Continuing on the recore effort. I was able to save the top skin removed from the area under the winch. This was cleaned up and the bottom sanded so it could be bonded over the new core. I ended up cutting too close to the rail, and didn't realize there was and angled lip molded where the core ended. Thus I ended up with a 2nd cut that resulted in about a 1.5" strip. The photo below shows the skin being bonded to the replaced core. I used paint cans for weight and vacuum bagged to create pressure for holding the skin down while the thickened epoxy cured.
The plastic from the vaccum bag was removed the next weekend and the area sanded. Thickened epoxy was spread to create a rough faired surface. At this point the area is now sealed for the winter. I still need to drill and epoxy fill the holes for the winch and genoa track. In the spring i'll sand, do final fairing and shoot with gelcoat.... unless I get warm weather before then.
The next area being worked is the wet bulkhead under to port chainplate. This was discovered last spring when I pulled the chainplates to epoxy isolate the deck area around them. When I tightened the bolts through the bulkhead, the liner on the bulkhead forward side cracked from the compression. This fall I removed the chainplates, then made a cut with the Fein Multimaster tool into the aft side of the bulkhead surface. The area was found to be wet on the inside. I dug this out about 6 inches on either side. The cut was extended to the 2nd set of holes where the core was dry. I dug out the wet plywood and used a heat gun to dry the area. The approach is to inject epoxy to the area to give it compressive strength. There will be virtually no tensile strength, so the chainplates will be extended so they can attach to solid bulkhead. The load on the bulkhead is transferred to the tabbing along the bottom and sides. There should be no load on the top of the bulkhead, as the deck is supposed to float over the bulkhead.
The area was masked and a series of tape strips spanned across the cut to create a dam to hold epoxy before it cured. I also taped a clipboard over the area to keep it flat. Thickened epoxy was mixed and injected with a syringe to fill the area. It was about 50 degrees and I thought the epoxy would take a long time to cure..... However, there was enough volume to create a critical mass of epoxy. I had a small nuclear reactor as the epoxy reached critical mass, kicked and started to smoke.
The result after the masking was removed is shown below. You can see the epoxy cracked when it kicked. If I was trying for a combination of tensile strength and good looks, I would grind it out and redo it. But this area will be covered by the new expanded chain plate, so I don't care how it looks.
Moving on to electrical work now. I will be replacing the DC distribution panel with one that has circuit breakers and includes a meter to monitor voltage for each battery and the DC bus. It will also monitor the current for charge/discharge on the batteries. In order to properly attach the remote monitoring, ABYC standards require that the connections near the battery be fused. I am taking the time to clean up the rats nest of wiring, both at the battery area, and behind the DC panel. One of Rhapsody's co-owners (also the previous owner) installed a DC meter panel next to the battery switch. Since this is no longer needed, it will be replaced with the fuse panel that is now needed. The photo below shows the old meter panel removed. There is also a meter above this connected to the output of the battery disconnect. I an removing this and replacing it with a Rule Bilge pump fuse/switch panel.
The replacement panel is cut from Starboard and sized so it will cover the hole cut for the old meter panel. I also made sure that the electrical hardware mounted on the panel clears the outline of the existing cut. The panel dimensions and hole locations are shown below.
The panel is pre-wired with soldered connections so that only the wires on the boat side need to be attached. The circuit breaker has screw terminals. The fuse sockets have push on blade connectors. All the wires are labeled.
