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Arafura Cadet build


Matthew Dawson

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  • 1 month later...

First questions

 

What's the best way to plug holes in a mast? 

I picked up a nice second-hand anodised old Arrow mast.  It's got lots of holes in it.

 

 

How do I restore and protect non-anodised aluminium?

The AC has some really nice aluminium rudder boxes.  They seem to be well made and structurally sound but they are natural aluminium so they don't look as good as they could.  It is possible to get them anodised?

 

I will see if I can post photos of the rudder boxes tonight.

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It might be the original box's I had if so it was a simple rope pull down system, if you want them to look better you could just paint them on the outside, holes in the mast are not good, if they are just rivet holes where things have been moved, put some duralac and a rivet in the hole, if it is corrosion coming out in different parts of the mast your mast has corroded from the inside out. You can just plug the holes with sikaflex to make it airtight as the masts are way stronger than you need

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Haha yes the mudguard is all good. The noise it makes reminds me that the trailer is still there!!

The mudguard was damaged by a tyre blowout on the way back from the Cobra nationals in SA in 2010. The tyre caught it and it broke the weld on the rear support and folded up like a concertina! I 'unfolded' it on the day and tied it up with a bit of old rope and it has been like that ever since (and managed two trips to NSW, one trip to QLD and a few to SA).

My trailer rocks! :)

By the way - the blowout occurred on a 42 degrees day just out of Tintinara on a Sunday from memory. Spare wheel didn't fit (oops) so RACV roadside assistance came to the rescue! Fun adventure!

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Hi All

 

I have stripped the hulls completely and they seem to be in really good condition.  Both bows have been repaired at some stage (must have been a pretty decent collision!) and there appears to be a repair in the bottom of the port hull.  I haven't tested for leaks yet but I am assuming there will be some.

 

The hulls weigh 15.4kg and 16.2kg.  According to the restrictions the minimum weight of the hulls and beams is 36kg so I guess I will get close to minimum. 

 

Here are some photos:

 

http://www.dawson.id.au/ArafuraCadet/Photos/ac08.JPG

http://www.dawson.id.au/ArafuraCadet/Photos/ac09.JPG

http://www.dawson.id.au/ArafuraCadet/Photos/ac10.JPG

http://www.dawson.id.au/ArafuraCadet/Photos/ac11.JPG

http://www.dawson.id.au/ArafuraCadet/Photos/ac12.JPG

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30 years of kids sailing it might add up to a lot of collisions, one day I drove the rescue boat next to all the junior boats chucking chocolate frogs onto the tramps while they were racing, I chucked some on the tramp of that boat for my lad, when he reached forward for the frogs he turned the Arafura straight into the rescue boat. I made those plastic spacer discs on those rudder stocks, were round when new, the rope pull down system worked well but make sure you have thick rope for the pull down or it jambs between the rudder and stock

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So I am going to be doing a pretty full 're-build' of the AC ... what number do I use?  I have purchased a set of plans - do I use the number that came with them even though I am not building new hulls?

 

Or do I try to work out what number was originally associated with the hulls?

 

I will be using loads of second-hand parts, but most won't be from the AC.

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you have plenty of time & work ahead of you before that bridge needs crossing

:p

 

 

but if it were me....... I'd be using the original sail number for "Tiapan" and building a new A/C with the new sail number

(you could always sell the plans but they'd be worthless if the number is gone)

 

I was a tad hopefull you'd swing by on the way home with your new toy, was interested enough to have had a look over it and yeah I was serious about fixing that mudguard for you too.... that clang-clang-clang all the way to SA would have had me tear the bloody thing off !!!

;)

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I'm pretty sure it was number 1256 but I will try to find a photo and confirm it, I dragged out the sails I had for that boat but unfortunately I changed the sail numbers on the sail to my lads boat. I assumed you were getting a complete boat, I doubt "Taipan" has been sailed since I gave it back to Steve, it was a complete boat with reasonable sails that only took on a couple of sponges of water in an hour. I feel you are looking for a project and want to rebuild the boat, I understand the feeling and have done it now a few times and I will try and post a photo of the one I did which is hanging in my shed, with the spare sails I have from your boat under it. If you are planning on stripping and retaping all the edges then painting "Taipan" I think you will expend a lot more energy and nearly as much money as building new hulls. Arafura's are a simple boat to build with minimal material used in the hulls, it is all the bits you put on that cost a lot more, "Taipan" is a great boat for you to just polish and sail as cheaply as possible and if you don't spend too much on it you will be able to do as Pirate suggested and build a new one at a later date and sell "Taipan". Only my two cents worth, you could post a list of what you are missing and you should be able to get the bits together pretty cheaply on this forum

post-4698-0-40593500-1406545459_thumb.jp

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I am down your way often Kingy, so I might just take you up on that offer. As well as fixing the mudguard, I need to move the front mast support back a bit so I can open my tailgate with the trailer on!

I actually have to put the AC aside for a while now and finish some jobs on the Cobra and the trailer!

Lots to do ... but I am having fun so it's all good.

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Hi Jeff

No I am not planning to strip the paint off the hulls. Just some touch-ups where the paint has been rubbed off on the beach. I don't think the edges need re-taping. They are in better condition than my Cobra has been over the years. There don't seem to be any obvious leak points either. I thought I would just fill all the old screw holes and replace the hatches (the old ones aren't much good - no rubber seals). I will then test for leaks. Once I have no leaks I will do some paint touch-ups and put it all back together.

I did get a complete boat ... but the beams had quite a bit of corrosion on them so I figured I would just replace them. I have all the parts I need except the beams, which I think can get pretty easily locally. That's why I pulled it apart.

I have two masts (one blank), main and jib, blocks, cleats, sheets ... everything I need. I will replace the rigging.

One of the reasons for buying the AC was to get the kids interested in sailing. One of the boys is quite keen to tinker in the shed ... so working on the boat may actually be a pathway to sailing. I am enjoying the process myself too and am learning lots as I go.

So it's all good (I hope).

I don't think I have bitten off more than I can chew ... I guess we will see. Hopefully I will have a functional trailer, a neat and tidy a Cobra and a nice AC by Christmas. Wish me luck!

:)

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No you haven't bitten of more than you can chew I would delete my last post but yours would be out of context then, doing what your doing with your kids is why I got into sailing, I had one of my daughters sailing with me yesterday in plenty of wind playing the downhaul perfectly, but it all started with the Arafura's and Arrows

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If you can get all your old silicone off, I would use sikaflex it's fantastic as it stays flexible and is much more adhesive but won't stick on top of silicone. Whenever I reattach the tramp track to hulls I put sikiflex on the track then screw down so it carries a lot of the load and the screws wont pull out. Sometimes sikaflex can be too good like attaching the beams if you want to get them off again without tearing your hull apart you have to be really patient and work at the sikaflex. I hate silicone with a passion and it never touches my boats, you only have to look at a bathroom wall that doesn't move and see the discolouration under the silicon to know that silicone doesn't do a good job as a waterproof membrane long term let alone maintain any strength. When I strip silicone I scrape it away first until there is no obvious silicone left, then use a scouring pad with water and do a good job on it, carefull not to stray where you wont be covering again, only when you cant find any trace of silicone and it's dry do I then use a clean cloth with acetone on it and wipe the area, don't rub you don't want to melt the last residue of silicone into the paint you just rub once, then use a clean bit of cloth, after that a very light sand to scuff and the paint / sikaflex will stick.

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Prepsol or Prepwash (I'm using it at the moment to get of the glue left behind from vinyl stickers) is a great pre painting cleaning solution, just wipe down surface, do it a few times if you're worried about silicone, but use a clean rag each time you do it or change your rag often even within each application.

 

Prepwash is made by Motospray and is available at Supercheap Auto.

 

And I'm taking the vinyl stickers off a full length semi truck and trailer, this stuff is saving me big time.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I had a closer look at the bottom of the hulls today.  I will add some photos soon ... having some probs right now.

 

Some of the glass tape has worn through and bare wood is exposed.

 

I can strip it back and re-glass, but is there an alternative I could consider just to get it sealed up and ready for a coat of paint to get it on the water sooner than later? 

 

I figure I shouldn't just leave it.  Could I just fill/seal with epoxy and micro balloons?  It seems to be structurally OK, but I am pretty sure some of the spots will leak or at least soak up moisture.

 

Suggestions welcome.

 

 

 

 

 

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