I carry on, safe in the knowledge that 1) If needed, Philpott has coasters to fit my soul and 2) If you drool on Surprise!'s floorboards, it will bead up.
I carry on, safe in the knowledge that 1) If needed, Philpott has coasters to fit my soul and 2) If you drool on Surprise!'s floorboards, it will bead up.
A job well done is always inspiring. Can I settle for less with less square footage?
Time will tell....
Great decision on your part, Bob!
Ants
And right on we go to the next project...
Back in mid-February in this very thread, Mr. Hedgehog correctly observed that a new electric winch motor was a bit close to Surprise!'s ship's compass. I needed to move the compass and would then be looking around for something to fill its big hole in the aft end of the cabin trunk.
Surprise! came with a lovely 9" Zeus2 MFD down in the nav station but as a single-hander, I don't use it much. iNavX on an iPad works well but I'm frequently casting it aside to handle the boat - bad things were bound to happen. And there was that big hole to fill...
I discovered a 7" Zeus3 would fill the compass hole nicely and would give me a sailing-specific chartplotter that would live in one spot where I could see it. I found one online, made a template, drew the outline on the cabin trunk and that's as far as I got. Cutting through the 1-3/8" thick bulkhead to make a big round hole into an even bigger rectangular hole had me intimidated. I was hoping someone else would come along and do the deed. Today that happened!
It is well-documented that our new E-dock resident's last name (Herrigel) translates to "Mr. Hedgehog." What is not as well-documented is that if one applies the third-string, middle earth hermeneutic, Herrigel can also be translated "cutter of big holes in boats." Dave has something called a Fein Tool that he carries around in a big duffel bag for just these occasions.
I checked the pencil marks vs. the template, prepared the area around the hole and offered up a quick appeal to the Soul Coasters. Then I went to get Dave and his Fein Tool.
Of course, a constant stream of E-dock e-regulars stopped by to kibitz: Dura Mater, Sea Ya, Dazzler, Fugu and Sea Star all sent representatives. This was good because it was like taking your toddler to the doctor for their first shot, and the doctor pulls out a horse needle. I needed emotional support while Dave's Fein Tool ground away on Surprise!'s tender bulkhead.
Not to worry - the outcome was just about perfect. With minor fitting and finishing, the Zeus3 dropped right in and doesn't even wiggle. Later this week I'll seal the core, install the MFD and get it working. Thanks again Dave!
Last edited by BobJ; 06-07-2020 at 11:08 PM.
Great stuff Bob
The sole finished out beautifully.
That plotter will be handy when finishing in Hanalei,
In the middle of the night,
In a squall.
iPads don't like to zoom with wet hands
Exactly, and these new touch screen MFDs often aren't much better. One thing I like about the Zeus is it also has a knob. Can dial telephones be far behind?
My compass is bigger. Course you'll never see it because I keep it covered so as not to get it wet or dusty. Will you throw caution to the wind and uncover Zeus?
I got the idea from a Lumbo Carbon 32 that used to be across the dock. He had a $35,000 B&G system professionally installed, including this MFD in the cockpit. That's a lot wetter boat than Surprise! The specs say "IPX 6 and 7." Not sure how it handles stray winch handles though.
Oops, Philpott slipped in there. Like I said, I'll have to watch out for flying winch handles near the Zeus. I plan to keep the compass covered during the times when that lower hatch board is installed. Unless all the fancy stuff craps out and I have to USE the compass.
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Last edited by BobJ; 06-08-2020 at 02:16 PM.
1968 Selmer Series 9 B-flat and A clarinets
1962 Buesher "Aristocrat" tenor saxophone
Piper One Design 24, Hull #35; "Alpha"