Sea Sled madness. It’s in my brain.

I'm getting a bit overwhelmed, mentally, at the number of items left. Can you generous folk suggest a list of things to do, and their priority?

 

1.) Finish wood work.
2.) Finish applying all epoxy cloth so there is NO wood exposed that doesn't have cloth on it.
3.) Fair and Paint
?.) Wire bilge pumps
?.) Install windows and doors
?.) Install outboard controls
?.) Install fuel tank(s)
?.) Install VHF radio
?.) Instal circuit breaker/switch panel
?.) Install battery

I like the brainstorming approach but input needs to be positive to move forward.

 

On the last photo, I understand the aft deck is 6" below the gunwale where the transom meets the gunwale (port quarter).
If that is correct, I would consider cutting the six inches away for better drainage.

 

Noted

 

I became a man of lists John.

I got a lot of wide blue masking tape and made sharpie to do lists in each section of the boat.

It then became patently clear whether I needed the chicken or egg done first.

Another benefit of the lists was I quickly realized what things all needed cabosil and if I could use some xtra putty here or there versus chucking it at a buck an ounce.

Another benefit was some sense of accomplishment despite not painting the hull, for example. I got to cross of item X and that felt good.

 

It may also pay to make a list for each void....in the hull and then the deckhouse.
Use this as a heading.. and then just look and see what you think is missing, from how you intended to finish it, wires, paint, linings, plumbing etc etc ..and also what has yet to be completed.
This way, you break down the potentially long list into smaller bite size items that can slowly be ticked off with that Fallguy sense of accomplishment once done and ticked.

I would also get a large A1 print of the design/GA... and then mark off with colour coded pens, as an aid memoir too, as each task is finished, or highlighted to be done etc. .

 

There is a book that comes to mind:
"From a Bare Hull Up"
I read it years ago, it may prove helpful.
Well written and entertaining, as I recall.
It may be just what the doctor ordered!

BB

 

That's a really good idea, even in a smaller boat. You look around and the notes are there in black and blue, calling your attention to the next step. I'm stealing that.


Personally when I deal with big, many-step projects, which incidentally I hate and also find overwhelming (and which as someone who is now basically a project manager at work, is my whole life) I break it down into big phases.

If I were in your shoes I'd just be saying to myself every day, "well, question number one is the hull. Is it done, structurally? Then don't worry about anything else until it is." I know they say to eat an elephant one bite at a time, but I don't want to look at the whole elephant, I'll just get stressed out. I could eat an elephant FOOT one bite at a time, that I'll do. So I put blinders on, and just look at the foot until it's almost eaten. Once I'm winding down on the foot, I'll adjust the blinders. Oh, another foot? No problem, I can eat one of those, I know exactly how to do it.

There's tools to manage this stuff like Gantt charts but they make me physically ill and just opening Excel makes me furious. I'm a real seat-of-the-pants guy so I like simpler approaches. Mental blinders, don't worry about the complete list of remaining chores, just chug away on a phase you feel comfortable managing.

It's not great project management advice, but it's how I keep from getting overwhelmed. Sometimes you need a mental break from the endless sensation of "oh god, another layer of this onion?"

 

I like that CR. The endless layers of onion. I know it's why carpenters (for example) enjoy far better mental health than say admin clerks (for example). The carpenter experiences a succession of jobs-well-done. The clerk is eating a desert, one spoonful at a time.

 

Doing some check list items. Finalized the design of the foredeck, and the lockers beneath. Scribed and cut 5 pieces. Cell phone was at 3%, so no pics. Tonight or tomorrow night.

 

Today, so far.

 

Re the first photo showing the two pieces of plywood laid down to form the cockpit sole - have they been glued down already, or is this just an initial 'dry' fit?
Re fastening them down, if not yet secured will you be using screws and epoxy to the transverse floors underneath?
Will you be leaving the hull frames exposed as shown, or will there be a coaming on the inboard side of the frames?
Re sheathing with glass and epoxy, will this just be the 'high wear' areas like the deck and cockpit sole, and perhaps the cabin roof, or will the bulkheads, coamings etc all be sheathed as well?

 

Bajansailor, Bluebell assures me that every surface, under the sole or above it, will be sheathed in glass, and saturated with epoxy.

So just a dry fit.

Some sort of coaming. Maybe just sturdy slats, to protect the inner face of the hull from direct contact with cargo, like bricks.

 

I'm starting to think it may be a good idea to buy shares in brick companies.