Pat:
I hadn't come across that pic before. I wonder if that was Photoshopped or just staged for the pic? I can't see how that little tub could even float, let alone get underway with that monster hanging off the back.
Arch:
I generally agree with you as far as non factory paint jobs on OB's. That said, this particular paint job definitely needs the motor to be painted as well to make it all work together IMHO. If I do go with this paint scheme, I'm pretty much locked into keeping this motor with the boat. I don't have a problem with that, but I still have to think of the possible mechanical issues that could pop up with running a 32 year old OB, no matter how well taken care of it appears to have been. There's also the fact that my OD green painted TOP would look WAAAY out of place on any other boat if I ever wanted to hang it on another hull. I suppose it's nothing a little more paint couldn't cure if it ever came to that.
Now for today's progress report. The cap(s) for the DVA showed up in the mail today so I spent a few minutes soldering it in. I know I've been telling you guys about this DVA for a while now, but without pics "it didn't happen". Right? So here's the proof.
I still need to test it out yet, but I wanted to get a little more done with the sponson sides first. I propped up the port side piece and drilled some starter holes in the center of the beam locations. I then used the jig saw to cut the holes out to size. It's fine for them to be a little oversized since the beams get attached to the bulkheads to get their alignment and support. After the first side was done, I flipped it over again then aligned and reattached the two scarfed pieces together again. I used the holes to guide the jig saw to copy the holes to the opposite side.
After all the beam cut outs were done, I transferred all the bulkhead station and reference lines onto the rough outboard sides. The rough sides of the ply will be facing the inside of the sponsons where the bulkheads will be attached, so that's where I need to be able to see them. I ran my hands over the outside edges while the pieces were still stuck together and faired any imperfections out with the belt sander. The inboard most deck stringer and the sponson keel will help define the actual shape on those edges.
I won't have the money to get the wood for the rest of the beams until next payday (1 Nov), so those will just have to wait. What I'll do in the meantime is just go ahead and attach the bulkheads to the sponson inner sides first, without the beams. The sides will be a bit floppy without the beams to connect them, but all I really need to have is a good flat surface to work on. That way I can get the bulkheads perpendicular to the sides, and also lined up with the station and reference lines. Before I can install the sponson tip on the starboard side, I'll need to make another butt block and extension like I did for the port side and cut it to shape. I'll be using glue to permanently attach the extension and the butt blocks. The screws holding it together will only stay in place long enough for the epoxy to dry. They'll all be removed and the holes will be filled with epoxy afterwards.