Just checking out...

As I said: No work today. Went there to meet someone. 

Electric installation taking shape. Just a first try....

Gaffing

No work today. But I went to the boat. to check things. The gaff is coming together  Not a masterpiece. But I guess it will do the job nicely.

Nixe sailing

The lovely proa, Nixe, which has been built by Alexander, in Thailand, has been launched. I congratulate Alexander and his crew on the swift and beautiful construction, and which all the best for the upcoming sailing experience.

Paint it Red...

So; Yesterday was finally the day of painting. Arpex received its first coat of paint. I'm very happy with it. I think it looks smashing.

 Now we will work on some spots, which need further fairing. Then a second coat will be applied. And then we will put the white paint on the decks. And then the boat will be almost ready to launch.

Gaff coming

It seemed easy in the start, then complications appeared. But now it is coming together. It is the gaff for the Wharram type wingsail, that Arpex will be sporting.

Paint it Red

Blood red, that's the color.

Let's Play That

Equilibre Proa Sailing

martinique 253 por praocean

The flying proa Equilibre has already been featured here on this blog. But it is always nice to see that the boat is still sailing regularly.

The World of Internet

The modern world is relying more and more on digital interchange of data - on the internet. We shop on the internet, we pay our bills, we entertain ourselves and others, we date on the internet... But more than that, now even objects change data between themselves, to make our live more comfortable  And of course, to generate data for the producers to sell us more of their stuff.

Like it or not, it is the way things are going.

I am an active internet user. I do all things above, except for the dating, which is more fun "in real life and color". I even keep a blog, which seems to attract interest among a quite international crowd. I take interested notice of the origin of traffic, even if it does not really influence the content of my blog. As stated in other posts, I have not much interest in "generating" additional traffic anyway, since this is an open, but private space.

Anyway,.... This is why I found the image above very interesting  It depicts the internet activity in the world, along different times of the day. Curiously, it has been generated by a hacker, via a non licit method. He actually hijacked millions of computers, and created a botnet. A method commonly used by hackers to create gigantic networks to spread spam, viruses and other malicious stuff. In this case he did not have bad intentions  and released the hijacked computers soon after concluding his "study". Apparently he even left a visit card, with his contacts... (read the article on Der Spiegel, in German).

Riding on an e-bike

A friend of ours is bringing these e-bikes from Matra to Brazil. They are built in good French quality. He let us have it for a joyride. To me it seems a great alternative to drive to work. In principle I would rather take the bicycle  But the downside it to arrive all sweaty. I guess with the e-bike this could be avoided. Anyway. It is good fun to ride.

Early Morning Glory

Waking up early has its rewards. This is shortly before 6am. If you click on the pic, you'll get a fine view.

Console

Still working on the console which will protect the steering cables, house the battery and support the electric switch board. Surprising how much time is taken up trying to find a satisfactory (even if modest) fit for all the parts. Besides making things fit, the challenge is also to find a way to fix the structure, while also keeping it quickly removable. Ideally I would find a way to keep it firmly in place without screws. ... Still working on that.

Another surprise is how a thing that seemed complicated at first, then seemed simple, and than went out of rudder, and now is still keeping me busy... It is the gaff. I terribly regret that I have said it would be easy to build, before completing it. Never again... The problem is that on of the wooden parts revealed to have a knot. And when I tested the fit of the parts and put a clamp to it, the part cracked. So now I need another one. And getting hold of the guy who has the equipment to cut the wood properly is not so easy. I've been trying...

Panorama

Today we got a lovely panorama. cold front arriving. If you're going out sea, then watch out. Click on the image for a big, lovely view.

Electrics installation

I have been working on the development of the electrics for Arpex. There is not going to be much electrics there, I keep telling myself, but in the end, you need the basics: Navigation lights, bilge pump, internal illumination, a 12V power plug (for whatever), and while were at it, a sound system. 

I'm still in doubt about the position for the battery. I have some concerns whether it will affect the compass, which is located only about 60-70 cm from it... As far as I know, batteries and compasses are not a thing that goes together well.

Sirenic Quotidian

Going through the mermaid collection on Never Sea Land, this one has attracted my attention.

Internal panorama

 

Click on the image for a detailed view.

Champions!!!

Electrics installation

I spent a tiring and hot day messing about with a variety of jobs. The jobs are related to the electric installation, the deck and the metal fittings. At fist I meant to place the battery in the corner shown in the picture above. However, this would put the battery in close proximity to the compass. And that is not a good thing. Compasses don't like magnetic fields created by batteries. So I need to find another spot.

The electric switch board will be located right by the cabin entrance. I will need to install a protection for the steering cables. And the protection will double up, quite handily, as a support for the switch board. Since I didn't find an appropriate part to distribute the electric power (word?), at least I didn't like the ones I saw, I just produced it myself. And for now  I believe it will serve well.

All sorts of stuff for the electric installation has been sourced.

The deck panel, for the deck between the hulls has been coated in epoxi. 

Green Moth

Funky insect came to inspect the construction of Arpex. Maybe irritated by its red antagonist?

Music's missing - Segura o Dragão!!!

Another one of Luanda's podcasts. Enjoy! Check out the third song, by Mundo Livre S.A.! I love these guys. Reminds me of good times in Recife, back in 2001. Otto, Guluga,! Lembra? Você me apresentou ao som dos caras. Muito bom. Dona Oerte is another highlight, and Otto....
Uns puta som!
Obrigado Luanda.

Metal fittings

Several metal fittings need to be produced. Like the pulpit and pushpit. But also the gaff needs some stainless steel. Just like the deck between the akas need fixation. So I made my way back to the scrap yard, which works with special steels. Always an interesting place to go to.

Reddening - No tricks

Things are going red now... This time no digital tricks involved.

Current status

Sometimes electronically generated renderings, simulations, can be a bit confusing. They create an image of what is not there yet. Which is what they are good for. They give us a chance to look at something, before we actually build it. 

I do produce some renderings, according to my rather limited possibilities. But they do succeed in confuse some readers. Which is not my intention. So, just to clarify; the boat is not yet painted. Still, some fairing needs to be finished, before Arpex can receive its new coating. I hope to have it done soon.

If you are in doubt, the picture above shows how Arpex looks now.

The jobs that still need to be done, are:

- Paint decks and hulls,

- Finish deck between hulls,

- Finish gaff,

- Produce wishbone boom,

- Install electric system (navigation lights, interior illumination, pump,...),

- Produce, purchase and install deck fittings,

- Put all parts together...

Akka - A unique tacking proa

Johannes, a member of the Proafile Forum, has brought up this very unique boat from Sweden. It is a tacking proa, with a good looking junk rig. The boat, "Akka" is splendidly built in a retro looking style, which sports a lot of shiny wood and chrome. Its hull is spindle like, and offers a comfortable interior, which also seems built to high standard. The builder, Röda Möllan Sweden, has a very creative looking website. 

Interestingly, the yard seems to have a relationship with the color red. One phrase ought my attention: 

"RED? Mythology say that the red color protects against evil, it is associated with freedom, courage, strength, energy, passion, love ... Life" 

I thought it applied beautifully to Arpex.

The Gaff

And then there are some things, which seem terribly complicated, before you start. But once you do, you see that they are actually simple and straight forward. The gaff seems to be one of those things. Today of prepared all the parts, except for one small dowel, which I need to purchase. But except for that, all is pretty much prepared. All I need to do, is glue things together, and coat with epoxi.... Good.

Little Things

All those little things that need doing... There is a surprising amount of small things that need doing when you want to build a boat. Things that might look and even feel like they are done, often aren't. Holes that you drill into wood, need to be epoxied, to avoid having them rotting in future. Parts need permanent fixing. And you often need to consider that you might want a permanent fixation, which is actually removable, if you need to do some maintenance... A good part of this day was consumed doing things like that...

Among other things, I did coat that little hidden cleat with epoxi...