What Order is Best? Fairing/Glassing/Hull Construction

[michael pierzga]

Yah...I can see from the construction picture that you must finish the hull...make it ridgid.

Also, now is a good time to start scketching the systems layout of the boat. All the cable runs and plumbing runs.

Getting the foundations and thru bulkhead cutouts in early saves vast time later.

[Samnz]

My first hand advice (just about finished a 8.5m composite tri) is to do as much work inside the halfs as possible before you join them!

also I would never leave any part to be "faired later", fair every part as you build (i.e you dont wanna be fairing both hulls at once!) it other wise months of sanding will be very very depressing later on.

I trick I have heard is to put a 6 oz boat cloth (as you are laminating it) over the heavy glass to hide the weave.

Easiest way to fair it is to get the foam near perfectly faired with rebates for the glass joins, dont rush it or it will come back to haunt you, then roll and trowel on the microballons straight onto the tacky glass laminate all in one job, no peel ply-

keep up the good work!

[Samnz]

also on another note, I cant believe the half you took off the mold has temp bulkheads, it should have all the permanent bulkheads taped in already?

[CatBuilder]

Thanks, Sam. The temp bulkheads have been covered ad nauseum on other threads and have to do with a limited lift capacity in my building.

[CatBuilder]

I did just as you said in the first post above, thanks.

[themanshed]

On my tri I bogged the outside to protect the foam. The first half I bogged to almost a finish and that was a mistake. The best is to join the hulls then to use a notched spreader and gave the foam a first coat to seal and protect it from there it is up to you. Doing the final faring takes a lot of time and work so you can do 1/2 now then do the other hull later or lay-up the other hull then look forward to faring the whole boat in at one time. I learned lessons on the way so I'm glad I tok the two step method.

Now I'm filling in the notches and doing the final faring for my center hull then I'm doing the outside skin before I start the Ama's. That way I know I can move it around and not worry about damage. They do get dinged up and I had a huge temp drop and something hit the hull that cause a crack in the foam so my thought is to get fiber glass, in my case carbon on both sides as soon as you can.