Building 23' catamaran. Build updates

[fandtm666]

with the fuel tank give sant marine a call .

i had a moeller and now have a sant marine and they are just as good and aussie made
they have a 180ltr for just under $600

Sant Marine Pty Ltd
75 Hartnett Drive
Seaford VIC 3198.
Australia


http://www.santmarine.com.au/store/p...roducts_id=265

[stevemid]

Thanks Fantm666
I looked into Sant but I have a 980 mm length limit and Sant's rectangular tanks of any substantial size are all 1200- 1400 mm in length.

[Chimo]

Hi Steve

Have you considered getting exactly what you want made by an Aussie with ss and al tank building experience?

Cheers
Chimo

[stevemid]

Hi Steve
Have you considered getting exactly what you want made by an Aussie with ss and al tank building experience?
Cheers
Chimo

Hey Chimo, Yes the two companies I got to quote were ArkMarine in Geebung Qld and D&M Marine in Taren Point.

Steve

[Chimo]

Hi Steve

How did they compare for rated, pressure tested tanks?

Cheers
Chimo

[stevemid]

Hey Chimo,
I got two quotes, for two 5052 150L aluminium tanks. One was $1750 the other from Ark Marine for $2550 that included epoxy coating. On the other hand plastic tanks from the US, 2X 150L cost me $817. delivered.

The ones I chose are the new Moeller Marine tanks which have a bi-layer design to meet the 2012 EPA evaporative emissions law in the US. The inner layer is nylon which is chemically impermeable and the outer layer is XLPE or Cross-linked polyethylene. Moeller have been making these tanks for 2 years now. They have 2800 sold and according to them no warranty claims so far.

Given the size of the motors, these tanks probably seem like overkill, however, I'll have the capacity to reach the reef when I travel north and I don't pay a huge weight penalty of leaving them empty pottering around Sydney on removable tanks.

[stevemid]

Today I roughed in the Steps leading up to the forward deck and the Ring Frame. The centre windscreen opens to allow access to the front deck and these steps lead you up to the opening window. The Ring Frame separates the berth from the toilet area and provides support for the deck. It seems like I’m making a lot of progress but soon I’ll have to stop building and start sanding again.

[Dave_H]

Just an observation Steve (have been following your progress closely and if I ever find myself in the position to do what you are then I certainly will be....). The progress shots and the steps above look beaut but do you feel the bottom step is deep enough for a foot to find it in a bit of swell?

Regards,

Dave.

[stevemid]

Hmmm. It IS small and definitely for one foot only. All the tests I've done on mates' boats have been on the trailer.....Your comment leads me to think I'm going to want hand-holds on either side.

edit....
Did some testing with the bottom step today. Actually it is quite secure with the end of the curve on the starbord side and and the wall on the port side, the step actually acts like a stirrup, capturing your foot and giving a secure step up to the next step. I'm happy with it.
Steve

[stevemid]

The ring frame supports the deck on a fore and aft basis and also supports an athwartships deck brace yet to be installed. But the cutout in the ring frame to allow access to the berth weakens the ring frame leaving only a 90mm section on the upper side. Therefore, the ring frame is strengthened by routing out a 10mm trough of the balsa core and replacing this with a rolled up "sausage" consisting of wetted out unidirectional fibreglass. The following pictures tell the story

[stevemid]

Simply Amazing...
I ordered my tanks from Amazon (of all places) on Nov. 22. They were delivered yesterday, shipped from the US with a 6 day turn-around. Amazon must have Moeller Tanks really well integrated in their supply chain as the tanks were drop-shipped from Moeller's factory in Tennessee! Here's the UPS tracking info. In the middle of this I also got two emails from Amazon estimating then confirming a delivery date, which they hit exactly. Interestingly on the 27th when there was a problem delivering to my local news agency, I got an email on the morning of the 28th from Amazon telling me to contact UPS. I called the UPS service centre and the parcels were delivered that afternoon. That is simply the most amazing service around a potential stuff-up that could possibly happen.

Date Time Location Event Details
November 28, 2012 01:47:00 PM Fairlight AU Delivered
November 28, 2012 12:08:00 PM Botany AU Shipment forwarded to a different delivery address
November 27, 2012 09:00:00 PM Botany AU Incorrect address
November 27, 2012 11:05:00 AM Botany AU Shipment forwarded to a different delivery address
November 26, 2012 02:34:00 PM Botany AU Arrived at destination country
November 26, 2012 02:34:00 PM Botany AU Arrival Scan
November 26, 2012 02:34:00 PM Botany AU Arrived at destination country
November 25, 2012 04:50:00 PM Botany AU Arrival Scan
November 24, 2012 12:31:00 PM Botany AU Initiated customs clearance process
November 24, 2012 12:31:00 PM Botany AU Completed customs clearance process
November 24, 2012 12:31:00 PM Botany AU Initiated customs clearance process
November 24, 2012 10:49:00 AM Honolulu HI US Departure Scan
November 24, 2012 08:39:00 AM Honolulu HI US Arrival Scan
November 24, 2012 04:38:00 AM Louisville KY US Departure Scan
November 24, 2012 12:49:00 AM Louisville KY US Arrival Scan
November 24, 2012 12:01:00 AM Knoxville TN US Departure Scan
November 23, 2012 09:11:00 PM Louisville TN US Arrival Scan
November 23, 2012 09:09:00 PM Louisville TN US Shipment received by carrier

While I was waiting for the tanks I spent the interim time looking for fuel gauge senders and fittings etc but was surprised when I opened the boxes, they were all already installed and tested to 3 PSI. This is the most positive retail experience I have every had. Here's the pics and the positioning in the port hull. With the tank in thw position shown I can run the fill pipe up through fixed deck seats on both sides to the coaming. (This also allows me to move an oversized tank forward a few inches. If I flopped it end for end, I'd have access to all the fittings through the deck hatch, but I'd have to put the filler in the floor of the cockpit - I'd rather keep the petrol fill outside the boat. Any suggestions from the brains trust?
Steve

[stevemid]

I got so sick of fairing while doing the hulls that I’ve decided to fair as I go on building out the inside of the boat. Therefore, I fully faired the inside of the toilet enclosure and the shelf/locker above as I built them — all the way to painting and sanding the hi-build. Sanding is much easier to do when you’ve got good access, ie before the tops and fronts get put on. On the shelf/locker above the bunk, I built and faired this on the bench, then installed it. Now I only will have to fair over the installation glass. I’m going to paint hi-gloss in the toilet area and carpet the berth area.

You can see a 3” square cutout in the ringframe and the step. This is where I’ll lead the electrical and pluming from the port sponson up into the wheelhouse. I’m building the conduit tomorrow and will post a picture.

[stevemid]

Advice on High Build Primer
I've been using Wattyl High Build (Epinamel EP250) primer and putting it on with a roller. However, it seems I have to sand off 75% to get below all the orange peel I'm getting. So I've been thinking about buying a spray gun kit from supercheap to see if that will be more effective.

Any advice on spraying on the high-build would be appreciated. I've got one of the Bunnings $100. air compressors with the dual gauges. If I go ahead and get the spray gun kit, would I have to spend any more on filters etc for the air compressor? I am "fairing as I go" so I wouldn't be spraying a lot of surface in one go.

Alternatively, going back to the rollers, any advice on reducing the amount of orange peel with the roller?

Thanks again for the help.
Steve

[fandtm666]

when spraying the high build during my resto i have been using a putty gun
and has worked well.Also make sure your compressor is half decent atleast
8cfm FAD ( free air delivery ) otherwise you will have it starting to run out
of air and it will start to splutter the primer on.

[Jarrah Jack]

The trick with using a roller in my industry ( furniture) is to roll it on then brush over with a very fine quality brush. You can play a bit with the thickness of paint to get the correct run and flow. I'd try that before mucking around with a gun. The brush strokes should all be in the same direction. There's a certain finesse there but its no difficult to get the hang of it.

Love what you're doing BTW.