Half a horse powered margarita

In full sun, these panels will produce about 360 Watts of power.  With one horse power being 746 Watts , that's a half a horse galloping up on the cabin top. In addition to this, I plan to balance this out with another 500W of wind power.  Since the sun and the wind are still free, it's nice to know that once all the systems are in place, we'll be able to put frozen reverse osmosis water into a 12 volt blender and make margaritas in the 90 degree heat of the tropics.

These big panels will most likely be mounted on the cabin top......or.

It may be nice to create a slide mechanism that would allow them to articulate aft over the cockpit; similar to a bimini  which could provide additional shade. 

window opening edge detail

I chose to use the strongest of the three edge detail options that are specified in the plans by Ian Farrier.

 Although my technique was certainly not the most elegant, I was able to create high density cores around the edges of the window openings by filling the1 inch voids using gallon sized zip lock bags full of epoxy/ microbaloon filler with the corner cut off.  I then ran 1 1/8 wide strips of  a heavy synthetic roofing membrane along the edges which created an edge  mold to keep the goo in place. 

 The corners and sides were smoothed down and the straight portions were backed with wood strips held in place with duct tape.

This worked beautifully and resulted in strong 1 inch high density rims around each window opening that will require very little finish sanding. 

Next step will be to sheath the edges of all of the window opening with 6 inch wide double bias stranded mat glass tape and epoxy. The finished windows will be of  8mm thick polycarbonate which will be bonded and bolted in place. I am confident that these windows will be able to withstand  full-on broadside blue water impact.  

trampoline study

These days, knot-less dyneema netting seems to be all the rage for high performance multi hulls. The going rate for a couple of forward nets is about $2000.   In my attempts to decide which type of netting to use, I decided to do a quick mock up. I used common construction twine to determine how much webbing would be needed to sew a set of nets. The strings were set up to represent a hole size of 1.5 inches when using 1.5 wide polyester strapping. Next step will be to wind up all the string, measure the total length multiply the length by the cost per foot of webbing then multiply that by two to determine material cost.

a foam core removal tool

 I designed and built a custom foam removal tool that allowed me to strengthen the edges of  the window openings.  This tool uses four water jet cut "blades" fastened to a spindle that has an aluminum hand grip on one end. This tool really works and removes the foam core while leaving the fiberglass edge reinforcement. 

 Since I was taking this photo with one hand, I was not able to show myself holding the aluminum support handle with my other hand.  With one hand on the drill and the other supporting the end, this tool does a fine job removing foam core. This open space will later be filled with a mixture of epoxy and glass microbaloons. The edges will then be covered over with a wrap of DBM tape. Once complete, polycarbonate glazing will be fastened along these reinforced edges. 

 here is the finished window opening after using the foam removal tool to create a  1 inch a deep foam free edge.    

 I plotted the dimensions of the windows onto butcher paper.

 

 I then positioned these templates as described in the                                                                                                                           plans

 I spent a little time transferring the shapes onto the cabin sides markimg inch and a half offsets with a sharpy. I then spent and hour or two cutting the window openings using a carbide blade on a nice Bosch saber saw. Ian is correct in stating that the positioning of the windows is crutial to the overall characteristic look of the Farrier boat. I imagine round Popeye port hole would make for an interesting look but usually it's considered in poor taste to change the basic look of a licensed boat. Some people go as far as suggesting that you will burn in hell for eternity so I didn't want to risk it. I think they look pretty good. If it didn't blow the weight budget, I'd go with the 2 inch thick laminated bullet proof polycarbonaet for those coastal cruises off the coast of Somalia.

youthful cockpit seats

Once the two cockpit seats are glassed, the shell of a catamaran will be screaming out for unending amounts of detail work.  At this point, this is where most people spend another twenty years making things perfect.  It happens all the time.........next thing you know the kids are grown, the wife made off with the UPS man and your sitting alone in your shop with grey hair and a perfect boat. 

Not me, I don't mind sailing an imperfect boat so the plan is to get this ship in the water before I loose my  youth............"use it or loose it"

mast step steps

the White Oak mast step was bedded in with a thick mixture of cabosil and epoxy then given a nice 1 inch radius fillet.

with a little patience, it is possible to pull the edge fibers outward while pressing the triaxial fabric over the mast step so that one piece can be used

I decided to vacuum bag the entire mast step lamination in place so I've surrounded the work with vacuum tape and pre positioned the bag. 

After covering the mast step with two layers of 24 oz triaxial glass and epoxy, I then used a vacuum pump to insure that the mast step will be rock solid.

glassing the forward deck

A wet epoxy deck is no place for a butterfly.  I applied two 200"  x 51 1/2" lengths of 34 oz. triaxial glass crossway's over the forward deck overlapping the seam 3 inches.

Spinning the bow pole

it's pretty amazing what can be done with the judicious use of clamps.  Seen here is  an embarrassing arrangement of clamps that allowed me to spin the bow beam so that a final carbon braid sleeve could be applied and wrapped with shrink tape. The horizontal clamp provided a method of adjusting the RPM of the tube.

starboard aft cabin top

The aft cabin tops become an integral part of the sail handling system so it' important to anticipate mounting positions of the hardware. Here, I've laid down a few layers of 32 oz.Tiraxial glass reinforcement panels over the high density inserts, pulling the glass down and around the corners of the structure so that the forces applied to the winches and rope clutches will be distributed to a large area.  I plan on covering the layers with full large lengths of 32 oz. triaxial glass all at the same time. Unfortunately, the heat build in the shop till late in the evening so I am forced to begin the lamination in the evening as things cool down.  Even with the "slow" hardener, I don't like to feel like I'm trying to beat the clock, so working on the trailing edge of the heat seems to work out better during the summer.

port side rudder box panels

.......on to boxing in the port side kick up rudder box panels. It still surprises me that this involves dealing with twenty two individual panels in all.  After this vac bag batch, I'll have all panels needed to box them all in.

Here's a shot of the aft cross beam final exterior lamination.  Again, the process that I settled in on is pre-cut the glass, put it in place, flap a portion back onto itself then roll out the epoxy, flap the portion back down and roll a good coat over the top then do the same to the other portion, place peel ply over the lot and squeegee all excess to the sides.

paper patterns

After trimming about 10 panels in an unusual way, I discovered that it was fairly simple to tack butcher paper in place with a few trim nails and use a box knife to cut out the pattern and transfer the pattern to the foam.

Self made Bow poles

Done.......now I guess I'll go out and buy myself $8,500 dollars worth of  TV dinners with all the money I saved......maybe I'll even get the kind that has the baked in brownie desert.

Then.....

pull the tube off the mandrel with my 1955 TO35 Fergusen Tractor  

Carbon over plastic lined PVC

The trick for me to insure that the tube will slide off the mandrel is to tape a thin sheet of plastic in place over the mandrel.

Post cure oven

Dig this custom post cure oven......

Vac Bag Bow pole

I then rolled two raps of 45-45 12 oz DB carbon then six wraps of Uni Carbon, sheathed this with a 12 oz DB braid and vac bagged the lot over the PVC mandrel.

Bow pole

Self reliance has gotten the best of me....  Upon hearing a quote from the local composite tube supplier saying " you're not gonna find anyone who will build the bow tubes for under $10K" ,  I said to my self........"Self" ...I'll build them for free. + materials.

Since Boeing decided to build it's Dreamliner out of carbon, material cost alone for the bow poles comes in at $1400. So..... if I pay myself zero dollars per hour, It makes good business since to build my own tubes. 

First step was to build a nice table that would allow me to roll the carbon onto ready made mandrels.  I built a couple of articulating "L" brackets that I could operate with a foot pedal and would allow me to handle the rolling process by myself.  I trimmed schedule 40 PVC pipe down to the  correct diameter by slicing a segment out and taping the seam back with 3M packing tape.  This allowed me to create a custom mandrel diameter for very little cost.  

a few tools

While working on the starboard rudder box I noticed that the shop floor looked like a bowl of spaghetti.  I looked up and realized I was using eleven power tools at the same time.

Protective suit

While working with epoxy, it is important to wear protective clothing. Here I am with my full anti static chemical suit with hood and boots.  Being of small stature, I find that is sometimes difficult to work with the hood covering my arms.

blogger issues

For some reason my server is rejecting photo uploads.  Not sure why.

kjkh

boxing in the kick up steps

You wouldn't think it but it takes over ten individual panels to box in each kick up rudder assembly. The panels shown here will get bonded into the openings in the stern and four more are needed to box in the sides of the steps. The tenth panel will be the horizontal bulkhead that will support the upper rudder bearing.

chopping the starboard boarding steps

I've chosen to build the under slung kick up rudders.  I chose this over dagger board rudders to minimize the chance of sucking air down the rudders and reducing the effectiveness of the rudders at speed. Having experienced this as windsurfer this usually results in a "spin out". In the case of a cat this would just result in a little induced drag.  Truth be told, I just like the clean, functional lines of unobstructed boarding steps

port side boarding steps

Before mixing any epoxy, I've draped a single length of 34oz.triaxial glass cloth over the two aft boarding steps and trimmed it to fit.. I then marked the corners of each step with a sharpy so that I can lift the glass up to roll on a good coat of epoxy. I then laid the fabric back in place, rolled on another coat of epoxy and topped it all off with peel ply.

baby birds

 In preparation for glassing the cabin top and decks, I'm spending a little extra time and effort making sure that all surfaces are as clean and smooth as possible.  Notice the thick plastic that I had to put up over the rafters of the shop. With spring and summer comes baby birds and mother birds spreading lots of used bugs and worms all over the place. Now the birds can go about their business without spoiling the decks. As much as I dislike the mess, I just don't have it in me to outcast a nest of baby birds.  

100 percent certianty

The carbon fiber chain plates are in the bag and it's nice to know with 100 percent certainty that all reinforcements are fully saturated.  This vac bag session involved laying 34 pieces of both glass and unidirectional carbon fiber. The key to being able to manage such an involved process is all in the preparation.   Before the first batch of epoxy was mixed, I measured and cut each piece of fabric and laid them out on a clean table in the order in which they were to be applied. The vacuum bag was also ready to go with a layer of breather, perf and peel ply in place.

To make it easy to apply the laminates, I mounted the two chain plates on a base standing up on ends. This allowed me to apply resin between each layer of unidirectional carbon offering an additional opportunity to squeegee the resin downwards insuring that all of the unidirectional carbon was aligned.

I have little doubt that something else will break first before these chain plates fail............Now I will be able to sleep like a cat when waves are bashing the cabin top.

Humility

For reasons that I cannot explain, I was not 100 percent certain that I had achieved full resin penetration. Knowing that I will one day face some harsh conditions, and that I did not want to have this weighing heavy on me while waves bash over the bridgdeck cabin, I took the chop saw and laid waste to a weeks worth of my labor.

Good thing.......only half of the 10 layers of carbon were fully bonded together. I'm not sure whether to be happy or sad.

What have I learned?  Sometimes infusing a part may not be the way to go.  For my next go, I will lay this web on end and hand lay each layer of carbon then vac bag to get the proper resin to reinforcement ratio........"poor Horatio, he was only half a boy"  ( Opey Taylor)  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eI689Qxaao

Rorschach Mandolbrot chain plate infusion

here are a series of photographs showing the resin infusion of two carbon fiber chainplates:

laying out the flow media

Can you spot my foolish mistake? 

( flow medium on the wrong side of peel ply )

The flow begins

Flowing nicely

Almost there

completely infused

Mandolbrot or.....

 Rorschach ?

Rorschach

Carbon Chain plates

Seen here are the beginnings of two of the three most important parts of the cats rig.......the two chain plates.  Along with the fore stay, a failure in any one of the three will bring the rig down.

The raised diagonal portion of these plates contains 10 layers of unidirectional carbon fiber that wraps up and over stainless steel spools and is interlaced with several additional layers of glass.  At this point, all reinforcement fabric has been lightly tacked in place with 3M -77 spray adhesive in preparation for a very critical resin infusion process.

The plank

If your going to have to walk a plank, It may as well be a very lightweight composite plank with high density inserts and epoxy micro balloon reinforcements. Seen here hanging on a 2 ton chain hoist is the core blank that will become a walkway between the two hull sections.  Once laminated, it will become a structural portion above the bow tube that in turn will house the telescoping bow pole.