice for the main saloons seat covers.
The original covers – split and threadbare with bits of stained foam poking out – were dumped. Our good friend Kate offered to help out by sewing new covers. “Can you get something navy blue to match the covers please?” was the last thing I said to Sarah, as she and Kate went fabric shopping.
They chose a tortoiseshell weave with hints of grey in the background. Harrumphing my disappointment I was quickly informed by my wife that “the outside of the boat is yours, and the inside is mine!” Oh well – at least she is now fully on board with the programme I suppose…
BOW BEDDING
Like the seat covers in the main saloon, the bed in the forepeak was in pretty poor shape. Turning over the covers revealed a black fungus in the ventilation holes – which meant immediate replacement. As I organised their revival with another mate who was also doing my covers, I could now order the navy blue fabric my heart desired!
CLEARING THE GALLEY
The galley was another area that initially didn’t look too bad, but on closer inspection proved to be a debacle. Rotten wood, broken supports and lifted plastic tiling – it was a very tired area.
“The quickest and easiest way to apply antifouling is with a roller fitted with
an extension handle. This keeps you well away from the paint.”
After a long discussion with Sarah we decided to gut it all and start over with a new design that suited a family. This process was relatively straight forward, with our builder pulling it apart piece by piece to make sure none of the surrounding superstructure was damaged.
After its removal we found and replaced yet another small rotten area and gave the old galley a couple of coats of paint to make it sparkle. Very nice!
THE SWIM PLATFORM
With the new port and starboard stern wings extended from the original design, construction of a brand new duck board was the next project. We all debated the pros and cons of a straight versus a slightly curved duckboard across the stern. Straight offered better transit between inflatable and boat, but curved looked cooler. Cool triumphed over practicality.
As space is at a premium on a boat, we also decided to include some deep storage bins with hatch access in the duckboard, instantly creating a 20 percent increase in total boat storage.
Because Christmas was coming quicker than expected in my very rough timeline, a new member – John – was added to our crew. As a specialist in cabinetry, kitchen installation and woodworking, he was the perfect man for the job.
Getting straight lines on a boat built in the mid-70s was tricky. But after much measuring, re-measuring and scratching our collective heads, the duck board supports were created and installed, and an initial test frame was put in place temporarily to give some idea of the duckboard’s scope and size.
WILL WE MAKE CHRISTMAS?
Moving closer to the launch date, things are starting to look very tight. But with a few sunny days in a row we should be on track to be pulling in fish before Christmas. B