Mirror Dinghy Questions

[8387mike]

Hello All,

I am in need of a bit of help, I purchased an old Mirror dinghy just recently off ebay and I am looking at doing it up over the winter so I can take my kids out and teach them how to sail (Well that is what I told the wife, really I am addicted to sailing and I hope to pass my adiction on to at least one of my kids so I can keep sailing while they grow up)

I will proberly have a lot of questions but here is ther first.

My question is what type of timber is recommended for a gunwale? inside and out?
And what size should I use?

I look forward to all the help I can get.

Can't seem to up load any photos

[Peerie Maa]

Hello All,

I am in need of a bit of help, I purchased an old Mirror dinghy just recently off ebay and I am looking at doing it up over the winter so I can take my kids out and teach them how to sail (Well that is what I told the wife, really I am addicted to sailing and I hope to pass my adiction on to at least one of my kids so I can keep sailing while they grow up)

I will proberly have a lot of questions but here is ther first.

My question is what type of timber is recommended for a gunwale? inside and out?
And what size should I use?

I look forward to all the help I can get.

Can't seem to up load any photos

Have a look here: http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthre...-Mighty-Pippin

[62816inBerlin]

Hello and welcome!

There are no rules about what wood to use, but my boat came with a softish (probably pine) inner gunwale and hardwood outer gunwale.
I experienced rot on the port side and replaced the entire outer strip with mahogany which came in the correct size (including the rounded edges) from a local yacht supplier, to my surprise - after all we live in a Metric Continent! Unfortunately they did not have the full length and I had to scarf two lengths.
The rot danger is due to water seeping in to the centre ply of the side hull panels from the edges. My boat was varnished with polyurethane that must have cracked when the wood swelled (water diffuses through paint on the long run, I guess) and although everything looked solid on the outside, the mast simply fell overboard one day when I went about in a light breeze and the chain plate fitting simply pulled out of the block it sits on. Luckily I was able to step the mast in the forward position and sail home cat-rigged.
As well as reading Duncan Gibbs excellent and entertaining thread as Nick has suggested, post your question in the Mirror Dinghy discussion forum http://mirrordiscussforum.multiply.com/ - we always enjoy hearing from new members!
Wishing you success with the repairs.
Shall we enter your boat in the roll call (http://www.hirsinger-translations.de...r_rollcall.pdf) ?
Gernot H.

[8387mike]

Hi Nick and Gernot,

Yes I read the Mighty Pippin while waiting for the approval on this site, problem I see there is that is way to much work, but what a beautiful work of art, I am trying to keep the weight and the carpentry work down as my RC yacht business keeps me very busy.
I have also been on the Mirror forum but couldn't figure out to post/start a thread.

Gernot
What size timber did you use? and is it ok to use pine on the inside and a hard wood on the outside? what happened to your Mirror is the same as mine, after I picked it up, I grabbed the gunwale and about 300mm crumbled in my hand and it has got into a little of the ply, which brings another question what is the thickness of the ply used?

And yes you can add me to the roll call, I will get the sail number next time she gets pulled out but it is in the 45k range.

Sorry guys but there will be more questions.

[62816inBerlin]

Hello Mike,
I've just come back from an afternoon sail in the "big" boat, but I'll get the dimensions in the course of the week for you.
My patching was done using thinner (3 mm I believe) plywood than the original, but for that it's real marine stuff and 5-ply. It's used for ultra-light power hydroplanes etc. The 3-ply used in the Mirror kits is only recommended for interior fit-out work here. I did a sketchy description of the stern patch (http://www.hirsinger-translations.de...ting/patch.pdf) but I haven't located any pictures of the side piece - this was before the explosive spread of digital photography.
The Mirror Dinghy Discussion Forum is unfortunately not running on real Forum software, you simply have to register as a Multiply user and join the Group. Post on the blog or notes section and add suitable tags to make you post easier to find later on.
Some chaps in California have posted an account of their restoration work on Mirror 36332 on a separate site (http://mirror70407.com/mirror36332.aspx), but I have been told that this might be taken off the www soon. Perhaps they have the odd good advice for you if you contact one of them on time.
Cheers,
Gernot

[Duncan Gibbs]

Hi there Mike, and welcome to the forum!

The main problem with older Mirrors is that they were built with 5mm ply which isn't made any more. Thus I had to create a sandwich of 4mm and a piece of 1mm veneer to make up the total width in the dutchmans I put on after I'd put the backing plates on. I strongly suggest getting a strip to glue over the ply endgrain on the sheer that can sit between the inwale and gunwale, first applying an unthickened coat on the timber after giving the areas a blast with a heat gun and then using an epoxy thickened with microfibres. That should keep the water out. Don't forget some nice fillets of the thick stuff under the gunnel and inwale as well.

Look forward to seeing some pictures mate!

[Sayla]

Hello All,

My question is what type of timber is recommended for a gunwale? inside and out?
And what size should I use?

I look forward to all the help I can get.

Can't seem to up load any photos

I did this on my Mirror (gunwale / inwale about 15yr ago) - I picked out some light straight grain meranti from the rack down at the hardware store, ripped it to 30mm (x18) and bullnosed it, set it up a couple of millimetres from the top of the ply, and used a Sikaflex bead between and protecting ply endgrain, after varnishing (masking tape along the wales for neatness) - I made some hardwood oarlock blocks along the inwale that you can see as well. The whole thing's as good as the day it was made, and I'm pretty sure that I just cold bent as I clamped and screwed them together working my way along - inwale through to gunwale - no holes in the external gunwale and evenly spaced screws for internal asthetics - same sikaflex for some bedding and gluing of the wales as I went. These days I might use honduras (fiji) mahogany (perhaps steaming near the bows) due to having access to it (and I just like it).



This is a new daggerboard case and seat (the channeled nonslip bilge stringers are simply a ripped slice of some reeded merbau house decking)




This ply plate covers and strengthens a bit of frame piece behind that was a bit rotten (just a repair idea - but still in good order) - I sanded off and replaced the external fibreglass tape seams as it was all a bit weak, then varnished and painted over as you can see below.



------------------------
happy sailing



As a Mirror owner you might want to read "The Unlikely Voyage of Jack de Crow"

sayla

[8387mike]

Thanks Duncan and Sayla for the info and thanks for the pictures (how do you upload on this forum?) I can get 19 x 40 x 3600 lengths of Meranti from Bunnings so I will have to ripe these down by 10mm (bugger I sold the table saw 2 years ago).
As for the fibreglass seams I plan to replace any that are lifting (which at a short glance means most of the internal stuff) I will know more when I strip the external paint off the hull.

Mirror Dinghy ebay photo (Custom).jpg
This is the best I can do with the photo, it was of the ad on ebay.

[Duncan Gibbs]

...(how do you upload on this forum?) ...

Take your pictures on ye olde digital camera, resize them (I use a 100 to 180kb size as my guide) and upload them to a picture hosting web site such as Picturetrail. When you do this you'll be asked if you wish to "get the image URLs." Click on that prompt and you'll be able to copy an image code for posting pictures to forums "[img ] picture url inserted here [ /img]." All you do is paste this right where you want to in your post.

If you see an image you like on another web page you can use the "insert image" button on the reply toolbar above where you type out you post. Just right click on that image (I use a PC mouse on my Mac) and copy the image url using the pop-up menu that will appear, click on the button and use the "URL" tab on the dialogue box. Uncheck the "Retrieve remote file and reference locally" option and paste the image url into the space provided.

Bob's your uncle and he was your prime minister! IIRC the first batch of shots on Picturetrail is free.

[8387mike]

I think I figured it out, thanks for that Duncan.

As you can see she came with a trailer and a lot of peeling paint, the rot is on the starboard side gunwale.
We live on a very narrow house lot 15m wide and part of the agreement with the my wife was not to have it living on the front lawn, so I moved the a gate that is down the side of the house and brick paved it, then proceed to cut the roller guide thingies on the side of the tralier and it fits with about an inch clearance each side. (I will be making the roller thingies removeable when in storage).

I also bought a Tarp for it to keep the weather out. hopefully start work on striping all the paint off her to see what the rot is like.

[8387mike]

Striped a little of the hull today, the fibreglass strip was just falling off, plus you can see the rot in the gunwale.

This is the inside


This is the little trailer it came with.

Question time what is the best method to get the paint of(the stuff that won't just fall off)?

[Duncan Gibbs]

I used a 180mm sander-grinder-polisher with 120 grit hook and loop disks on TMP, but I'm hoping to test out a new method described in this page to remove paint on some weatherboards and on the Dragon:

http://www.oceanmanorhouse.com/?page=paintremover

If the ply under the gunnels is okay then you're doing twenty times better than I did!

[8387mike]

Hi Duncan,

The ply has a little rot may be 1 layer of ply, but so far it is all looking very nice, if there is not need to patch the hull anywhere I think I will vanish the inside and bring out the colour of the timber.
I had a crack at sanding off the paint today 5 minutes and got no where, 40 on an 1/3 orbital sander. The brown on the inside is just peeling off and the blue on the outer hull is the same, it is the white that is being a little S$&%ful.

Oh and Gernot sail number is 45530, Boat is owned by the Fisher Family, Baldivis, Perth, Western Australia, please add this to the register, as for the name there is nothing that I can find on the hull, so we will be giving her a new name. Normally I would be saying Hayjasmit4 but we have another child on the way so it will have to wait till he or she is born, it will be "Hayjasmit???"

Mike

[62816inBerlin]

@Mike
You're on the roll call! ;-{)
Could there be twins in line?
Wishing that all goes well. For more inspiration, see http://mirrordiscussforum.multiply.c...ination_can_do and the related pictures which seem to indicate that Stefaan might need a second Mirror when his kids get a bit older!

Cheers,

Gernot

[8387mike]

Yes I cannot wait to get her on the water, Stefaan has one less than I will/do. I used to race S80's till the kids came along then I got into IOM RC yachts and I am always saying to people I know/will have enough to crew an S80

[Sayla]

Hi Duncan,

The ply has a little rot may be 1 layer of ply, but so far it is all looking very nice, if there is not need to patch the hull anywhere I think I will vanish the inside and bring out the colour of the timber.
I had a crack at sanding off the paint today 5 minutes and got no where, 40 on an 1/3 orbital sander. The brown on the inside is just peeling off and the blue on the outer hull is the same, it is the white that is being a little S$&%ful.

Oh and Gernot sail number is 45530, Boat is owned by the Fisher Family, Baldivis, Perth, Western Australia, please add this to the register, as for the name there is nothing that I can find on the hull, so we will be giving her a new name. Normally I would be saying Hayjasmit4 but we have another child on the way so it will have to wait till he or she is born, it will be "Hayjasmit???"

Mike

Great shots - that looks slightly better than mine did - it was satisfying once I had the paint off - big job but worth the effort - from memory I had to use a disk sander as it had about twenty layers of peeling paint on it, hiding little bits of rot here and there - you might have to take it somewhere away from houses and just get into it.

Regarding the seams, I presumed that it was polyester, and it doesn't have the peel strength of epoxy - doing the seams again I'd probably use epoxy with the fibreglass tape (needs sun protection though).

Recently I went to Bunnings to get one of those triangular corner sanders to sand some epoxy from inside a hull, and I got an 'Ozito' for $35.00 with a years warranty - what a bargain - it has enough strength to go through the hull if you're not careful - take care if you get one.

sayla

[8387mike]

Right I have been thinking of ways to strip the paint of this Mirror and I need to check with some people who know.

1. 40grit on 1/4 orbital - tried this and it didn't do to much
2. High pressure hose - done this on a house that I renovated and worked well
3. Chemicals?
4. Heat gun?
5. Angle grinder with wire brush?
6. Belt sander

Which of these would quick without destroying the hull.

[Harm P]

Hello Mike (and others)
I did some work on my Mirror Dinghy (37173) built by my father in the livingroom back in '73.

Best way of removing paint in my opinion is a heat gun, a sharp scraper or broken glass and sheer determination....
Sander is uncontrolled: stay to long in one place and you will remove too much material.
Same (and worse!) goes for the belt sander and the angle grinder, also can't reach the corners.
High pressure hose will destroy the soft bits in the ply ie the wood fibers.
Chemicals will work, but is unhealthy, expensive and will also remove skin effectively
If you're looking for a clear finish, you'll have to be careful not to destroy the top layer of the ply.

I made some inserts on mine: cut the bad part out in a square or rectangular shape, made a scarf joint on all 4 sides,
made an insert of new ply, kept the inward side flush with the rest and planed the outside of the hull (painted side) flush also.
This also solved the issue with 5 mm / 6 mm ply.
Maybe I even made some pics, will see if I can find them.
Posting them will be a challenge, read the how to on several threads but have never done it....

Cheers,

Harm

[Duncan Gibbs]

I used a variable speed sander/grinder/polisher with an 80 then 120 grit hook and loop on a soft 180mm pad. Quick and easy! Just keep the pad flat to the surface and its edge clear of any upturns on the boat's structure: Save those areas for a detail sander.

[8387mike]

Right my birthday today and just added some more power tools to the shed, my loverly wife tried to buy them for again but failed again good thing they do a full refund, then it was off to Bunnings to add a belt sander to the mix and heat gun, plus my father has ordered me a multitool from the US because we can't get the Ryobi one+ here.

So the paint stripping tools are
1. Belt Sander
2. 1/3 orbital sander
3. Multitool with sanding attachments
4. Detail sander
5. Heat gun

One of these should work.

Duncan, you have me sort of confused with what you used, is that like an angle grinder with sanding pads?

[Duncan Gibbs]

Obzoyve...



BTW... It's my birthday tomorrow!

ETA: Hippy Bathday mate!

[8387mike]

Had the day off work today, so my wife took me out for lunch and then I did about an hour of paint stripping with the heat gun. very quick.






I got the Starboard side started, removed all the fittings, removed the Gunwale inside and out. All I can say is who ever did the patch last time if I ever catch you watch out they hadn't removed the old brass screws so as I was removing NO pulling off the the wale's it would get stuck and I would have to find the bog and dig it out then try to unscrew the screw.
Ther is a bit of Rot in up the towards the bow as you can all see in the photos, now question time - the rot is in two spots over an area of about 600mm long and 200mm high my thoughts are to cut that section of ply out down to the boyancy tank and replace it, which means I can rebate the new ply 1mm on the inside and not have to worry about sanding it down to 5mm, any ideas please?

Also where do I get marine ply from Australia?

Mike

[Sayla]

I got the Starboard side started, removed all the fittings, removed the Gunwale inside and out. All I can say is who ever did the patch last time if I ever catch you watch out they hadn't removed the old brass screws so as I was removing NO pulling off the the wale's it would get stuck and I would have to find the bog and dig it out then try to unscrew the screw.
Ther is a bit of Rot in up the towards the bow as you can all see in the photos, now question time - the rot is in two spots over an area of about 600mm long and 200mm high my thoughts are to cut that section of ply out down to the boyancy tank and replace it, which means I can rebate the new ply 1mm on the inside and not have to worry about sanding it down to 5mm, any ideas please?

Also where do I get marine ply from Australia?

Mike

If it were me, I'd glass those bits up that extend below the wales, not remove too much ply, and paint that small section inside (hey, edge the inside and make a feature of it) - you still keep the cantilever strength of the sheet at the seat. And for the bits inside the wales, I'd make sure they were real dry, epoxy seal them and then put the wales on with epoxy (esp. where you've lost a fair amout of ply), and sikaflex down between the wales after as I showed above - many bits along the top of my ply were chewed out, but if you have most of the meat (ply) then still use it - epoxy the wales to the ply and 'voila' - it's very strong, and quicker than cutting and replacing the plywood - even a half inch of good stuff is enough - once dry, and kept dry, the rot stops where it is now. Even if I used ply instead of glass I wouldn't cut back further than I had to - that cantilever at the seat has good strength - you could even epoxy on a small section of thin ply on the inside to that section, as a simple backing for some glass / bog work - glue it on and fill that bit - get a wee bit from Bunnings - they usually have some quality 900x600 bits of marine bonded ply inside.

sayla

[Duncan Gibbs]

Mike, You'll more than likely go through a whole 2400 x 1200 sheet of marine ply before you've finished your ship, so I'd suggest finding a ply/timber merchant in Perth. Bunnings can be good, but I do prefer to support businesses other than the big box stores if I can help it. Generally they'll be cheaper and more helpful as well.

Here's one in Cannington: http://www.allwoodtimbersupplies.com/

They'll probably have some good timber to make the new gunnels and inwales from as well.

If you only have these small pockets of rot in the bulwark above the deck I'd also suggest that you chase out the rot until you feel nothing but solid timber under your fingernail, scarf back the edge to a nice one in eight bevel and glue in a new section with a matching counter bevel. It's not hard and only requires patience to "creep up" on the desired result, rather than cutting away too much all at once and make a bigger problem that you had in the first place.

If the ply is 5mm like mine was, then the best solution is to add in a small thickening plate of 1mm veneer to make up the full thickness. Just about anything for the verneer will be okay as it will be saturated with epoxy by the time you've finished gluing it in.

[GaryK]

Also where do I get marine ply from Australia?

Mike

There might be an M&B building products store near you, they have marine and exterior ply. Personally I wouldn't bother with marine ply, go with exterior, same glue as marine and save dough. (You'll notice whole sheets are similar price to small sections of interior (junk) ply in Bunnings - that place is a bit of a rip off.) You can get decent priced clear Tassie oak from M&B too.
For the best epoxy I'd get to Boating Hardware in O'Connor for Bote-Cote, its also reasonably priced.

Enjoy your build.

[Duncan Gibbs]

Almost all ply is resorcinol glued between each layer. Marine ply is designated as such because is has no voids where water can collect and start pockets of rot. For a quick and dirty solution don't bother with marine ply. For something with longevity use nothing but marine ply. The price difference may be $30 to $40 for a big sheet. I know what I'd choose!

[8387mike]

Hi Duncan,

Thanks for the link I phoned them today and asked about the differences between the 2 plys and hes said that marine grade used A grade front and rear and exterior uses B grade front and C back and being that the ply will only be used for patching he said the exterior would be fine, I still haven't decided on which way to go yet.

But I do have another question, should I strip the hull inside and out including the fibreglass strips or do the outside first then the inside? I would hate to strip the whole hull and then have the boat fall to pieces on me.


Back to the gunwales again, I plan on doing what Sayla did and use Meranti but was wondering do I need to rip it down from 40mm to 30mm or could I just keep it 40? and if I did keep it 40mm would this affect the rules if I decide to race her? The main reason being I don't have a table saw any more and the only saw I do have that could rip it down is a bench bandsaw (see link)
http://www.ryobi.com.au/Products/Pow...p/Saws/HBS150L

[Sayla]

But I do have another question, should I strip the hull inside and out including the fibreglass strips or do the outside first then the inside? I would hate to strip the whole hull and then have the boat fall to pieces on me.

Very unlikely, but depends on the quality of the stitch and the backing fibreglass tapes - which may be hard to figure - I'd do the external first as it's easier (and will be painted over) as practice

Back to the gunwales again, I plan on doing what Sayla did and use Meranti but was wondering do I need to rip it down from 40mm to 30mm or could I just keep it 40? and if I did keep it 40mm would this affect the rules if I decide to race her? The main reason being I don't have a table saw any more and the only saw I do have that could rip it down is a bench bandsaw (see link)
http://www.ryobi.com.au/Products/Pow...p/Saws/HBS150L

Give me an hour and I'd rip them with a handsaw, and clean the edge with 80 % 120 grit sandpaper - it's only four pieces of 'softish' timber - I don't know what my originals ones were, but I figure 30 if that's what I have now - ring a different store, and you might find 31mm - I don't know about rules - Duncan might,



sayla

[62816inBerlin]

@ 8387mike

Rules are available directly at ISAF: http://www.sailing.org/1820.php . Also check the Measurement Form http://www.sailing.org/9551.php . The documents are in PDF format so you can download and print them or read on screen at your leisure.
I would not use interior ply. Unless you are sure to keep the boat perfectly dry for long periods, you are sure to develop rot again. If the price difference is only $10 or so a sheet, it's advisable to use the best you can get. I even put in thinner material, but real marine ply, for my patches that I mentioned earlier in the thread. I also dislike the idea of too much epoxy and glass (or else we might as well call this the WRP or wood reinforced plastic boat forum). I fear the epoxy, on the long run, lets water in though microcracks and osmosis, but keeps it in the wood long enough to promote rot.
You are facing a daunting job! I wish you all success.

Cheers,

Gernot H.

@ Sayla
Is that picture your Mirror? That's an odd mainsheeting arrangement ?!

[8387mike]

@ 8387mike

Rules are available directly at ISAF: http://www.sailing.org/1820.php . Also check the Measurement Form http://www.sailing.org/9551.php . The documents are in PDF format so you can download and print them or read on screen at your leisure.
I would not use interior ply. Unless you are sure to keep the boat perfectly dry for long periods, you are sure to develop rot again. If the price difference is only $10 or so a sheet, it's advisable to use the best you can get. I even put in thinner material, but real marine ply, for my patches that I mentioned earlier in the thread. I also dislike the idea of too much epoxy and glass (or else we might as well call this the WRP or wood reinforced plastic boat forum). I fear the epoxy, on the long run, lets water in though microcracks and osmosis, but keeps it in the wood long enough to promote rot.
You are facing a daunting job! I wish you all success.

Cheers,

Gernot H.

@ Sayla
Is that picture your Mirror? That's an odd mainsheeting arrangement ?!

Hi Gernot,

I won't be using normal or interier ply, I am tosing up between Marine or Exterior Ply, but at only AUS$9 extra for the marine ply I think I will go Marine.

[Sayla]

@ Sayla
Is that picture your Mirror? That's an odd mainsheeting arrangement ?!

Yes it is - and yes, I was just looking at that too - and I've no explanation - ?grabbed too long a rope for the sheet, or ?must have been trying to get it out of my nieces' way or something - it's not a standard arrangement - by the look of the tiller, I think I was virtually on the sand, preparing her to set off or something - it was a few years ago, but I picked it as you can see wood of the boat

sayla

[8387mike]

There might be an M&B building products store near you, they have marine and exterior ply. Personally I wouldn't bother with marine ply, go with exterior, same glue as marine and save dough. (You'll notice whole sheets are similar price to small sections of interior (junk) ply in Bunnings - that place is a bit of a rip off.) You can get decent priced clear Tassie oak from M&B too.
For the best epoxy I'd get to Boating Hardware in O'Connor for Bote-Cote, its also reasonably priced.

Enjoy your build.

Hi Gary,

Only just read your post, I'm only just up the road from you in Baldivis, where abouts do you get your marine ply from?

Mike

[62816inBerlin]

@All
As there seem to be several other Mirrorites reading this thread, I'd like to add a question.
Puffin still has the circular drainholes in the stern and I noticed (at 6°C air temp - water temp unkown) that quite a lot of water remained in the boat when I got knocked down this January (about a bucketful - I was enjoying planing along the lake and was probably a bit careless). Does anyone have experience as to whether widening them to "handhold" dimensions improves this situation considerably?

The rules say:
"1.4.14 Holes may be through the aft transom as follows:-
Two drain holes above the aft deck each of which shall be capable of being contained within a rectangle not more than 40mm in height and not more than 100mm in width."

Looking forward to opinions/experience reports.

Gernot H.

[8387mike]

Had a chance to do some more paint stripping tonight and as the wife went shopping the Mirror moved into the garage for a weekend of stripping, I also had a very little hand helping me. I also have decided to do the outside hull first then finish the inside, but first of all the starboard side will get rebuilt before I do the port

[8387mike]

Right I have done more sanding on the hull and come accross what could be a problem if I plain to vanish the inside of the hull, After taking off the white paint on the inside it has left the ply with a white stain that makes it look like pine, under where the F/G and wales used to be it is a reddy colour. Should I be concerned?

[8387mike]

Hi All,

As you can all see the Mirror has moved into the garage, yes the wife agreed but on the condition if it rains she doesn't want to get wet, so it is winter and I want an easy way get the boat in and out of the garage and I thought why not mount it off the roof?

I found this on ebay but I am not sure on the weight of a mirror hull?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-Kayak...item3f174acbd2
Would this work it would only be until it is finished then I'll be getting one of these.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Mirror-Di...item336f79ae43

[62816inBerlin]

Hi All,

As you can all see the Mirror has moved into the garage, yes the wife agreed but on the condition if it rains she doesn't want to get wet, so it is winter and I want an easy way get the boat in and out of the garage and I thought why not mount it off the roof?

I found this on ebay but I am not sure on the weight of a mirror hull?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-Kayak...item3f174acbd2
Would this work it would only be until it is finished then I'll be getting one of these.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Mirror-Di...item336f79ae43

Mirror complete ~ 60 kg so without spars, rudder etc. the pulley system would be OK.
But surely a couple of standard galvanized blocks with 4x tackle from the DIY and a few metres of rope would be cheaper?
Puffin was suspended in slings between poles and a short jetty for several years and it was no problem for me to raise/lower her with a 4x tackle. My slings were old car seat-belts from a junkyard. They are virtually indestructible.

If you make a flat cover or buy one, put some hoops under it to prevent rain water sagging into the hull. I simply wrap a polytarp over the hull. It holds for about 2-3 years, but for the price of that new flat cover, I can buy ten polytarps!


I hope work is progressing well!
Gernot H.

[Sayla]

Right I have done more sanding on the hull and come accross what could be a problem if I plain to vanish the inside of the hull, After taking off the white paint on the inside it has left the ply with a white stain that makes it look like pine, under where the F/G and wales used to be it is a reddy colour. Should I be concerned?

I presume that would be a primer or undercoat bound into the surface fibres? Can you post a photo?

I would think that it depends on how any of the whitish part would stain up - "looks like pine" is ok, but "looks like white paint embeded under the varnish" is another thing - ?slightly more sanding in order, or is it already bare timber?
Is there a bit somewhere inconspicuous that you can try a pre-stained varnish on - the hardware or paint store should have various little cans of stain/varnish which you could try one of, and perhaps even samples of "over pine" at the shop. Under the wales is no issue of course. A moderately generous sanding (but not through the outer veneer) at the F/G seams may allow you to blend it all better - but consider choosing a stain varnish (?cedar or mahogany or jarrah) that looks like it could match the redness of the other - I wouldn't be tempted to put anything under the tape seam though, regardless of appearance.

sayla

[Sayla]

If you make a flat cover or buy one, put some hoops under it to prevent rain water sagging into the hull. I simply wrap a polytarp over the hull. It holds for about 2-3 years, but for the price of that new flat cover, I can buy ten polytarps! Gernot H.

I'll second that, especially regarding shedding the water - I used a polytarp for years - well, a silver one actually, which might be five dollars extra (Queensland weather requires it) - in the shade if you have any though.

sayla

[8387mike]

Hi Gernot,
I have ordered one of those pulley systems it was only AUS$40 delivered. I have it wrapped up in a trap when it is outside.


Sayla,

Some photos




Work so far on the Starboard side

[Sayla]

Sayla,

Some photos

The inside bulwark may not be worth the effort of sanding to a varnishing level (in and out of all the corners etc) with all that embeded existing primer/paint, as well as that bulwark repair which you can hide with paint - it's probably why I chose to paint that part on mine (see above) - the flat wide areas are easier to sand if your keen on varnishing (i.e. the deck and the foot well sides) - The bottom of the foot well is a good place to paint, not varnish; well coated and protected from all the 'stuff' that happens to it.

sayla

[Duncan Gibbs]

I dunno Sayla: I like that patina of age with all the stains, small flecks of paint and so on. Under varnish it looks quite nice. Mine needs a revarnish, but since it's really only sailing in salt water and is under wraps with a boat cover and poly tarp (to protect the cover) I'm not overly concerned yet. I will get around to it this winter, however.

Looking good there Mike. One thing to note is where you need retape the seams, both inside and out, is to ensure you have a nice radius to work with as the glass tape won't bend around sharp corners when wetted out with epoxy. On the inside have a good 20mm radius fillet of epoxy thickened with micro balloons or wood dust, and on the outside sand it back (if you need to) so that you have the same radius to work with.

It looks like you don't have too much rot in those bulwarks, so the scarf up should be easy.

[Sayla]

I dunno Sayla: I like that patina of age with all the stains, small flecks of paint and so on. Under varnish it looks quite nice. Mine needs a revarnish, but since it's really only sailing in salt water and is under wraps with a boat cover and poly tarp (to protect the cover) I'm not overly concerned yet. I will get around to it this winter, however.

I think I'd have to see it...........

Whereabouts do you get out on it - the Tweed?

sayla

[Duncan Gibbs]

Yup! The Tweed! I happen to be the Rear Commodore of the Tweed Valley Sailing Club!

We're out for a social sail tomorrow and the presentation of the Summer Series Awards and we start the Winter Series nest Sunday. Old Fingal Boat Harbour tomorrow and new Fingal Boat Harbour (the one with the ramp) next weekend. Come on down! TMP will be out for both days.

[62816inBerlin]

Hi Gernot,

I have ordered one of those pulley systems it was only AUS$40 delivered. I have it wrapped up in a trap when it is outside.

Sayla,

Some photos

.....


Work so far on the Starboard side

....

Great progress, I couldn't hang Puffin in the garage because:
a) it (the garage) is already full of other junk and
b) our garage is too low.
So now she is sitting in the driveway.
In your picture above I notice that you have no inspection port in the rear tank. Puffin did not have one either until the stern rotted out (see http://www.hirsinger-translations.de/gast/boating/patch.pdf). As the boat sat bow up on the trailer, there must have been water in there periodically for longer periods. Now I can reach in there and check and wipe out any water that may have collected.
I am finally attempting to fix my leaky centreboard case. Pictures and blog explanation on the Mirror Dinghy Discussion Forum site (http://mirrordiscussforum.multiply.com).

Keep the progress reports coming!

Gernot H.

P.S. could it be that there are no inspection ports at all in your flotation tanks ?

[Sayla]

....

P.S. could it be that there are no inspection ports at all in your flotation tanks ?

Hey, you're right Gernot - definitely should have inspection ports - for multiple reasons - I have four - one each side, large one to the rear, one in fore deck.

They're great for storing towels, sandwiches, maybe fishing stuff - good for leaving open when at home after a sail to aerate the whole thing and dry.

I have a larger one at the rear in the foot well, which allows me to pass my oar ends into it, allowing me to manoeuvre them to store them under the seat while under way - I thought it was simply a brilliant part of the original design, thinking they were all like that.

Hopefully I'll take some photos later to show what I mean.

sayla

[Duncan Gibbs]

I wouldn't dream of stowing anything in mine: They're all painted with red-lead!

[62816inBerlin]

Hello Mike,
to get back to your original question: I finally found that left-over bit of gunwale. I realize it will be some time until you're ready to install it, but I've taken a picture to give you some idea.

.....


My question is what type of timber is recommended for a gunwale? inside and out?
And what size should I use?

....

It's 30mm x 16mm mahogany and came with two edges ready-rounded. Unfortunately they did not have the length to fit the whole gunwale, but I managed to scarf two pieces quite neatly. I wet-bent them a bit by putting the ends on bricks and then placing a brick on the middle, then left them to dry. This way I didn't have to exert too much force when gluing them in place.



Hope that things are progressing your way!

Cheers, Gernot H.

[8387mike]

Thanks Gernot,

I bought some 40 x 19 Meranti in a 3600 length and ripped it down using me little bench band saw to 30mm then I ran the electric planner over the cut side and the corners, then out came the new belt sander that my wife bought me for me birthday, I am happy with the result. My multi tool turned up today, another tool in shed.

Thanks for the tip on bending it, how long do I soak it for?

[8387mike]

Ops forgot to add my pulley system turned up last week so did me trolley wheels. I plan on making a trolley so when I lower it from the ceiling I can move it around the garage.

Work has been put on hold with the little dingy for 2 reasons.
1) I have just had 2 RC yachts turn up that need to be finished for customers
2) We nearly bought another house on the weekend (with a large block of land for man cave/shed) do I was flat out getting our current house tiddy to put on the market.

Hope to start again soon