It's finished!

More or less.....have to do some more work 

on the thigh and hip braces

and the seat.

Had it out this past weekend for sea trials.

Handles beautifully.

The skeg box leaked... 

I must have sanded through a bubble

while removing some rough edges....

easily repaired with an extra coat of epoxy.

This is going to be 

one 

fun

boat!

First coat of varnish....should be able to launch within a fortnight!

Four bays in four days
A break from boatbuilding, paddling the Maine coast with my friend Wayne.  Stayed again in Bremen on Muscongus Bay, and took a series of day trips totalling about sixty miles: in Muscongus Bay from Round Pond to Port Clyde and back; in Penobscot Bay from Tenants Harbor to the Muscle Ridge Islands and back via Whitehead light; out of Boothbay across Linekin Bay to the Hypocrites and Damariscove, across to the mouth of the Sheepscot River and back; and finally out of Portland in Casco Bay around Peaks, Long and Great Diamond Islands and back.  Beautiful scenery, nice weather and, relatively calm seas, lots of fun in the tide rips around some of the islands.


Pictures are from the third paddle: the life station on Damariscove--

--the lighthouse at the mouth of the Sheepscot River--

--and a nice little beach stop on the way back to Boothbay.

Joining deck to hull

With a little coaxing, taped the deck to the hull.

The strapping tape holds the join tight while the inside seams, made of 3" fiberglass tape, cure. Then the tape is removed and two strips of fiberglass cut on the bias are applied to make an external seam.

Petrel... coaming lip and skeg box

About a week ago I installed the coaming lip, laminating it in place out of poplar.

Also fabricated a skeg box, patterning it after the design in my Valley and SKUK boats, and again laying it up in place. This involved cutting a slot in the hull and building a mold that was removed from the slot after the glass cured. The bolt, which serves as an axle for the skeg blade, is glassed over to prevent leaks. A pvc plumbing fixture installed in the top edge will accept a flexible tube and cable.

Sheldon's Petrel 107

My friend Sheldon has been building a Petrel in my basement for the last eight months or so. He finished it over the weekend and today we took it out for its maiden voyage.

That's it on the ramp at Calf Pasture in Norwalk before launching....

First paddle strokes....

We were blessed with a good stiff breeze, 10-15 knots, which allowed for a fair shakedown cruise around some of the islands near here....

Beautiful!