Obelisk Circumnavigation '08
"Supposing is good, but finding out is better." -Mark Twain
Power from the Sun
1 x Kyocera 130W solar panel $710
1 x Morningstar PS-30 voltage controller $186.75
60' x 4AWG tinned wire (30' Red, 30' Black) $100
Mounting hardware and accessories $150
Total: $1146.75
The system is really straight forward and easy to install. Over the course of a single year, it will save 547 gallons of diesel and 6.5 tons of CO2 emissions--multiply that out over our projected 5 years and the impact is staggering! These panels are incredibly durable and come with a 20-year warranty, so there is no question that they will last the duration of the adventure and continue providing clean power for years to come.
Please help us realize our goal of a greener adventure!
The Rudder is Done!
With the rudder at Zimmerman's, we turned our attention to repairing the skeg. The Obelisk has a skeg-hung rudder--the skeg is a fiberglass fin that sticks down from the hull to provide protection and a bottom pivot point for the rudder. At some point in the past, the bottom of the skeg had been damaged by hitting floating debris and the fiberglass had become waterlogged and peeled back. We ground the damaged area away with an angle grinder and let it dry for a week before resuming the repair. Significant material was removed when grinding, so the repair had to be completed in stages. Cold weather dominated the forecast which hampered our glassing efforts. All in all, we layed glass mat two inches thick on both sides of the skeg and faired the skeg to the correct shape in several stages. West System 422 barrier coating covered the entire skeg to seal out water and preven osmotic blistering.
The space between the skeg and rudder is shielded from drag-causing turbulence by two stainless steel fairing strips. Our strips had disintegrated, were sticking out to the sides and catching crab pots. We ordered a sheet of 16 guage stainless steel and cut replacement strips using a RotoZip tool. Once the strips fit the mounting location perfectly, we used 28 #8 screws and a lot of 5200 compound to mount the strips. They fit percectly and will provide a much smoother flow around the rudder foil which will result in faster speeds and better steering.
Zimmerman's cut the "skin" or fiberglass shell off the port side of the rudder to expose the core and frame. The frame is a a substantial stainless steel grid and was in great shape despite the saturation. The foam filling the voids between frame members was soaked and deterioration, so it was removed and the entire unit was allowed to dry for just over two weeks. The fiberglass skin was in good shape so it was saved and, after the interior was refilled with foam, the shin was replaced and glassed back into place. The port side was sanded fair and a coat of gelcoat was applied. When we picked up the rudder, we discovered that the work had not been done to our specifications. The starboard side had not been touched and the fresh gelcoat covered our boot stripe. We brought the rudder back and went over how we wanted it rectified. Our rudder was bumped to the front of the project list and was completed to our specifications in just over two days. Special thanks to Steve Wallace for recognizing the problem and doing evrything in his power to make it right. We were disappointed with the original work, but the manner in which Steve and Zimmerman's rectified the mistake couldn't have pleased us more: we know that the work is top notch and we ultimately had a great experience with their yard.
Our budget is tight, so we decided to reinstall the rudder without help from the YRYH yard (or their forklift)! The rudder was significantly lighter after the repairs, but still presented a great challenge. Four of us lifted it out of the pickup and laid it on the ground next to the skeg. Four people raised it and my dad steadied the assembly once it was vertical. We then slung two lines underneath the foil and, with one person on each end of line, lifted the rudder into the air. A large wooden block was slipped under the bottom and then we repeated the same process six times. We had lifted the rudder as high as we could with the lines so we used an hydraulic floor jack to lift it the rest of the way. Once it was at the desired height, the two huge shaft nuts threaded on with no hassle. Now that the rudder was hanging from the boat, we were able to remove the jack and wooden blocks. With the blocks out of the way, we attached the 40lb bronze gudgeon to the bottom of the skeg. The rudder foil has a hole in its bottom that fits over a pin on the gudgeon to create the bottom pivot point for our rudder. Next, the huge primary steering quadrant and the smaller self-steering quadrant were assembled and steering cables attached. The autopilot drive unit and chain were reinstalled, along with the rudder angle indicator and we were done. The result is a completely functional, rebuilt unit that is ready to go!
We attempted to put the Obelisk back in the water this morning, but the high tide was too low to acomodate our deep draft. Hopefully, the tide will cooperate on Monday, December 29 and we can finally get back in the water. Once back in, we will take her to Hampton Creek so that North Sails can tune the rigging. From Hampton Creek, we plan to leave on a shakedown cruise around the Delmarva Peninsula, complete final provisioning and head South!
The Deck - Part 2
Smaller holes, such as bolt holes for stanchion bases, blocks and cleats were easiest to seal. We drilled out each hole with a drill bit that was larger than the original hole. We checked the core for moisture and, once we were convinced that there was no internal damage, we taped the holes from beneath. Once the holes were sealed from beneath, we filled them with West System epoxy thickened to ketchup consistency with West System 404 filler. When we redrill the holes to mount the hardware, the bit will travel through the epoxy plug which will effectively seal the deck core from intruding moisture.
Dorade vents, windlass foot switches and the inner forestay mount all require larger through deck holes with more core material exposed. The larger surface area makes them much harder to seal. In order to create a durable and reliable seal, we routed out �" of core material from between the fiberglass sandwich. We then thickened epoxy with West System 404 filler to peanut butter consistency and smeared it into the space we had routed out. The epoxy bonded to the top and bottom fiberglass laminate and sealed any water out of the core.
We discovered a single, small area where the core had separated from the fiberglass. We drilled �" holes, in a grid pattern, through the top laminate and the core, but NOT through the bottom fiberglass laminate. The area dried for nearly a week, then we sealed the holes by injecting them with ketchup consistency epoxy which seeped into the voids, creating a fresh bond between the foam and fiberglass.
Our new Treadmaster non-skid will be epoxied to
the deck--not fastened with screws--which eliminates all the tiny
screw holes used to secure the old teak planks. However, before
painting the deck and installing the non-skid, we needed to repair the,
literally thousands, of existing screw holes. To do so, we drilled out
each hole with a larger drill bit, vacuumed out the dust and used a
syringe to inject each hole with unthickened epoxy. Just this process
took several days and weeks later we are still finding new holes!Deck prisms are thick pieces of shaped glass designed to allow light below decks--unfortunately, ours leaked continuously and we decided to eliminate them. Two of teh prisms were located in high traffic areas so our patches needed to be as strong as the surrounding deck, which meant fiberglassing was our only option. In order to achieve maximum strength, fiberglassing requires a 12:1 bevel at the edge of the area to be patched, so we began by grinding the existing holes out with an angle grinder. Once the hole was ground enough, we vacuumed and cleaned all surfaces with MEK and covered the hole from beneath with styrofoam and duct tape. We fashioned blocks to serve as core material out of wood blocks and fit set them into the hole, then ketchup consistency epoxy was poured around the edges and was allowed to cure overnight. The next day, we sanded the hardened epoxy to create the smooth surface necessary for proper adhesion of the fiberglass fabric. In the spirit of over-engineering, we laid 12 layers of fiberglass over the former prisms, allowing them to cure overnight. Finally, we smeared West System 407 fairing compound over the entire area to create an even surface that we could sand down to deck level. The prisims took three days and the only minor hiccup occurred when a photographer stepped in the wet fiberglass mat we had just applied!
The original teak decking was 3/8" thick and the toerail and deck hatches were fitted directly on top of this surface, therefore, when we removed the teak, a 3/8" gap remained under the toerail and hatches. We knew that we had to fill the gap for practical and aesthetic reasons, but how? After kicking the idea around for several days, we decided to create epoxy fillets in the gaps that we could feather seamlessly into the deck. First, we used a Dremel tool to grind out any remaining bedding compound and wood splinters. We then sanded the lips of the toerail and hatches to a 45 degree angle creating a better bonding surface. A quick vacuuming and MEK wipe and we were ready to fill the gap. Our plan called for a mixture of West System 404 and 410 fillers thickened to peanut butter consistency. We trowelled this mixture into the gap, making sure to eliminate bubbles or voids that could compromise structural integrity. We shaped the epoxy with an ordinary plastic scraper shaped to create a seamless feather into the deck. After the epoxy cured overnight, we returned to inspect the results and we could not be happier!
The seahood is a removable, raised fiberglass shell that covers the companion way hatch while it is in the open position. Time and saltwater had taken their toll on this piece and the companion way hatch it houses so we removed the hood and took it home for refurbishing. Work began by removing the paint, which was peeling badly, using a heavy grit sandpaper to cut through the nonskid grit. Underneath, we found the culprit--the paint was applied directly on top of the fiberglass matting, a rough surface poorly suited to painting. to remedy the problem, we sanded the entire piece down to the fiberglass. After cleaning the dust, we used traditional paintbrushes to coat the entire unit with two layers of unthickened epoxy. The epoxy settles into the low areas and, after sanding smooth with 220 grit sandpaper, leaves a smooth surface that is perfect for painting. We chose white AwlGrip two part paint for this job--and the entire deck--because of its incredible durability and life expectancy. Two parts paint are mixed with one part converter to create a coating that resists harsh saltwater conditions and UV rays (the blue topsides of the hull were painted with the same product 26 years ago and still look great!). We applied two coats of AwlGrip with a light sanding in between which gave us a tough, brilliant white seahood.
With the seahood removed, we had a great opportunity to rebuild the companion way hatch, which had been leaking for some time. We could see that the slides the hatch moved on were badly UV damaged, so we replaced them with strips of HDPE (high-density polyethylene), but that did not explain the leak. Careful examination during removal of the hatch and its hardware revealed that the seals around the bracket that holds the vertical part of the hatch had separated. We found that the bracket was not mounted flush with the surrounding fiberglass and that bedding compound had been used to fill the gap. The gap was too wide to be sealed successfully with any compound so we set about rebuilding the area around the bracket with thickened epoxy. To enable us to shape the epoxy to the exact shape of the bracket, we purposely applied too much to the area then shaped the mounting area with chisels and sandpaper. It took several dry-fits before the area was fit exactly to the hatch bracket but we finally reached the perfect fit and bonded the bracket with Life Seal bedding compound. We haven't been able to put the hatch through any storms on the water, but the repaired unit made it through tropical storm Hannah and a brutal mid-September nor'easter without a drop seeping through.
Lifelines are the two cables that run the length of the deck one each side, designed as a safety measure to keep crew from going overboard. The stresses on these cables can be substantial so it is recomended that they be changed every ten years--ours had never been swapped, so we removed the wire and associated stanchions for replacement. The stanchions, which are vertical poles that guide the lifelines fore and aft, sat on bases made of teak and needed to be replaced. We chose phenolic, a high-density laminate which we could shape ourselves using a table sander. We began by cutting the 5/8" phenolic sheet into squares roughly the same size as the stanchion bases. We cut drains, or limber holes, 3/16" deep across the blocks, then used a drill press to punch the four mounting holes. We attached the stanchion base to the square base with short bolts and moved the entire unit to the table sander. Gradually, with the stanchion base attached, we rounded the corners and shaped the phenolic to the exact shape of the base (of course, none of the bases are exactly the same size so we had to repeat this process with every individual base!)
Garmin 4008
Last week, we made huge progress by installing out new Garmin 4008 Chartplotter/GPS, Garmin GSD22 Sounder, Garmin 18" Radome and taking delivery of our Forespar LC13'-24' whisker pole.
We chose the Garmin 4008 model over its more common twin, the Garmin 4212, because the 4008 comes preloaded with global charts
and satellite photos and the 4212 is programmed with only the U.S. and
Canada. We'll be spending less than 5% of our time in these countries
and would rather sacrifice the incredibly detailed North American
charts for coverage the world over--the Garmin 4008 preprogrammed
charts will be supplemented with chart cards purchased on an as-needed
basis to cover, more comprehensively, our actual route. Of course, we
will not rely solely on electronic charts--we will carry a number of
paper charts, both Mercator and geonomic projections, to back up the
chartplotter.
Along with basic speed, depth and wind readings, the unit's 8.4" color LCD screen will display our navigational charts, sonar soundings and radar images. We can manipulate the display to combine multiple inputs into one screen. For instance, we can overlay radar images onto a nav chart to follow an approaching squall line or take a 3-D look at the bottom of an unfamiliar or unmarked channel.
We began the install by removing our old Loran and Raymarine chartplotter from the nav station. The panel they were mounted in was useless to us because it was designed with mounting holes specific to the individual instruments, so we fashioned a replacement out of 1/2" birch plywood laminated with black formica and finished with a varnished trim to clean it up and give a professional look. Once the blank panel was complete, we cut holes for our chartplotter, VHF radio and Raymarine ST60Multi.
With more than a little frustration, we mounted and ran wires from a new GPS antenna and 18" radome. The GPS antenna was mounted on an antenna mast astern but the wire was not long enough to reach the chartplotter so we spliced in and an extension. The radome is mounted above the first spreaders on the mast do it proved a bit more challenging during the install. It required mounting a bracket to the mast by drilling twelve holes and riveting them, all while hanging 27 feet in the air in a bosun's seat! Even more challenging than mounting the hardware was fishing the power and network cables from the radome, inside the mast and out the bottom where they are connected to the chartplotter.
All of our new navigational instruments are now installed, leaving only a new stereo to come.
Up on the Hard
We opened Chapter Three of outfitting on Thursday, June 19th when we hauled Obelisk out of the water at Severn River Marina. She weighs 44,000lbs so putting her "on the hard" presents a greater challenge than backing a trailer down a boat ramp. A 60-ton marine TravelLift lifted her out of the water--it was the first time that Rob, Willie and Matt had seen the process and their the first time seeing first-hand Obelisk's below-waterline configuration. Everything went smoothly from start to finish but, as is always the case, we all had butterflies in our stomachs watching the boat come out of the water supported by only two lift straps!
The first glimpse of the bottom was encouraging--there were no immediately evident signs of major flaws or damage. However, a small piece of metal fairing, or trim, on the rudder skeg had become detached and was sticking out to port which might explain why we keep snagging crab pot buoys while sailing! (Note the left side of the rudder)
After she cleared
dock level, the TravelLift reversed and stopped so that a yardworker
could pressure wash the bottom to remove and 
algae and
moss that had grown. The dark patches on the bottom result from old
bottom paint flaking off during the pressure washing. We actually
welcomed the flaking because, in the coming weeks, we will strip the
bottom paint down to bare fiberglass, sand and repaint--the pressure
washing gives us a head start.
Pressure spraying took about twenty minutes and then the TravelLift cranked up and began the slow trip to our new home in the back of the yard. When the TravelLift stopped, the yard placed large wooden blocks on the ground for the keel to rest on and assembled and secured five pairs of stands to support the dry weight of the Obelisk. A pair of stands are placed with one on each side of the boat and are connected under the hull by a substantial chain to keep them from being driven apart by the weight of the boat. It doesn't look like much support for such a large boat but the majority of the boat's weight rests on the blocks under the keel.
We jumped into scraping the bottom immediately and it promises to be a frustrating and tedious project. On the first day, we removed 35lbs of copper-based anti-fouling paint from only 5% of the hull. At that pace, we will remove an excess 700lbs of dead weight from the gross tonnage! which will be incredibly valuable when provisioning for our final departure.
We're making every penny count. We accumulated this load of recyclable scrap metal by helping our next door neighbor clean out her garage and from the marina's boat yard--it netted us a huge $203.20, but the budget remains extremely tight! If you'd like to help, please check out our Wishlist.
New Winch Bases
They're finally here and they are stout! We picked up the new bases for our Barient 36 primary winches two days ago, which means that we can get back out and do some more sailing soon. There's not much to say about them except that they are awesome!--much stronger than the original bases.
Gainful Employment
Progress
The second full month working on the Obelisk is drawing to an end and we could not be more pleased with our progress. We took two overnight sails up the Chesapeake Bay in late February, then tackled several of the larger tasks: installing our new generator and rebuilding each of our eleven winches.
In order to charge our house battery banks, operate the refrigeration and anything requiring AC power, we decided to install an auxillary power generator. One had been removed from the Obelisk over a decaed ago because it was too large and not needed--unfortunately, it was ruined when Hurricane Isabel flooded our house in September 2003. The search for an affordable replacement was on. We purchased our new-to-us Northern Lights generator from Bay Shore Marine Co. of Annapolis, MD and installed it ourselves. The unit is bulky and weighs over 360 pounds which made getting it onto the deck, down below and into place a formidable task. The cockpit hatch that accesses the engine room was just barely too narrow to allow the genset through so we were forced to lower it through the companion way hatch. Using the preventer, a block-and-tackle system, we gained a mechanical advantage and lowered the unit into the galley. Once below, we created a slide through the aft cabin and into the engine room. With four people pushing, pulling and cursing, we shoehorned the genset through the cabin and into place on the starboard side of the engine room. We hooked up the raw water and exhaust hoses; we added a Racor water-separating fuel filter to complete the fuel system.
Next, we attacked each of the eleven Barient winches that control sail sheets, halyards and furling. Each winch is two-speed--they can be cranked in either direction depending on the amount of strain being exerted on the drum. Force is transfered from the winch handle to the drum through a complex system of gears, pawls and shafts which all need to be disassembled, cleaned, greased and reassembled periodically to ensure proper operation and these were last serviced in 1997. Luckily, the winches showed no signs of wear and only a couple parts needed to be replaced, however, the Barient winch company was bought out by Lewmar in the mid-1990s so parts are hard to find.
The Barient 36 primary winches needed two new bases, cylindrical pieces of extruded and annodized aluminum which attach the winch to the deck. We found the stock replacement part through the Australian Winch Company but they quoted us at $800 per base! The price was sky-high but we needed the bases to use the winches, so we contracted Mars Machine Shop in Gloucester, VA to mill us two new bases out of solid aluminum--they only charged $500 per base--what a deal.
Hopefully, the bases
will be finished on April 2 and we can take our first sail out of the
Chesapeake Bay, through the C&D Canal and back down the Bay back to
the Severn River.
It's a Start
Thanks to everyone for taking the time to check out this website devoted to s/v Obelisk's circumnavigation of globe. What started out as a seemingly absurd proposition by a group of friends has realized itself quite quickly. This website is in its fledgling stages now, but it will grow and offer anyone interested a picture of life aboard the Obelisk. I will update the site as often as possible with current position, current weather reports, pictures and a ship's log. It will also serve as a communications link between ship and shore with email links and an open discussion forum.
Since this site is in the construction phase, I encourage everyone to bookmark this link and check back regularly to find out the latest news, which I will post as fast as I can. Thanks to everyone for your interest in this project and please check back soon!
Is it Possible? Yes!
Three friends posed this question to me nearly one year ago. My first reaction was to shrug off such an absurd idea without a second thought, but as I rolled the proposition over in my mind, it began to seem more and more plausible. The big idea: Four college friends circumnavigating the globe with nothing but an agreement that this trip would be done right and in no less than three years. Sold.
We needed a boat. We considered many different boats, but throughout the process I could not shake the feeling that there was only one boat that I trusted to get the job done�the Obelisk. She is a gorgeous Skye 51� sloop with a dark blue hull, teak decks and a tall rig. I grew up on the Obelisk and logged many thousand nautical miles on passages while other kids were suffering through school. This was the boat we would use�and luckily for us, her owner, my dad, was very receptive to the idea.
With the boat issue settled, we decided we will move to
