Daggerboard box, cover, marina

I keep forgetting to take photos, but here are some.

I whittled the port board thinner where it was sticking, and widened the trunk as well. The next two photos show my favourite tools. First, the grinder, which I just discovered during this project:

And then, 40-grit paper. I think it may be meant for floor sanders or something. It comes in sheets or rolls (I got pieces from John, so I'm not sure), and it has a very firm backing. It stays together and sharp for ages. It makes a great shaping tool when it's wrapped around a small piece of wood.

This is what I went inside the trunk with. Also, John rigged up a grinder backwards for me, so it would fit in the slot and against the cabin side, and that did the outer side of the box, which was the most warped. My piece of sandpaper was already folded for another reason, so it didn't cover the whole side of the aluminum bar I used. It worked okay anyway.

The photo below shows the hand stitching on the cockpit cover. I used regular whipping thread and a round needle and I measured and marked for each hole except for the Xs on the nylon webbing that I used for the attachment points. (I think the webbing is better than grommets.)

I'm doing a simple boom tent. The shape with the hoops is too complicated for me right now. Maybe I'll figure it out later. Next step is to make a triangular piece to close in the back. I used another tarp to start with, which I realized was not as good quality, so I used it as a pattern, to see if it could come out of the original tarp that I'd already cut, which it did. So I have a pattern now in case I need to make another like this.

About That Marina

It ends up that Hidden Harbour doesn't have a spot for Firefly, so I decided to keep her at Oak Bay. I had to do a mental shift away from the idea that I could just walk along the water and step into my boat. Oak Bay is only 7 km, so I can cycle there once I've got everything straightened away with the boat that needs a car to carry.

Firefly's new berth is B-9. She should be there by the 16th of September.

I realized, after watching Victoria harbour all summer, that it's not the best place to sail, anyway. Oak Bay is way better: it's more interesting, as there are many islands; it's not as choppy, as there's more shelter from the land; and there are more people who actually sail there, people who go out every day, like "Everyday Phil". I didn't see people day-sailing out of Vic harbour.

There's a webcam pointed at this area from Willows Beach, which is the shoreline to the north on this chart. It's at bigwavedave.ca, in "webcams" look for Willows Beach. You might see me out there one day.