On A New Tack

Let's Make Some Fiberglass! With the external layers of Chopped Strand Fiberglass Mat already added to build thickness, the strong, quadraxial layers of E-Glass are laid next.  They have fibers running in four different directions which builds stiffness and rigidity into the hull. Strength layers added to Chopped Strand Mat Next, layers of Closed Cell Foam Core are added after being shaped.  Kerf cutting is required with other types of foam to allow the foam to have a curved shape.  Kerf cutting refers to adding multiple cuts with a saw blade that go about 2/3rds of the way through the material inline with the intended curvature to allow the foam to bend.  The foam used by Vision Yachts does not require kerf cutting to bend it, so the gaps in the material that result from kerf cutting are not there.  These gaps would results in extra vinyl ester resin that would add weight and cost without adding strength.  The foam sheets do contain small holes throughout ...

Living on a self-sufficient boat without giving up The Cloud?! If you are at all like me, you've begun to rely more and more on one or more Cloud Services.  Apple iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive and many, many more basically all offer the same solution: "You have digital things that are important to you; you pay us a small amount per month and we'll manage keeping it safe and protect you from hardware failures and data loss." I firmly believe that hosted cloud storage is one of the great conveniences that just about anyone under the age of 70 should be using.  The solutions are downright cheap, given how much storage capacity you can get and how much you would pay to get that data back if you lost it. I have used all of the above and my provider of choice is Google Drive, though we also use Apple iCloud to automatically backup our iDevices, as least for now. Life 2.0 We will still have a cloud storage provider when we set sail, but what are we going ...

Time to Add Some Actual Fiberglass! Dry Tissue and Chopped Strand Mat After the Gel Coat has cured sufficiently, a layer of dry tissue is laid down (to prevent disturbing the Gel Coat which is basically sticking to itself) and then a layer of chopped strand mat.  This is then wetted with a Vinyl-Esther resin. Chopped Strand Mat

Build Continues with the Addition of the Gel Coat Gel Coat Time to start actually making something!  Here is a diagram that helps explain how the Vision 444 hull is constructed: Hull Layup - Courtesy of visionyachts.com We are working from the bottom (outside) up, so the first step is to spray the prepped mod with Gel Coat.  We are going with a grey hull (Kingston Grey to be exact) which will be painted as a final step months from now.  Because of this hull color choice, the Gel Coat will be a grey similar in tone, instead of being a basic white.  That goes on first:

 Okay, so it is somewhat delayed from the expected start date,  but what isn't in this crazy world?! Hull #11, aka "SV Mira", aka, our boat, aka our Home-To-Be started at the Vision Yachts Factory in Knysna, South Arica!!!!! Modern fiberglass sailboats are made in a mold, which is kind of like the inverse of the boat-to-be.  Fiberglass layers are build up onto this mold and eventually you get to the desired thickness, everything cures, the mold gets pulled away, and voila, you have a hull!  Okay, you have the very start of a hull that would a) not float and b) not look much like a boat. Creating the hull in the mold is the first step in a long list of steps. Main steps of making a Vision 444, mostly in order... Make the hull pieces in molds Pull the pieces from the mold and fair them (sand, sand, sand). Bond the multiple pieces into one actual boat using fiberglass to join the multiple pieces Install bulkheads and furniture pieces and fiberglass them to the hull. Mor...

We just hit another milestone by getting our 400th YouTube subscriber! Quick thank you and shout out to everyone that is a subscriber. You're not?!  Here is a link to subscribe !

After many, many walks around the block in the evenings, we have decided on a name!  Sailing Vessel Mira ( SV Mira for short ) Here is a link to the YouTube video where we announce the name. What makes naming a boat so hard is that you can choose from a lot of different types of names.  You can be "funny/punny" and name a boat something like Knot Working , or Never Again 2 .  You can name a boat after a concept or a feeling, like Tranquility , Respite or Traveler .  And you can, of course, name your boat using a proper name; traditionally a girl's name, but something simple like Jenny , or as in friends of ours,  Greek Goddess . Given that this boat will be our home, we quickly ruled out funny/punny names.  That just doesn't seem right. BUT, we got stuck for a while on concept/feeling names and just a traditional girl's name.  We both brainstormed and came up with lists.  We then bounced them off one-another and looked into their meanings.  N...