Fun with Decks and Soles

I managed to finish the under berth ceiling on both sides, and got a couple of coats of primer on it.  I want to put more paint on, and then I'll close in the tops.  I tried a variety of techniques to fasten the ceiling to the ash frames, and finally settled on using 3/4 inch stainless ring nails.  The ash is so hard I had to predrill to avoid having the nails bend. That was a bit of a pain.  It will be very nice to have dry, ventilated stowage areas, so it was worth the effort, I suppose. 

The ceiling, as mentioned in a previous post, is western red cedar, cut in 2 inch by 1/4 inch strips and bullnosed at both edges.  I must admit that I am not looking forward to continuing the ceiling up to the sheer, but it will certainly look yachty once it is done.

The primed ceiling in stowage space under berths.

The fuel tank is now fastened in place.  I designed a bracket made of ash, which sits aft of the tank, and is screwed and glued to the inner stern.  I screwed steel fasteners (couldn't find non-ferrous fasteners) at either end of the bracket, and sewed nylon webbing  to it.  On the forward side of the tank, I bolted two more steel fasteners, with sewn on webbing, to the bulkhead, and could then put the tank in position and fasten it with the webbing.  It is being held firmly in place with two seat belt type devices, and I think it will work out well enough.

Bracket aft of the fuel tank with nylon straps and buckles attached

Tank strapped securely in place.

For the past week or so, I have been focusing on the cockpit, and especially on the sole.  I haven't found an engine yet, so I haven't drilled the shaft hole through the keel.  Consequently, I want to leave the center part of the cockpit sole open and easily accessible.  Still, if I want to build the seat backs/cockpit combing, I needed to have a base, so I constructed the framing on port and starboard sides, and decked it with plywood, leaving the center for later.  The bottom side and edges of the plywood got two coats of epoxy before they were put in position.  

The  framing is made of ash, cut to 1 1/4 inch wide by 1 1/2 deep, per the plan specs.  I used half lap joinery, gluing the joints for a very strong connection.  With the two sole sections in place, moving about is a good bit easier, plus I have many more flat surfaces to leave tools, screws, pencils, etc.

Looking aft, newly glued cockpit sole sections

Port side cockpit sole view.  The fan is where an engine should be.

I now have side decks in place for the length of the cabin, forward to frame 3, and aft to frame 6.  After I complete the seat backs and combing, I will be able to do the side decks in the cockpit, and then I'll tackle the forward deck. I am planning to cover the entire deck surface with Dynel to improve traction and durability.  The soles, both cabin and cockpit, will be painted, although the cockpit sole (being plywood) will be epoxy coated before painting.

Side deck on starboard side.