The Electric Hobbit

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  • 27 Oct 2020 11:44
    Reply # 9328267 on 9324813
     The open hanging knees, by the way, provide a great place to attach a middle rope for the lee cloth.  It will stop you being hurled out in a knockdown as I can attest from personal experiience!

    Good to know. Hobbit came equipped with no lee cloths or boards. 

    last year, I put up a hammock to see if it fit my saloon. It does, just.  It's mounted at 45 degrees to the centreline. There is room to swing without hitting the mast. (I talked about this before.) There is room to enter the forepeak without any more ducking than usual. Getting in was easy, standing on the edge of the starboard bunk. Once in, the hammock folds around you like a peapod. I've not tried it at sea yet, of course. However I got the idea aboard the Australian museum ship, Endeavour. We slept between decks at 45 degrees to the centre. It was amazing, the difference. No matter what the ship did, roll, pitch or yaw, the hammock yielded enough to make it more comfortable. No need to brace yourself. I wonder though how it will work on a small boat like mine.

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  • 26 Oct 2020 12:22
    Reply # 9325871 on 9324813
    However, it allowed me to do some of the less physical tasks that were awaiting my attention.  It's much better now, but this is the sort of thing that makes me refuse to even suggest a launch date!

    It's amazing how quickly we can go from fully functional to very limited, when comes to back problems.  slip, a minor twist or who knows what can throw us out of whack. So far, I've been making good progress with my chiropractor. But it's easy to overestimate that and you're quickly reminded to slow down an/or do something else. 

    I get a lot of "Are you launching this year?"


  • 25 Oct 2020 18:59
    Reply # 9324813 on 8732915

    Sorry to hear about the back, Jim.  I have an old injury that, astonishingly, has given me no grief to date over this project, but about 10 days ago I slipped in the mud and gave my back a nasty twist.  I had just glued up the topmast, which was crying out to be planed, but couldn't do more than a minute or so's work before it started hurting too much.  However, it allowed me to do some of the less physical tasks that were awaiting my attention.  It's much better now, but this is the sort of thing that makes me refuse to even suggest a launch date!

    We changed Badger's varnished deckhead for a white one and it was a great improvement.    The open hanging knees, by the way, provide a great place to attach a middle rope for the lee cloth.  It will stop you being hurled out in a knockdown as I can attest from personal experiience!

  • 18 Oct 2020 23:32
    Reply # 9311516 on 8732915
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Bonsoir Jim

    I wish you a good and fast recovery !

    I myself experimented, between others, a back failure, while sailing, after a rig tension activity at mooring... I was sitting (Bouddha like) on the deck bending forward !!!

    I fell so miserable that I had then to squatt a flat for a week !!!

    Amicalement

    Eric

  • 18 Oct 2020 17:33
    Reply # 9311139 on 8732915

    I have two working speeds. On and Off. A few weeks ago I really got ON. I couldn't stop, until... I went and did a silly thing. I lifted a 75lb battery and instead of shuffling to one side to set it down, I swung around and set it down. No pain at first... When I had finished sanding the hull and painting the Stb. side, that's when the pain struck. I could hardly walk. I traded an induction cooker for finishing the Port side. At least, the motor is in and the hull painted. The weather has been fantastic for outdoor work this year. And we have hardly any Covid cases in the province now. Like New Zealand, we are relatively isolated in our little province..... But, when winter comes and we move inside....We cross our fingers....

    I am slowly recovering with a chiropractor's help. Meanwhile, I'll do what I can  and leave the rest until I recover.

  • 18 Oct 2020 17:18
    Reply # 9311102 on 8732915

    About your standard for paint, Annie, I agree. "If it looks okay as you row away in your dingy, it's fine." I could do one more sanding and top it off with some thinned paint but I think  I'll leave it where it is. there is some horizontal rippling but they will disappear in the reflections from the water.

    Tam Flemming, the boat's builder told me of an encounter he had in Grenada. Some teenagers were inspecting his boat from the government wharf and one said, "Hey mister, you have the prettiest boat in the harbour!"

    My philosophy for setting standards I call, "being true to type." A well maintained fishing boat kept in order, clean and fresh is fine for it's type, no need for a factory mold finish. Likewise my Hobbit. It has an "Arts and Crafts" (a.k.a "Craftsman") style. referring to a design movement popular in housing between 1880 and 1920. It was a revolt against factory products, an effort to bring back hand crafted work using natural wood surfaces. Until recently, I didn't know I grew up in such a house! The open knees are a give away. Hobbit's interior has a rustic, country cottage feel about it. The joiner is not highest furniture grade. It doesn't matter. But it's warm and very welcoming. I love it.

    This leads me to another, related topic, brightwork. I remember a discussion, back in the 80's, between an art critic and a CBC Radio interviewer. The guest was talking about his theory of what makes for good art. ""The essence of good art is subtraction, removing all that is unnecessary to say what the artist wants to say." A controversial point of view but I can relate to it when it comes to brightwork. Too much brightwork is too dark, Too little is too stark. The operative word is "balance". between light and dark. What that optimum balance will be for individuals will depend on their personality and/or their mood at a given time. I find Hobbit a bit too dark so I'll be painting some panels white. The deck head will also be white instead of so-called "burnt cork" coloured corkboard which is dark brown now. That's started. 

    I hear little voices saying, "Put it in the water and go sailing." Voices be still.....



  • 18 Oct 2020 16:11
    Reply # 9310999 on 9281660
    As for the rest of the deck, leave it alone.  For heaven's sake don't scrub it - that will simply make it wear away a lot more quickly.  If you have the misfortune to live somewhere dirty, use a mop and soapy water to get the grime out.  Best of all, take it to sea for a week and get some spray on it!

    I will leave the deck alone. There is already noticeable wear. However, the graphite/epoxy fillers stands proud making little "buttes" which serve to increase traction.

  • 04 Oct 2020 03:05
    Reply # 9281660 on 8732915

    I varnish the covering board and king plank.  It not only enhances the appearance of the deck, but these are the areas that often have fittings, eg stanchion bases.  With thin teak, such as I have used, the varnish protects the wood against wear.  It's not difficult t chisel out a plank and replace it with a new one, but is much more of a mission where there are fittings, or the plank is laid into a bulwark, etc. 

    As for the rest of the deck, leave it alone.  For heaven's sake don't scrub it - that will simply make it wear away a lot more quickly.  If you have the misfortune to live somewhere dirty, use a mop and soapy water to get the grime out.  Best of all, take it to sea for a week and get some spray on it!


  • 02 Oct 2020 05:49
    Reply # 9278218 on 9277951
    Deleted user
    Graeme wrote:

    Annie, a question (not quite on topic, but can't be helped): a friend of mine is restoring a beautiful Athol Burns motor-sailer which had been badly run down. Under the grime, she seems still pretty good - solid teak deck which is still sound and tight. What would you recommend for a solid teak deck - just scrub and leave to weather - or is there something you can put on the timber these days? 

    I'm not Annie who will no doubt have her own input. But I think the idea of teak decks is to leave them unfinished where they weather to the grey colour, but importantly provide a non-skid surface. Any kind of coating will make for a slippery surface when wet. If some brightwork is needed the king plank, and maybe the outer deck planks can be varnished. 

    I have tried many different timber finishes for that 'varnished' look over the decades. The most successful is a Cabots, (in New Zealand) product which an acrylic timber oil which I use on my outdoor furniture at home. It looks good and seems to last forever. I don't quite know how a timber 'oil' can be acrylic, but it works, although nothing like a few coats of proper varnish which brings out the character of the timber underneath.

    Last modified: 02 Oct 2020 20:46 | Deleted user
  • 02 Oct 2020 00:50
    Reply # 9277951 on 8732915
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Annie, a question (not quite on topic, but can't be helped): a friend of mine is restoring a beautiful Athol Burns motor-sailer which had been badly run down. Under the grime, she seems still pretty good - solid teak deck which is still sound and tight. What would you recommend for a solid teak deck - just scrub and leave to weather - or is there something you can put on the timber these days? 

    Last modified: 02 Oct 2020 00:51 | Anonymous member (Administrator)
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