Removal of the Portlights

     The work on hull #667 on Saturday, May 5th had a bit of semblance to that same day in May, 1862 in which the Mexicans, vastly outnumbered, overcame a much more powerful French army.  I, too, felt a bit outnumbered: one man versus 80 2" bronze screws, nuts, and washers to battle in order to remove the 10 bronze portlights.  Alas I was victorious, overcoming the odds, but without a nice victory meal of mole con pollo from the great town of Puebla - no doubt a lot of mole was consumed yesterday!! 

     

     The Westsail 32 has a total of 10 portlights:  6 in the main cabin (3 to port, and 3 to starboard), with 8" openings, and 4 forward with 6" openings. The portlights are as heavy as they look, being cast from bronze, and are as sturdy as the Westsail itself.  A couple of the portlights' glass will need replacing, and the gasket material for all lights will need replacing.  For now, they are going onto the storage shelves...looking forward to the day that I dust them off and begin to prepare them for re-installation.

     Each portlight has a flange that is place over the full-circumference "eyebrow", with the 2" bronze machine screws securing it to the cabin sides.  The cabin sides are sandwiched between the flange and the main body of the portlight itself.  Bronze washers and nuts are secured to the machine screws from the interior.  

Seen at left, each portlight has 8 bronze fasteners.  The process for removing the fasteners was pretty straightforward, though time-consuming by working alone.  I secured locking pliers onto the nuts from the interior (3 at a time), climbed out onto the deck and unscrewed the machine screw until the locking pliers, holding the nut, came free from the machine screw.  I then placed my fingers over the washer and carefully continued to back-out the screw until the washer was free to remove.  Finally, I continued to back-out of the machine screw.  Repeat 7 additional times per portlight, and then remove the exterior flange.  Last step was to rap on the exterior eyebrow a few times with a hammer to "loosen" things up a bit, and then head down below to work the main body of the portlight out of the opening. 

The cabin sides are solid glass, and will require solvent washing to remove the old caulking - which remained flexible in all but one of the portlight installations.  The area covered by the exterior flange will get the same sanding treatment as the balance of the topsides in preparation for painting - 80 grit, moving to 120 grit. 

As I removed the portlights, I re-assembled with the flange, machine screws, washers and nuts.  I labeled the portlights to keep track of their location in the cabin sides.  In the original installation, I noticed that the machine screws were installed and then the excess length cut-off from the interior.  Since the screws contained ample amounts of caulking, I will most like replaces the screws and opt for ease of re-installation. As the current screws are all similar in length, I plan to come back with a length that will not require trimming on the interior.

All portlights accounted for, and will now be set aside for later rejuvenation.  

Starboard Side Deck / Grab Rail Removal

     Having the Westsail 32 so close to home provides the opportunity to seize even a couple hours work from a day.  While I was restoring the Sea Sprite 23 (Froonie), because of the half-hour drive to just get to the project, my workdays were often 7+ hours – making it necessary that I plan for my workday.  While I really do need to begin putting some serious hours in on the W32, so far I have been stealing two hours here and 3 hours there from a typically busy schedule – a busy professional pursuing a master degree is a recipe for no spare time! 

     Well, I was able to concede another couple of hours on Sunday.  My focus for this short work session was to continue to remove the loose, cracking gelcoat from the starboard side deck.  After sanding the starboard side deck on Feb. 25^th, more areas of concern were revealed and would require another “once-over” with the chisel.  I spent roughly 70% of my time on the gelcoat removal, and failed to take pictures of my progress.  Not to worry, just refer to my earlier posts for the visual explanation.

     After I wrapped up my work with the chisel, essentially prepping the area for another round of sanding with the PC 7335, I switched gears and worked on the removal of the starboard grab rails.   

      Working with just a few hand tools (scratch awl, flat head screwdriver, and a utility knife), I worked my way forward removing the three grab rails.  The removal was very straightforward:  remove bung, dig out detritus, remove philips-head screw, and then gently remove the rail.

     The teak grab rails were extremely weathered; not in the usual “nice weathered looking teak” way, but with the rails splitting along the grain in several places.  It was very apparent to me that the rails would need to be replaced.  A lot of the bright work on the Sea Sprite was saved through a TSP wash, sanding, oiling, and varnish; however, most of the woodwork on the W32 will need replacement.  Simple neglect will cause such a thing.

     The picture here is of the forward most rail.  Very little bedding compound existed beneath the teak grab rail, though there was some sealant used between the screw head and the bung.  This sealant used within the bunged screw was hard and brittle, and was removed without too much fuss – not sure what this sealant was.  Despite the curious lack of bedding compound between the rail and cabin roof, I found no sign of compromised core by sounding the surface.  Future installation of new grab rails will be done in such a way to protect the core from any potential water intrusion – over drill of top skin and core, fill will thickened epoxy, drill and tap for machine screw fasteners.

     Three rails were removed today, with 13 screws; aft rail (7 screws), middle rail (6 screws), forward rail (3 screws) - 2” #6 or #8.

Work Date: February 26^th, 2012; 2 hrs.

   
     In the last week I have migrated over to the starboard side deck to take care of the worst of the cracking and flaking gelcoat, also to apply the first round of sanding.  On February 20th, I began the removal of the cracking gelcoat - using the 3/8" chisel once again on the areas needing the most attention.  The chisel allows me to cut through the gelcoat to the first (outer) layer of glass easily.  Using a 1/2" chisel would reduce my work time a bit, but the 3/8" tool is doing the job...and allows me to work with a little more detail such as around the non-skid borders.  The picture to the right is the aft portion of the starboard side deck, with the cabin trunk showing in the upper left of the frame.

   
     There are random areas along the bulwarks where the gelcoat is heavily cracked, necessitating removal.  The next step in working the decks, after I removal the loose gelcoat, will be to sand through two stages (40 grit to 80 grit), and then prepare surfaces for fairing.  The entire deck, cabin trunk and roof, etc., will not need fairing; only those areas requiring gelcoat removal.

     The smooth deck between foredeck and starboard side deck non-skid areas was especially bad.  As you can see from the photo, nearly the entire area required removal of the gelcoat.

     Finally, I rounded out the day with the starboard deck scupper.  This one was not quite as bad as the port side....sanding to follow.




Date of Work: February 20th, 2012; 2 hrs.





                                                                                                                                                                     

         On February 25th, I took the non-skid pattern off of the starboard side deck.  Adjacent to the areas initially showing concern that were removed the week prior, revealed yet more cracking after the first round of 40-grit sanding.  Though smallish in size, I will need to come back with the chisel to quickly move through these areas. The picture to the right shows nearly the length the starboard side deck after the factory non-skid had been removed.
                                                               

     Pictured left, the starboard deck scupper with the non-skid taken off.  Again, there are some small areas that will need some additional work to take off the worst of the offending gelcoat.

     Finally, a closer pic of the starboard deck scupper, with non-skid removed.



 Date of Work: February 25th, 2012: 3 hrs.

Removing Loose Gelcoat

     Today's focus was to take the loose, cracking gelcoat off in the most efficient and cost-effective way...or some combination thereof.  Brought the 3/8" chisel into the line up.

My initial sanding effort (40-grit PSA disks on the 5" Porter Cable) worked well to take the factory non-skid off; however, in areas, where the gelcoat was applied a bit too thick, I needed a better approach.  The age of this W32, coupled with the harshness of the sun and rain, intense cold and heat...will overtime expose the weakness in the gelcoat's surface.  I would have spent quite a bit of unnecessary time sanding thick gelcoat off had I not broken out the chisel.  The chisel allowed me to remove large portions of loose material quickly, not to mention cheaply.  There were sore muscles on the back end of this, but I'll sacrifice some muscle discomfort to save a few bucks!

My main areas of concern were the aft portions of the port and starboard side decks, and especially the deck scupper depressions.  While both side decks had areas of flaking, cracking gelcoat, the port side was especially bad; and so bore my initial focus.  

The aft portion of the port side deck holds the worst of it.  The picture just above shows a large area just forward of the deck scupper - which also was in poor condition, and required removal of nearly all of its gelcoat.

 The decks themselves were not the only areas with gelcoat showing poor conditions.  The bulwarks also had areas showing concern.  Here, just aft of a molded stanchion mount on the port bulwark, you can see the area that required removal of the gelcoat.  Also, the radius transition from deck to bulwark needed sporadic attention for the length of the side deck.

     The picture to the right shows the port deck scupper after I applied the chisel approach to taking care of this cracking gelcoat.  It will, no doubt, take a patient approach to fairing this area out.  Unfortunately, the extent of this removal was necessary.  The last thing I want, and I keep this fresh in my mind as I spend time on the W32, is to have substrate failure beneath hours devoted to a great paint scheme and fresh decks.  The labor continues.

     A close up of the removal work...fairing with low-density filler and colloidal silica to come.

     Finally, here is a portion of the foredeck that required gelcoat removal.  The gelcoat lifting off just aft of this removed section, showing a smiley face, is exactly the type of area that I was addressing on this work day...nothing funny about it though.






Date of Work: February 18th, 2012; 4 hrs.

Removing The Nonskid

     It is easy to see the condition of the nonskid - port side deck represented in pictures here.  The original gelcoat application might have been applied a few mils too thick judging by the amount of cracking and pulling away from the hand-laid glass work.  Freeze-thaw conditions, over time, have this impact on gelcoat applied much too liberally (from what I have read).  Since the Westsail's decks will be painted, I knew the best approach to dealing with proper paint application over factory molded-in nonskid was to just remove the nonskid all together and come back with a sanded paint product (e.g. Interlux Interdeck).  So, on to the removal...

     The removal of the factory molded nonskid was made relatively easy through use of the Porter Cable 7335, outfitted with 40-grit disks.  The work here represents 1.5 hrs of sanding, and two disks.  My intention here was to go over the worst of the areas on deck (port and starboard side decks), and to get a sense of what I would be up against in bringing the surfaces back to fair, and ready to receive primer.  After some thought, and consultation on the matter, I clearly will need to remove all 'loose' material and then prepare the surface for fairing.  The good news is that nearly all of the deck if free from this type of degradation - leaving larger patches on both side decks, both scuppers, as well as portions of the bulwarks and cabin sides seeing the worst of it.

     My next job, with respect to the side deck nonskid region, would be to take all loose material off with the sander, and prepare for fairing.  Likely the most difficult aspect of removing this loose, cracking gelcoat will be the tighter areas.  One of those tight areas can be easily seen in the picture to the right:  raised nonskid surface to the radius transition of the cabin sides.  A careful and controlled removal of this material might be a challenge for the 7335, and so as I have been recently reminded, my future will at some point see taped fingers and loose sheets of sandpaper. #agony!

     

     The fairing work will require some finesse no doubt.  My concern with total removal of the molded nonskid plus the gelcoat is that I might be left with a nonskid region that no longer sits 'proud' of the surrounding glossy surfaces (i.e. the cabin sides and bulwarks).  Because there are regions of the side decks that are not suffering from this condition, I may be forced to remove all material for the length the side deck and then blend the surface levels at the foredeck.  We shall see...there is still some sanding work ahead, and clarity will be achieved through the impending dust storm, aching forearms, and ever-vibrating hands!
                                                                                                                                                                     
                                                                                        Pictured at left, the aft portion of the port side deck as it makes its transition to the scupper depression.  Aft of the scupper and at the foredeck, all gelcoat is strong and in good shape - though the nonskid surface will still be taken down.

Date of Work: January 12th, 2012; 2.5 hrs
Date of Work: January 14th, 2012; 1.5 hrs

Beginning of the Deck Work

      A quick visit back to the opening salvo of sanding work on the deck: December 27th, 2011.  I began work on the foredeck with my 5" Porter Cable random orbital; using 40-grit PSA disks.  The goal here being to take the factory non-skid off, fair the areas that require it, and then prime the surface.












                                                                                                       

Above, a closer look at the port foredeck; below, starboard foredeck.

Date of work: December 27th, 2011; 1.5 hrs

Leveling The Hull

     With as much work that I had given to the restoration of the Sea Sprite 23, Froonie, and for as much time that I had spent working on that restoration, finally splashing her in August of 2011, the three months that had passed without working on a boat was enough to cause that 'stir' in me to get started on the Westsail 32.  This Westsail 32, to be named, is hull #667, and was prepared at the Costa Mesa, CA factory in 1977 as a sail-away kit.  This sail-away kit was complete with a factory installed deck, all standing and running rigging, a volvo MD-17C installed, primary and v-berth bulkhead and engine bulkhead, and a suite of sails.  The original owner sailed her to Washington state, hauled her for placement in a barn, where she sat for a number of years.  The second owner had her moved to South Carolina, where, again, she sat for a few years before I purchased her.  I am the third owner of this hull.  This is my "10-year project", and will evolve slowly with a ton of research, with use of proper materials and installation methods,  and no doubt much learning along the way.

    The first order of business for #667 was to level her hull: stern to stem, as well as athwartship.  All subsequent construction - building out the interior - requires a level starting point, otherwise rolling seas may not be the only thing pinging the senses.  I used a 20-ton house jack, placed on the forefoot of the keel and made incremental adjustments to bring the bow up to a point where the hull was finally resting level from bow to stern - waterline level.

With the hull level from bow to stern, as referenced by the primary bulkhead, I was ready to turn my attention to the leveling of the hull from port to starboard.

For the athwartship leveling, I used the jack-stands to slowly bring her to level - making countless trips into and out of the boat to check the level.  Again, I used a level placed on the primary bulkhead to take the level measurement.

     

     I was without a few tools during the leveling, so next trip I will check and double-check to make sure all is level and satisfactory prior to continuing general construction work - replacing bulkheads, cabin sole, etc.