OMG Close!

The machine shop claims that the push rod will be done tomorrow. Yay. Today I finely broke down and created a test push rod and crank connector. The connector was plastic and the rod was taped together in the middle, but it sort of worked and let me align all of the components and then bog the sides of the board together. Tomorrow morning I attach the horizontal, do some reinforcement and some finish work, go and pick up the push rod (fingers crossed), and get ready to splash this thing!

Bladerider Copy?

So I started thinking about Mothball 1 and I realized that this thing is pretty much a Bladerider. I wasn't intending to do this but it just kind of turned out that way. I got all the parts randomly over several year but they all ended up being bladerider bits. Maybe this is just because that's all that was really available. Sail - Bladerider X8, mast and boom - C-Tech, rudder horizontal- Bladerider, Mechanical bits- Bladerider, the boat geometry is similar to the Bladerider, the total weight is almost the same, the only big difference will be in the main lifting foil. Will it perform like a Bladerider? Probably not, but it should be close.

Waiting isn't all bad

The good thing about being forced to slow down on a build is that it gives you more time to test things before they get put to use. When I assembled the boat I jumped all over on the tramps and the small carbon connector rods I was using started to explode. They were clearly not up to the task. Not hard to fix, but I was glad to have broken them on the hard rather than the first time on the water. I also decided to change my wand geometry slightly to reduce friction and eliminated some play in my rudder adjuster. All of these things should make the first voyage go much better.

The Finish is Near

Spent most of the day doing misc. finish work on the boat. This thing is nearly done. I have a variety of small items left to finish, but it could be operational in a matter of hours... if it weren't for the FREEKING daggerboard. Sigh. The daggerboard is still in many parts with a few critical components missing, namely a 2mm push rod. I'm doing my best to get one made and I have another on backorder, but still no luck. I don't want to assemble the daggerboard without it, cuz if something doesn't work when I insert the rod, I'm totally screwed. So instead I'm waiting and waiting and waiting...

Pressure Testing

Leaky boats are bad, but how do you know your boat leaks before you put it in the water? Simple, a bike pump, soap, and water. You plug the bike pump into the hull and then use the soap and water to test suspect areas. If the suds blow bubbles, its a leak. Using this method I think I found at least most of the small leaks. It won't hold the pressure from the bike pump forever, buts it clear that Mothball is fairly watertight. I was also able to get the rig up with the sail on to begin testing on the running rigging. The goal is to splash on Friday. Wish me luck.

Supertramp!

They really are super, nice fit, a bit of finish work still, but clearly functional. A big thanks to my dad for helping design and sew them.