Deck & Cockpit Sanding (Part 2)

July 29, 2017

I set out today to complete the deck and cockpit sanding - one of those milestone days.  It's important to have days like this on a project of this scope.  Achieving milestones motivates, offering further momentum to reach completion.  Momentum, as described to me by a good friend from the north, can carry you through the challenges - sanding off layers of paint qualifies here!  Anyway, I am anxious to get the worst of it behind me and move on to putting the pretty stuff on Joule. 

I started by removing the rudder tube plate.  I was expecting to find much worse lurking below this ancient piece of teak, but it really wasn't too bad.  The cockpit floor is solid.  Since work must be done to the rudder tube (generically referring to the bronze bar, and not the fiberglass tube surrounding it) and because I needed to prep for painting the cockpit sole, I went ahead and removed it.  There should be material left over to fabricate a new plate.

With PSA discs on order for the Porter Cable 7335, I broke out the 5" RO to continue with the deck.  This tool is not the ideal for large spaces, but it did allow me to get into tighter spots that the 7335 would not.  You can just make out the layers of nonskid paint on the deck.  Hull #1044 was living large in the '70s...and the '80s and '90s too for that matter!  The original baby-blue was in there, as well as some harsh looking greens.  I attached the shop vac to the sander and enjoyed the breezy conditions without having a dust cloud about me.

I began on the sidedecks using 60-grit discs, about midships, and moved forward toward the bow.  

Prior to getting too far forward, I moved onto the cabin top and cabin top sides.  For now, I left the deadlights in place, choosing to keep myself in the maddening pace of marathon sanding.  Joule's owners are planning to replace the deadlights with bronze deadlights (similar to this, see page 42).

While up on the cabin top, I inspected the mast step for eventual removal.  There is considerable corrosion of the aluminum at the point of contact with the stainless steel through bolts.  I'm suggesting to the owners that they consider replacement of the CD2 tabernacle mast step. 

With the cabin top finished, I moved back down to the side decks.  I removed the lifeline stanchions in order to clean up the decks around them.  Since these stanchions will not be going back onto the Joule, I will later fill and fair the old fastener holes, with paint to follow.  The starboard stanchions pictured below.

I then continued working forward, completing the foredeck.

With the cabin top, side decks and foredeck completed, I moved back into the cockpit to remove the old nonskid from the cockpit sole.

With the completion of the cockpit sole, I wrapped it up for the day.  I pushed through lunch, ran through 27 discs, and left my body weight out there in sweat.  And the 'dog days of summer' are yet to come!

Total Time Today: 8.5 hrs