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6th July 2008
Another of those 'sensible' Ebay purchases... An old International 505 dinghy..
The tech specs say :- Length 16'6", Width 6'2", Main + Jib area 175 sq.ft, Spinnaker area 180 sq.ft.
We say - Oooo an old, fast, cheap sailing deathtrap !
Oh yes, and as the hull is such a fantastic chocolate colour, there were very few other names suitable (to use in polite company),
See how sleek and sexy it looked in the ad...
Why, why, why, oh why did they stick blue paint on it ???
10th July
Minor cracking and spidery lines in the gelcoat will need a lick of goo, but generally is all serviceable.
Now that looks a bit better than the blue...!
15th July
A few pics to show off the finer details. (Oh ok they are so I know where all the bits go back on !)
Bit of a repair needed here...
17th July
Stripped off all the fittings, fired up the sander and set to work revitalising the tub !!!
Bonding the deck back down.
The transom had a few cracks and splits around the drain flaps and bungs, so decided to just glass up the lot and tie it solidly to the hull, then can make new holes as desired later.
Scabby varnish needs sorting.
But reveals good wood underneath.
That responds well to a bit of attention - crikey, could almost look OK !
20th July
First some chopped matting over the rear of the tanks, where they seemed a little too flexi.
And a bit of reinforcement here too...
Then out with the cuddly glass blanket and the scissors.
And on with more resin
22nd July
Oooo, icing sugar !!! (Oh ok, it's gelcoat)
26th July
On a day with no wind, it was rude not to just poke the mast up to see how big the sails look.
** Argh, argh, argh - wer're all gonna die ** is probably the correct thing to say...
27th July
Sanding, sanding and a bit of sanding, then some blobs of gelcoat, then some - yup you got it, sanding!
Looking quite smooth though !
While I on the other hand look less than smooth, coz the tin roof on the garage makes it a bit of an oven, especially with the compressor running but have to keep the noise and smells inside, so doors shut. Still nearly 35'C at 4:30 in the afternoon !!!
30th July
Found a soft spot on the hull, where one of the rollery things on the trailer has delaminated the glass a bit.
Didn't want to make any new access ports, so employed a bit of cunning and some DIY endoscopy and keyhole surgery !
Boat tilted to correct angle so the repair area is 'flat' with a slight tilt to aid resin flow.
Shove bullet camera up one hole, with an LED light for a few extra lumens.
Then plumb it back into the PC.
A few frames showing the repair matting pressed in place with some cardboard tubes. And Elaine's hand rollering the resin in.
DivXed vid of some timelapse from the procedure :)
2nd Aug
A good sanding of the tanks with 80, then 320 grit showed a bit more goo was required, so slapped some more gel into some wibbles in the port tank, and did a couple of thick lines for the length of the starboard tank. Also covered the foredeck with a couple of thick coats that should sand back and look nicer than painted wood.
7th Aug
After a bit more rubbing - well ok about 8 hours work - both side tanks are mostly the proper shape !!
No nasty angles or flat bits showing up under various lights from different angles, so probably adequate.
Certainly stronger with the extra matting in, and much nicer in white than the classy 70's 'hearing aid beige' !!!
Sanding on the nose underway, the mat bit at the front is cut flat to 80 grit, the bit with the brush on is 'in progress'
Jul 08