Action everywhere today. Cabinet-maker here to fine tune the measurements, Mick our ‘fairer’ here, and Wayne our window man here. Love it!! Windows are completely in (look great) with the black Simsons completed as well … shmick!! Gilbert our cabinet man, here as well. Bathroom benches made, trimmed and completed,and our ‘cubby-hole’ features trimmed &… Read More: It’s all happening today … »
You may be wondering where we’ve gone but we’re still here! The devil, as they say is in the detail. The wine rack is finally cut out in black perspex and ready to fit just as soon as the dust stops (you’ll have to wait that pic). Our ‘glove box’ style cubby holes under the… Read More: Still here! »
We are still fairing inside. Keeping in mind our man Mick only works 2 or 3 days a week, the inside is nearly (there’s that word again) there. More importantly, Mick is doing a fantastic job. He gets such a shine and there’s no sign of the joins. This is a specialist job and he… Read More: Gas, wine and … more fairing! »
I think I mentioned in a previous post that “finished” was a big word. Well, the wine rack is finished! 25 bottles of storage. See pics. Until all the spraying & polishing is finished, we fit, then put away so the brown paper hasn’t been peeled of the rack sections. It’s actually been made out… Read More: Winter here but the work goes on »
It’s so bloody cold here in Melbourne. My football team is losing so I now have weekends “free” ??!! Why not speed things along on the boat building front. Neville and I have just finished 4 days straight and feel like we may have turned the corner. Acetone bottle and rag in one hand and… Read More: Ohhhh … the things we do for love!! »
While the weather has been COLD we have kept at it … with the latest ETL (estimated time of launch) being January, the “heat is on!” Jumping out of bed early morning hasn’t been that easy but once inside the boat with the heater on it has been rather cosy. We’ve been having 2 degree nights… Read More: The heat is on! »
What’s this got to do with boat building??? Heard today that we are celebrating 50 years of the Rolling Stones. So I thought I’d mark the occasion by mentioning a great album I bought a few months back called Bossa N’ Stones. A collection of great renditions of Stones classics in bossa nova style! Smooth and… Read More: Let’s Spend The Night Together … 50 years of the… »
We reached a milestone today with all interior fiberglass work completed … Whew!! A big few days from our fairing man Mick with Amanda taping and masking ahead of him to keep him on track. This afternoon she finally put the green tape away, removed the last of the brown paper to the bin and… Read More: A milestone reached today … »
Fitted the two electric windows yesterday. Designed these with the companion-way door frame. All aluminium with white powder-coated surface. Had them for ages so very exciting to finally start fitting them. And they are electric!
Installed the freezer unit yesterday (not plumbed in yet) … a big shiney bit! We have a separate freezer in the starboard hull for long distance cruising with a fridge/freezer in the galley for everyday use.
Just got back from the Sydney Boat Show. The usual list of things to see, measure and price. This is (hopefully) the last of the big shows before we launch so we thought it was an opportunity to check some details and look for a few things we hadn’t made decisions on … and two… Read More: Another Boat Show! »
The devil IS in the detail. Our fairer is working on the cockpit now, with the transom main sheet track ledge completed and the side alcoves on the way. Cockpit under-roof next week. It’s the inside that it’s all happening. The two electric windows are installed with two actuators on each now. Much stronger we… Read More: The devil is in the detail … »
Perhaps it may be difficult to imagine anyone getting so excited about our first flushing toilet on Bossa Nova but it is also hard to imagine how much work went into getting it fitted and making it work, suffice to say the first working action of this Raritan unit was special and we are ‘flushed”… Read More: A flush beats a full house! »
I suppose the second toilet was never going to be quite so exciting and was a challenge to bolt down as we couldn’t reach the locking gadgets but in the end we fabricated some alternative fiberglass brackets which are out of sight and working well? The hardest part about fitting the main fridge was probably… Read More: Two loos in … »
There is a standard routine in our house when Multihull World arrives. Amanda leaves it on the kitchen bench and once I get my nose in it she gets no sense out of me for an hour or two. ( I always have to read the best bits twice!) This month was different. I tried… Read More: Our Multihull World article »
It’s full on now. Every spare hour of every spare day. If we want to make January our launch month, it’s full steam ahead. Our outside fairing is very close, our upholstery all confirmed and ordered, bench tops measured with templates completed ready for our cabinet man, galley carcasses in with doors being sprayed as… Read More: Time for an update … »
So much to wire up, so little time … I have just spent the weekend roughing in most (not all) of the wiring for the fourteen pumps, six tank senders, fifty odd light fittings and numerous other items such as the anchor winch that arrived this week. Even that included the need for heavy cable… Read More: The detail … »
Our stainless steel rails have arrived. Trial fitting complete, ready to bolt on.
Sometimes you work on the boat for days and seem to see little progress. Fortunately the last 10 days or so have NOT been like that! We seem to have kicked lots of goals with a second motor dropped in and hooked up, the ceiling lining ply well under way, and the shiny stainless pullpits… Read More: Full on … »
Playing with my new toy on our big toy … now you can really see the mess … and how spacious the Fusion 40 really is!!
Our blog is usually followed by those interested in boats but we recently received an email from Joe who came across us while searching bossa nova music on the web. Thanks Joe for your email! … and we have added a link to you playing the ‘The Girl From Ipanema’! (See “You Tube – Girl… Read More: Hey Joe! »
Wiring and ceiling panels have dominated the last month. Longer days have meant even more aching muscles but so much more getting done with daylight saving here now. Our ceiling panels are going to look great but wonky ply has caused some grief with panels changing shape almost daily depending on the weather conditions. They… Read More: Christmas is coming! »
So exciting … benchtops installed today, finishing happening Wednesday. Upholstery started today and cupboard doors & catches being fitted this week too. Can’t wait for Friday’s pics!!
At last! The things you talk about for months, plan forever and research all night, finally come together! It’s when you see the finishing touches that you really see progress. With holidays upon us, we have a mad scramble to get things ordered, picked up and organised so we have work to go on with… Read More: Some finishing touches … »
Cupboard doors being installed throughout boat as we speak and upholstery being installed tomorrow morning … these are the exciting parts!!
I suppose when you get to the stage of seriously writing ‘lists’ it’s a good sign. We have a very long list of jobs to do before other jobs and it can be quite overwhelming having sooo many things to do. So working out where to start … hmmm!! So, after we both realised we… Read More: Where to ‘start’??!! »
It has been “go” here since Christmas. With a few quiet weeks of work, our plan has been to get as much done as possible. Always tricky to juggle the Xmas social commitments with boat building, and the hot weather, but we are finally feeling like we are making progress. We have been filling and… Read More: One room at a time! »
Our first piece of flooring … port hull … teak and ash.
How good is this??!!
The list does go on and on, but we do feel like we are making progress … even experiencing our first (I’m sure not last) leak! We have added trims around all the cupboard door openings now, along with latch blocks & hinges & doors. Lots of sticky white fingers, and hair, and fingernails with… Read More: And the list goes on … and on … »
Much anticipation with our ceiling panels. All the prep work is done. Panels are arriving slowly. Very happy with the shape and colour so far. If they all fit like the ones we have fitted so far, they will look great. Really ‘finish’ the boat. We are using the Fastmount system to fix them. Means… Read More: Ceiling panels arriving … »
Our ceiling panels, bedheads and upholstery are all completed. All looking great. Teak trims hopefully added this week. Teak floors completed in the hulls, with the saloon next. A lot of grinding to prepare the floor this weekend. Every time I think I’ve seen the last of grinding, there’s yet another job. An awful job! … Read More: Ceiling and floors »
Still heaps to do BUT … we do feel we can see the light. Our teak floors are being laid in the saloon, with the inside steps and cockpit next. Both mid-ships and bathroom floors all but completed. The sealing of these floors will be ‘last’. Ceiling panels, upholstery, bed-heads and cabinetry all complete, all… Read More: Getting to the ‘pointy’ end! »
I guess the only way to reduce the long long list of things still to do is to put in the hours…. and hours… and hours! The teak floor is progressing through the boat with the bathroom, both midship areas and half the lounge substantially done. The bandsaw you can see in the cockpit really… Read More: Long days … and nights! »
How exciting!…We actually started the motors today. With plastic tubs to represent the water we hope to float on, and 20 litres of fuel in each tank the man from Yanmar hit the key and the port motor immediately roared into life. a few nervous moments and a bit of priming saw the cooling water… Read More: Vrooom ….. »
We have designed vinyl trims that cover the gap between the overhead ply vinyl panels and hull fibreglass … and they work! The concern was that we needed them to be removable because various bolts are under them. Must always plan for leaks! So using ‘decorative’ stainless bolts, making them a feature, we have attached… Read More: Trims & icebox »
Our floors inside are nearly complete. The galley and our starboard steps are happening as I type. After a hectic few days tracking down some silver ash we are back on track. Lesson learned … order plenty in the first place! The cockpit ice-box is ready for some ‘coving’ (Amanda’s forte) and then some floor… Read More: Timber … »
Teak floor a slow job but looking fantastic and nearly complete. Then the cockpit. Our icebox is on the way, lots of shaping and sanding. Our shelves are all in, just a few edge trims to go. More importantly, the big jobs are now outside ones (because the inside ones are finished). Lots of tweaking… Read More: Moving Outside »
More work on our teak floors yesterday in our run of nine over 30 degree days, it got to 38 degrees yesterday! Teak has now been laid right through the saloon, so today is finishing the starboard steps and adding the silver ash curved pieces around the margin boards. A frypan on a camping stove… Read More: Hot but work goes on! »
Aghhhh …. Every bone in my body aches! I love the ‘stand-up’ jobs, the low, tight ones, not so much. I’ve never seen so many bruises on my legs and knees. Yesterday was a big day, started at 8.30 and finished at 8.30pm. Washed the decks and scrubbed the cockpit. It had become the sawmill… Read More: The things we do! »
Early finish … off to visit a Fusion 40 called ‘Ohmless’ who are visiting Docklands/Melbourne for a week.
It is very worthwhile checking out other boats. There’s lots of decisions along the way but it can be the simple things that become important because they are critical to how you sail and use your boat. Placement of cleats, rope organisers, rope bags, cockpit drains and bbqs, all are important to get right. Thankyou… Read More: City visit … »
Easter is here and work is continuing… Our teak cockpit floor is well on the way, fridge has had it’s final fit, floors prepared for carpet in the cabins, engine hatches being fitted and cabins getting their final-fit-out with ceiling panels, bed-head, hatch trims and lights. Oh so satisfying! All those months of designing, building… Read More: The Boss …. a …. »
It’s great that people are following our journey … we know they are because we have been reminded we are sacking off with the updates! has been a few weeks. So here we are … Everyone is asking, “when are launching?” We don’t know, but it IS close. All the jobs we are doing now… Read More: Yes … we are still here! »
I think it has been “4 weeks” for several weeks now. Big week last week. Our teak floors are completed (sanding and sealing to come), door frames and doors started to be hung, battery box complete, ceiling panels all up including trim kits, teak shelf edges organised, cockpit hatches hinged and the list goes on,… Read More: 4 Weeks »
One of the worst things about building a boat is that you listen to the radio a lot … and we listen to AFL football … and we barrack for the Demons … arrrrrghhhh!!!! … and guys like pies … only a matter of time before the real sauce bottle got confused with the acetone… Read More: One of the worst things … »
How many door frames do you want to see? We keep trying to photograph new and interesting things , but some days are just “more of the same”. There are six internal aluminium door frames, so whilst the first is exciting, you can’t say the same for the other five! At least the bifolds are… Read More: More doors on! »
Doors … what a royal PAIN!! I think today was taken up with doors and only doors … do they fit, will they shut properly, do they hit the bench, do they hit the bench when the handle is down, does the handle stick out too far, shit … the light switch is behind the… Read More: Doors … !!!!!! »
A big few days! Sanding our cockpit teak was a big job. We had a run of fine weather s outside jobs became a priority. Looks fantastic!!
We have just had a run of unseasonal May warm weather which ended yesterday. After 25 degrees, today we had hail and 13 degrees!