Red Lead Day

[Concordia...41]

I have it from a venerable source - i.e. Ed Harrow - that legions of New England boat builders are spinning in their graves at the thought of taping off a bilge.

But frankly I'm glad they got loosened up because they'll be doing cartwheels when they get a hold of the news that I rolled and tipped the bilge today



Actually, I was running out of paint at the end and there's three more frame bays to do. That will bring me to right below the companionway. I'll go back and do that tomorrow and touch up any spots I missed.

I had a nice lunch break, but by mid-afternoon I had had exactly enough of breathing through the respirator and balancing on my hands and knees...

As Scarlett O'Hara would say, "Tomorrow is another day."

[StevenBauer]

Looks great, Margo. I can't wait to see the interior start going back into place.

Steven

[Ken Hutchins]

Looks great.

[Stephen]

Looks great!
We're just about at the stage to red lead our bilge as well - just waiting for some warmer weather...
How much paint did it take in the end? Just the one coat sufficient?
Sure looks nice compared to yesterday's bilge pics.

[Hughman]

You Go! Girl!

[Bob Perkins]

Very Nice. It's great to work and have visual progress.

Thanks for the updates.

[Nanoose]

Awesome. Margo, why does the red lead not go all the way forward?

[Nanoose]

p.s. When we redid our interior, the shipwright had us red lead everypiece of bare wood (before we primed twice, and painted, twice! Ugh!!). Why are you stopping at the bilge and not carrying on all the way up?

[oakman]

Because the less paint there is on the interior of the boat the better. I'm talking between the ceiling and the inside of the planking, because in several years all that paint will start cracking off, falling into your bilge and fouling your pumps.

[Nanoose]

OK...we were refitting the interior, and he had us red lead it all, but it was just the 'furniture'. Is that the difference?

As far as the "start cracking off", I thought red lead kind of adhered forever (and that's why we do it)? People talk about having to replank old boats, and finding red lead still in the wood.

[rbgarr]

Thread drift alert! A Red Lead Story (which I may have already told here):

When I was twenty I crossed the Atlantic on the WESTWARD, a school ship. One of the deck duties was to scrape and paint. One day some of the girls were red leading some bare metal. When they finished and were returning to the bosun's locker with the paint and brushes one of them painted the bottom of my feet as I was lying on the cabin top reading. I am pretty ticklish there and didn't realize I'd been painted until I jumped up and planted both feet on the teak deck. I slipped and fell down leaving a huge streak of red lead across the deck and on the back of my shorts. I thought "To Hell with it" and chased the girl down the deck. I grabbed one of the other red lead paint brushes in order to a paint a stripe down her bikinied back. Just as I caught her she turned around and I swabbed her chest with the brush. It also came out of my hand (somehow;>) and got stuck in her bathing suit top. It took her a few seconds to notice while everyone stood and gaped.

We spent a long time that afternoon scrubbing and scraping the deck under the fuming eye of the bosun. I had to use bronze wool to scrub the paint off the bottom of my feet. She had more difficulty getting it off her nipple.

[Lew Barrett]

Don't you have a ceremony to get to, or are you going in overalls?
Looks great Margo.

[The Bigfella]

Fabulous.

Love the Carlotta site too Stephen

[Concordia...41]

Stephen - Ditto on the great website!

To answer your question, I one gallon of Kirby's finest will do the job. I poured out about half yesterday and thinned with less than a cup of turpentine. I see in my post I said I was "running out of paint." I should have been more specific and said that I was running out of paint in the tray and was too tired to start another batch.

I'll do the last three frame bays this morning, and then I'm going to do a second touch up coat working forward so that I'm facing the other way and better seeing what I missed. I think one coat would be sufficient - especially if you were short of materials or working on a deadline, but I've got the paint and I've got the time so no excuse for not doing it right.

To answer Nanoose's question - only the bilge was painted originally. Because of all the new wood, I had a hard time figuring out how high to bring the paint, but figured I can't go wrong keeping it at the top of the floors.

In the photo in the first post, there is one new plank still bare in the lower right. You can also see bare wood where there are new frames. The rest is dusty and dirty, but original.

Back to it....

[S.V. Airlie]

Looking good though....

[oakman]

Yes, it is true that that thinned coat of red lead will stick in the fibers of the wood for a looong time. It is those coats that come after that primer, after the fibers have been sealed, that will only coat the surface with a thin film. This is the culpret that will eventually crack off and flake into the bilge.

[Hughman]

Margo's red lead is on top of CPES? Probably belt and suspenders, but she does good work!

Pssst! Margo, wanna schedule me for the spring?

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

It's awful purty...

[Concordia...41]

Hugh - I'll schedule you for any time you want

Turpentine, roller covers, brushes and paint trays : $19.59

Red lead paint and CPES: $200.00

Feeling like you've done right by your boat: Priceless!

[Phillip Allen]

Margo, don't you need to allow for the heel of the boat in painting the bilge...?

[Concordia...41]

Phillip - she's not heeling much where she sits

Plus, everyone's assuming she's going to leak.

[Phillip Allen]

With a wooden hull, it is a reasonable assumption. Were you to sail to Europe, I suppose there may be tacks lasting weeks at a time with the degree of heel varying according to the strength of wind...still if the water in the bilge gets above the floors then I would be concerned and trying to correct it. One of the features I would try to design into a boat of any material would be the ability to blow the bilges for hours at a time...air flow is our friend when drying dampness and keeping things fresh.

[S.V. Airlie]

I bet she only leaks for a day... at the most two. She has been out of the water for a long time...

[Phillip Allen]

I bet she only leaks for a day... at the most two. She has been out of the water for a long time...

With that in mind, it would be great to launch her in fresh water.

[Steve Lansdowne]

You realize, of course, that you're setting a very high standard for many of us male boat builders to aspire to, both in your building, your photography, and your correspondence! Nancy Pelosi would be proud of you.

[S.V. Airlie]

Steve.. Ain't that the truth.. and ya forgot something.. Margo does what she does with Class....

[Paul Girouard]

One of the features I would try to design into a boat of any material would be the ability to blow the bilges for hours at a time...air flow is our friend when drying dampness and keeping things fresh.

Philip it ain't a submarine

Very nice job Margo Painting and posting, Nancy Pill-low-sy my arse You tryin to insult Margo Steve

[Hughman]

Hugh - I'll schedule you for any time you want

WHOOO HOOOOO!

[boylesboats]

Hey, I have been trying to figure out where, what, who about RED LEAD PAINTS... It sounded like a E.P.A. banned substance...
The only site that I came up on search, is Kirby Paint.. It called Red Lead Primer... Paint or primer, which is which?

[Concordia...41]

Hey, I have been trying to figure out where, what, who about RED LEAD PAINTS... It sounded like a E.P.A. banned substance...
The only site that I came up on search, is Kirby Paint.. It called Red Lead Primer... Paint or primer, which is which?

Call it what you want. It's red lead paint - most often used as a primer/sealer. And that's about a gallon of Kirby's finest in the picture

[capt jake]

Nice job Margo! I need a painter, or at least somebody who like to do it. Thanks for the photo updates, it adds a lot.

[Concordia...41]

Phillip - just read your second post. Good point about staying on a tack for a long time.

FWIW - Sarah went through the Panama Canal and to Hawaii and back and a former owner told me on the Hawaii trip they were on a starboard tack for so long that the water running down the decks startled leaking around the cabin base into the galley. He installed really cool drains (just little sections of pipe) on both sides where the cockpit coaming meets the cabin house. He had a length of hose between the two drains and the water just ran out the other side.

I don't have the hose on, but the starboard drain is visible in the corner. I doubt it moves much water, but it makes a great story



Wow! Did I just drift my own thread or what?????

[boylesboats]

Call it what you want. It's red lead paint - most often used as a primer/sealer. And that's about a gallon of Kirby's finest in the picture

Thank Concordia...41,

[Concordia...41]

Very Nice. It's great to work and have visual progress.

Thanks for the updates.

It's also great to get positive reinforcement from you all. It really means a lot.

Nothing done on the boat today. The fumes needed to settle, and I needed a break. But I'll be there bright and early in the morning

[Bill Perkins]

Cpes and red lead primer !Thank God for your shops' super cross ventilation ( though you probably won't grow much after this ). Too bad wooden boat building and restoration involves so many toxins .I'm hopeing that air flow ,along with a respirator , saved a few brain cells for me while working with the LPU paint.

[Nanoose]

With that in mind, it would be great to launch her in fresh water.

My understanding is that fresh water is the enemy...salt water isn't. Launch her in salt.

[Concordia...41]

My understanding is that fresh water is the enemy...salt water isn't. Launch her in salt.

Yeah, we have a little shortage of fresh water around here. Salt it is.

[paladin]

actually Margo, I noticed a small discrepancy in your photos.....no salt shelves between the frames.....not to detract from the absolutely fine work that you have done......

[almeyer]

She's looking good, Margo.

[Phillip Allen]

what's a salt shelf?

[paladin]

What Margo dunno got.....

In the days of yore....wooden men and iron ships.....or wuzzit iron men and wooden ships.......anyway.......between the frames would be horizontal shelves with the bottoms angled toweard the planking...when the ship was built they would pack rock salt into those shelves...then lay the ceiling over...since fresh water rots wood...and salt water pickles wood...the idea was any moisture or fresh water that found it's way below decks and into the frames/planking would dissolve the salt (slowly) and pickle the wood preventing rot....