[Rhodes22-list] Lou's new yacht

[Lou Rosenberg]

>Bill,
>  Thanks for the posting about the varnish!  I am such a pack rat 
>even on the net I save anything related to things Idont own yet but 
>Now I can really start collecting tidbits b/c I am such an iMPatient 
>sob when it comes to varnish and coating wood.. Besides my workshop 
>needs to be pumped out from time to time  ( an exaggeration!) due to 
>bad drainage backyds.

so my varnishing will begin in the late fall after hurricane season 
and before the flakes fly in Bklyn.
    I will try to refurbish the tiller.. Not worried about the 
electrical.. and Casey's book is great for those issues as well.
  Who is RAZ?
   does he own a photography studio in Mineola by any chance?:)

   Lou



   

>
>Can you move your replies above what you are replying to?  It makes 
>it easier for the rest of us, and more people will read what you 
>have to say.
>
>Boat electrical systems are easy.  There isn't that much in them. 
>The only problem is that they have changed the color of the wires, 
>so most boats are now a hodge-podge, and you can't look at a colored 
>wire with any certainty that it will or will not be the ground wire.
>
>A long time ago I hand rewired a car--no wiring harnesses.  Now, 
>that was a challenge--and one I will not try again.  But boats? 
>It's a pain to work under the seats and inside the gunwales, but you 
>don't have to worry about connecting the brake light switch to the 
>license plate light.
>
>With regard to the tiller, following is something I posted a few 
>years ago.  I still love to varnish my tiller, and do so every year. 
>It still looks great.  I think you can also find this in the Rhodes 
>FAQ, along with other helpful postings on varnishing:
>
>This topic seems to always come up at this time of year for understandable
>reasons.
>
>Never having varnished anything in my life, I filed everything in "Does Not
>Apply To Me" (read "Delete") the first year I was on the list.
>
>Last year Rummy brought it up again, and after a dozen replies went to West
>Marine and bought whatever the pretty sales girl told him to buy.  I thought
>it was just another example of that song "When The Little Head Does The
>Thinking", but Rummy reported he was very happy with the outcome.
>
>The only exterior wooden brightwork on my boat is the tiller which, by that
>time, was so ratty-looking I had ordered another from Stan.  Figuring I had
>nothing to lose, I decided to follow the advice on the list, and attempt to
>strip down and varnish my tiller.  I was astonished at the results.
>
>If Raz's work rates a 10, and Rummy's is a 9, then mine would be a 7.  When
>the tiller arrived from General Boats its varnish rated a 2.
>
>I loved my tiller every time I looked at it or touched it.  It was simply
>magnificent in my humble opinion.  The project was perhaps the most
>satisfying thing I did all year.  It still looks and feels great.  I can't
>wait to put on a fresh coat of varnish as soon as it gets a little warmer.
>I'm looking for other things to varnish around my house.
>
>The single most useful posting came from Raz.  I followed his directions,
>and wound up feeling enormously relaxed. Following is his post from last
>year:
>
>"I highly recommend thinning oil based varnish with marine Penetrol, which
>is
>a polymerized boiled linseed oil. The mix that works well for me is about a
>tablespoon of Penetrol to 1/4 cup of varnish. That's about the right amount
>to do a real good coat on a tiller and it brushes out like a dream. Unlike
>solvent thinners this will not degrade the varnish coat. Pettit recommends
>thinning their varnishes no more than 10% with solvent and that only for the
>first bonding coat on bare wood. I use straight Penetrol for the first coat.
>The instructions on the Penetrol can outline the whole process. I have never
>had a varnish finish lift from moisture penetration using their process. The
>trick to a good varnish coat is to use a premium chinese boar bristle brush
>well loaded with varnish and thoroughly brush out each coat. Any slight
>brush marks will level out and disappear as the varnish cures. It takes at
>least 3 coats of undiluted varnish to build a thick enough finish to last
>through a couple of years of marine exposure.   If  I am starting with bare
>wood I do at least 6 coats, allowing each coat to completely dry for at
>least  24 hours, sometimes several days if the air is humid.The penetrol
>does lengthen the drying time between coats. I lightly wet sand with 220
>grit wet or dry paper between coats using water with a few drops of dish
>washing detergent or Murphy's oil soap added. Wet sanding is faster and
>keeps the varnish from getting soft from over heating due to the sanding
>friction. The object is to just remove the gloss without taking off any more
>varnish than you absolutely have to to get rid of rough spots and
>imperfections.  A few minutes before you are ready to recoat, wipe the wood
>down with a rag wet with thinner and allow that to completely dry off.
>Before the very last coat, I wet sand with 400 grit. It took 3 weeks last
>year to do 6 coats on my Compac tiller, but its only a couple of leisurely
>hours per coat including the sanding and cleanup. The end results were
>spectacular. I'll have to start over this year with a new tiller for the
>Gloucester, sigh. Actually I really enjoy this process, its sort of like Zen
>meditation to me."
>
>Thanks, Raz. I'll follow the maintenance instructions to the letter.  I
>really did enjoy the process as much as the outcome, and it was a lot like
>Zen meditation.  I've been looking forward to the maintenance all year.
>
>Bill Effros
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Lou Rosenberg
>To: The Rhodes 22 mail list
>Sent: Wednesday, August 11, 2004 7:37 PM
>Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Lou's new yacht
>
>
>
>On Tuesday, August 10, 2004, at 04:26 PM, ed kroposki wrote:
>
>>  Lou,
>>
>>       You have not told us about the motor.  Does the motor work?  How
>>  about
>>  the battery?  Does it have a VHF (radio)?  Cockpit cushions?  Pop top
>>  cover?
>>  Since you have a couple of days before you move, fill in the details.
>>
>>
>>
>>       Does the tiller need refinishing?  How about the bright work?
>>
>>
>>
>>  Ed K
>>  ***********
>Ed K and all Rhodes owners out there,
>   thanks for all the support !
>   Had to give in to the boat yard that has possession of my R22 until
>next wk, as they "demanded" that i use their shop and services to
>obtain new rims and tires for my Triad circa 1980 trailer.   I balked-
>and ran out to my local tire shop but found out I would need the actual
>rim to match up for the correct fit.  the trailer is 62 miles away in
>Pt Jeff!!  I could have saved $150. but that $ was the $ I was warned
>by the (R22 ) former owner to expect to pay to get my boat out of his
>yard.
>   Boat Yards ! blasphemy! ( expletive deleted!)
>
>   The deal included a Mercury 7.5 hp with an electric start and a tank. 
>An extra dolphin plug? for the tank to motor.
>    I prefer to have a Johnson or Honda or Yamaha 9.9 and will try to
>parlay my current Merc into one of those models before I launch in
>April.
>
>   the rigging is a mess . WOrn out in some places and the traveler was
>not even set correctly to do anything but the entire rig was just set
>up in the spring for show purposes anyway.
>   I definitely want IMF and will save my bottle tops and stop giving my
>recycling to the homeless asian women in the neighborhood.    ( only
>kidding)
>IF any sailors out there  want to sell an extra mast with IMF I am
>interested!!!
>
>   Aside from some rain damage to my cushions due to a leaky portlight,
>the inside is fairly in good shape but very old and needs work.
>   I  will scan the archives and ask  around later for schematics on the
>electric system.  As a pro videographer and steadicam operator we have
>to be able to wire 12V systems all the time and i have done a few crazy
>things in my life to get out of jams but have never wired a  boat
>before.
>
>   Yes the tiller needs refinishing any suggestions?  I would just
>replace the wood and go from there..
>   The teak inside will eventually get changed too.
>   The companionway door was replaced with a nice pc of  tinted lexan
>which looks neat!
>   No radio , I will invest before doing any cruising or serious sailing.
>
>   Joined BoatUS yesterday and will most likely get there insurance.. any
>recommendations??
>
>   I hope to trailer back to Brooklyn where I am already booked for the
>winter and beyond at Gateway Marina, Flatbush ave in waters that I have
>sailed since childhood.
>they say you cannot go home again, but when I get this boat sailing the
>way I want to  I plan to arrange a landing at Miramar Yacht Club where
>my late father kept his Ensign when he died.
>   thanks all for your humor and support
>   Lou
>
>
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>__________________________________________________
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