Messages

1

P-323 / Re: Replacing Cabin Floorboards

« on: April 27, 2018, 01:10:25 pm »

Just a quick update.

I've gotten the last of the floor up in the main cabin.  This required removing the floor-to-ceiling pole that the dining table is attached to.  The end flanges on the pole were seized on, so I could not disassemble the table, and had to jockey the whole pole-table assembly up the ladder and through the companionway.  This required four hands and a lot of of head scratching.  Sort like solving a a giant puzzle (...Lift here, now rotate,.. slide back a little, now up...) but we finally did it without damaging anything.

The old floor panels, and the table, are now home in the garage.  Next step is to create a paper or posterboard template for each piece, transfer those to some inexpensive 1/2" MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard), and make full size mock-ups to check for fit.  The MDF will then become the templates for cutting the expensive teak/holly veneer marine plywood.

I may have to put this on hold for a while, because the boat will be coming out of the water in the next week or so to redo the bottom paint.

2

P-323 / Replacing Cabin Floorboards

« on: March 26, 2018, 10:02:16 pm »

This winter, I have started on a long overdue project: Replacing the sole in the cabin.

Our boat (hull #42) has the original teak/holly floor that was available as an option.  It is constructed from 1/2" plywood with a teak/holly veneer. 

Over the last 40 years it had gotten pretty ragged in two spots: Under the main cabin hatch and beneath the companionway ladder.  Repeated drenchings, and a leaky hatch (since fixed) had caused some of the veneer to delaminate and disintegrate.  Still, it was servicable if unsightly.

All this changed when we left the boat in Florida for a month last year when we interrupted out trip to come home for Christmas.  When we got back, we found the sole was wet and soggy. Big sections of it had delaminated, and the plywood underneath was soft and rotted.  At first, we thought it was due to a storm that had gone through while we were away.  The locals told us the wind had been coming directly on our stern, so we assumed that it had managed to blow water past our loosly fitting companionway.  We dried things up well as we could and got underway.

But that floor would not dry out!  It remained wet and soggy no matter how much ventilation we provided.

It took me weeks to finally locate that there was a slow leak in our freshwater foot pump that was trickling along the liner and under the floorboards! Once I turned off the water to that line, it dried out in a couple of days.

But the damage was done, and it continued to shed veneer for the remainder of the trip.

So, this winter, I began tackling the task of getting up the old floor, trying to keep it intact enough to use as a template for the new wood.
The floor is built in three sections: 1) A small piece under the ladder. 2) A large single piece the length of the main cabin. 3) A medium piece under the offset dining area.
It's all flat, and when I discovered that the floor was only attached by screws, with no glue, so I thought it would be simple to get up.

Wrong...

I quickly discovered that the bulkheads were put in and trimmed out AFTER the floor had been put down!  At one point, this meant that a 2 1/2 foot section was firmly under a bulkhead by about 3/4 inch!  The only reason I managed to get this out without removing the bulkhead was because the wood was so rotted that it flexed and crumbled as I pulled on it.

At this point, I've got two of the three sections out.  I've attached some photos of the carnage, with the bilge access panels still in place.

Stay tuned for developments!

3

General Discussion / 2018 Sock Burn, Flea Market, and cookout

« on: March 26, 2018, 12:56:06 pm »

Seeing as we often still have snow in the forcast on the Equinox (and did this year!), PSA's version of this event is usually held about a month (or more!) later.  It is a combination cookout and nautical flea market, and will be held on Sat April 21 at Oak Harbor Marina in Pasadena MD, hosted by Ed & Joan Criscuolo. Oak Harbor has a nice large outdoor deck with grills and picnic tables.

This is a "pot luck" affair, with everybody bringing whatever they want to grill and drink.  Plates, plasticware, napkins, and condiments will be provided.  The flea market begins at 11am, and the grills fire up around 12.  Rain date Sunday April 22. With spring comissioning here, this could be a great opportunity to recycle old gear or pick up some bargains!  RSVP to ed@chessie.com.

Socks WILL be burned, so be sure to bring an old one!

Hope to see you all there!

4

General Discussion / Swan Creek Rendezvous

« on: September 20, 2017, 08:58:21 am »

Just a reminder to all that our annual Swan Creek "Hurricane" rendezvous is this weekend, 9/23-9/24.  This is one of our most popular rendezvous, so you don't want to miss it!  The weather forecast is looking good, with clear skies and no rain.

Ron Harbin is the cruise captain.  Please get your RSVPs back to him:  harbin2@verizon.net

Full details and directions are available on the website:
http://cbpsa.org/upcoming.php

5

General Discussion / Re: August Rendezvous and Crab Feast

« on: August 05, 2017, 07:50:35 pm »

Just a reminder. The deadline is approaching and we've only heard back from one person! Don't put it off. RSVP today!

6

General Discussion / August Rendezvous and Crab Feast

« on: July 23, 2017, 05:34:09 am »

Joan and I will be the cruise captains for the August PSA rendezvous. This event will be a crab feast to be held on August 26th, 2017, Rain or Shine. The cost will be $25 per person. Bowley's Marina and Yacht Basin, located at the mouth of Middle River,  has graciously agreed to sponsor us.  Ron Harbin has his boat there and has been extremely helpful in getting things set up for us!  The marina can be reached by land or sea.  The address is 1700 Bowleys Quarters Rd, Baltimore, MD 21220.  More detailed information with parking directions, dinghy docking, and transients is available on the website:
http://cbpsa.org/upcoming.php

We will need to know how many people plan on coming to be able to order enough crabs for everyone.   
We plan on ordering 8 crabs per person.  We will be sorting them into paper bags with your name on it for easy distribution at the event.

Also, we would appreciate that each family bring something to share.  (This is Joan's favorite part - everyone's tasty sides!)  We will ask people with last names beginning with A-H to bring an appetizer, I-S to bring a side dish, and T-Z to bring a dessert.  We will order the crabs, corn on the cob, paper items, and non-alcoholic drinks.   

Please RSVP as soon as you can.  In addition, there is a hard cutoff date of Wednesday August 23 for receiving your check.   We are leaving for Maine for 3 weeks on July 23, 2017 but can be reached by email (preferably) or by our cell phones.  Cell and Internet coverage is poor up there in the woods, so please know that one of us will get back to you as soon as we can get your message!

Joan can be reached at
   Cell:      301-233-8126
   Email: stampbyjoan@yahoo.com.

Ed can be reached at   
   Cell:      240-731-8009
   Email: ed@chessie.com.

We hope to see a lot of you there!  Our 9 month trek down the ICW and the Bahamas was wonderful, yet our time with our PSA friends was greatly missed!

7

General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: March 13, 2017, 09:23:27 am »

We stayed in Georgetown for almost 2 weeks, and rode out a 3-day front with winds up to 35kts.

Started back north on Friday, and spent 2 days off Lee Stocking Island, exploring the abandoned marine research station there. Kept looking over my shoulder for Velociraptors!

Now anchored just east of little Farmers Cay.

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General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: February 28, 2017, 07:44:22 am »

More change of plans. Based on available time, and skipped spots, we have decided to come back up the Exumas instead of going to the out islands.

We made it to Georgetown, our furthest point south and east on the whole trip!
N23 31.788'
W075 46.259'

It's cruisers regatta here, so there's over 300 boats in the harbor!! Activities every day. It's like a playground for adults!

We plan to stay for a week or so, then start heading north.

9

General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: February 23, 2017, 10:59:42 am »

Since our December hiatus back north for Christmas, we've had a whirlwind of activity.  Too much to cover in detail here.  See the blogs:

http://sv-dolce-vita.blogspot.com/
http://bahamas2017.blogspot.com/

A quick summary:

Left Ft. Pierce on Dec 29
Got to Miami, spent 10 days in Oleta River Park waiting for a weather window to cross.
Crossed to Bimini Bahamas on Jan 19.
Spent 5 days in Bimini waiting for a front to pass.
Have been to the Berrys, Chub Cay, Nassau, Allen's Cay, Normans Cay, Shroud Cay, Warderwick Wells, Cambridge Cay, Big Majors Spot.
Had to run south 23 miles 2 days ago to get to a sheltered marina on Cave Cay to ride out a westerly.

Still having a great time!

10

General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: November 29, 2016, 01:22:24 pm »

We've had a change of plans.

Couldn't find a slip in Ft. Lauderdale to leave the boat for a couple of weeks.  Its their busy time of the year and everywhere is booked solid.

On a friend's recommendation, I checked here in Ft Pierce, and Harbortown Marina just happened to have a slip open up that very day, and their monthly rate was half of what it would have been in Lauderdale!  So, we scooped it up, and made airfare arrangements to fly home earlier than planned.  We will leave the boat this Thurs, Dec 1, and return after Christmas.

So, this ends the first phase of our trip. The numbers so far:

Days Enroute:       44
Distance Traveled: 1123 NM
ICW Mile Marker:   965 (Statute Miles from Norfolk)
Engine Hours:        179.3
Gasoline:               199.5 Gallons
Oil Changes:          3
Memories:              Priceless


In late December we will return, reprovision the boat, and head for Miami/Key Biscane and on to the Bahamas!

11

General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: November 17, 2016, 10:42:30 pm »

Been quite a while since I updated this thread.

We're currently in Jacksonville FL!  Went "outside" from Charleston to St. Mary's inlet, skipping Georgia.

Planning to fly home soon for a week or two for the holidays, then come back to continue.

12

General Discussion / Re: Sailmakers and canvas repair

« on: November 17, 2016, 10:39:00 pm »

I've used North Sails in Eastport.  They're good but expensive.

There's a little canvas shop in Pasadena called Atlantic Canvas that has been doing my
sunbrella work recently.  Owner's name is Ashby.  Good work at a fair price.

13

General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: October 18, 2016, 10:00:48 pm »

How do I get your "follow by e-mail gadget"?

The "Follow by E-Mail gadget should appear in the right hand pane, under the profile area.


As for the trip so far, we've already had two equipment failures, which have each cost us a day.

I hope this is using up all of our bad karma at the beginning!

We're currently at Zanheisers, at Solomons Island, hoping to leave tomorrow for the Wicomico.

Full details on the blog: http://sv-dolce-vita.blogspot.com/

14

General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: October 11, 2016, 09:52:03 am »

Its now 11 days past our planned departure date, and we're still stuck at our home dock.

First it was a cold front that delayed us a couple of days.

Then it was Matthew that held us off almost a whole week.

Finally, when we're "cleared for takeoff", our credit card gets hacked, and we have to wait another three days to get a replacement! And that's with extra-cost "expedited" service!

The promised card delivery was supposed to be yesterday. Can you guess? No card...

And now, both the Dismal Swamp and the Virginia Cut legs of the ICW are closed due to post-Matthew high water and damage! This trip is really getting off to poor start!

Hopefully, we're getting all of our bad karma out of the way now!  I hope so...
__________________

15

General Discussion / Re: ICW 2016

« on: October 02, 2016, 12:00:18 pm »

Due to hurricane Matthew, we have postponed our departure.  Details on the Oct 2 post on the blog:

http://sv-dolce-vita.blogspot.com/

EDIT:

I just noticed that my trip blog didn't have the "Follow by Email" gadget on it.  No wonder my stats kept showing 0 followers! :eek:

I think I've fixed the template now and added the correct gadget.