Everglades Challenge: Bulking up

Frankenscot, our planned monohull sailboat entry into the 2014 Everglades Challenge race, continues to take shape. The addition of some bulkheads, spacers, and holders for the racks has kept Twobeers off the streets. And sporting a Tyvek jumpsuit -- be still my heart!

Thanks to a surprisingly spirited thread discussion of the Frankenscot, on the ever-lively sailing website SailingAnarchy.com, we have no shortage of fresh opinions on the project from both inside and outside of the WaterTribe. 

After having removed the seats from the former Flying Scot -- thereby making the boat resemble a bathtub all the more -- it seemed prudent to beef up support for the deck. If there are any non-sailors still here, bless your heart! -- imagine a tupperware dish: a rigid lip gives the lightweight plastic bowls a lot more strength. Same concept with boats. 
Click to enlarge photos below.

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Low craftitude: a glue gun would have made the process of making a template much easier. Still, we are grateful for duct tape.

Fiberglass-and-balsa bulkhead.

Pressing the bulkhead into position. Note the freshly ground fiberglass hull for maximum adhesion.

Thanks to Chris and Monica Morgan for delivering a handful of balsa for the bulkheads. They know their fiberglass.

With both racks in place, the Frankenscot has a 10-foot, 11-inch wingspan.  Since 8 feet is the maximum width for highway driving -- of course the Frankenscot's wings are detachable. A key engineering challenge is to be sure that they detach only on command. 

The aluminum tubing of the rack passes through the deck and fits snuggly into fiberglass sleeves, which are anchored to the hull with yet more fiberglass strips.

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With the racks set roughly in place.

Marking the adhesion area for grinding.

Sleeve in place. When testing commences -- we'll be doubling up on crew.

In addition, the racks attach to the deck on small risers to give them the lift they need.

Rack will be through-bolted with this riser.

The Frankenscot's new topsides.

With the fiberglass resin kicking with a faint whiff of cyanide -- ah, fiberglass! -- today's work is done. Next up, the application of hardware.