Stripping complete – first 50-50 coat applied

Stripping the partition between the head and the main cabin turned out to be about an eight-hour process when completed. Four times my estimate, but it is done.

The first coat of 50-50 varnish-thinner.
The first coat of 50-50 varnish-thinner.

The first coat of 50% Epiphanes and 50% paint thinner when on about 5pm today.

50-50 varnish solvent
First 50-50 coat is complete.

Stripping involved a replacement heat gun — the first $10 Harbor Freight heat gun lasted more than one project, which is beyond its duty cycle in my mind, and I hope this one will last that long — lots of scraping, and finally 80 grit sand paper to get whatever the heat gun didn’t remove.

The partition is made of 10mm 7-ply plus two veneers marine plywood without voids.

7-Ply Marine plywood from partition
7-Ply Marine plywood from partition

The so-called marine plywood we’re seeing at lumber stores here in the Seattle area has voids. When did plywood that is called marine get voids… and a sheet of exterior I recently bought delaminated when it got wet. The exterior was bought from a lumber yard, not Home Depot.

This is worrisome. I know the real McCoy is out there, it will just be a matter of shopping better, and paying what it is really worth.

Author: johnjuliano

One-third owner of Caro Babbo, co-captain and in command whenever Caro Babbo is under sail.

3 thoughts on “Stripping complete – first 50-50 coat applied”

  1. Hi J&J
    I am enjoying all the updates (especially the pix with clear descriptions)
    I am also happy to see your new website is up :))
    I will definitely follow you on your journeys!!
    Blessings with great Joy & Love abounds to Hilary
    Sieglinde

  2. Hello John , This is Bjoern from Limhamn , Sweden , we also bought our MAXI 95 last year, she certainly is a beuty allthough a bit tricky no manouver in narrow ports. This Year we installed a Bowprop ( Vetus ) and changed our mainprop to a 3 bladed. The Maxi 95 Association in Sweden has abt 600 members and they also have their own website with loads of information abt the boat
    all the best

    1. Hi Bjoern,

      Thank you for writing.

      In North America Max 95s, and Maxis in general, are so rare that the idea of a group with 600 in it is amazing.

      Have you joined the Maxi 95 Facebook group? And, I will look into Swedish Maxi 95 association, could you send me a link? I belong to the British group (http://www.maxiowners.org).

      Caro Babbo’s 3-bladed prop

      We have a three bladed prop, and are very pleased with it. I feel the trade-off between the reduced drag folding prop, or a two bladed prop for that matter, and the reliability and thrust of fixed bladed prop to be a worthwhile trade-off. However, I would like to look into some of the self-feathering props, like a Maxprop. But, I am concerned about the complexity of mechanics in those, especially when the boat is not used under power often. (We don’t haul our boats out of the water in the Pacific Northwest.)

      Regarding maneuvering in tight spaces: I suspect your definition of tight might be a lot smaller than ours. Having said that, when we’re under power Jennifer is the skipper, and I am very impressed by her abilities to maneuver in these very tight places. She seems to do it easily.

      I’ll ask her to comment.

      I’d like to hear more about your bow thruster. The purist in me feels that it is somehow cheating. On the other hand, I’ve seen people do amazing maneuvering in very tight spaces with one, and it seems to be a very nice addition.

      How much storage space do you lose when installing it?

      I look forward to your response.

      Best regards,

      – john

      If you are not a member of the next 95 facebook group, would you like an invitation from me?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *