Cut Chop Rebuild

[peter ross]

Cut the keel off last night, too late to turn back now. Was worried it would fall with a big thud. It actually had to be pushed over from the inside, landing quietly and without collateral damage. Removing the cradle was a pain, the hillbilly jack stands worked well though. http://s119.photobucket.com/albums/o145/Tynaje/Evelyn%2025/
The reason for the new keel is in fact to allow me to ramp launch the boat. I'm too cheap and poor to keep the boat on a mooring, plus I want to be able to sail in two locations during the summer. A rudder in a socket and keel I can lift to trail it. The Mystic area has no public hoists, but plenty of ramps. The keel's going to be bolted down while racing though.
It's really tempting to take 1.5 feet off the back of the boat which gives the transom width an extra foot. But no more chopping.
Got the carbon, one of the posts is done and the keel profile is laid out. Don't have enough room to build the keel and rudder at same time. Bulb plug is not so far along, need to get my butt moving, I just hate pouring lead with a passion.

More soon, but the ball is moving down field finally.

[rocklobster]

I checked out your pics and very much enjoyed them. You are an incredible craftsman. Very impressive. Wish I had the guts to cut, glass and paint like that!

[admin]

Good stuff Peter! Man, I admire your courage and tenacity! A lot of the reasons you outlined above are why I am building this 18 footer...also, I got tired of 6 to 16 hour deliveries back from events. So now, if I ever get this little beast finished, I'll drive there in 2 hrs.

http://www.nbayracing.com/i550Build.htm

Good times! Best of luck on the project.

[Pterobyte]

Oh My God. I thought I had a project on my hands...... This is over the top modifications...... what sort of rating are looking at. Are you extending the 'E' as well?

This takes real big ones, and in the snow no less. Is this your day job?

[peter ross]

Thanks for the kind words........it's really kind of fun at this point.
I cut the deck off after rebedding the starboard flange. I swore that boat took on water if it was foggy out. I have never seen a boat leak in so many different places. If there was dew on the grass in the moring, it meant a gallon of water in the boat. The yard stored it under a row of pine trees, whose pine cones took deep root in some areas, tiny pine trees growing all over the deck. Would have made a great prop for that movie Water World.
At the time I made the swap boat for keel/cabin/cockpit/paint boat and bottom deal, I wanted to do a fast flip and use the money to buy a Legends Race car. Should have looked at the boat first..............Well that plan was obviously sidelined when I saw Sherwood Forest and the split rudder with a keel installed 5 degrees off axis, I knew it was game over for the dream car. Before cutting it I looked everywhere for Evelyn 25 info and fellow owners. All I could find online was Full Tilt, which was for sale and no other info, except statements that the 25 had such a bad rating people stop sailing them. GREAT!
I really wanted a trailer launched boat, had access to welding equipment and plenty of steel. Built the trailer with removable indexed cradle to give it a shot. Lopped the deck off and found the deck flange to have a severe laminate issue. The flange is resin starved in some spots, voids in others and worst was the lack of suitable radius. I was able to pop it off in some places, was wondering what that did for the seam leaking so badly. I like to see some sheer in a boat, tradition old man in me, so I decided to lay out a slightly sweeping sheer and removed 5" of flange, which resulted in a narrower and shorter boat.
Too many options at this point for the existing rig and placement. As I noted, I am dirt poor and the worst form of Swamp Yankee, insist on making what I have work before I will spend a penny. I don't want to buy new rigging and don't want to go into too much detail defining a new configuration. More on this issue soon. John spoke to me about some options last year. Am not trying to turn this into a sport boat, just doing some rat rodding I suppose.
Working in the snow at this time is perfect, no itch at all. I have so much grinding to do, I welcome the cold. The shed can get up to 40 in there when it's 20 out, BALMY! The cargo heaters fire up and run for about 4 days, which is perfect for getting the hull up to temp for the structure bonding next week.
I'm using Okoume plywood skinned with a 12 db cloth. Although it can be argued a composite deck can be stiffer, I refer to the Swamp Yankee note, I have the plywood and know it is equally as stiff or actually light years stiffer, than the original sun baked vinylester/balsa cored deck. Plus there is significant structure that will make it plenty stiff. The forward cockpit ( wide open, no verticals cockpit sole ) bulkhead is the aft end of the 2 ft tall keel box and will the companionway. Bunks, forward, no room under cockpit for toes. Any thoughts and suggestions are very welcome.

It is being done in short spurts between projects, I have dropped all other work to get this done.

Tim, I have been following your build with great admiration, great job. I want a small boat like that.

This is sort of a tease.... In a few weeks, maybe less, the new project will begin. It is a new build. A boat in the 26ft range, more or less, mostly right at 26........big hint! Rules are being refined. redefined and when rules are solid, we are on. There will be room for multiple boats in this build, but not molded resin rich, infused boats. The intent is not to create or continue a boat building venture. It is to keep the costs of this really cool boat down. The designer is well known, was responsible for an extremely well known class, which has gone through a name change.......another hint! I don't think they want to be outed yet, although I have heard both have spoken to enough individuals, this is going to leak soon. So many e-mails asking about it, is going to really upset the locals.

[darkstar32170]

I can vouch for the build quality of Peter's work. He may not be able to "run the numbers" in an engineering sense but he does know what looks right, what doesn't, what works and what doesn't. I met with him earlier this month and his E25 project reminds me of a comment by musicman on the E32-2 page regarding the fate of the molds for the 25, 32-2 and 42.

"Which begs the question, what would a brand new Evelyn 32-3 boast? Open tranny, carbon inner skin, fully encompassing bulheads (forget the jockstraps), carbon spar, VARA rudder, diesel & saildrive, slimmer chord foil with a bulb???.............................the mind reels."

"Hey, for 1982, I think Bob pretty well nailed it."

Well, except for the carbon rig, the VARA rudder and some other details that is what Peter will get out of his E25 when he's done. It will be interesting what sort of rating he will be assigned.

[peter ross]

Thanks David, again too kind.
Big dust making day, looks like reasonably mild weather this coming week, I want to get as much stuff in the boat as possible. Grinding the old putty is messy but not too bad. The old tabs are being used to locate the bulkheads, then they'll peel right out.
Going to "borrow" some ideas from the i550 builds and get this boat done.
Decided to assemble the i550 in the same shelter, plenty of room, just need to get more plastic for the side walls. Ocean State Job lot has pool covers really cheap, neighbors all seem fine so far. It's breezy today, so the grinding sounds aren't so bad.