Good progress today.
First up was cutting what will probably be about the last pieces of wood (still a table/bunk to do). I remade the bottom of the captains seat as I have enough room up there to allow for the full 18" depth. The divider between the storage space and the fuel hoses under the rear admirals' seat was also cut. Both got their edges and one side primed.
All the excess silicone was trimmed out around the front windows and everything up there that needed priming got it.
At the rear of the boat, all the pinholes and tiny indentations were filled with spackle and the transom well got its second coat of BilgeKote. One more coat and that's done.
Then I went to work on the windows. I've been carrying around the lexan in the back seat of my truck for weeks and it was time to do something with it. I had saved one set of cut-outs from the windows just for use as templates and they got put to use today. I laid them out on the 1/4" plywood from yesterday, traced and then cut them. Each set was test fitted and trimmed where necessary and then tested on the other side. Here's the front set of patterns.
And the rear set.
Then it was on to the messy, painful work of cutting the lexan. Much research had been done as it's very possible to shatter lexan while cutting and the most common way of doing it was to buy a very high tooth-count table saw blade and install it backwards. That way you're not chipping your way through the plastic. The downside to cutting lexan on the table saw is that it makes lots of very hard, very sharp and very hot blobs of plastic that when they get flung off the blade and hit you really hurt! I was wearing safety glasses and the breathing mask, but besides all the pieces impacting my stomach, chest and arms, every once in a while I'd get a really nasty piece right in the face. You don't get to flinch when you're freehanding material through the table saw, all you can do is grit your teeth and bear it.
Here's the end result.
Yep, they're blue. Because the safety film hasn't been removed. I'll do that when I'm ready to flame the edges (to smooth them out) and 3M 4200 the lower window strip.
The saw blade really took a pounding and there's lots of plastic still stuck to the sides.
The wood pieces from earlier today got flipped and their other side primered.
Then all the little scrap wood stuff was taken out and thrown in the truck, hauled down to the beach and one of the last bonfires done. Probably one more bonfire to go when all is said and done.
This project is getting close. A little more painting, a little bit of work to do on the windows, wiring and engine mounting and rigging and she'll be done.
The end is in sight! I might just make it before the 4th of July which would be cool. It'd be a great way to celebrate by watching the fireworks from the boat.
8 Hours