Cockpit Table

While Circe is on the hard at the Grand Marina Boatyard in Alameda getting her bottom done (sounds like some bizarre cosmetic surgery procedure!) we have started on some projects that we can do at home. On a whim we chose to take a shot at some bright work, bright work is boat-speak for woodwork....don't ask! We read mountains of printed and digital info on exterior and interior teak treatment and found as many opinions, recommended techniques, recommended products and assurances of stellar results than you can shake a stick at!  Everyone, it seems, has 'the answer' to achieving perfect results.......unfortunately all of the answers are different!

So, as we often do, we will chart our own path and proceed on the old faithful, T(rial)&E(rror) method. We think that we will varnish the exterior wood and oil the interior, a simple choice, based on the existing finishes. That plan may change based on how well or badly our first few jobs turn out. Our choice of varnish product was also simple, in one of Circe's lockers was a brand new, unused quart of Bristol Finish and catalyst. 

We elected to begin our self teaching process by varnishing the cockpit table and drink holder/cubby. They were very shabby and as it was easy to remove them from the boat and they were small enough to work on at our apartment it was a logical first project.  Being small also means it would  be easy to re-do them  if our first efforts fall short of expectations. The next bright work project we are going to do will be the cap rail and cabin eyebrow trim so we want to have our technique and all our procedural ducks in a row before tackling them!

Preparation, once again, was a simple process......remove all old varnish and sand all surfaces smooth..... the gurus all agreed on that bit! We started with a heat gun and scraper(s) and then sanded progressively with 80, 120, 150 and 220 grit paper used variously by hand, sanding block and detail sander. The heat gun and scrapers worked great, once we had mastered the trick of keeping the gun moving slightly ahead of the scraper blade. We used a 'pull' scraper to get into the nooks and crannies of the drink holder.

Although it was a Lowes 'el cheapo' model, the heat gun worked great and most, but not all, of the hair on the old matelot's arms survived unscathed!

One of the old matelots was so excited to start scraping that the first trials were undertaken in street clothes, which caused a little consternation among other members of the crew!

Its amazing what can be done with some C clamps, some pipe clamps, a balcony rail and a bit of ingenuity....who needs a work bench!

The little Black & Decker detail sander was also invaluable for getting into the tight spots.

We found several sizeable grain flaws from previous heavy handed sanding efforts.

 The prep work turned out quite nice, even if we say so ourselves.

Time, neglect and the elements had conspired to split the drink holder in a couple of spots so, after the scraping and before the sanding, we epoxied and then filled the affected areas with filler selected for its colour match. Fortunately, two of our four hands were correctly sized for sanding all the inside corners of the drink holder....by far the biggest challenge of the project.

We were disappointed to discover that heavy handed sanding by the previous owner(s) had gone right through the teak veneer on the table and cut into the underlying plies in several places leaving ugly grain flaws. These may be exaggerated by the new finish.....we'll see! Stay tuned for more of our bright work saga.   

It's All Greek To Me

What's in a name? Well, it all depends! After deciding to buy Circe we couldn't decide what to do about her name, should we keep it or change it? As She is a USCG Documented vessel it was a decision that we had to make prior to filing the change of ownership papers.....what to do?

Neither of us Old Matelots is particularly superstitious so the prospect of a name change wasn't too daunting. We had heard all the tales of dire results due to improperly renamed boats but we thought it might be fun to go through the 'ceremony' (especially the alcohol part)! But, before you can rename a boat you need another name and we really couldn't come up with one that we felt strongly about. We already knew that Circe (pronounced Ker KEE) was a minor league goddess from Greek mythology but then we began to look at Her in a little more detail.

Like we did, you can learn more about Circe here

Evidently Circe was quite an intriguing gal. She was one of the mythical 'Immortals' and She possessed all manner of devious wiles and guile that that she employed to wreak havoc on her foes.....a lot like most women actually!

In the end we felt that there were worse entities for us to associate ourselves with than such a novel character as Circe. So, we decided to keep the name. Circe she was and Circe she would stay.....pity about missing out on the booze though!

How We Met Circe

We first learned that Circe (sursee) was coming up for sale through the Freeport Owners Group:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FOGgers/

The FOGgers have a very active web forum with a lot of helpful members who are a great source of useful information on boats in general and Freeports in particular. We had been 'lurking' on their forum for a year or more while we researched and plotted for our next (last) boat. After putting together our 'must have' and 'can't stand' lists, and comparing them with literally hundreds of different boat models both on line and through prowling marinas and yards, we kept coming back to the Freeport 36 with the B Plan layout. It is an ideal set-up for a couple of 'old matelots' who still enjoy a few creature comforts and don't plan to share their retirement retreat with anyone other than a very few, very occasional, day trippers! The F36B has great accommodations, turning over more living space, storage space and natural light to the crew than any other sub-38 foot mono-hulls we have seen. Rugged design, an easy motion in a seaway and fairly stiff in a blow makes short-handing or single-handing less of a challenge for a couple of old matelots who are well past their 'round the buoys' best! Add a good reputation for durability and a strong owners group and the final decision was an easy one. 

So, earlier this year while we were planning a visit with (non-sailing) friends in San Diego and, knowing that there were numerous FOGgers in the SD area, we posted on the forum a request to meet and pick FOGger brains! We were delighted to receive several positive responses and ended up meeting with a great bunch of people and touring four Freeports. A huge thank you to JD, Don & Jan, Chip & Debbie and Bill. We came away with mountains of good info, many useful photos and our conviction that a Freeport B was the way to go firmly validated.

Almost as soon as we returned home we learned that Circe had just come on the market, right here in the Bay Area! Knowing about the FOGgers, her previous owner had decided to use the forum as a first avenue to find a buyer before signing up with a broker and accepting a commission liability. FOGgers, knowing about our interest let us know and the rest is history!  

We want to be able to get off the grid as much as possible and plan to set Circe up for self sufficiency, even though we aren't planning any serious blue water excursions. We will be mostly SF Bay cruising and harbour hopping up and down the West Coast, with possibly some time in the Sea of Cortez in a couple of years when we are fully retired and Circe is set up the way we want.  

The Adventure Begins

Here we are (far left) after the conclusion of a mostly satisfactory survey, final negotiations and a handshake with the PO (far right)! Circe is an extremely clean, solid, 'not messed around with too badly' example of the Freeport marque. She is suffering from what is best described as benign neglect. Like all boats of her vintage she needs a bit of help here and there and she's also a bit light on extras and electronics, all of which helped with the negotiations! More importantly it means we have an excellent foundation to begin setting her up the way we want. 

Some important big ticket work had already been done by the PO with many new items fitted within the last few years. They included; Doyle sails (130 Genny and partial batten Main with stack pack), all standing rigging, a full set of topsides canvas including dodger and bimini, an epoxy barrier coat on the bottom, a Lofrans windlass and a Garhauer rigid vang. There is also a brand new Achilles dinghy and 8hp Nissan o/b. The jury is still out on the inflatable tender as I've always been more of a rigid dinghy guy, but it is brand new and has a hard floor so we'll give it a fair shake before making a keep/replace decision.

The Doyle Stack Pack is also 'on probation' as it seems to add quite a bit more high level windage than a flaked and tied Main lying under a sail cover. It certainly makes dropping and stowing the Main a snap but, when added to the inherent prop walk issues and high free-board of the Freeport, along with the dodger and bimini canvas, it increases the stress quotient when maneuvering in or out of a slip in a 20+ knots crosswind! A further concern is that there doesn't seem to be any clean, easy way of getting a decent sail shape when the Main is reefed....particularly if the second reef is tucked in. When reefed the Main doesn't flake down neatly like it does when you fully drop it and you end up with a huge wad of sail cloth in the stack pack which can't easily be tidied up. Like the dinghy we'll give it a fair trial before making any final decisions.

Dinette

Head (Boat-speak for Bathroom)

Storage Closets & Drawers

Settee and Propane Heater

Dinette and Trawler Lamp

Galley (Boat-speak for Kitchen)

Master Berth

Next stop is the boatyard for fresh anti-fouling paint on the bottom and a few fixes that we want to get done up front. She should be back in the water with plenty of time to see how the three of us work together in those blustery, late summer afternoons on SF Bay!