Sail Life - Fixing holes and priming the engine compartment - DIY sailboat repair 

Your "temporary" fixes look pretty awesome to me haha

I'm following your channel for a long time now and the more I see you opening up and fixing the 'inner values' of the Warrior the more I get convinced never to buy one of this boats. I'm looking myself for a project boat but I will concentrate my search on Swedish made boats. Just for the building quality. You do such a great job with all the possible patience in the world but I'm afraid my own fuse would be too short for such a ... construction. Looking forward for your next entertaining an educating video, keep them coming. And thank you for your efforts

I like the concept of a screendoor for the submarine.

Mads, Andy on Boatworks rebuilt a rudder by removing the glass skin on one side, removed the old wet foam core and refoamed the inside with high density foam and reglassed the rudder. I think this is a much more efficient approach in terms of the time required and materials cost. I would also suggest you have a strip of metal welded across the front edge of the rudderpost fingers. A rectangular flange rather than loose fingers will be much stronger and provide a firmer set in the foam. A foam cored rudder is the standard in the US and given your rudder is skeg hung, a foam core is plenty strong.

That brown stuff is Marmite. Its worth a pretty penny in the UK.

Your thoroughness or attention to detail is astonishing.

Nothing more fulfilling than a coat of fresh paint. The prep work is the challenging part, the paint job is its reward.

Hi Mads. I came across your channel and subscribed back in the early part of the winter. Since then I've been quietly binge-watching from the very first videos of working on Obelix, and I'm now caught up to the present. I now have to patiently wait for your next videos to come out like everyone else. I find your videos to be very informative, entertaining and very well put together. Two thumbs up Mads!

Your patience, perseverance, and positive attitude are really inspiring, man. Keep it up!

For your PVC pipe or the fiberglass tube into the plywood, you can use West System G-Flex. Read the directions from Gougeon and you can learn more about the product. I always keep some on hand for just these small projects----Mikey----Seattle

For rudder construction I’ve used Fox’s Foam in Florida.

I wouldn't worry about the power outage.......I've made repairs to my lobster boat in Maine in winter and while it does take awhile to cure I've seen no problems with structural properties long term......your videos are great.....thanks

You're great!! I never take your channel for granted... thanks for your contributions.

My two buddies and I are building an airplane out of fiberglass composites (a Cozy IV). We use MGS resin and hardener, we often freeze excess mixture at -20 F, for 2 to 5 days before thawing and using for the next layup or bonding. We have never had a problem with any parts that have used this mix either alone or mixed with fresh epoxy. The low temperature treatment seems only to slow polymerization not stop it. If the mix is in the freezer to long, it just becomes too stiff to use. I do not West systems epoxy would be significantly different. Dave in Kentucky. : )

I love your attitude. Positive and what to do to repair it! We look forward to you vids weekly.

Happy Anniversary (2017-2-26) !!

Your attention to detail and practical solutions and follow-through are all excellent, in my opinion. S/V ...Waves

Thanks Mads another great video, just keep pluging along you will get there!

Mads your the SUPERMAN of DIY .... I know You can build a new rudder an have it ready to got for this summer!!

Nice video lots of epoxy technical instructions

Thank you Mads, great content as usual. We all know that you are not a professional boat builder and you have a day time job and limited time for your own life. I enjoy watching Sail Life a lot and waiting for the upload without patience every week. Is there a way to make you work longer on the boat and we could watch longer videos?

Mmm Dough! All you need to do to fix the rudder then is find an oven big enough and bake until golden brown! I'll be interested to see how you go about making the mold.

+1 for the I heart Ava note in the background. And for being the awesome guy you are!

I have seen this brown icky stuff before. It is what forms when polyester and water sit together for a long time. Somehow chemistry takes over and , voila, brown icky stuff! It can be a bit caustic so don’t get it in your eyes. It is quite messy and should be removed of course. I had a friend whose boat oozed the stuff all over from a damp deck. He gave up and finally sold the boat. It doesn’t look like you had too much to worry about though. Enjoying your videos as always. Looking forward to seeing the rudder build. I’ve made a few molds for things similar to that myself.

Wise choice on the rudder. If you need metal repairs - have a machine shop weld it and reshape it. Oh, and we need more cute dog video! 😬

In my boat and my plans to cruise the world, I would install a wind pilot with the emergency rudder, the cost will be more than a new rudder, but it would have a very usefull function, and when the old rudder break, just replace. Just my 2 cents, your work is outstanding, thanks for sharing with us!

I like how you send Ava messages on the door. ♥

Another awesome video. Every week Sail Life is the highlight of my Sunday night. I totally get and agree with your reasoning to use the rudder for another couple of years, while planning on building a new one. The mold-making process should be a great video. I can't wait until you tackle that project.

Mads! The highlight of the weekend is on Sunday evening

Looking forward to seeing the making of the rudder mold. With ALL that goes into properly overhauling a ruder and getting the flow surfaces correct I think my knowing how to just do one from scratch could be very good thing.

I enjoy your videos again. The deck core project was too much for me, even to watch it. Now this is good stuff again. Enjoy the DIY fun and good luck Mads!

Given what you have discovered already with the cockpit sole, have you considered removing the binnacle and inspecting the sole where it mounts? Seems better to address this now than wait for the engine to be installed so if there is a problem you'll have better access. Just a thought.

The linear looking voids in the plywood below the cotpit could be from a common practice of using grooves cut into the plywood to improve the mechanical adhesion that did not fill properly. Or it could have been strips of plywood and a joint between them. Cheers warren

Mads, I have seen boats with similar holes in the cockpit sole. In those cases it was to have a small viewing window down to the engine. I presume this was to have direct visibility of gauges that may be on the engine, oil pressure, coolant temperature, etc. Probably from the days where the angry pixies weren't trusted to deliver the information reliably and the Captain wanted to see the "real" gauges. Just in case. When you do the major work on the cockpit sole i wonder if it would be possible to make if somehow removable, might make lifting the engine out much easier if the opening lined up with the engine. :)

Thanks for the mention. I think you are absolutely right to make a mould of the old rudder and then make a new rudder plus new stock at some point in the future. Oh, and I've discovered how to pronounce 'dough' correctly - it's 'DOH!' as in how Homer Simpson would say it. Cheers.

"Some kind of brownish goo..." That hooked me. Gotta know what that is.

Crosslinking is when the molecules line up in different directions when they cure, greatly enhancing peel resistance. This was a major problem with cyanoacrylates until they figured out how to crosslink, like in Loctite 380 (AKA "Black Max"). They typically use this stuff to glue voice coils together for speakers. Pretty cool that they have figured out how to achieve this with epoxies...

Your cockpit sole issues probably came from improperly mixed compound... but that’s just a wild-A guess. From the surface, the pattern looks like it might have been made from an arm swinging a trowel. Add poor mixing, and you have your new fun problem. Keep it up, brother.

Hmmm, interesting challenges, and a quick fix or two, and much work completed! Great job Mads! Have a good week, thanks for sharing! 😍⛵⛵⛵⛵⛵⛵⛵⛵😊👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

great episode Mads, hope you have a great week. Cheers from PEI Canada, Bryan

A lot of people complaining about the poor workmanship of the Warrior 38, including me, but I think once Mads is done with it it will be more than fine and last another 30 years or so. The limber holes will provide drainage in the bilge, the hull will be sealed and dry, the deck will last 50 years at least, the rudder will be new, the tanks new... the wiring redone better than new, the sails, rigging etc new. I think that when he finally goes cruising in the boat will be more than adequate. And remember, its what he wanted, a project boat. And ..... he got one. Athena will be fine.

My Sunday is complete!!!!!

whatever you do about the rudder it is one thing on the boat which is worth knowing from the inside out because it is so common (admittedly I have been involved in less than a handful myself) for a rudder to have serious problems especially with a shift sticking out of the middle of it as opposed to a transom hung rudder

Great video as always. Sorry its so cold. I live in Florida dont think i could handle that.

Not sure if you can find it there or not but for all of the wood you could put truck bed liner on it then paint over it. It is water proof and oil and fuel wont go through it. It has a bit of roughness to it when applied as it is slip resistant. It will last forever and add a bit of strength to it. They also use this for the coating of the steel plates for bulletproof vest also they use it as for blast protection. Also I really enjoy your videos keep it up.

Hello Mads. I have been following your vids for almost a year and find them interesting, informative and entertaining. I really do want to continue watching them but I have a major concern. As a firefighter and Fire Investigator here in the northeastern US for 30 years I just have to tell you your use of space heaters, especially with styrofoam in close proximity, is alarming.....fire talk....alarming....anyway, please be extra careful when using space heaters and please do not leave them on while unattended. I want to see you sail Athena and enjoy her and I would like to see her complete. She’s going to be as good as new. Please don’t set her on fire. If you sal her up the East Coast of the US I’d be happy to meet you. You’re doling a tremendous job. God’s speed!

Lots of great work completed this week. Fantastic!

Mads you are going to find this interesting. I once went to work at a Dodge Auto Dealership in the body Shop, about 35 years ago. A couple of the Auto Body men were from another country. They would do that kind of shoddy work you found in the cockpit floor. Only doing it on autos metal repair work. They would only grind a little, drill a few hols in the metal and then spread Bondo all over to fill the dents. Even over the old paint. Yes, they were not grinding all the paint off of the damaged area. When the body shop manager was told, he said, "Leave them alone, they are fast and do this all the time." I went to the painter and he said about 35 to 45% of the autos come back and he has to repaint them for free. When I showed him what they were doing, he refused to paint anymore autos, unless he first inspected them for proper grinding and proper applications of the Bondo product. It was horrible for me to discover that it was going on at an actual Dodge Auto Dealership. The return rate dropped to 3% after that.

It's Sunday afternoon. YAY!!!

I wouldn't go opening up the cockpit floor as like you say, those voids haven't caused any problems. I do think however that you might want to do at least a two stage hole for the big hole you drilled (get one size bigger hole saw and make a top plug that is a wider diameter than the bottom). I had a similar hole on my cabin top that I had to plug (old fuel fitting I patched over) and did the same as you did and after about 6 years the epoxy failed and the whole plug popped out. Andy usually does this as a series of bigger and bigger patches but I think as long as you taper the plug you should be O.K..

Small repairs like the tube, you may want to checkout "3M 04747" panel bonding epoxy. Sets up in 20 seconds and very hard and strong. I've used it in attaching fiberglass Corvette body parts in the past. However, when they say 20 seconds they are not kidding.

Happy anniversary, Mads (and Ava).

Excellent video as usual mads 😀 and enjoy Monday and 12 months celebration with Ava 😀😀 ⛵

Finally you have your base coat. It will be wonderful to have the area finished. Building the new rudder should be a pretty cool project. Can you use the old rudder to make a mold to cast a new one?

Rudder.... Mads use it as is after you repair what should have been a few test holes!!!! Your rudder will be fine , no big signs of crevice corrosion. Dont waste time making a mold you can build a rudder from Coosa type board , glass over and fair it smooth. It’s a better way to make a rudder and just takes a little skill , hence why boat yards use a mold so a rudder will last 40+ years!!! Cheers warren

Is there suppose to be a drain in the cockpit sole? Wow, you are a perfectionist !!

good show as allways.. thanks for sharing.

"Faserverbundwerkstoffe" - what a glorious word for mixing sticks!

I would suggest you to take all of the measurement of that Rutter to make sure you can make a new one before you take it out of the water and the second time in the next summer ! And actually if you want I could make you new plan for the Rutter if you want to share the dimensions, material and stuff !

I have rebuilt boats, cars, homes, & you will always find errors. Some were bad design, some are bad execution, some are the idiots fixing it through time...part of the process. Keep up the great work, love your fiberglass pipe, and I think the bow line is sexy as hell.

Just finished up a major bottom job on my 85 38 foot. Found those voids absolutely everywhere. Very disappointing but I guess it was standard practice back then.

I know you always want to do an extra spiffy job but that cockpit sole is messy but solid so I would not sweat over it. As you say you can go back to it later and when temps are better for epoxy work. Time better spent making the mould for rudder. Keep at it, spiffing work again.

The epoxy chains that form early in the curing process are "crosslinked" through amine hydrogen bonding thereby tying the long chains together and producing a strong matrix of chains.

Thanks for another great video Mads :)

Q: When was the last time you took moisture measurements on the hull?

I wonder why you did not use the moisture meter from below the cockpit. Great video!

Thank You again

Greeting and salutations!

Perhaps the "mystery" holes were core samples from previous surveys or as an attempt to find a leak in the cockpit.

You dont need to put on your rudder to splash your boat , the rudder can be installed while it's in the water. You just have to get wet. Install a lifting lug on rudder post and pull it up through with a small winch

Great video!

Dont forget the LED lighting for engine compartment :D

Grrrreat. Good work on the cockpit sole and a first class decision on the way ahead with the rudder. When you are fibreglassing immediately above the hull would you heat pad not be a better option?👍😀⛵️

The best way to combat nasty paint fumes in a confined space on a tight budget is to get a long hose and tie one end off to topside and use qack tape for the snorkel end, Problem solved! Shazbat nano nano" ;)

It might be that the holes were drilled for exploratory core investigation. It may be that they were not properly epoxied. The next person is always concerned with prior reasons for repairs. The last person is always concerned for the reason why and how to fix the previous repairs.

I wonder if the goo is from the plywood, like sap or the original laminate glue? As always, love your videos.

Bel video, ti chiedevo quando lavorerai alla carena? Mi interessa particolarmente visto che lo sto facendo pure io. Saluti Maurizio

Mads i suggest you test your engineroom isolation before installation and see what isolation doesn´t burn.. A test made a year ago by a friend was suprisingly alarming..

That was to funny. The smell of dying brain cells. Ha :)

Is it possible that the gray board in the rudder is coosa board? Coosa board is a high density polyurethane foam with fiberglass fiber reinforcement.

hey mad keep up the great work. I have a question why do they run the cockpit drains down through the shelf seems like to me some 45 degree fittings and run it through the back and simply it a little? that area just seemed like a mess and its an area that thing will need to be serviced here and there. ;)

Salute! How much thinner did you ad?

In the end, all solutions are temporary !

Don't worry as long as they are dry .

I'll bet those holes were made to correct the void issue, then whoever did that came to the same conclusion that you did: more work is not necessary.

What about the 4 flat head screws by the tripod at 6:45? Look like a bad spot to have screws going threw the boat..

Hi Mads, is there a reason why you have used west systems epoxy rather than mas epoxy? I would have thought their low viscosity resin would have been better for some of the laminating jobs you have been doing.

Did you know that someone has been putting up little posters in Athena with messages to a person called Ava?

It seems they finished this boat on a Friday afternoon, every little job turns into a bigger one.

IN!

Super flot arbejde Mads. Dine huller i dørken.... kan de ha været brugt til at løfte motoren med????

Don't you love doing DIY projects - Open one problem and BAM - A Can of Worms appears

How did you record the temperature on your phone ? A little stand alone piece of hardware that you can leave in the area where you want to monitor temperatures ?

Hey...I like cats...don't skin them please haha! Good video.

Aaaaaahh , cliffhanger everywheres! #sexylookingboxnow 😂

You have probably already answered this in a previous video, but what fairing compound do you use?

9:29 awwwww

Where do you pick up these old American saying, "... they make as much sense as screen doors in a submarine !"

Mads, why say it's the next day, when clearly its ACTUALLY the same day? :)

Hello, but where can i get hold of Sigmacover primer?