WildThing Sails Again

It has been a long road during the refit of WildThing. It is alot like sailing in that it is not about the destination so much as the journey on the way to getting the boat completed.  The boat was actually purchased in 2003 in Bradenton Florida.  It spent a few years in a boat yard where it received new paint on the topsides and bottom.  We removed the old teak decks and the rest has been done pretty much by my brother Brad his wife Carla and I.  It pays to be handy!

I would meet my brother in Florida for a week or two at a time and we would work hard all day and then go out to eat at night at some local fish joint. There are many of them in St. Pete and we tried them all. The Wharf and Dockside Daves stick in my memory as some of the most colorful. As I said, the time spent working on the boat was hard but, it was also an excuse for me to get down and spend time with my brother. You would be surprised at the number of world problems we solved over a Grouper sandwich and a few beers. 

My wife actually came down to see the boat one year because she did not believe there was one. She could not understand the scope of the project and all the work that went into redoing the boat.  She though we were just spending time at the beach all day.

Yes honey, there is a boat and it is still under construction. We have it to the point where we can sail it and have had it out on the water for numerous day sails.  We are somewhat scared to finish it because it may put an end our yearly getaways to work on the boat.

The refit has taken many years, you name it, we have replaced it. New topside and bottom paint, removed teak decks, new engine and starter panels, fuel tanks, fuel polishing system, exhaust, shaft, fuel system, AC/DC panels, solar panels and charger, AC/DC wiring, windlass, standing and running rigging, chain plates, thru hulls, battery charger, inverter, holding tanks, plumbing, water pressure pump, holding tanks, heads, custom hard top, refrigeration, cushions, custom cockpit hatches, insulation, remove cap rail and fiberglassed it, 10 new custom pilothouse widows, new helm station, deck wash and cockpit shower, all hatches and hardware re-bedded, new main traveler, running lights, fabricated new fiberglass cockpit hatches, new interior cabinets, flooring, headliner, new cockpit steering pedestal, hydraulic pilot house steering, hydraulic hoses and autopilot.

I was down for a week this spring to check on the latest progress and do some sailing.  Last fall Brad had hired a carpenter to rebuilt most of the galley and salon cabinets.   The cabinets are in the process of being varnished and will be put back in place on our next trip.

My brother has been doing a bit of consulting so he has not been able to devote working full time on the boat.  He has completed a number of smaller items on the interior and added most of the hardware back onto the deck and cockpit areas.

Chainplate covers



Deck wash and windlass controls



New Main traveller and sheets

Genoa Tracks

 

New composite flooring in aft cabin and pilothouse

Pilothouse flooring

 

Hot and cold shower plumbed into the cockpit

 

New pilothouse cushions

 

New Sintra plastic headliner

 

New headliner

 

More headliner

Stern view

Cockpit

 

Brad and Carla

Lauren and Mark

Carla and Lauren

Mark

Dorade

Lauren catching some spring sunshine

RumRunners at Cape Harbour

Cape Harbour

There is still a long list or projects to be completed so I guess I should start planning my next trip to Florida. This time I think I will take my wife. Now that she knows we are actually working she is a little more understanding.  

 

 

Final Pilothouse and Cockpit Paint

The final set of pictures from Florida show that the outside paint has been completely finished.  The Ft. Lauderdale crew repainted the green accent stripe and completed the pilot house and cockpit paint.  Non skid was applied on the deck house, floor and cockpit seating.

The propane tank lockers were glassed shut in the cockpit and the tanks will be move the the forward port locker.  The old engine controls cutout was glassed shut.  The engine controls were moved to a recessed panel on the starboard side of the cockpit.

It has been a busy winter and much was completed. With all the work and paint done on the outside, the push will be to finalize the interior work next fall. 

 Green repainted

Green paint finished

 Paint around pilot house windows

 Newly fabricated hatch covers and paint

 Starboard cockpit paint

 Cockpit floor non skid and paint

 Pilothouse paint

 Deck house paint and non skid

 Looking down the rail

Cockpit paint completed

Pilot House and Cockpit Paint

The Ft. Lauderdale painting crew is back for a few days to finish up painting the pilot house and cockpit.   This will complete the outside paint. Yahoo!  Brad is understandably excited to see the last of the old fiberglass covered up for good.

They are using Awlgrip products for the complete process.  It is all about the chemistry of the products. The fairing, primer and paint all fuse together to make an indestructible finish.

The shots below show the progress so far. The next post should be of the finished product. I will post them as soon as I can.  I guess it has been raining a bit in Florida this week so they are waiting for a weather window to finish up.

Awlfair in the cockpit

Crack repair on the combing

More cockpit work

More cockpit

Primer

Dorade vents painted

Pilot house primer

Cockpit all primed



Main Salon Cabinets

I was able to get down to see the boat at the end of April. I had some meetings in Jacksonville earlier in the week and drove down for the weekend to see Brad and Carla. The spring time weather in Florida was beautiful.

Brad had been sending a few photos but I had to check on the progress of the cabinets in the main salon.  Kevin the master carpenter was hard at it fashioning cabinets and face frames above the main salon settees. The previous cabinetry had taken on water from the leaky hatches and cap rail and basically disintegrated.  They were all torn out, the bulkheads and hull were painted and insulated and the new cabinets are going back in.

Brad is in charge of varnishing the woodwork once Kevin gets them fabricated.  The cabinet liners were all put in with ringed screws to allow them to be removed if needed to access chain plates and wiring. I was very impressed with the look and finish of the new cabinets. Brad has a lot more varnishing to do this summer and the plan is to have Kevin come back in the fall and mount everything.

The flooring and headliner will also be tackled this fall.  They are using 1/4 inch Sintra PVC for the headliner, which is a plastic product, so there will no rotting or taking on moisture.  The headliner has already been grooved and just needs to be cut into panels and fitted. 

There is still a lot of work left but I was glad to see major progress this winter. The pictures below show the dry fit of all the cabinets.  They still need to be varnished which will give the Maple wood a warm honey colored finish. The vertical slatted Tambour will be applied to all the bulkhead to finish them off similar to the aft cabin and pilothouse.

Brad is having the deck crew back to finish painting the pilot house and the cockpit area the first week in May. More pictures of that to come later!



Galley Cabinets above the stove



Port Salon Cabinets



Starboard Salon Cabinets



Starboard  Salon Cabinets



Port Salon Cabinets

Starboard Salon Cabinets

Starboard Salon Cabinets

Port Salon Cabinets

Port Salon Cabinets



Galley Cabinetry and Head

This weather in Florida this winter has been absolutely fantastic.  In fact weather throughout the country has been very mild compared to previous winters.  This makes it even easier to work on the boat in exotic places.

Last winter the pilothouse and aft cabin were slicked out with new maple tambour wall covering, trim and flooring.  The crew from Ft. Lauderdale spent weeks on the deck, finally getting it glassed, faired, sanded and non skid applied.  The caprail was also removed and glassed over. This had been a source of constant leaks for years causing damage to cabinetry and the interior. We at last feel that the boat may be drying up for good.

The push this winter is to get the galley, main saloon and forward head finished.  The recent pictures show the new solid wood face frames that have been custom built to cover up the old teak plywood. New cabinet doors will also be built to give it a finished modern look.

Galley Cabinet above ice box

Galley above sink

Galley above sink

Galley under sink

Galley under sink

Head, holding tank and cabinet

Head, shower stall

Head bulkhead

We will post more as progress continues.