Bobby,

That is a great looking boat! I have always admired the Sea Spirit design. Unfortunately, your hydrostatics page suggests that I need a bit more volume. (or perhaps it's my bathroom scale that suggests that I need it!) The hull I am building will be deeper and a bit fuller in the ends to get the needed volume.

On the SS17 page, it appears that you built the support structure with hatch frames installed prior to deck attachment. Did this create alignment issues with the stripped deck? Or did you cut the hatch holes in the deck afterward?Also, I'm curious about the stem pieces, they look dark on the outside; are they veneered?

Regards,

Dave

: Dave

: On my Sea Spirit 17, after I stripped the hull and epoxied the outside, I
: installed sheer clamps and planed them to match the shape of the deck
: where it would mate with the hull. When I stripped the deck, I left about
: 1/2 inch overhang all along the sheer line. To attach the deck, I first
: added some support structure where the deck was flat. I then covered the
: support structure with thickened epoxy and glued the underside of the deck
: to it. It’s basically the same process as attaching a plywood deck to an
: S&G hull that has sheer clamps. After the glue (epoxy thickened with
: silica powder) was cured, I removed the overhang, and then epoxied glass
: tape along the sheer, overlapping the deck to hull joint.

: You can see the process on my web site.

: Bobby