Well, progress is slow, but steady. The shop cat damn near got epoxied to the shop dog today. They both smell like vinegar now. I swear it wasn’t my fault.

As it’s a fact that the cost of tools is not factored, never ever, into the overall cost of the boat...what about medical expenses?

I ask because I had a doctor demonstrate today, on the middle finger of my left hand, what the ‘stitch’ in ‘Stitch & Glue’ means. He said he coulda used glue to close the gaping wound instead. In the end we decided on stitches; better for flexibility. Gotta keep working on the boat, ya know! I’m going to be more careful w/ my tools from now on too. Didn’t somebody just mention that they had enough tools just to make themselves dangerous? With clarity, I now fully understand what that phrase means.

Thanks to all who responded to my question regarding ‘butt joints and epoxy’. That was a great amount of help, and it provided the confidence that I didn’t completely and irreversibly screw things up. I did the interior butt joints of the right side of my Osprey Triple yesterday. I removed the bricks and Mylar, and voila! The joints turned out great!!! I mean really, really great! I don’t believe I used quite enough epoxy for the left-side panels. This time, for the right-side panels, I essentially used my body-weight in epoxy for each of the 12 joints. Turned out real purdy.

So, what’s the consensus regarding taping only the inside of the butt joints, instead of taping both the inside and outside? This has been suggested to me by a few people, including my neighbor 400 miles to the north! I like the idea. Seems like a real time saver. I need that after spending three hours at the hospital today.

So, do I hafta tape both the inside and out? And if I choose to tape only the inside, will the panels be strong enough with just one layer of tape? Some folks have suggested two layers. However, my joints seem to me like they’re strong enough the way they are, w/ just one layer of tape. However, I just don’t know what kind of stress they’ll be subject to when I start stitching. (Oh wait, I started that today at the Emergency Room.) Anyway, is the tape on the butt joints structural? Or is it there merely to facilitate the joining of the panels? If it's the latter, then why can't I get away w/ just one layer on the inside?

6 more weeks till April!

Kevin Turinsky
Anchorage