Stripped naked
07 November 2008 | Antwerp
There we are, at the end of the week - a positive note.
The rot is not as bad as it first appeared - along some seams and around the shrouds it's really bad. So bad it affected the headlining underneath.
On the positive side - more than 80% of the mulitiplex ply under the teak is still good. To be replaced where necessary, then the whole lot will be sanded and laminated and then the cork laid. Finally, a completely waterproof boat.
In some places the teak was still in 'as new' condition. Shipyard guru commented that if the deck had been properly re-caulked 6 or 7 years ago she would have had at least another 10 years left in her before needing a replacement (original teak was 15mm thick). By the time we got her 3 years ago it was too late already, the rot had set in.
Shipwright to start Monday, to have the whole deck stripped by the end of the week. Then she'll dry out for two weeks. Hope to see some progress from now on.
Taking winches home to be re-chromed and then cleaned & greased.
Every-one (including me) altogether more optimistic about the whole project than at the start of the week. The wrecking is all done, it can and will only get better from now on.