19 October 2003
From: Graham Knight
Hi, it's been a few weeks since my last confession...oops sorry...last update! Things are coming on well with my Squirt, all the plywood decking is done, the hull has been sheathed in glass/epoxy and it's had a coat of epoxy primer. After sanding it was very smooth and needs no further work before painting, other than a second coat of primer to cover the patches where I sanded through to the resin.
I'm going to finish it in two pack epoxy, so it will be epoxy throughout, resin, primer, and topcoat which should be very hardwearing and will also avoid any compatibility problems if I need to repair it at any time. The paint is on order from the supplier I use at work, and will be custom mixed to match the motor that I have just bought.
The motor is a 1958 Johnson Seahorse 18hp which I was very lucky to find in England, engines of that type and age are very difficult to find over here especially in good condition as this one is. It just happened to come up on eBay while I was listing some stuff to sell, I was determined to get it whatever it took as it would be just so right for the boat. As it happened it really didn't cost me very much at all, so I'm spending a bit more to have a proper service done by my local outboard specialists before I run it. I'll also do a bit of cosmetic work on it, so by the time the boat is finished the motor should look like new and will deserve its place on my shiny new boat!
I've attached a few photos showing progress on the hull, from just planked, to flow coated, and partially decked.
Graham in Shepperton, England
11-15-03: After a lot of hard work, wet sanding, compounding, waxing and polishing I've finally got a finish on my epoxy paintwork that I'm happy with, when the sun shines on my upturned hull it's dazzling! The next step is to fit an oak keel strip, then make and fit some fender/spray rails and get the hull back up the right way. As it's too dark and cold to work in the evenings after work now, I've been spending some time in the workshop making some of the fittings, I've almost completed a set of Mahogany and polished Aluminium windshield brackets, and have cleaned up an old cable steering drum that I picked up cheap on eBay. I've bought a lot of fittings on eBay, including some nice Chris Craft style teardrop cleats and fairleads (chocks to you!), a pair of chrome framed step pads, and a nice NOS vintage Sea King steering wheel. It's going to look great with all these nice dress up parts on it
Subject: Finished!
Date: Mon, 2 Aug 2004
Well it's been a while since I sent any updates on my Squirt progress, I guess I've just been to busy working on the boat whilst trying to fit in earning a living and working on my house too!
But she's finally finished, yesterday we had a big BBQ with around 100 guests, friends, family, neighbours, workmates, to celebrate the completion of the boat and coincidentally 2 years living in our house.
Something I hadn't planned was an official naming, unknown to me my wife had persuaded my mother to perform the ceremony, after which she then sprayed most of a bottle of champagne over the boat which now needs cleaning all over again!
As you can see from the attached photos the boat has turned out quite nicely, there are still a few minor bits and pieces I want to attend to, and I expect I'll find a few more fittings are needed such as a pair of lift handles on the transom. But she's ready for the water, the motor is all finished and has been test run, now I just need a means of getting her into the water. In a couple of weeks I should have my launching trolly (really a mobile launch/recovery ramp) finished and we'll be trying her out on the river, at which time I'll send some more photos and a full report.
Huge thanx to all at Glen-L, the Boat Builder Forum members, and other contributors too numerous to list!
