Some Fabric - Finally!

Well, that took a lot longer than expected!

Last week I took a shop light and placed it in the hull to throw some light across the surface of the float making it easier to see the little dents and seam areas that needed some extra fill.
Overall, not much to report there, I added a few extra grams of filler to fix a few spots and was cleaning up within an hour.

So this weekend started early Saturday morning with a final sanding and surface preparation with an air nozzle and vacuum cleaner. Once that was done, I left the shop for brunch and let the dust settle down before going back for one final cleanup. Once that was done I pushed the fabric rack over and was finally getting things ready to pull the first layer of fabric down the length of the float hull.

I was a bit concerned that the material might snag on something and get some runs, so I almost ran down the length of the float to keep it high in the air and moving quickly. That was probably not necessary, but it worked well enough!

:)

So the job itself was enjoyable and a milestone of sorts and it made me so happy to finally see some fabric on the float! But for whatever reason I assumed this job would take no more than two to three hours. So when eight hours had passed and I was finally turning off the lights for the day I was a bit discouraged but pleased with how well it was turning out.

The more I work on this project, the more respect I gain for others that have gone before me and built these beautiful boats with their own hands. I realize more and more how much time, care and dedication is actually involved in a project of this scale.

Anyway, the next day was spent working on placing the vacuum infusion materials.
At this point, I have the peel-ply, perforated film and one full width of resin flow media in place and taped down. Tonight or tomorrow I'll start working on getting the other two pieces of resin flow laid down and secured. Then comes the Enka-Fusion and finally the tacky tape and vacuum bag.

All this work is being done with a big "unknown" in the back of myhead regarding the vacuum integrity of the structure. Every time you put in a staple you question whether or not you just hit a screw from the other side which will result in a leak...Then you start wondering how you plan to fix that leak once it's detected.

I guess I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

Final sanding and inspection.
This is the last chance to make sure the foam is right before laying on the fabrics.

The first layer of glass.
Pretty exciting if you ask me.

At this point I realized that I had forgotten to lay in a 13oz. section of Carbon to tie in with the other half of the float to reinforce the flat topped walking area.
This addition didn't really take too long.

The first layer is all smoothed in and stapled into position along the side.
It takes a LONG time to smooth down the fabric and make sure the fibers run true.

Second layer is in place with a 4" (100mm) overlap to ensure a good bond and some additional strength near the waterline.

Reinforcements applied at beam intersections and along the middle of the float.

The thinner section calls for a layer of 45/45 (DBX) 18oz.
I didn't have that, so I used two layers of 12oz.

More Stronger  :)
More Heavy :(

Base layers all done for now

The Stringer is now laid in place and pushed back from frame one by 6" (150mm)

The aft end of the stringer is located by the bulkhead itself.
In this case, I don't actually have the bulkheads built yet, so I made a cardboard cut-out from the Full-Sized Plans for both the fore and aft bulkheads.
You'll notice that the bulkhead is a bit smaller than the float, that's because the float is built a bit over-sized at the moment to accommodate the Resin-Infusion process.
It will be cut down to size later on.

Many staples in place to secure the stringer and fabric down to the surface of the float.
I rounded off the free corners of the fabric

This area is where the center bulkhead will be positioned.
Again, the plans call for 18oz DBX.
I used two layers of 12oz DBX

All fabrics now laid into place.
After consulting the plans a few more times to ensure everything was in place I was ready for a break and then start on the layer of peel-ply

Peel-ply laid into position.
This material can be difficult to work with due to the curves and angles that must be accommodated.

Perforated film pulled into position and ready to be secured in place.
I did end up getting this done, but no pictures yet.