Kurt Hughes Daycharter 36

we use regular steel tie wire, it is stronger than copper and MUCH cheaper. In high load areas we will double the wire.

 

I use zip ties these days, they work great. I wouldn't worry too much about drills or hookie things. the key is to be able to adjust the ties exactly, not power them down willy nilly. So with copper, I overlapped them, then I twisted them. What you are trying to do is isolate the area, so sometimes that means cranking until the copper breaks and you double or triple it, other times it means one big snug kink, that holds it just so. I Used the battery method to get the copper wires out, outside. Real neighbourhood pleaser. I'm not sure zip ties will work for a CM hull because of various things in there, though even in certain places it would be worth it. The ties get bent down from the inside, and some ductility, and stiffness is an asset.
When I did my amas, I used the seat belt webbing method, on one of the the three I built, which is highly superior, though I don't know how you would bond to curved panels. While I just built a small tri, it ended up being 84 feet of keel!

 

ThomD: My thought was to start the twisting with the drill, then hand tighten as it begins to take up the slack. It's the first 10 twists or so you can easily eliminate. You definitely need a variable speed drill though. Nice n' slow with the drill, then hand twist to perfection.

 

Charly (and the others):

I hope you don't mind if I drop a few questions in this thread as well. My boat build is so similar to Charly's that it seems silly to start a new thread just to ask other Kurt Hughes Cylinder Mold questions.

Currently, I'm at this stage:



That's the first panel I have made in its vacuum bag. I had a small problem with the panel, as Charly did. He had that section with a void. I have a different, but similar issue:

At the tightest part of the radius for the turn of the bilge, a couple of my scarf joints in the topmost layer of plywood (there are 3 layers) isn't sitting down 100% on the layer below it.

This loose scarf joint runs about 6-12" from bilge to topsides. It's separated by about the thickness of a dime at most. It wasn't visible as a problem during bagging, since it was under a layer of bubble wrap.

The area that isn't bonded is (as I mentioned) 6-12" from bilge to topsides along a scarf joint and runs about 4-6" deep, away from the scarf joint.

Any thoughts on fixing this so I don't have to end up with a big bulge to fair out later?

 

Hey Catbuilder,
Sounds like the same problem with the stiff ply and the bi-axial mold. You will want to tap the whole panel when you are done and fill any voids.

Increasing the vacuum pressure probably would help, if that is possible.

Glad to see you are making progress!

 

Rollover!

Is this what you meant Lentil? Thanks for the idea

worked great till I got the sheer wedged and stuck on the ceiling I had to crawl under one wheel and cut off a section with my sawzall... that lowered it enough to roll it on over. Not a good feeling under there

 

Nice! That rollover looks useful and pretty simple to build. I see you just used some scrap OSB and part of the old mold.

So do you stand on one end and support that with your hands while the two semicircles support the middle and other end? Nice one man roll, if so!

I guess I'll be looking for voids and filling. No big deal, I guess?


New Problem:

We put on a new vacuum bag today because the first one tore. (we're on the 3rd hull half)

Well, this new bag seems to be leaking. I have the thing sealed off like usual and don't see any holes on the top. I suspect we might have one on the underside where you can't reach. However, the bag isn't pulling down like it usually would. It's loose enough to pull the bag up off the plywood AND... there are some parts where the bag is just kind of barely hanging onto the plywood.

I put my entire scrap pile up on the mold to help. There is partial vacuum, but it's weak.

Any ideas if this will cause a blown panel or not?

Sitting here all day waiting for the results is killing me!

I'm off to get a new bag today ($100 a piece) at Home Depot.

 

I just levered the boat up from the middle, adding blocks underneath, until the sheer stringer was about two feet off the floor. Once the wheels started bearing some of the weight, it was a cinch to roll it on over. I did it alone, and just braced it up with a two by four long enough to stop and take pictures. The boat was stiff enough, with thwart braces, etc, so the ends did not sag.

I don't know what to say about the bag. I had some leaks, but was able to stop them with duct tape on both sides of the plastic, so that I had duct tape contacting duct tape.

I have found several voids though, and fixed them using the techniques outlined by others in this thread. I think they are probably inevitable to some degree.

 

Now that I have completed my 4 panels (each is 1/2 of a hull), I will comment on some differences between the way Charly did them and the way I did them, for interested readers. I will comment in blue. Again, Charly, or anyone else, if you feel my post is out of place in here and that I should start a new Kurt Hughes thread for my build, please let me know and I/we/mods can move my comments out.

 

Hello everybody, my name is Eladio and I'm trying to decide which model of Kurt Hughes can build, thinking that you have already gone through that process and are already building their boats, insurance can help.
My decision is based on the type of navigation I have planned to perform, and the speed of the boat. My intentions are sailing along the coast of Brazil, sailing on the coast and also in open sea.

It is important to velocodad the boat, some domestic comforts that life is not so hard, but basically miy make a boat fast and easy construction.
I'm between two models: The 36 day charter and the 40 'trimaran mad dog.
The 36 'looks simple to build but do not know if I have good speed, plus you can sell it faster than a trimaran when the "fever" pass. While 40'luce as a good runner, and also simple, its interior comfort seems "acceptable."
I have read a lot about Cylinder mold, and I think that is an excellent system. (More photos please builders!)

I'm sure I've left many areas without regard, so I ask help to you, and any comments are welcome.


Congratulations to the boat builders, I am very enthusiastic about their experiences and photos of all the steps.

Best regards
Eladio

 

the 36 day charter was a delight to build and with some careful cabin work would make a very nice tandem or solo cruiser. it's a little lite but the one I directed took some nasty storms on the lower Great Lakes including numerous big wave stuffings.

 

Beinvenido eladio,

I can't answer your questions about the performance of Kurt Hughes boats, but I hope to keep this thread going throughout my build of the daycharter 36 Perhaps my experiences will help you decide.

So far I am very pleased with the results.

Mucha suerte,

Charly

 

keel pour

I had hoped to do this all in one wet out, but I ran out of resin. It took way more than I had figured, or guessed, actually, since I didn't bother to try and measure the empty space on each side of the keel timber. Mistake.
The good news is that I didn't cover the the keel timber, so all I have to do to prep for the next session is to rough grind the top of the cedar plank, and a little bit of hardened bog on each side of it. Then I can form the big cove, and lay on the other two long pieces of biax.

The plans call for: wet out keel area; bog in the crack, to cover the wires; 1 strip of biax tape,; more bog; embed the keel timber; more bog to form the cove; two overlapping strips of biax on top of that; and finally peel ply. Eat your cheerios.

Next time I will try and fashion a more perfect fitting keel timber, so as to use less epoxy. I went through nine gallons already, and will probably need three or four more.

just ignore the first photo. it is from an earlier session

 

keel pour

 

Friends, thanks for your comments, and welcome words!.
Really follow the process of construction, enthusiasm, to make that day charter 36 ...
And as say-unkookedlentil. can achieve a comfortable cabin for travel.
This model has a large deck that allows life on board a very "lazy" Perhaps a roof is needed there.

I'll be waiting for more data and comments from the buildings, this makes this post very interesting and useful for those who want to make a Kurt Hughes boat.

Best regards
Eladio