Pathfinder Build: 2009

Monday, August 31, 2009

More jobs

2nd row complete. Tingles in. Applying fairing compound to lead. Kelly will epoxy coat all of interior while I am at work tomorrow. She loves painting. Amazing what filler can fill ;-)

Cheers

Brian

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Cutting 'Gains' near bow section

This job was easy. The 'Gains' took about 10 minutes on plank and 10 minutes on the hull. They start from about 350mm from stem. Straight edge on plank and plane down as required. My bevel plane was bought on Trade-Me. Thanks to my apprentice for her help. I am lucky she is willing to mix and fillet epoxy and occasionally use the drills!

I am going to holt planking at the 2nd row for a short while. I have decided I am going to epoxy barrier coat my wood under the floorboards and leave unpainted. Will be quicker than painting. Easier to repair. Will also finish all fillets, forward floor and anchor floor. All these jobs will be easier with the top two rows of planks off.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Second Row of Planks almost on

More Progress!

After beveling the first row of planking and marking out and cutting the third row it is time to put on second row. So far so good. Have put on the the rear two planks on. Tomorrow I will cut the gains and glue and screw the front plank on.

Will probably stop there and complete the anchor well and possibly some of the front flooring. May even raw epoxy the floorboards and frames a little more prior to putting on third row.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

More Pics of Lower Plank Operation

I had to add an extra couple of small strips of Plywood along the bottom edge of the reverse curve. These allowed the clamps to have something to pull up on. Otherwise they slipped off. They are only held on by short screws and I will take of today.

PS I think I should ask Steinlager for sponsorship too!

Lower Side Plank

These are the hardest. Especially around the bow. I didn't find it to difficult. The key being to pull everything up evenly. Thanks to Simon and Max from Canterbury Sailing School for their help. Also Kelly my wife. It really is a two or three person job. Thickened epoxy in a bag works for getting onto frames and stringers. I used a combination of clamps, zip ties, and wedges. Check out the photos.

Took a day to get all planks on.

Planking

In God, the angle grinder and thickened epoxy we trust. What a hassle getting the chines bevelled to the right angle. Took ages. I thought I might be able to use planes but they hardly fit amongst building frame. So out game the grinder with a coarse sandpaper flapper wheel. Noisy and dusty but got the job done. Not sure if I should be called the 'Butcher of Bagdad' or 'Rangi the Carver'

My old Air Force buddy Jacko came around. I soon had him enlisted in helping me mark out the first plank. "No thousands of an inch tolerances here!" I had to tell him.

Any way here are some pics.

Agghhh! Two years?!?!

Can't believ my project is over two years old now! Time to get A into G. At least my family has been sailing in Oti's, P's, Europe and my Finn. So we have all learnt to sail. So back to it aye! Into the man cave to continue my build...

J class Pic

Oops. Forgot to upload pic

Radio Control Yachting

Have been busy sailing a RC yacht at Hagley Park in the middle of Christchurch. It is a J Class. There is a great fleet of almost 40 racing sometimes. Heaps of fun. It does keep me away from building...

www.christchurchmodelyachting.org.nz

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

DC-3 Fundraising Flight, Christchurch, 10:30am, Sunday, 26th-July-09

Awesome scenic flight in a Classic Aircraft. Departs Christchurch Airport overflying Christchurch City - Lyttelton Harbour - Sumner Beach - New Brighton Beach - Waimakiriri River Mouth - Christchurch Airport. Plenty of opportunities to visit the flight-deck and take photos.

$120 Adult, $ 60 Child 12 years and under.

Proceeds to help our son Patrick 'Mad Dog' Haybittle, NZ's top 11 year old Optimist Sailor on his voyage with the NZ Development Team to the Noumea Optimist Nationals in November. Plenty of opportunities to visit the flight-deck and take photos. The aircraft has modern seating and "viewmaster" windows, and the scenery is astonishing. The flight takes you over the partly submerged giant volcanic cone of Banks Peninsula, around over the Pacific Ocean and over the Canterbury plains in full view of the snow clad Southern Alps ( the aircraft has a heated cabin) The Waimakariri is one of the best examples of a braided shingle river anywhere in the world and its full beauty cannot be seen from ground level.

(This is the reason I bought a jet-rib. So I can follow our kids out sailing on the Harbour)

PM us or call 0800 406 447
021 112 9556

Cheers
Brian and Kelly

http://www.maddogsailing.com/Mad_Dog_Sailing/DC-3_Flight.html
http://www.southerndc3.co.nz/home

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Mad Dog Sailing....

Hi Guys.

Still haven't been building much as have been busy building fundraising web site for my son. Check out www.maddogsailing.com

Patrick will be representing NZ at his first international regatta. He is a development squad of 10-12 youg sailors aged 11-12 years old. They are travelling to Noumea to race in National Optimist Nationals in November. He is really looking forward to it. Please feel free to help out. You go in the draw to win a cool gear bag every month.

Cheers

Brian

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Sailors and Racers

The main reason I haven't been Pathfinder building is because we have been sailing! I also put my hand up to help coach sailing this year. It has been awesome taking 11 young sailors to the Opti Nationals at Worser Bay.

We have had a great couple of summers. When I started building this boat one of the ideas was to teach my family to sail in the Pathfinder. I had the good fortune instead to take my son to 'Have a go day' at Kiwi Sailing School. This rapidly escalated into a week long learn to sail course and membership at the Waimakariri Sailing club. On joining the club we were given the Canterbury Yachting Handbook which had all the sailing dates for the 2007-08 season. At the end was the Optimist Nationals. A few inquiries later it was obvious that it would be possible for my son to enter the beginner 'Green Fleet'. So after the months of training at the Naval Point Club he enters and WIN's out of the fleet of 40. He is a great sailor who is prepared to put in the training.

It was enough motivation for me to buy a Finn so I could race too. Even my wife wanted to rekindle her youth so she got a Europe.

So this season it was his sister's turn. She joined Learn to Sail and very quickly was involved in a Learn to Race program too. It wasn't long before she was doing well. She won the South Island 'Green Fleet' in a fleet of 40.

Both kids went to the 2009 Optimist Nationals and did extremely well. There were 189 in the open fleet and about 60 in the Green Fleet. Both won their age groups. Patrick top 11 year old and beat all the NZ 12 year olds and Carmen was top 9 year old too.

So the moral of the story. I think they will be teaching me to sail. As you can see my Finn Sailing at my National's didn't go quite so well. It was still a ton of fun and the competition was great. Spend a lot of time up side down in the 25-30 knot gusts. I was spinning out just like a P class and a few death rolls to windward too.