Having a couple of issues separating the hull from the mould - nothing too major but I just need to wait until a couple of people can come over and help (as I don't want to force anything)

A boat or an expensive blob of carbon resin and foam

Well the resin is curing with plenty of peelply, in a couple of days we'll know whether it has the structural integrity to be called a boat. I think its kay, but the laying up and resining always felt rushed. Time to shut the shed door and walk away for a couple of days.

Boat is faired, filled and faired and filled and faired - I am certain that I could do this four or five more times but i think I am ready to Carbon the hull now (hindsight will be 20/20 on if I am right). So the weather is looking good, the rain has cleared up so the next post should be of a laminated hull waiting to dry while we build some aluminium boat trolleys. I am nervous and excited, I don't think I have rushed anything so i hope it all goes well.  In the picture you can see the boat with the carbon and peel ply hanging up at the back of the shed:

• I'm using a light glue spray on the carbon to hold the fibres together when I cut
• I bough a really good pair of scissors (like $40 dollars) and they are worth every cent

SO I need to cut and lay up the rest of the carbon, vacuum (the cleaning kind) the hull again, cut the peel ply and then mix resin - and pray I don't/haven't screwed it up! 

Test sample of carbon

My test sample of carbon and foam. While we wait for the rain to ease up (humidity is to high in the shed) I did a couple of test samples of carbon to practice to make sure I don't go too heavy on the resin.

In this sample I had 35gms of foam, 19 gms of carbon and a total cured weight of 79 gms - just need to use the spatula a bit ore after I put the peelply on.

1% of the area 99% of the effort

Well we delayed laminating today until next Tuesday as I was not happy with the bow shape. Geoff has forwarded me templates for frames 1 and 2 that have the foam factored in so I should be able to sight from these as to whether I need to keep sanding or fill and fair. It's frustrating but it is worth getting right.

I also did a test lay up of carbon on foam last night, so we can approximate if there may be a weight issue and look at vacuum bagging ....

More rain, and Bubs on antibiotics have cut seriously into boat building (but family comes first), but if I get my arse into gear and finish fairing by Wednesday we'll still be able to laminate the carbon Thursday morning (touch wood). If not it will be next week, as it's my brothers wedding this weekend.

Sorry it's been a bit quiet, but there isn't much to say (or take pictures of) when you are just sanding and fairing.

The plan is to laminate next Thursday so pictures and posts will be coming thick and fast then.