A "Break"

On Saturday Greg and I were able to sneak in an extra few hours of work, during which time we finished sanding and priming the one remaining section of unprimed hull. It was incredibly gratifying to see the entire boat primed. We next planned to fine-sand the primer in preparation for the actual paint.

Alas, our plans have been slowed by fate. On Sunday I fractured my ankle while learning to water ski. I took a tumble and the ski didn't pop off. Fortunately it's a minor break and I only need to wear a boot, as opposed to a full-blown cast. I also got the green light to put weight on the foot, so I may be able to do some boat work after all.

Prime Time!

We are finally breaking out of sanding and fairing hell! Last night Greg and I did a final round of sanding on the bottom and the starboard side, using 120 grit sandpaper, and applied a coat of primer to the areas we sanded. Over the next week or two we will finish sanding and applying the first coat of primer.

Those of you who have been stuck in sanding and fairing hell can appreciate how happy we are over hitting this milestone. But considering how long we've been doing this -- roughly two years now -- this accomplishment is especially sweet. Since I rode my bike over to Greg's house, I didn't bring the camera so once again I don't have any pictures yet, but I think I'm going to wait until the boat is completely primed.

I still can't describe how gratifying it is to be coming out of hell.

Every Little Bit...

Every little bit of work brings us closer to our goal of completing the boat. We haven't done a lot lately, but Greg is still plugging away a few hours here and there. I'm only available once or twice per week, and lately it's been prohibitively hot to get much accomplished when I'm available. Greg on the other hand, has the luxury of being able to work on the boat late at night, when the temperature is at its coolest. Throw in the holidays and other summer activities, and you can understand how the progress has yet again slowed to a crawl.

The picture to the right is a shot after our latest round of sanding and fairing, and the addition of the skid guard I mentioned in my last post. If you judge by the dull sanded area, it looks more crooked than it actually is. Compare it to the center line and you'll see that it's pretty good.



Greg has finally acquired a motor for the boat. It's an Evanrude 150 horse motor. He got it from an outfit somewhere around Kansas City. I think he paid roughly $2200; when compared to a new motor, it's a hell of a deal. Last week we fired it up and it runs very well. If I think about it, I'll get more details from Greg about the motor and give the seller some props... no pun intended.