Working on float no. 2

When joning of float 2 the bottom wouldn't fit very well. I'm quite sure it's because I left the foam strips a little too long, and hence fitted them with too much tension between the keel flange and the deck flange. I didn't have this problem - at least not this much - with the first float. Probably because the first float wasn't build of the first floathalf I stripped. That half was hanging on the wall all the way from the beginning, and is now in float half no. 2.
I sanded down the entire keel, and glued a new foam strip on. After that I could shape the keel without much trouble.




For shaping the deck edge I scribed a line 2 cm off the edge, and used a jigsaw (angled 45 degrees) to saw a strip of. After that I sanded the radius with a longboard. It was not easy to get it right but I doubt there's a much easier way. Anyway, I won't have to shape a comparable length of edge again, so it's no use for me to wonder if I could have used a better method.

If you want try this method: don't saw too near the line (as I did on a few spots). It's impossible to saw accurately enough and you'll see slight depressions later. Instead use a longboard to sand the jigsawed edge exactly to the scribed line.

Getting the first float down

I was a bit scared to hoist the float out of the window of my attic, but with a little help from my friends everything went really smooth.

fairing float no. 1

For putting on fairing putty I used the method shown on the very nice site of Henny, a builder living in the Netherlands as well. First put on ridges of putty with a candy bag, then sand them down and use the ridges as a guide for putting on the bulk of the fairing putty.

Ridges not sanded down

Ridges sanded down

Hey stupid!

My first and probably not the last mistake. I misread the plans and measured the positioning of the float chainplate from the deck glueing flange in stead of the top of the deck. Now the chainplate is sitting 1 cm too low. I'm nog going to correct it (it is impossible without doing a lot of damage to the float). I'm sure it will still be possible to attach a stay to the chainplate.
I will put the chainplate on the second float also 1 cm too low - I want the floats to be identical.

Float half no. 2 ready for sheating

Float half no. 1 joined

Starting float no. 1

NOTE: I created this blog in august 2007, almost a year after starting the building of my F22. That's why the first part of the blog is not complete.

I'm building the floats in my attic. It's a tight fit, but possible. This is a photo of the 'stripping' of the foam core of the first float-half.