Building Odissey

Ecco un altro bambinone pazzerello come noi, prima di Natale avevamo mandato una mail ad un "collega" che sta costruendo una barca simile alla nostra, un Dix 43, Brian, così si chiama, qualche giorno fa ha risposto con una simpatica mail che abbiamo pensato fosse interessante leggere insieme.
Il suo sito (http://www.odysseyyachts.com/Odyssey_Yachts/BUILDING_BLOG/BUILDING_BLOG.html) è fatto bene e molto interessante, vengono su esso riportati con scrupolo tutti i dubbi e le relative soluzioni.
La mail è in inglese, ma i lettori di questo blog sono colti ed istruiti e ci sembrava inutile e offensivo tradurla.

Hi ,

Thanks for writing-it is always nice to hear from a compatriot boatbuilder, especially one who is building in alloy, " the miracle metal".

I have been to your area of Italy, staying near Castelfiorentino in an agritourismo  several years ago. Beautiful!  Florence, Siena, San Gimignano, Vinci, we had a fantastic time. 

You, too, will have an adventure when the day comes to move your vessel to the sea. That is the most frequent question I hear from visitors: how will you get the boat out of here? I tell them, If , after 5000 hours of building a boat, I cannot figure out that small detail, then I have no business launching her!  I'm much more concerned with things like fuel systems, electrical and electronics. The welding is actually not too difficult. Although just recently I have been welding  the insides of the built in keel fuel and water tanks-that is a challenge, especially since those welds must be perfectly sealed. This weekend I hope to pressure test the aft keel reserve tank and find out how good my welds are.

I have also been researching insulation and have decided on using a combination of insulating paint (Mascoat Delta T) for the frames and stringers, combined with Armacell closed cell  glue in place sheet for the ceiling and hull open spans. Steve Dashew is  a proponent of the Armacell. He has great website, www.setsail.com, where he details construction in New Zealand of his aluminum motor yachts, as well as having a large section of  questions and answers about all things cruising and boatbuiding.

Also, you might like to join  a free web forum of  which I am a founder, www.metalboatbuilding.org. It is an international group of builders working in steel and alloy. Small but serious, and very informed and civil, there is no insulting , disrespectful or aggrressive talk allowed, just boatbuilding.

I met DD at the Annapolis boat show in October- we had a great afternoon exploring the many boats. He did not have nice things to say about the new (very ugly) Beneteaus!  His boats seem very practical and seaworthy, yet maintain an attractive aesthetic. I think if your boat doesn't excite your heart the way a beautiful woman dies, then it's not the right one!

Keep welding!

Cheers

Brian