Storm 17 panel kit - The story so far

[Ray]

Epoxy sealing and sanding seems to go on forever. When tired of it and needing a break I got going with the mast and yard.

[Ray]

I rounded the end of the yard after this initial shaping. I drilled all the holes and made up the yard jaws. I will be varnishing these parts.

[Ray]

Here's what one of the scarfs looks like.

[Ray]

The mast was next. I put several joiner blocks between the sides when joining. When completed with the front and back I used a belt sander to clean off all the epoxy runs. Here'e the end view before I rounded the edges with a plane and rough sandpaper. I hand sanded it all to a smooth finish.

[Ray]

Then it was back to completing the hull for final sanding and sealing . I cleaned up the floor area before fitting the floorboards. The weights between the screws helped keep the boards flat. I cleaned up as much epoxy as possible before it set. It's worth going back and doing it a few times as the epoxy squeezes out for a while before it hardens. This will save you a lot of work later. A Stanley knife blade makes a great scraper for removing the excess epoxy when cured. Break it in half and square off the one side on a grinder.

[Ray]

I now have 99% of the hull sealed with epoxy. Unfortunately you always sand through somewhere and have to re-coat and re-sand. This could go on forever so I have finished off these spots with International yacht primer ( this sands effortlessly). You reach the point where you decide it's ready for undercoating!

[Ray]

I hope to launch my Storm 17 before the end of the year ( gives me 3.5 weeks). Super optomist?
My sons have now got involved in the finishing and it's making a big difference. I hope I can keep them motivated.
Getting the undercoating started feels good. THE BEGINNING OF THE END!

[Ray]

Two coats of Brightside later and the topsides of the hull are basically done. I am leaving the gunwales to last. I am rushing a little so that we can be on the water before the end of the year. I should have sanded and touched up the undercoat a little more before final coats. Still, it looks pretty good. I can always sand it all and give a final coat after 'sea trials'.
We will be turning the hull over later today to start on the outside.

[Ray]

Here a few more pictures showing progress.I mixed a little colour into the second undercoat. We then put on two final coats of colour, sanding between coats.

[Ray]

I painted the gunwales and CBL on Christmas morning. Everything was fitted in the next few days and on 30th we were ready to launch.
It was a fantastic feeling to see all that work floating for the first time.

[Ray]

Our first sail took place on the Breede river which enters the sea about 100 kilometers from the southern-most tip of Africa. Has a Swallow boat ever been further south than this? Everything worked as it should and it all went well (with my limited experience) and I will enjoy getting to know her and adjusting things as needed.
The sense of satisfaction and achievement is wonderful. A few sheets of plywood can end up looking like this - amazing. Eighteen months of pretty focussed work, mainly alone, and I have a fantastic boat. My two sons put in a lot of work on the painting and sanding and I would never have finished by year end without their efforts.

[Ray]

I referred to the photos that Matt gave me with the manual often and found them a great help in getting a particular job done or just as a source of inspiration when the work was a bit slow. I also looked through this forum many times for ideas and energy and have enjoyed the photos of other builders. I have included many of my own in this build and hope that some new builders find them useful.
Here are a few that show some ideas/solutions that I am quite pleased with.

[Julian Swindell]

Ray, your boat looks wonderful, you should feel very proud. I was in Cape Town earlier this month. I should have come along the coast to see you sailing!

I think you are going to enjoy yourself, I am full of envy!

[Craic]

Ray,
very impressive. Hat off to you and Ahoi! to that lovely boat.
Now it's on the water, what project next?

[Ray]

Julian and Claus,thanks for the nice comments. Here a few more photos of details.