Sabalo build finally underway!

[goanywhere]

The forward hatch cut out and ready for the rim to be glued up.



Question: Should the lip for the hatch be glassed or just epoxy coated?

[goanywhere]

Went out for the first serious fishing trip today. Actually it still wasn't too serious, I ended up going out about two hours later than planned because I had to install some bits and pieces to the yak which took me longer than I expected. But I did manage to catch a couple of garfish and a nice squid. I got heaps of comments and questions from passers by on the beach about how nice it was to see a wooden kayak. One fellow was almost wetting himself with excitement at seeing my Sabalo! I am falling in love with this boat already. I am going to really enjoy it.



Only one bug that bothers me. For some reason I am taking on water. It is entering the storage area under the cockpit floor. Not too much, about a half-litre an hour, but it is enough to really annoy me. I can only think that the place the water must be coming in is through the scuppers somehow. I initially thought it might be through the cockpit floor hatch, but it was dead calm out on the water today, and no splashes could have caused that much water to leak into there. I thought I had sealed the scuppers up really well, but on close inspection it looks like there could be a pin-hole gap where it might not be sealed properly. I am going to do a leak test by filling up the middle section under floor area with water and looking for drips. It is only the mid section that is leaking. The other two sections are dry as a bone after 3 hours. (That is the advantage of having sealed bulkheads dividing the main sections. If I hole one section the others will still float and I won't sink.

Even with the leak I am still very pleased with the result. The Sabalo is one fine fishing kayak!

[jem]

Once you find the leak drill out any wood that got wet, get a good acetone wipe on the exposed grain, and maybe even let it dry out in the sun for a couple days. Fill it with epoxy-filler mixture. Might need to apply a glass patch if the area is big enough.

[goanywhere]

If it is the spot I think it is it will be very difficult to drill. It is in a place I couldn't get my drill into. I could try using a drill bit held by a pair of plyers and work slowly by hand, but other than that it might mean a drastic fix. I was thinking of reducing the square hole to a round hole by making fibreglass tubes that just fit in the square holes and pouring epoxy in around them to totally seal them. The scuppers don't need to be very big and they would look neater as well. It would add a little weight but I would rather make sure that the leak is dealt with once and for all.

I did make a bit of a mess with the forward scuppers. Firstly I made the mistake of putting quad timber pieces on the inside corners, then the cockpit cutouts didn't line up exactly with the tops of them, so I had to file, sand and fill to get them looking ok. I think that I may have left a bubble or two somewhere during my messy filling which could have burst during curing and left a hole. I did apply quite a bit of thickened epoxy in there to try to make sure it was sealed but it might not have fixed it. Anyway, I will find the leak somehow!

I just can't think of anywhere else there could be a leak, unless there is a crack somewhere.

Do you think that my idea of the tubes might work?

[goanywhere]

Yesss, found the leak! It was as I expected, one of the forward scuppers. I filled that section with water and when it was almost full it squirted out in a rapid drip. Obviously there needed to be a bit of pressure to make it leak, but it did.

If I had done what I was thinking with the tubes it might have been a waste of time. The leak was right at the bottom corner of the scupper where it meets the hull panel. I wouldn't have thought it could have leaked there after all the coats of epoxy I put there, but it leaks at the sharp corner where the two panels meet. Obviously the taping and epoxy fillets didn't completely fill that spot. It is right at the bottom of one of the corner round reinforcing pieces, and I remember it was difficult to fill properly.

I can drill out that corner as you suggest Matt, then refill it with filleting mix, and tape it.

That should fix it.

[Earvin]

Good work - sometimes leaks can be a bugger to find. Glad to hear that one was easy.

[goanywhere]

Yeah, even plastic yaks can have leaks. My other yak which is plastic always has water in it when I bring it home after a paddle. I haven't been able to find where it is on that one. I suspect it is the drain plug not sealed properly, but it isn't much of a leak and I'm not too bothered about it now.

[Falcn]

Yesss, found the leak! It was as I expected, one of the forward scuppers. I filled that section with water and when it was almost full it squirted out in a rapid drip. Obviously there needed to be a bit of pressure to make it leak, but it did.

Nice, one! Hope the fix cured the problem.

[goanywhere]

I got stuck into the repair last night. Filed the sharp corner back to round, drilled out the area I think was the weak area, looked like thin crack where it wasn't filled properly as I expected. Mixed up some fillet mix and filled it well, then 3 overlapping strips of glass cloth. I don't think I'll even sand the cloth, I want it as thick and strong as possible and it's only on the very bottom. That should do it (I hope!)



The proof will be when I do the water test after letting it cure for a couple of days.

I also added another layer of heavy 8oz cloth on the rear skeg. I noticed that dragging it on the sand just once the other day almost wore through the epoxy/graphite coating, and I gave it 3 good coats. A good heavy extra layer should give it some room for wear and tear.

[goanywhere]

Well, finally 'Go Anywhere' is fitted out and looking like a real fishing kayak. I finished fitting the final bits and pieces yesterday. I hope to take her out for a shakedown today to test out paddling with the rod holders etc. in place. I hope I get a good free paddle stroke with them set up there, it works ok practicing on the ground but on water is always different.

I am finishing off the other bits I will need for sailing, including building a carbon-fibre rudder, and hopefully that will all be finished by early December. I am planning a week long fishing/camping trip straight after Christmas, so I want it all finished by then.

Next weekend will be the first 'public debut' of the Sabalo, I am entered in a fishing comp, and even if I win nothing else, I am sure to win some appreciation from the other competitors.

Just one frustration. I bought a Lowrance X52 fish finder/sounder from a contact on another forum. Yesterday I just finished installing it and was about half an hour into testing it and learning the ropes when it just died. I think the power supply died, and all I get when I press the power button is a brief flash on the screen and nothing! I am sure that the guy I bought it from will do the right thing, but it looks like I won't have a sounder for next weekend.