Why Are Sea Otters so Cute

The sea otter post on my blog is the all-time most popular. No other post even comes close. I guess there are a lot of people out there who want to look at pictures of sea otters. Sea otters are probably the cutest animals there are, cuter than pandas even. 
What makes them so cute? I think that the key to sea otter cuteness is the fact that they look like cuddly baby animals even as full grown adults.  I think its all that fur that makes them look so cuddly.  And they lay on their back and they stick their furry paws up in the air and the fur makes their eyes look like little buttons and that black furry nose, so cute.  Makes you want to just pick them up and squeeze them.

Read More..

Not so shiny now

Here she is, fiberglassed and sanded in preparation for painting...

And, here is the planned paint scheme: Sea Foam Green bottom and accents, Whidbey White hull, and bright-finished deck, transom & seats.

The Important Lesson I Learned About Bottom Paint

Initially, I had chosen Aquagard bottom paint (anti-fouling paint) in teal for the bottom of the boat. I was drawn to the good reviews and "Eco-Friendly" aspect of their paint. However, after swapping e-mails with the very helpful folks at Flexdel, I learned that using anti-fouling bottom paint on my boat would be a mistake. Why? My little boat will live most of its life on a trailer... dry. It will only be in the water as often as Im able to take it to the lake. Anti-fouling bottom paint is meant for boats that will be left in the water for prolonged periods of time. For my use, regular marine enamel will work just fine. That may be obvious to most of the boating world, but I didnt know until I asked. So, if you didnt know, either... there ya go!

So, instead of the Aquagard bottom paint, Im planning to use their Aqua Gloss marine enamel, over their 190 primer. I ordered it last week, so it should be here any day now.

Read More..

So that didnt go quite as planned

Tilting the rear thwart upward so that epoxy would run into the gap between the 2 pieces of plywood seemed like a good idea. The only problem was, after the epoxy cured, the gap remained.

The effort wasnt without merit, however. Several different parts did get encapsulated with another coating of epoxy. Still, the gap needed to be filled.

This time, I placed the rear thwart vertically in my bench vise. I drizzled epoxy into the gap until there was no question that it had been filled.

Now the gap has been filled.

I also put another coat of epoxy on the top of the forward thwart, and squeegied it meticulously. And, I brushed a second coat of epoxy onto the underside of the sheers at the back of the boat.

2nd layer of epoxy on the top of the front seat.

Sheers taped off for epoxy & painting.

Sheers taped off for epoxy & painting.

Forward thwart placed back into position.

Marking the position for the forward thwart prior to installing it permanently.

Now, the forward thwart is ready for installation. The rear thwart is ready to be trimmed, and the sheers are ready for primer.

Read More..