Intersection of dissapointment and hope

Sorry, the photos will have to wait as I am at work and it looks the same (only slightly less lumpy).

Here we are, June 1st, 2007. This is the smell of failure. I have spent COUNTLESS hours on the boat (probably in the 200ish range now), but have not succeeded in getting her wet by the titled date. The bowels of sadness smell worse than I thought.

Several factors contributed. I ski heavily in the winter, so there goes a majority of work days. That was figured in, however, in the final date. I had a 5 week wait for plywood. That wait was unplanned, and had a horrendous effect, as I couldn't finish the jig or do any other projects while I waited. Perfectionism, and the inability to see certain errors compounded one another. Mistakes were made, but others could not be blamed, as Im the only one working on this pig.

An inventory of the current situation:

I have the motor, but it needs to be converted from tiller to controls.

The exterior surface of the hull is complete structurally. I have one more day of sanding and filling to do. Then primer and paint.

The interior framing is in.

I do not have a trailer, but I have a line on one.

I am getting the fuel tank this week.

I am sick of sanding.



There is, however, a bright side.

I am only a sole, bow seat tops, 2 consoles, and a deck away from a functional boat. It will be stiff enough, once assembled, to use. The motor will be ready in a week or two. I will attempt to get the rudimentary electrical equipment in so that it is a running, working boat. Once I have achieved a whole structure, I will put it in on weekends to use, and have it out on weekdays to complete it.

July 4th.

This is the current "usable" target date. It may not have a windshield, or a coat of paint on the interior by then, but it will be wet, and it will be used. From then on, I will peck away at the finish work, getting it done when its done, not rushing to do tasks and doing a poor job.

The moral:

It will rarely be done when you plan on it. A boat you build is a living, breathing entity. It requires nurturing, its going to give you headaches, and it will be worth every second in the end. It will not be done when you teil it to be, but it will be done when its finished. Bearing that in mind, if you build your own boat, it will never be finished. There will always be that little improvement or missing feature you want to add. There isn't a thing wrong with that.

Keep posted, it will be finished.

E