First Sanding of Fairing Compound

For November 23^rd, I completed the removal of all of the boat’s brightwork (except for the toe rails), and will soon be finished preparing the brightwork for varnish.  My technique thus far in preparing the brightwork has been to clean the bare teak in a TSP bath, then progress through 3 grits of sandpaper – 80, 220, and finally 320.  Once I finish sanding, I thoroughly clean the boards of sawdust by brushing down, vacuuming, and then wiping down with mineral spirits.  The final step is to rub in a good coat of teak oil.  The teak oil really seems to bring the wood to life again, and shows off the wood’s warm tone and attractive grain. 

After I removed the final companionway hatch rail, I turned my attention to the first sanding of the bottom after the first application of “neat” epoxy barrier coat and low-density filler for fairing.  My first experience with epoxy went well and I am excited to see the bottom improving so dramatically.  I started sanding on the rudder with 80 grit paper and a 3M rubber sanding block.  After sanding most of the rudder smooth, I ditched the block for hand sanding the curves.  This will be a slow process no doubt, but the bottom definitely needs the attention…and the weather is great for this type of work.  You can see from the pictures that I have just started the first sanding, and though there is not much progress here the work is coming along nicely.  Right now I have to settle for weekend work, so it’s a little slow-going.   

Fairing The Hull (First Application)

I spent Saturday, the 8th of November, grinding away the remaining flaking gelcoat and few spots of bottom paint on Froonie's keel.  After the sanding, I rinsed the hull with water and allowed it to air dry while I cleaned up for the day.  Just prior to leaving, I applied acetone to a clean rag and wiped the hull down thoroughly - removing any remaining dust generated by the sanding and grinding.  

Sunday, the 9th, was a perfect day to begin the epoxy work on Froonie's bottom.  The weather was a comfortable 76 degrees, sunny and very dry.  These are the days that every Floridian lives for - that relatively short window of cool and dry days occurring in the fall and spring.  After sweating off a few pounds in full Tyvek during the months of August and September, grinding away at years of bottom paint, I began the road back toward a fair hull.  My intention is to bring the bottom back to fair, apply an epoxy barrier coat, and finish with new bottom paint. I still have to replace sea cocks (those that I plan on keeping), and will address this sometime prior to the application of new bottom paint.  Right now, however, I am eager to get uniformity in the hull by achieving a fair hull that is primed for final bottom paint.

The first two  pictures show "neat" epoxy having been applied to the bottom.  This application is simply West System resin and 206 slow cure hardener, rolled on with a West System 7" foam roller.  The bottom was sanded initially with 40 grit disks and finally with 60 grit disks, so the epoxy had a correctly prepared surface to "key" into.    Living in Florida, with the generally higher temperatures, I purchased the 206 slow hardener.  However, the cooler temperatures we are seeing now prevented the epoxy from kicking within the time I originally expected.  So, after wetting-out the hull with the neat epoxy, I took advantage of a break in work by reading the paper and taking care of a baked potato.  The longer working time allowed for some trial and error, as this was my first time working with epoxy.  When the epoxy had finally become hard enough so that I could leave an indention when pressing the edge of a stir stick against it, I began mixing up the first batch of fairing compound - epoxy with West System 407 low-density filler.  I mixed to a slightly thinner consistency than that of peanut butter, and began applying with a plastic squeegee.  I worked three batches of fairing compound around from the starboard stern to port bow, finally completing the first fairing at the port stern.  Here are two pictures showing the first application of fairing compound.  Next, will be to wipe off the amine blush, sand to fair, and mix the next batch of fairing compound.  I expect to repeat today's work one additional time...uhh, maybe two times. :)