A snapshot of recent activity
Here’s some quick views of what’s been going on around the boat lately.
Trevor eyes the fit of a plank that’s just been bent onto the forward port side.
As the planks dry, they shrink and gaps open up between them.
Chris has been installing feathers in the caulking seams of planks that we’re keeping, but that have opened up too much.
These thin wooden strips are cut to fit tightly against the back of the seam, with a ramp planed along their outer edge.
The feathers close up the seams enough to allow them to be caulked in the usual manner. They are made of a softer wood than the oak planks. When the planks swell again, the feathers will crush into the planks and caulking, making a very tight seal.
Some of the crew are stripping the old corroded copper off of the rudder post.
Others have been packing the frame spaces with a mixture of salt and borate powder.
This is done so that any water that gets into these spaces will create a brine that acts as a wood preservative.
Jeff is one of the members of the planking crew working on the lower hull planking. Here, he’s using hot-glued pointers to pattern the shape of the next plank.
This process is called spiling.
After one of his planks was installed, Barry
and Ginger marked out the fastener locations for the plank.
The plank will be held on primarily using wooden trunnels, with some bronze hanging spikes to help hold it firmly in place during the trunneling.
Ginger is drilling for a trunnel here, and you can see the square-headed hanging spike just below and to the left of where she’s drilling.
After this, Maggie and the apprentices will come along and drive in the trunnels.
Naturally, we use the signed trunnels at every opportunity!
Jamie has fastened his beaded strake up below the bulwarks planking on port.
This plank has saw kerfs cut into it to mark the locations of the beads,
and he’ll cut the bead in place.
Top edge done, now working on the center bead.
We were fortunate to have the folks from the collections department loan us a moulding plane with just the right shape to make this bead. We had to promise to take VERY good care of it.
The Morgan was given a temporary paint job when she was hauled to help stave off sun damage. Now, the painters are methodically going around the boat and stripping off the old outer paint to get the boat ready for real paint.
Sometimes when a new plank is going on and part of it will fit between two existing planks, we’ll put linseed oil on the mating plank surfaces to help ease the new plank into the tight space.
If we’ve done everything right, the fit should be very tight with no gaps at all.
The first waist plank has been installed up on the starboard bow.
There are 7 of these planks. The sequence is, from the cap rail down:
10 bulkhead planks ( 1 1/4″ thick)
The Moulded Strake ( 3 3/4″ thick)
7 Waist planks (2 3/4″ thick)
1 Beaded Wale Strake (3″ thick)
And here it is after fastening.
We’re having a fellow come in to replace the old worm shoe. The worm shoe is a strip of sacrificial wood attached to the underside of the keel. A layer of tarred felt separates the worm shoe from the keel. Worms can eat the shoe, but are stopped from going into the keel by the tar. Here’s a segment of the old worm shoe.
Yep, they liked it.