The last storm of the winter 2011, with 120km/h winds, stripped down the shrink-wrap protecting SeaRover®. And that's just in time for the move to the hangar that was made in 1945. Here, over this summer, we'll do the final work by getting SeaRover® ready for oceans. The hangar has a good feel of Charles Lindbergh...
MAR 2nd 2011 - RCYC
The Royal canadian Yacht Club was the location where, today, Alen gave a slide presentation of the SeaRover project to the audience of the Shellback Club established in 1934.
Thank you all for participating!
JAN 11th 2011 - TORONTO INTERNATIONAL BOAT SHOW
SeaRover Julius crew is attending the Toronto International Boat Show. Celebrating 53 years as the best place to see and buy boats, gear and accessories this is our meeting point with sponsors.
DEC 15th 2010 - WINTER COVER
The finishing work on SeaRover Julius continues under the shrink wrap cover supported by PVC tubbing. Currently the work is focused on the steering system provided by JEFA STEERING from the Netherlands.
The cover is proving to be flexible and sturdy enough for high speed NW Arctic winds and occasional piles of snow...
AUGUST 15th 2010 - COATING
A huge move forward! SeaRover is painted. The hull will stay brushed aluminum. Decks are covered with cork and the cockpit and the deck house are now painted in Awlgrip Matehorn White.
A big thank you to John McComb - "The Guru of Difficult Coating Applications" for tackling this job perfectly!
Over the last 6 weeks hundreds feet of Marinco marine wire were pulled through SeaRover. Relatively easy task at this stage, before finishing the woodwork, as most areas have a good access. First, the battery switch panel was installed and battery cables were connected. Next, AC and DC panels were installed on the bulkhead in the salon, and from it colour coded and numbered wires were pulled to each individual light or piece of equipment.
Kind of fairly complex wiring is now 90% completed and everything works.
Alen taking the tank through the comanionway
APRIL 20th 2010 - WATER TANKS BY OPF
Ontario Plastic Fabricators (OPF) is Ontario's largest full service supplier of custom plastic welded tanks for the marine industry. Two fresh water tanks and the 'black water' holding tank were first made of cardboard to snug fit in the space provided. And to assure that they can be taken through the companionway. Kind of important as there are stories of custom made tanks that were made and then could not be installed as they would not fit through the companionway... Then, according to our cardboard models, OPF cut plastic sheets on their CNC machine and welded them into tanks with baffles, pick-up tubes, inspection ports and vents.
Excellent job. A big thank you to Ellis Oishi for providing tanks for SeaRover.
Hydrovane installation
MARCH 27th 2010 - HYDROVANE INSTALLATION
The Hydrovane is truly the finest self-steering system. This is the product of an engineer’s lifetime passion. It is a hybrid of 30
years of development. Derek Daniels, an engineer from Nottingham,
England was the founder and inventor of the Hydrovane and made it his
life’s work. Nothing would please him more than to identify a weakness
or an inadequacy that he could improve upon on. It is truly the easiest
to install, easiest to operate and easiest to maintain of all the
windvanes.In addition to self-steering, Hydrovane is an emergency steering system too. On SeaRover we have electrical self-steering made by Jefa and that will be used in coastal cruising. Once out on the open ocean, Hydrovane will take over the job of steering.
This is the first stage of the installation. The brackets have been welded on the transom and the Hydrovane has been initially set. Final set-up will happen at sea-trials.
A big thank you to John Curry for providing this fantastic piece of equipment!
NOVEMBER 10th 2009 - THE RUDDER SHAFT
The last element for the underwater part of the hull was to fabricate the tube for the prop shaft. The prop shaft connects the engine with the propeller and passes through the hull via the prop shaft tube. Since we are using a FlexiFold 3 bladed folding propeller, the shaft tube had to be a bit shorter to allow free folding of the prop when not in use. This part of the boat is exposed to vibrations, so we went with a bit oversized tube and reinforced the hull skin around the shaft tube. Welding the whole assembly needed a lot of preheating to achieve solid welds with no porosity. Next we will be mounting the engine and assembling the prop shaft and the prop.
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NOVEMBER 1st 2009 - THE SKEG
Most modern production fin-keel boats have a spade rudder, which extends straight down from the aft hull section. The rudder post comes down through the hull into the rudder itself, allowing the entire rudder to rotate to either side, pivoting around the post. A spade rudder is more vulnerable to debris or objects in the water, which may strike the rudder and exert force on the rudder post, the only structure supporting the whole rudder. That's why we fabricated the older style - the Skeg - a better and stronger solution for cruising sailboats. A fixed frame welded to the hull extends all the way to the bottom of the rudder where a teflon bearing connects to it with the rudder. It is made in a way similar to fabricating the rudder - 2 skin sheets are very carefully welded to the frame to avoid any bending and to keep it perfectly aligned with the rudder. Chris Giraudy accomplished this delicate welding and fabricating task, and all ended up perfectly straight and aligned.
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SEPTEMBER 20th 2009 - THE RUDDER
Almost a month was wasted on reinforcing the bent cradle and getting SeaRover back under the roof of Appleby Marine. The next task: building the rudder. The frame for the rudder on the SeaRover is made of the rudder shaft, turned from solid aluminum rod, 8 ribs, the trailing edge bar. First all elements are assembled on a plywood sheet, measured and marked to the right position and angle. After the rudder frame elements were welded together, two sheets of 3/8" aluminum were cut and welded to the frame to make the 'skin' of the rudder. It was easy to weld one sheet, but the second one had to be plug-welded. That involves cutting openings on the sides and welding from the outside to connect the skin to the rudder. Preheating and careful welding is needed to avoid any bending and to keep the rudder straight and perfectly symmetrical.
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AUGUST 27th 2009 - THE KEEL IS ON!
At 8.30AM our crew gathered at Appleby Marine prepared to mount the custom made keel on SeaRover/Julius. James Izzard from MarsKeel supervised the installation, along with Frank Eskit from Coordinate Industries, who aligned the keel into the right position. Aram Malek from Canadian Professional Crane brought his mighty crane truck capable of lifting our 14,000 pounds, while Shawn Palmer from Liftow provided and operated the lift-truck that pulled the boat from the hangar and positioned the 6,144 pounds lead keel.
The entire operation ran smoothly, but the cradle that holds the boat bent under the keel load, and now has to be reinforced before the boat can be pulled back inside. Once inside, the final keel alignment and adjustment will be measured by a laser, and the joint between the keel plate and the keel will be insulated with a layer of marine silicone 5200 by 3M.
AUGUST 24th 2009 - SPECIALIZED WELDING BY MELVIN WILSON
Switching focus from the boat's "paint job" to the "keel job" has put us under the gun time wise to meet our deadline. Unfortunately our specialty welder Chris Aslin was booked with another boat building project and could not finish welding the perimeter of the keel plate.
As luck would have it, we were put in contact with another highly professional welder, Melvin Wilson from Unique Welding & Fabricating Ltd. Melvin has over 40 years of experience and with no hesitation jumped on board. His task is to complete the most important weld on the boat, flawlessly. We are scheduled to mount the keel on August 27th which puts us back on schedule. Thanks a million Melvin!
AUGUST 22nd 2009 - THE MAST, CUSTOM MADE BY KLACKO SPARS
Over the last few weeks the mast and boom have been custom fabricated at Klacko Spars. All components were made from scratch. The mast is extruded according to Kalcko's specific design, and the mast head, the goose-neck and all fittings are made from aluminum and stainless steel hardware. These pieces are then custom fitted and polished to a high gloss. This is a superior design, proven in over 40 years of custom fabrication by Klacko Spars.
Today the finishing touches were done and the mast and boom have been sanded and painted. The spars are done! One more big thank you to Danny Klacko without whom this project would never have even started. (check the start of the building blog about building the hull at Klacko Spars)
AUGUST 14th 2009 - UPPER-STRUCTURE PREPPED BUT THE PAINT JOB DELAYED
Welding the hurricane shutter mounts, the wave breakers for the hatch and the handrails marked the very final welds on the upper-structure and the cockpit. Now the last touches left are the grinding of these new welds and finally sanding of all the surfaces to be painted (using grit 80 paper).
Unfortunately, when all was ready for paint (after a 2 week delay due to additional fabrication and welding), we found that the boat painter is on holidays until the end of the month. We quickly shifted focus to the task of mounting the keel and in a few days we re-arranged our plan allowing us to execute the keel mounting within the next 14 days.
Custom made through-hull fitting
AUGUST 8th 2009 - FRANK ESKIT JOINS THE BUILDING TEAM
Frank Eskit from Coordinate Industries Ltd. joins the building team as a vital link, specifically providing us with specialized machined parts for the sailboat. Custom made stantions bases, sail bat-carts, handrail bases, through-hull mounts for sonar, just to name a few, are all designed by Frank. During the manufacturing process Frank specified the materials he required, organized the production process and always delivered on time. With 20 years of experience in machining, fabricating and assembly in the commercial, military and aerospace industries, Frank brings extensive knowledge in both methods and real-world applications. His knowledge of highly advanced aerospace materials have proven to benefit our boat with great looking functional details.
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AUGUST 7th 2009 - CUSTOM MADE HAND-RAILS
The custom design of handrails bases nicely follows the lines of the deck house, and the entire assembly really looks great. After welding 2 ends and one middle support on each side we realized that a single support was insufficient. The span between the middle and ends is over 5 ft and grabbing the hand rail did not give us a good solid feel. As well, if stepped on, the rail would bend. This brought us another delay which is expected with any custom made aluminum boat building project. After a quick trip back to Coordinate Industries and with Frank Eskit's help four more middle supports were fabricated. We then went back to the boatyard to grind off the already welded end mounts, clean the deck surface, and place the additional middle supports (now 3 a side), and weld them again on to the cabin roof.
After this was done we quickly added a 2 inch flat bar around the forward and sides of the escape hatch. That is to serve as an additional wave breaker for the hatch, as well as a frame to attach a wind-sock which will allow us to direct the air in through the hatch when at anchor.
JULY 28th 2009 - HURRICANE SHUTTERS MOUNTS
As an additional safety feature Chris Giraudy welded mounts for boat hurricane shutters today. Should we ever run into really bad weather, or even when leaving for any oceanic crossing, the three additional lexan boards for the three forward portholes can be bolted on these mounts and protect us from direct wave hits. The mounts were custom made by Drago Mazalica from Likro Precision Ltd.
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JULY 20th 2009 - BUILDING THE MAST
Klacko Spars is where the Julius Project first started and where the hull was initially built. It feels good to come full circle and fabricate one of the most essential systems for the sailboat here in a shop with over 40 years of experience building sailboats spars. A big thank you to Danny Klacko for everything he has contributed to our project!
Today at Klacko Spars the fabrication of Julius' mast started. The mast head assembly was made and Danny and Tom then mounted it on the top of the mast. The mast head holds 4 pulleys and numerous attachment points for the standing rigging (which are stainless steel lines that hold the mast in place). Holes are then drilled to accommodate compression pipes. These are mounted and welded through the mast at every point where a structural holding bolt goes through..Today finally saw us do all the measurements for our spreaders and prep for our next step... mounting the spreaders and the boom goose neck, installing pulleys, wiring and painting.
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JULY 13th 2009 - PREPS FOR PAINT JOB
Now that all the holes for mounting various deck gear have been drilled, and all essential elements are welded and ground down, the exterior of the boat is ready for paint.
Today John McComb from Awlgrip visited the boatyard and advised us on the final steps required to get Julius ready for the paint job. We decided that we'll leave the hull bare aluminum and only paint the deck house and the cockpit. As it stands now the decks and cockpit seats are covered with Stazo marine cork, so only the vertical walls and the floor of the cockpit along with the sides and the roof of the cabin house will be painted. The roof and the floor of the cockpit will be painted with specialized non-skid paint.
Aluminum poses specific challenges for a proper paint job. First and foremost is that the paint must have and absolute 100% clean surface to bind to. To achieve this all aluminum surfaces to be painted had to be cleaned with paint thinner and then sanded with 120 grid sand paper. Our next step is the Alu-Prep coat, then the primer, filler and few final colour coats.
JUNE 14th 2009 - V-BERTH FURNITURE
The V-berth, or the front cabin on the sailboat features a double bed with lot's of storage under it. The bed base features numerous holes to prevent mildew growth protecting the mattress. The berth is also houses an aluminum box that stores our anchor chain (aka the chain-locker). Access to the chain-locker is important for emergencies and for cleaning so an access hatch has been incorporated. About 250 ft of our main anchor chain will be stored here, and managed by our Quick electrical windlass mounted on the deck.
JUNE 7th 2009 - PLUMBING
One of the major creature comforts on board a sailboat is hot water. Even better, hot pressurized water. Based on components from Whale products, we installed our hot/cold pressurized and salt water systems. We manged to do the full installation in just few days. Whale's unique click-connect plumbing system was the reason we completed the installation so quickly. Whales's system simplifies the traditional installation procedure of tubing and connections. Once the plumbing was in place we installed the two Whale electrical, and two Whale manual bilge pumps. One manual pump is operated from the cockpit and the other one was placed under the salon table. Another unique feature with Whale's system is that the bilge can be emptied with aide from the running engine (through a Y valve). Needless to say this will be one dry and comfortable boat... let's not forget the two hot fresh water showers (one in the head or boats bathroom, and one at the stern of the boat)!
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MAY 23rd 2009 - FOREDECK CORK INSTALLED
The cork for our foredeck was precut by STAZO. To install it we first cleaned the deck with acetone, and then applied a primer for the adhesive to bond. We then spread the adhesive evenly and placed the cork sheet down. Simple process!
Because we supplied paper templates vs. CAD files, there was a bit of trimming necessary on precut sheets, still the whole process of doing the foredeck took us only ten hours. If you were to cover this foredeck in teak it can easily take 2 weeks and there would be a few hundreds of holes drilled for fasteners!
STAZO cork from the Netherlands is definitely the ultimate material for deck covering.
Peter Cook, Alen Milic and Bill Wasson
MAY 20th 2009 - STAZO CREW ARRIVED
The STAZO Western Hemisphere crew - Bill Wasson and Peter Cook arrived from Maine, USA today. They brought with them a 600 pound crate filled with the STAZO Marinedeck 2000 cork for our decks and interior areas. STAZO cork is the ultimate marine flooring and so much better than laying teak decks. First of all, the product is eco-friendly and the list of benefits is impressive: no holes for installation, no maintenance, easy cleaning, UV resistant, salt water and rust resistant, sound/thermal insulation, lightweight, fire retardant, non-skid, wear and shock resistant, easy installed and good for all climates including extremes... the list goes on.
On top of flooring, STAZO kindly provided a beautifully engineered 1000mm steering wheel, with 5 double spokes, and covered with cork - the ultimate in boat sexiness!!!
Again a big thank you to Bill Watson for providing this major sponsorship!
MAY 17th 2009 - STANCHIONS BASES
Stanchions are essentially the railing surrounding a sailboat. Our stanchions assembly will have solid bases that will be welded to the deck and will hold support rods that hold life lines.
The bases were machined today at Coordinate Industries , aerospace machining company, and were then welded by our long-time team member, and one of few excellent aluminum welders/engineers around, Chris Giraldi.
The next step will be installing cork decks on Julius.
MAY 12th 2009 - FUEL AND WATER FILLS
On the deck of the boat we drilled holes in order to mount water and diesel intakes. Tubes connected to intakes will feed fresh water and diesel fuel to their dedicated tanks. On either side of the boat there is a diesel tank and a water tank. There is also a black water tank (waste water from the toilet) making a total of 5 holes on the deck to allow adequate access.
Vetus made inlets are connected via Vetus specialized tubing allowing a safe and solid connection to the tanks. Vetus is exclusively distributed in Canada by Strigth MacKay.
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MAY 7th 2009 - HEATING DUCTS
Julius has been outfitted with a top of the line Espar diesel heater. This Espar heater is made in Germany, very economical, and will keep Juilus warm in cold waters. The unit is composed of a heater, a fuel pump and 4, 3 and 2 inch ducting that circulates heat throughout the boat. At this stage in the build, all of the boat's interior is exposed making it the best time to incorporate bulky and space demanding ducting. We managed to place the ducts in the upper corners of our shelving areas, taking up a minimum of usable storage space. The ductwork goes from the heater to the quarterbeth cabin, then to the main cabin, the dry locker, V-berth and to the head (the bathroom).
Again, a big thanks to Barry Lamont, the rep for Espar, who advised us on all the details of installation, and who will be doing the final install of all the mechanical components.
MAY 1st 2009 - NAV STATION FURNITURE
This area of the interior of Julius, the nav station, is the most complex in terms of ergonomic design. Specifically the seats, table(s) and specifically designed cabinets dedicated to the computer, monitor and all other electrical and electronics components.
Each area must be fully accessible for maintenance, repairs and have enough space for additional installations. We finished up with the construction of this area this week and are moving on to other areas of the interior. Compared to the nav. station area the remainder of the interior design and construction should prove less complex.
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APRIL 26th 2009 - NOW THE FUN BEGINS
After the cabin floors were placed, glued and fastened with stainless steel screws, all of the bulkheads and other vertical walls were glued and bolted. The bulkheads were anchored specifically to the aluminum frame base that had been welded to the main boat frame before the spraying of insulating foam. Furthermore, all the liners (mahogany 1/4inch plywood covering the interior side of the boat) have also been anchored and fastened. We are now in virgin territory as we begin the planning, routing and mounting for all of the different electrical, electronic, navigation, plumbing and lighting equipment. Today BEP MARINE 12V and 110V switch panels found their dry and permanent mount, which is the back of the starboard bunk. Direct access to the back of the electrical panels will be through the door in the quarterberth. On the wall behind the panels we mounted our battery charger (made by Quick Italy). The battery management panel (as well made by BEP MARINE) was recessed and mounted on the port bunk (separating the galley/kitchen) and the port side bunk. Now all is ready for our electrical guru Mike Capaldi from Appleby Marine to start wiring the vessel.
Gray water tank and a pump installed under front cabin floors and accessable through opening floor panel
APRIL 24th 2009 - GRAYWASTE TANK INSTALLED
Today we installed the Greywaste Tank made by Whale. This is 8L plastic tank that handles all of the boat's waste water, from shower, toilet, sink and chain locker. A float switch is mounted inside and connected to the Gulper Whale pump which automatically dumps waste water overboard and through only one thru-hull fitting. A clear lid sits flush on the top of the tank for easy cleaning and is accessible through an opening in one of the floor boards.
On a small boat such as ours, it is essential to utilize every possible corner of available space. This is where the magic of doing a custom build comes in...
APRIL 18th 2009 - SOLES FABRICATED
When referring to 'Soles' on a sailboat we are actually referring to the boat's cabin floors. When we refer to 'Floors' on a sailboat we are talking about the lower part of the transverse frames of the sailboat. These terms tend to be confusing, but nonetheless today saw us fabricating the soles for Julius. We then installed the newly made soles over the boat's aluminum floors - this means we now have the cabin floors done, and have created lots of new storage area's on board.
The storage areas were a result of 1/2 in. mahogany plywood sections (3 in all) being cut, which provided openings for removable floor panels. These panels are essential as they provide access to 'hidden areas' in the bilge and under the soles. All together there are 11 removable floor panels providing access to keel bolts, through hull seacocks, battery banks, food and wine storage, shower sump tanks and a few electrical pumps. This floor is the base on which the bulkheads will be permanently mounted. In the finishing stages of the build, this mahogany plywood will be covered with marine cork by Stazo.
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Jim Bender and Alen fitting bulkheads
APRIL 13th 2009 - BULKHEADS CUT AND FITTED
By dictionary definition, Bulkheads are any sized wall-like constructions inside a vessel, that form watertight compartments, subdivide space, and/or strengthen the structure. In our case, since this is an aluminum construction, our bulkheads are primarily used for subdividing the space. Jim Bender worked on Julius for 2 days in the boatyard at Appleby Marine and fabricated 6 out of the 9 bulkheads for Julius.
The main issue with the bulkhead construction Is the curvature of the boat hull. The process involved making a 1/4 inch plywood template with the use of a heat gun and plywood slivers. This allowed us to trace the curve accurately. The next step is to do the tracing of the template onto the 1/2 inch mahogany marine plywood, from which bulkheads were finally cut and fitted. The interior already feels so much smaller ;-)
Jim Alen making template for a bulkhead
Jim arrived at Pearsons Airport in Toronto
APRIL 10th 2009 - JIM BENDER IN TORONTO
The Julius Project sea-trials skipper Jim Bender visited us over the Easter weekend. Jim is a professional captain and has circumnavigated the world during the Reach The World expedition. He is currently working with Rocking The Boat In the Bronx, New York. Jim spent 2 days in the boatyard and helped us with the building of the major bulkheads for Julius. More importantly he gave Alen a serious infusion of positive energy.
Over two nights Alen and Jim discussed several options for the Atlantic crossing. Options were bandied about due to current time lines that would see the potential crossing occurring close to hurricane season. Time remains our greatest enemy as we drive to build an ocean-going vessel before the weather window closes. Right now it appears that we will miss the window of opportunity when we are ready for the crossing from Newfoundland to Gibraltar via Azores (This is a direct route, straight across the Atlantic). One option discussed was to go south to the Caribbean, spend the winter there and then do the crossing in May 2010. This conflicts with the schedule for producing the TV series, and has Alen feeling quite uneasy.
After exploring all possible options Alen and Jim found that the most favorable time to do the crossing via Newfoundland - Iceland - Ireland - Gibraltar is August and September. So this is our new plan and goal. Finish the boat by August, leave Toronto and do a Northern Latitudes Atlantic crossing. With this change in plans new energy has been injected into the project. Thank you Jim!!!
Alen and Jim Bender sealing the new Expedition Plan
Chris Aslin preping to weld the keel plate
APRIL 6th 2009 - KEEL PLATE INSTALLED
Arguably the most important weld on a sailboat is the attachment of the keel plate to the hull. In our case the keel plate is a 3/4" thick aluminum plate that is welded directly to the hull. The plate is then attached via 10 stainless steel nuts and bolts that fit through holes drilled in the keel plate. The weld and hardware will support the 6000 pounds (3 tonnes) of keel weight. Needless to say the process of welding this plate is complex. Luckily for us Chris Aslin, an experienced and respected boat builder from Aslin Boat Building, has come aboard. Over the course of two days Chris prepped and welded the keel plate into place.
Check the video for a detail explanation of the technique involved.
Barry Lamont from Sea Tech Marine and John Dennehy from Espar (holding the diesel heater that will be installed in Julius)
MARCH 20th 2009 - PICKING ESPAR HEATER
Today we picked up all components for Espar's diesel heating system. Barry Lamont from Sat Tech marine went to the impressive Espar warehouse and assembled all necessities including: the heater, fuel pump, 4 and 3 inch tubing, vents, exhaust pipe and silencer, control unit, electrical harness etc. In the coming days Barry will be installing the system while Julius is here at the boatyard.
Julius will have controllable heating vents in all cabins. This system in particular system is well suited to take the boat to Arctic or Antarctic waters and allow for a stay over winter. A big thank you to John Dennehy from Espar for arranging this sponsorship.
Michaela and Mike from Bennett Custom Canvas designing the dodger with Alen
MARCH 15th 2009 - BENNETT CANVAS ON SITE
Mike and Michaela from Bennett Canvas visited Appleby Marine and took detailed measurements for Julius' dodger and bimini tops. The dodger will be built by high-end Ocean rating standards, including 1 1/2 inch stainless tubing and a reinforced Sunbrella cover.
Bennett Canvas' experienced team specializes in the fabrication and installation of high-quality marine canvas products, and virtually no project is beyond their expertise. All products are handcrafted to specifications at their facility in Toronto and their mobile service ensures timely and convenient installation to customers throughout the Golden Horseshoe and beyond.
Lining the mahogany marine plywood sheets
MARCH 8th 2009 - JULIUS LINED IN MAHOGANY
The lining of Julius' interior is now 100% complete. The most complicated task was forming the mahogany plywood sheets to match the concave shapes of the boat's interior. Through trial and error we lost a few 8X4 ft plywood sheets, but once up to speed the process was smooth, and soon there was almost no visible aluminum structure. These plywood panels will be mostly hidden and only visible when opening interior cabinet doors. We can now begin with the electrical and plumbing installation that will be mounted on this liner.
Different layers of Julus hull
FEBRUARY 20th 2009 - LINERS
Many layers and different materials makeup the completed Julius' hull. The hull itself is made up of 1/4 inch thick Aluminum 6061 sheets that are formed around frames. The next layer is insulation foam. We used Tiger Foam Canada to prevent condensation and provide substantial thermal insulation. The next layer is known as HeatShield, a multi layered 1/4 inch thick material developed as a heat insulator for NASA's Space Shuttle. The actual rolls of material we installed were made to be installed in the Space Shuttle and actually came from NASA's warehouse. After that layer, 4 inch wide mahogany plywood planks are installed as frames for the last layer - the 1/4inch mahogany plywood panels. Seated on the wood panels are the electrical harness and plumbing, each being installed before building and installing the boat 'furniture' for the interior. Two days ago we started with planks and in just a few hours 1/4 of the interior planking was completed by two people. Over next two days Alen finished the rest and prepared all for install of the final layer.
Van Tuyl picking Julius at Mars Keel
FEBRUARY 15th 2009 - JULIUS INSIDE @ APPLEBY MARINE
Today Van Tuyl Marine Transport moved Gaia Julius from Mars Keel to nearby Appleby Marine and the work now continues. Instead of moving the boat to Klacko Spars, Mike Capaldi (owner of Appleby Marine) accommodated indoor space for the sailboat and he is responsible for all electric and electronics installation on Gaia Julius. The Appleby Marine location will also see the installation of all the boat's plumbing, the painting of the deck house and cockpit and the laying of the cork decks from Stazo. Once all of the aforementioned tasks are completed the deck gear will be installed. Once the boat leaves this shop the only remaining tasks will be the finishing of the interior 'furniture' (that still need to be custom fabricated and installed). That will be done in Brantford at our Expedition Base.
Julius Project's New Sponsors
JANUARY 18th 2009 - TIBS WRAPS-UP
One
of the longest boat shows in N.America, lasting 10 days, the Toronto
International Boat Show ended today. Daily meetings with various reps
and manufacturers brought many great new contacts and potential new
supporters of our project, not to mention a few confirmed sponsors.
New companies and distributors that confirmed their participation in the Julius project are: Andersen Winches (distributed in Canada by Rekord Marine); Bennett Canvas (dodger and bimini fabricators from Toronto); Glomex antennas (Canadian distributor Woodart); CapSure (sailors caps with lanyard); Eastern Marine
(Toronto based shop that will install the engine system); AMP Marine
(fenders); Ragz Clothing (environmentally friendly mariner's apparel); Silicone Keyboards (waterproof keyboards) and Peter Reed from Fogh Marine from Toronto will be Julius' rigger.
A big thank you to everyone that is supporting the Julius Project ;-)
Boat Show
JANUARY 9th 2009 - TORONTO INTERNATIONAL BOAT SHOW
Friday evening the Toronto International Boat Show opened its doors to media and VIP's. For us it meant reconnecting in person with Julius supporters attending the show, along with promoting our project to potential new sponsors. Our hope was to connect with a few Canadian marine equipment distributors and to establish contact with manufacturers of equipment we still needed for finishing up the project. Our main objective was the roller furling gear for the Genoa and the batt-cars for the main sail.
The opening night was not over-crowded, full of good contacts and new interest, and of course it was great to see our sponsors and their reps.
MID-END DECEMBER 2008 - LOGISTICAL PROBLEMS
In order to accommodate the custom made keel, Gaia Julius was placed on a newly built taller cradle. This taller cradle would enable the guys from Mars Metals to properly weld the keel plate and mount the keel on. Once on the cradle the next step was to weld 3/4 inch thick aluminum keel plate on to the 1/4 inch thick side walls of the existing keel stump. The difference in thickness of the materials to be welded required warming up of the hull. This meant bringing the materials to room temperature, or in our case the temperature of the workshop. Unfortunately for us we didn't get that far as the workshop doors did not have enough clearance to allow Julius to be moved inside. The decision was then made to move Julius back to Klacko Spars and to do the required welding there before moving Julius to our 'dry-dock' in Brantford. Soon thereafter mother nature chose not to co-operate and sent a series of winter storms our way. This meant that our marine transport truck could not operate, and with Christmas and New Year holidays and the Toronto International Boat Show about to begin, fabricating was put on 3 weeks stand-by. Next up - moving to Klacko Spars.
Tim from 'Grass Cutter Lawncare'
NOVEMBER 26th 2008 - THE EXPEDITION BASE
Our plan
moving forward to January is to move Julius to a farm house in
Brantford, Ontario for the installation of all the interior furniture. As
well, the farm house will serve as our Expedition Base until the
departure.
Today we worked and prepared for both Julius' and the chase boats' final dry dock location at the new Expedition Base. This will be the last dry dock location before the boats begin their voyage. The guys from Gras Barber Lawncare jumped in and quickly leveled piles of gravel that had been recently delivered by Zabelny Trucking. G&C Bin Rental delivered the garbage container so the site will stay clean. The guys from Brantford are great and very helpful, and it feels really good that our final crew preparations, along with finishing and outfitting of Julius and the chase boat will be happening right here. .
Julius on new cradle
NOVEMBER 25th 2008 - JULIUS ON NEW CRADLE
Julius needed taller cradle to accommodate the installation of the custom made keel (a weight of 6000 pounds!). Paul built the new cradle from 2X2 steel frames and 6 wheels supporting pproximately 15,000 pounds - the total weight of Gaia Julius.
Today Julius was moved out of MarsKeel building and placed on the new cradle. We are waiting for some final tasks to be completed before installation of the keel. These include cutting and trimming to fit the 3/4 inch thick keel plate welding it to the bottom of the boat. The area welded is where the holes will be drilled to fit bolts that eventually will hold the new keel.
Alen & Carmen Caycho from Lee Valley
NOVEMBER 14th 2008 - VISIT TO LEE VALLEY
Lee Valley Tools has been meeting the needs of serious woodworkers, boat builders and craftsmen for 30 years.
Today, Alen was introduced to Lee Valley's Veritas woodworking tools by Carmen Caycho, the manager of their Toronto location. Veritas tools are extremely well designed, built to last, and a real pleasure to handle. Our build crew will use them for the interior woodwork that due to begin very soon.
Miro Skoro from Coordinate Industries polishing details on Julius toe rail
NOVEMBER 10th 2008 - POLISHING
While inside the MarsKeel building we used the time to do some final preparations for painting the deck and the cockpit. All exposed welds and small corners had to be polished, so Miro Skoro from Coordinate Industries arrived with his custom made polishing tools and showed us how to properly polish. Coordinate Industries is a precise machine shop manufacturing parts for the aero-space industry. Their standards are extremely high, and we know that will reflect in the details of our fine polished metal work.
Drago Mazalica from Likro Precision with finished rudder shaft
OCTOBER 30th 2008 - RUDDER
The original Ted Brewer design for the Aragosa 35 specifies a skeg rudder for the boat. Differing from modern spade rudders, kkeg rudders have a supporting structural element located in front of the rudder. Jefa Steering supplied The Julius Project with a complete steering system fabricated for 3.11 inch rudder shaft. Since the original design was asking for a 2 inch, skeg supported rudder shaft, we opted for more a modern spade (less drag with better balance) rudder, built around 3.11" shaft.
Today the shaft was fabricated by Drago Mazalica from Likro Precision Inc. Likro is a high tech machine shop manufacturing components for the space and aircraft industry. Likro will complete the fabricating of all rudder components, engine/prop shaft and various other machined parts for Julius.
Space Shield Insulation
OCTOBER 20th 2008 - HEAT SHIELD INSTALLATION
Heat Shield is a product originally developed by NASA for the Space Shuttle. This is not the usual insulation we have come to know over the past 30 to 40 years. It is a Space Age radiant barrier. It reflects radiant heat, and infrared light and heat. After insulating the inside of the hull with Tiger Foam, we installed Heat Shield over the interior surfaces above the water line. This will dramatically reduce the heating of the interior, keeping it within the temperature range of the water surrounding the boat.
We cut sheets of Heat Shield to fit the interior surfaces and glued them on exposed aluminum frames with 3M's 5200 silicon glue/sealant.
OCTOBER 16th 2008 - JULIUS TRANSPORTED TO MARS KEEL
Today Van Tuyl Marine Transport successfully moved Julius from OBBC (home for the last 12 months), to Mars Keel. This is where our custom made keel will be mounted. Mars Keel is North America's largest custom keel manufacturer and they designed and fabricated the lead keel for Julius.
After a bit of trouble removing the boat from the old hangar at OBBC, Joe Van Tuyl professionally hauled out the 37ft shiny aluminum hull. We then drove it through rush hour traffic on the busy 401 HWY, to Burlington. It was cool driving behind the truck and watching the sunset with Julius moving in the foreground. We couldn't help but try to imagine that the vehicle traffic around us were ocean waves, and that Julius, sails filled, was cutting through them with ease...
Mast profile (click for larger image)
OCTOBER 1st 2008 - KLACKO STARTS WITH FABRICATING SPARS
Danny Klacko from Klacko Spars was kind enough to accommodate the fabricating of spars for Julius (to be ready for sea trials at the end of this year). A 50ft tall keel stepped mast with double spreaders and boom will be made using Klacko mast extrusions, and fitted after mounting the keel at the beginning of November.
One more big thank you to Danny Klacko and his crew for being onboard the Julius project from the very beginning!
Alen after foam trimming by sanding
SEPTEMBER 22nd 2008 - ULTIMATE INSULATION FOAM
A few months ago Julius was partly foamed with Tiger Foam to provide thermal and acoustic insulation and to prevent condensation. Unfortunately most of that foam had to be scraped away to expose numerous welding errors done by the previous fabricator Gunter. The insulating foam came off easy with a scraper, and the questionable welds were fixed. The guys from Tiger Foam Canada again showed their commitment to the Julius Project by supplying us with one more additional DIY kit, which we applied right away. Application was fast and easy. The next day was spent on trimming excess foam. This was easily achieved with a sharp knife and sanding grinder. Note to builders... if using a grinder for this type of job be prepared for a lot of dust. All in all, non-toxic and fire retardant Tiger Foam is proving to be the ultimate material for insulating any metal boat.
Next Up - Installing the SpaceShield and plywood liners!
UK Halsey Sailmakers - Toronto
SEPTEMBER 17th 2008 - SAILS ORDERED
Today Alen visited UK Halsey's Design Coordinator Brian Chapman in his Toronto headquarters. A couple of options have been discussed and the final design of Julius' sails have been approved and ordered.
UK Halsey is providing all the sails for Julius, including Main, Genoa, Storm Staysail and Code-0 shute for light winds. These sails are curently being constructed.
Cockpit, deck and interior reinforcements welding - finished!
SEPTEMBER 10th 2008 - WELDING FINISHED
After 2 months of cutting, welding and grinding, all of the previous mistakes made by our former fabricator, have been corrected. These numerous tasks are now fully rectified and we are now officially finished with any structural welding tasks. A big thank you to Paul Cezette for accomplishing this difficult task!
What does remain however is some fabrication, specifically the rudder and keel mounting plate. Even with these few welding tasks their is nothing preventing us from lining the interior with wood and installing the electrical and plumbing systems. The welding fixes prevented us from starting on the boats interior. Next: foaming of the interior with Tiger Foam and then interior woodwork...
Hydrovane H mount on Julius
SEPTEMBER 5th 2008 - HYDROVANE
A few days ago our windvane, made by Hydrovane, arrived from England. One more big thank you to John Curry for arranging this sponsorship! In combination with the Jefa motor-driven self-steering system, Hydrovane will be used as our wind controlled self-steering system. For coastal cruising Jefa's motor will do the work, but for most of the ocean going leg, Hydrovane will be our guide pointing us in the right direction.
The windvane is offset mounted on Julius' stern by 3 attachment points. Today we fabricated the mount for the lower point, aka the H-bracket. A piece of the stern was cut out and 1inch solid aluminum plate was welded in an area allowing us to maintain stern lines. Upper brackets, called A-brackets, will be later bolted on the upper back area of Julius' transom. Multiple possibilities for installing Hydrovane brackets made the designing and fabricating of our own a snap. We are looking forward to sea-trials and testing of our self-steering system.
Mast collar blocks base / Hand made bollard / Waterproof chainlocker...
SEPTEMBER 1st 2008 - DECK ELEMENTS COMPLETED AND IN PLACE
After about a week of detailed fabricating, all deck elements are now welded in their permanent positions.
The ring around the mast collar was made to hold blocks for lines; an area was designated for deck line organizers; attachment points for our UKHalsey storm sail were welded just behind the windlass; a solid fisherman style bollard was fabricated from scratch and solidly welded through the deck; mounts for Rutgerson padyes, to hold jack-lines were welded in a number of locations; the watertight front hatch for the chainlocker was fabricated and dorades were build to accommodate AFI ventilation.
Our level of excitement is growing as new elements and equipment are rapidly appearing on Julius' deck.
Reinforced deck welds... all over.
AUGUST 27th 2008 - DECK WELDS REINFORCED
Gunter, the previous fabricator, left many unwelded or poorly welded areas all over the boat. Now the task left to us was to reweld deck plates. Most of Gunter's old welds were ground down and solidly welded by Paul Cezette. Now all of the new welds need to be ground down to the desired finished look. Unfortunately for us this has proven to be a lot of time consuming and unnecessary work, should it have been done right the first time. The extra effort and long hours will now leave no questions about Julius structural integrity any more.
Stringers and reinforcements
AUGUST 19th 2008 - CABIN REINFORCEMENT
According to Ted Brewer's building plans, Julius' foredeck, cabin top and sides had to be connected with longitudinal frames which were about to be welded to vertical frames. This was another important detail not finished by the previous boat builder.
Luckily for us Paul managed to complete this task with his ingeniuty. The first step was to scrape down the "Tiger Foam" insulation that Gunter careleslly sprayed over unfinished welding spots. We then had to size reinforcement parts which were fabricated from 2 inch flat bars and L frames. After days of welding we are now getting closer to finishing all of the metal fabrication on Julius' interior.
Mast collar installed
AUGUST 17th 2008 - MAST COLLAR
The mast collar is the location where the mast enters the cabin top on a sailboat. Our mast is keel stepped making it more durable for off-shore work. Sailboat designs usually have one of two types of stepped mast designs, either keel steped (as Julius') or deck stepped. With a deck stepped design the mast is mounted to the deck of the boat. Since we chose to go with the more durable and reliable keel stepped design this has added some fabricating challenges. The main task was to reinforce the deck roof and fabricate a round mast ring on which a rubber boot will be installed. The mast would have to mount to the keel and travel through the deck housing, all of which meant additional fabricating and work. This extra effort is to prevent annoying leaks that keel stepped masts frequently develop due to crashing waves and water on deck.
Our mission is to have a dry bilge! So far all is looking good.
Paul Cezette fabricating LPG storage
AUGUST 10th 2008 - RAGASCO TANKS SPACE PROVIDED
We are using LPG (propane) for our expedition. This system requires a locker that is gas tight to the interior of the boat, and a drain from the base of the locker overboard.
The Ragasco cylinders being used are made of composite material and we fitted them in an undersized stern corner storage box. Paul and Alen fabricated the recessed boxes and direct tube drains. Next lids were made for these boxes. We are now almost finished corner stern seats, and the propane system will be complete for the installation!
Paul Cezette reinforcing chainplates wearing Miller sexy helmet providing protection / Chainplates ends extruding from the deck
AUGUST 5th 2008 - CHAINPLATES FINISHED
Another area of Julius not finished by previous fabricator are 6 chainplates for shrouds (rigging that provides athwartships support for the mast). These chainplates had to be reinforced, and turnbuckle attachment points had to be welded through-deck on very precise angles.
Some insulation foam had to be scraped away first, as Gunter foamed over unfinished welds a few months ago, but the Tiger Foam was taken off easy with a scraper. A few days of work fabricating this important structure and it looks like all is ready to step up the mast for sea trials in end of October.
Speakers holes and companionway finished
AUGUST 1th 2008 - COMPANIONWAY HATCH AND MUSIC ON BOARD
Framing
the companionway hatch involved some precise alignments and fabrication
of an aluminium frame that will hold three 1/2 inch lexan boards. Water
penetration is the main concern, so the frames were made with large
drain holes and constructed in a way so that all the water drains into
cockpit area... or so we hope ;-)
With adding a box and
extending the bridge-deck (raised structure between the cockpit and the
companionway) space was provided for mounting the Wave-One waterproof speakers and a shelve that can hold binoculars or a winch handle.
Recessed boxes for instruments and controls
JULY 25th 2008 - COCKPIT ALMOST FINISHED
Over
the last few weeks the cockpit has evolved into a true sailboat
cockpit. All of Gunter Richtler's fabricating flaws have been cut out
by Alen and Paul Cezette,
and then re-fabricated and re-welded. The structural design of Julius
is done as it should have been done. Some ill-fated luck brought Gunter
on board but we are successfully dealing with that error and making the
boat a real 'Land Rover for all Oceans'!
One complex task we face is installing the fabricated recessed boxes for the Vetus engine instruments, engine control, remote Quick windlass control and the BEP cockpit switches along with the WaveOne
stereo remote control. Further along reinforcements for the winches
have been fabricated. More challenges lay ahead as we plan to attack
Gunter's poorly made engine mounts and other details in the boat
interior.
In a few weeks we'll be ready to start with the woodwork, electrical and plumbing systems installations.
Proper chainplates fabricated
JULY 17th 2008 - BACKSTAYS CHAINPLATES INSTALLED
Backstay
is a stay on a sailing ship leading downward and aft from the top or
upper part of a mast. This is the stainless steel line that holds the
mast from the back. It should be attached to reinforced part of boat's
stern.
Gunter
Richtler, the previous fabricator, did basic cosmetics work in the
cockpit, but there were no structural reinforcements for backstays.
The whole back coaming had to be cut apart, chainplates welded in right
spots, then reinforced with backing plates and finally covered back
with cosmetics plating.
More and more of Gunter's mistakes are emerging as Alen and Paul Cezette are coaming the boat structure form the cockpit towards the bow.
Paul after fabricating mounts for Jefa steering binnacle
JULY 12th 2008 - JEFA STEERING INSTALLED
Another unfinished job by Gunter Richtler is the steering, as described in
the posting from June 8th. One of the most major components of the
cockpit design was not executed as it should have been. Freeman hatch has been installed in a wrong spot not making it possible to assemble the steering components. Paul Cezette
did a great job by fabricating mounts for all components (the rudder
shaft upper end with emergency steering plate; the binnacle and the
auto pilot motor) and placing/welding them in precise locations to make
the Jefa system operational.
Now, after painting, we only have to bolt all parts in already fabricated mounts and the system is functional.
Paul Cezette
JULY 10th 2008 - PAUL CEZZETE - LIKE AN ANGEL
Paul Cezzete
joined the boatbuild in November 2007, helping Gunter and expecting to
gather knowledge about boatbuilding. Therefore he was present during
the major part of the deck fabrication and have noticed some flaws as
the work went along. Paul addressed these flaws and brought them to
Gunter Richtler's attention, but it was always the same response:
"We'll fix that later...".
By the end of Gunter's
participation with the project, when the boat, according to Gunter, was
ready to paint - it was discovered that so many small details and
structural fabrications were left unfinished. Paul pointed to 3X3 inch
holes in back end of stern coaming. If the cockpit were to be filled
with water by a backing crashing wave, hundreds of litters of water
would rush into the boat...
Like an angel, Paul came back,
pointed out the cockpit hole issue, along with some other drastic
flaws. He then cut the covers open, and welded protection plates. Paul
completed this major undetrtaking all within a day. Thank you Paul!!!
We are now sure not to sink because of Gunter Richtler's bad workmanship, and even worse work ethics.
Gill cutting the bowsprit
JULY 2nd 2008 - BOWSPRIT CUT OFF
Gunter Richtler's interpretation of the bowsprit design was disappointing. That creation ended up looking like a bowsprit that would have been a better fit on a 1905 schooner, and not at all true to Julius' lines... Today Gilles managed to cut it off.
Great!
The new bowsprit will be constructed of 2X2 square tubing.
Paul C. fixing previous fabricator flaws
JUNE 25th 2008 - GRINDING AND REWELDING
After
last month's decision to release Gunter Richtler - our previous metal
fabricator from his duties, a 'welding survey' was conducted by an
expert welder. What he discovered were 'low penetration' welds, and
cracks on many structural welds. With this in mind numerous welds had
to be grinded down and re-welded, as well as further reinforcing of the
structure... meaning even more welding. These structural issues just
proved once more to us that we made the right decision. Moving the
departure date to April 2009 was clearly a wise choice. Now that most
of the welding will be completed by Paul Cezette we can be sure that the fabrication work will been done the right way.
Finished keel
UNE 15th 2008 - THE KEEL FABRICATION
A
few weeks ago concrete was poured in a wooden box built around a wooden
keel mould. After opening the concrete cast and removing the wooden
mould, all looked perfect. Yesterday the guys from Mars Keel
moved forward and did the lead pouring. About 6000 pounds of lead were
heated to 850 degrees Celsius and in about 30 minutes the concrete cast
was filled with molten lead. Today the brand new casted custom made
keel was released from the concrete cast, and it came out as one
beautiful, and sexy keel. A big thank you to Kevin, Bill, James and the other crew members at Mars Keel.
Gill cutting the Freeman hatch that was welded in the wrong place
JUNE 8th 2008 - FIXING THE COCKPIT
The previous fabricator did not position the Freeman
hatch in the correct spot in the cockpit area. That part of the floor
had to be cut out and the hatch repositioned. The main problem was that
the hatch was placed directly above the rudder post, therefore not
making it possible to have upper rudder brackets mounted direct on the
cockpit floor. Furthermore, just above the upper part of the rudder
post is a small opening to accommodate the access to emergency
steering. All of that was compromised with the incorrect positioning of
the hatch, and some serious 'cockpit surgery' had to be performed.
JUNE 1st 2008 - POSSESSION IS 90% OF SUCCESS (The New Schedule Announcement)
Possession of the idea, the will, the rights, possession of the gear, possession of experience and knowledge... Possession is 90% of Success!
After 12 months of boat building it started to feel like we were running from an avalanche. The good weather window of mid August, to leave St. John's Newfoundland and avoid North Atlantic NW gales, was quickly closing in on us. We began to realize that with the time crunch, essential sea trials would be compromised. If all went according to the original plan, Julius would be launched on August 1st and, to meet the deadline, would be forced to go straight to the ocean.
The feeling of not possessing the knowledge or experience about Julius on the water started creeping in. At the same time, Jimmy, the skipper of our chase boat, already waiting in Nova Scotia was diagnosed with cancer and Gunter, the main Julius fabricator, started lacking confidence that we would finish and have enough time for the sea trials. The decision was then made to move the launch date to spring 2009 and leave for the TransAtlantic a few months later.
This change in strategy will give us adequate time to learn and possess invaluable knowledge about Julius. We'll be able to do serious sea-trials in rough weather on Lake Ontario, test all boat systems and all safety gear, as well as allowing ourselves and Julius to ready for the crossing.
Best of all, this recent development will make the TV series even more interesting. We will be able to show the unforeseen issues we faced when building and prepping the new sailboat for a TransAtlantic crossing, and how things should be done... the right way.
Stay tuned!
Filming with Ric Steeves @ Noah's
MAY 8th 2008 - WOOD PICKED UP @ NOAH'S
Established in 1973, Noah's Marine Supply is Toronto's major one stop shop for boat builders. Noah's is a sponsor for the Julius Project and today we went there to pick up fiberglass, 3M sealant and glue products, mahogany plywood and solid teak for fabricating the sailboat interior.
MAY 7th 2008 - THE KEEL MOLD DELIVERED TO MARS KEEL
Mars Keel is designing and fabricating the custom made keel for Julius. After a few weeks of designing on the computer, the model of the keel was ready. Today the 1:1 size mold made of wood was delivered to Mars Keel and prepared for the next step: making the concrete cast.
A chainplate is a metal plate used to fasten a shroud or stay to the hull of a sailboat. One end of the chainplate is normally fastened to a turnbuckle which is connected to the shroud or stay, whereas the remainder of the chainplate normally has multiple holes that are bolted to the hull. In our case, like on other aluminum boats, three aluminum chainplates on each side of the hull have been welded to the inner frame of Julius. This
distributes the load across the hull, making it possible for a somewhat
lighter hull to support the load of the shrouds and stays.
Tiger Foam is a quick curing, disposable, two-component spray polyurethane foam fire rated insulation foam. This product is manufactured using the most environmentally friendly blowing agents and fire-retardant chemicals available, maing it perfect for sailboat applications. About one third of Julius was sprayed today, leaving the rest to finish with minor welding tasks around the boat. After chainplates and other mounting brackets are welded, the rest of the boat will be foamed.
Reasons for foaming sailboats is to prevent condenstation and to achieve sound and thermal insulation.
click the picture for a larger size
Aluminum fabrication completed
APRIL 23rd 2008 - ALUMINUM FABRICATION COMPLETED
Gunter finished fabrication of the custom designed bowsprit and, after a number of other smaller welding tasks all around the boat, we have completed the aluminum fabrication. There is still some welding to be done, but that is mostly for brackets to install various equipment. Now finally we are moving in the interior ;-)
click the picture for a larger size
Windlass mounting plate
APRIL 15th 2008 - WINDLASS SUPPORT FABRICATED AND INSTALLED
A windlass made by Quick Italy will be mounted just behind the chain locker on the bow. 1/2 inch thick aluminum plate was fabricated to fit the footstep of the windlass Antares, and was made even stronger as Gunter welded additional supports under the deck.
Casted frames for hatches
APRIL 09th 2008 - HATCHES FRAMES CASTED AND INSTALLED
Because the deck and the cabin roof are not flat but rounded, it is necessary to cast aluminum frames to provide a solid flat surface to mount hatches. Otherwise hatches would leak. Gunter fabricated wood models on our Gorilla CNC machine and Mike Skara from Ontario Foundry Ltd. custom casted frames for all 6 hatches.
Sprayhood fabricated
APRIL 04th 2008 - SPRAYHOOD FABRICATED
Rising the cabin top for 3 inches to accommodate Alen's hight opened a number of design changes associated with other roof top elements. One of them is the sprayhood to which the dodger will be attached. After designing and cutting the wood model on our Gorilla CNC, the design was approved and soon after fabricated in aluminum.
Portholes cut-outs
MARCH 25th 2008 - PORTHOLES READY FOR INSTALLATION
Cutting holes for portholes is a tricky job as they have to be perfectly horizontal and lined up according to the interior demands. After measuring twice, Gunter cut it ones and it all looks good and perfectly in line.
Welding toe rails
MARCH 15th 2008 - TOE RAIL FABRICATED
Julius' toe rail is custom fabricated from 2 inch aluminum flat bar. First we went to GS Die and Design and used their presses to die cut mounting holes on the toe rail. 2 X 1 inch, round ends, spaced every 12 inches. Then square 1 inch high spacers were welded on the bar and all together welded on the edge of the hull and the deck. Gunter says that the toe rail is so strong that you can lift a boat with the crane by hooking to it.
Rutgerson portholes positioned on finished deck house
FEBRUARY 25th 2008 - ALUMINUM FABRICATION CONTINUES
The last 4 weeks were spend on final fabrication of the cockpit and pulpits and now the aluminum fabrication is about to be finished. The progress will be much more visible as we are moving the fabrication process in the interior. After installing the deck gear from Rutgerson and welding roof supports we'll perform the cabinet woodwork and installation of electronics, electrical, plumbing and other systems.
Jefa rudder shaft tube installed
JANUARY 14th 2008 - JEFA RUDDER SHAFT TUBE REPLACES THE ORIGINAL DESIGN
The rudder shaft tube was installed in the previous shop following the original design. But most likely it was welded too fast so the 3 inch aluminum tube ended up deformed and now had to be cut out off the Julius hull. When our new and overbuild rudder and steering assembly arrived from Jefa and we decided to change the original design of the rudder. Instead of skeg, we will build an extra strong spade rudder with Jefa self aligning bearings. The shaft itself will be 3 inches in diameter, same as the outside diameter of the original rudder shaft tube!
DECEMBER 30th 2007/JANUARY 2nd 2008 - WINTER SAILING TRAINING
Croatian Adriatic will be the final destination of our Trans-Atlantic Voyage. For New Year's holidays Alen, Darin and 2 friends went for some winter sailing training on a 37 footer around Kornati Archipelago in Adriatic and celebrated New Year's Eve in Sali, a small village with 200 residents on the island of Dugi Otok. Thanks to Quick for providing us with sailing jackets, perfect for this sunny, cold winter days
Blue Skies in the New Year to everybody involved in the Julius Project!
To fit Alen's hight, the deck house roof is redesigned to make it 3 inches higher. After refabricating deck house sides all was solid welded and now the deck and the deck house are completed. Next on the schedule is cutting openings for ports and hatches.
Gunter and Paul fabricated the cockpit with Freeman hatches
DECEMBER 12th 2007 - COCKPIT FABRICATED
The cockpit is assembled on the shop floor from precut aluminum sheets. Two Freeman hatches are installed on the cockpit floor; the larger one for the access to the engine and the smaller one for the access to the steering system. The assembled cockpit will be positioned and welded to the hull.
Yvan Sicotte installing Vetus diesel engine
DECEMBER 04th 2007 - ENGINE INSTALLATION
Yvan Sicotte, representing Vetus engines, arrived from Montreal to advise and help with the installation of our 28.5HP diesel engine. Brackets
for the engine, water strainers and the exhaust system were fabricated,
and the installation was accomplished with no problems. In
Canada, Vetus is exclusively distributed through Stright-Mackay.
Mike Capaldi / Appleby Marine Inc.
NOVEMBER 22nd 2007 - MIKE CAPALDI JOINS THE JULIUS TEAM
An avid boater, Mike Capaldi is the owner of "Appleby Marine Inc", a full service marine company specializing in the design and installation of electrical systems. He enjoys a challenge and prefers the "hands on" approach to problem solving. Mike is responsible for designing and installing the electrical system and today he finished the initial electrical design and completed the equipment order for Marinco products.
Fabricating the deck
NOVEMBER 18th 2007 - THE DECK FABRICATION
Julius deck and deck house are fabricated from water-jet pre-cut 5083 series aluminum. Slight adjustments of the hull were necessary for a smooth curbe line of the deck and after a few days of correcting the previous shop fabricating mistakes, all aligned well.
Next on the schedule is the engine installation.
Ron Baker from Gorilla CNC and Alen Milic
OCTOBER 27th 2007 - GUNTER & ALEN AT WMS
Woodworking
Machinery & Supply Expo is Canada's largest woodworking event.
Gunter and Alen visited the show to find cordless power tools and CNC cutter for Julius' interior fabrication. Gorilla CNC , ICA (interior coating), DeWalt (cordless power-tools) and Delta (woodworking tools) showed their interest to come on board as sponsors.
Today marks 365 days since Alen found an ad online about an aluminum sailboat that is being giving away, and a grandson who wants to see his granfather's dream brought back to life... The new hull is built and in front of the Team are another 6 months of fabrication and outfitting in SailTech Design before the new sailboat will be ready for the Atlantic crossing.
Happy 1st Birthday to the Julius Project!
SEPTEMBER 25th 2007 - VAN TUYL TRUCKING TRANSPORTS JULIUS TO THE NEW BOATYARD
Julius' finished hull leaves Klacko Spars for the new boatyard, SailTech Design in Mississauga. Van Tuyl Trucking, specializing in marine transport, accomplished the move with no problems and on the schedule.
SEPTEMBER 14th 2007 - THE HULL IS FINISHED
This week the hull was completed in Klacko Spars. Mid next week it will be moved to SailTech Design boatyard in Mississauga where the boat will be completed over the next 6 months. We'll be back in Klacko Spars in January '08 for the fabrication of the mast and the standing rigging.
AUGUST 15th 2007 - MARSKEEL TECHNOLOGY COMES ON BOARD For over 25 years Mars Metal Company, the largest keel manufacturer in North America, has been producing quality Lead Keels for production manufacturers and custom builders worldwide. MarsKeel will design and manufacture the bulb keel for Julius. A big thank you to Mr. Kevin Milne, the president of MarsKeel Technology.
AUGUST 03rd 2007 - SUGAR SCOPE TRANSOM FABRICATED
One of the major modifications of Aragosa 35 design, is a 2 foot extension to fabricate the sugar scope transom. Jimmy Cornell suggested this improvement, and since November 2006, Alen Milic had been planning and designing this modification for the original Julius. Now, Rick Westwood completed the fabrication in just a few days.
Click on the picture for larger image
Flippin' Julius hull
JULY 27th 2007 - JULIUS HULL FLIPPED THE RIGHT-SIDE-UP
After 7 days of solid welding the hull was completed and made ready for flipping it right-side-up.
Straps
and chain lifters were precisely attached to strategic points on roof
beams of the Klacko building, aluminum strap-sliders were fabricated
and welded on 4 points of the hull and, with a little help from the
forklift, in less than an hour the hull was safely flipped, just as
Danny Klacko planned.
Miller protection welding gear arrives just on time, as building of the hull enters the new phase: solid welding. In about a week we will flip Julius the right side up.
Plating of the sailboat hull was completed today as the last plate was curved and mounted. The next step is solid-welding of all connections, reinforcing welds on frames and then flipping Julius the right side up to continue working on fabrication of the deck.
Dave welding ears
JUNE 27th 2007 - THE MOST DIFFICULT PART OF PLATING
An english wheel was not enough to bend 2 middle section plates, so Danny, Rick and Dave employ new techniques. This part of plating is considered the most difficult section on Julius.
JUNE 16th 2007 - PLATING BRINGS THE BUILDING BACK ON SCHEDULE
It took
10 days longer than anticipated to precisely square up/line up the
frame and tack-weld longitudinal supports. After that was accomplished
the plating process brought the boat-building back on schedule, as Rick
and Dave plowed through, and in a few short days 75% of the hull was
plated with 5083 series aluminum sheets provided by ThyssenKrupp Materials NA.
Next:
the most difficult part of plating - rounded sheets that have to be
formed on an english wheel and precisely adjusted to the hull. After
that we'll flip Julius right side up!
Fabrication of Julius continues, just a bit behind the schedule, as longitudinal supports are welded to the vertical frames. The plating of the hull starts next week.
Today's video introduces Rick Westwood - the professional welder/metal fabricator that joined the team.
The Team visited Paynes Marine Group and met with Tom Pollock. The supplier of the complete water system for Julius, Whale Water Systems, is exclusively distributed in Canada by Paynes. Today we picked up components for our system and learned more about the company and their products.
Today's video features Whale Quick Connect System.
All frames were fabricated and today mounted on the bed frame. Next, frames have to be preciselly alligned in 3 axes and then longitudinal frames can be attached before plating starts.
After testing materials and deciding on the perfect welding setting, Chris and Dave started assembling boat frames sections. All frames, except the Frame "0" - the chain locker frame - are build from 3 precisely aligned sections: the keel, the port and the starboard side. There is a total of 11 frames on Aragosa 35 that will be connected by longitudinal supports.
MAY 2nd 2007 - THE BED IS LEVELED AND THE BUILDING STARTS AT KLACKO
'The Bed Frame' - mild steel structure on which the the sailboat will be fabricated, has been put together and leveled. As water-jet frames for Julius arrived from G.S. Die & Design, this officially marks the start of the boat building in Klacko Spars.
Oakville based Resource Metals & Alloys provides mild steel for the construction of 'The Bed Frame' - the sturdy leveled frame on which the aluminum construction of the sailboat will be fabricated.
Thanks to Jason Bell, the Resource Metals' General Manager for providing the material and delivering on a short notice.
Alen checks water-jet cut frames
APRIL 27th 2007 - THE BUILDING OF THE SAILBOAT STARTS
The building of the sailboat starts as aluminum sheets are cut with the water-jet in GS Die & Design.
Thanks to owners Greg Cacic & Steve Zganjer, engineer Alan Stimac
and Dough, the water-jet operator, this was accomplished in the record
time.
Next on: the assembly of the boat frame in Klacko Spars boat-yard.
Danny and Chris are checking our the newly built, aluminum 46 footer. This sailboat build began 7 years ago and is now in the finishing stage. Although we interrupted John, the Chief Carpenter, he was kind enough to let us check out the boat.
Today we drove 600 km to Vredband in Laval by Montreal to pick up Julius' 28.5 HP engine and met with Yvan Sikotte and Nigel Poirier. They introduced us to Vetus history that spans over 40 years in the marine industry. We are proud to carry the logo Powered by Vetus on our sailboat.
MARCH 29th 2007 - REVEALING THE NEW SAILBOAT DESIGN
Plans for Ted Brewer's design, the aluminium 'Aragosa 35', arrived at Klacko's today. Now Chris can determine the exact amout of the raw material to be ordered from ThyssenKrupp Materials NA, so the fabrication can start right away.
Predicted time delays that would be associated with rescaling Niagara 40 to 35 feet forced us to abandon Mark Ellis' design. The final decision has been made and building plans have been ordered from Ted Brewer, the guru of metal sailboats. Julius rebuild, based on plans of Aragosa 35, is starting next week.
MARCH 13th 2007 - MEETING WITH DANNY KLACKO, MARK ELLIS AND ALEN MILIC
Naval Architect Mark Ellis met with Danny and Alen to discuss converting Ellis' design of Niagara 35 to fit the aluminium rebuild of Julius. The steel version of Niagara was build as a 40 footer and the lines of 35footer are available - but for building in fiberglass. Designer's conversion work may present timing problems, but at this point all options are open.
Today Alen had a preliminary meeting in Oakville with Mark Ellis. Mark is world-famous for many ocean going sailboat designs, including Nonsuch and Niagara. In the meeting they went over possibilities of using one of proven Ellis' designs and necessary modifications to fit the aluminium rebuild of Julius. Alen and Mark will meet with Danny tomorrow to discuss further.
MARCH 08th 2007 - MAJOR SPONSOR COMES ON BOARD: THYSSENKRUPP MATERIALS NA
Gone are our concerns about the aluminium material for rebuilding Julius from scratch as ThyssenKrupp Materials NA - Eastern Canada Region comes on board as major sponsor and will supply us with 5083 and 6061 grade aluminium and stainless steel raw material. Thank you to Paul A. Ali and Chris Lawrence for making this possible.
Now, after the 2 biggest items - the raw material and the diesel engine - are assured, the building process is about to start.
VIDEO COMING SOON
MARCH 06th 2007 - MAJOR SPONSOR COMES ON BOARD: VETUS
Vetus comes on board as the supplier of a diesel engine and associated parts. We are proud to present "Powered by VETUS" logo on our sailboat. This major sponsorship was provided by Peter Bennett, Nigel Poirer and Yvan Sicotte from Stright-Mackay - the Canadian distributer, John Mardall from Vetus U.S. and Chee Pho from Vetus Headquaters in Netherlands.
Julius lines have to be measured for the hydrostatics data. This will allow us to find the existing proven design that can be modified following Julius' above-water look. From that design the new frame and plating will be water-jet cut and then the building assembly and fabrication in Klacko Spars will begin.
FEBRUARY 24th 2007 - THE STRUCTURAL DESIGN MEETING
Steve Killing was kind enough to come to Klacko Spars and be our guest advisor for a few hours during the structural design meeting which was attended by Peter Tietz from Voyager Windvanes, Stan Barclay from ThyssenKrupp Materials NA and John McComb - the coating specialist from Downing Products Ltd., representing Awlgrip.
Structural problems and possible solutions were frankly addressed and now the real challenge begins. Is it going to be enough to replace stainless steel nuts and bolts with aluminium rivets? Or is it The Team's solution to rebuild Julius from scratch following the original lines and design?
Julius' aluminium hull is put together with aluminium rivets but unfortunately some stainless
steel nuts and bolts have been used as well. They are causing concerns about
the electrolysis so over a thousand of them have to be removed.
Featured
in today's video clip are Danny Klacko and Peter Tietz from Voyager Windvanes.
FEBRUARY 18th 2007 - STRUCTURAL DESIGN MEETING IS SCHEDULED
Danny Klacko got in touch with yacht designer Steve Killing. The Structural Design Meeting is scheduled for Feb. 24th. Beside Danny and Steve, Peter Tietz from Voyager Windvanes and John McComb - the coating specialist from Awlgrip, will attend the meeting. Local press media is scheduled to cover the meeting as well.
FEBRUARY 10th 2007 - THE UPPER-STRUCTURE IS OFF
Stripping of the upper-structure was completed today in the KLACKO SPARS shop. This involved removing a few hundred nuts and bolts, separating the remaining upper-structure from the hull with a crowbar, and then simply throwing it aside.
Today's video features the composer and guitarist Michael Cavanaugh who is known for his songs about sailing. Michael will follow the refit with occasional visits and sing to Julius.
The refit work in the KLACKO SPARS shop in Oakville started today. A crew of 8 stripped the interior, bulkheads and insulation in record time. The plan was to separate the deck from the hull by unfastening the nuts and bolts, but the original construction turned out to be, as Danny Klacko said, "built like a 2nd World War bomber plane". We ended up cutting the deckhouse free of the deck. The next step is to remove the rest of the upper-structure and sand-blast the boat before starting the aluminium rebuild of the deck, house, stern and cockpit.
Julius is moved to the Klacko Spars shop in Oakville. Mr.Danny Klacko checked the
structural elements and confirmed that it may be possible to rebuild the boat. Klacko Spars comes on board as the fabricator of all
aluminium refit work.
Julius is towed from Trenton to Toronto and stored in 'Uli's Place' dry storage facility on Cherry Street. The plan to do the full refit and make the series is underway.
OCTOBER 3rd 2006 - THE BEGINNING
Alen finds an add on Craigslist about an aluminum sailboat that is being giving away, and a grandson who wants to see his granfather's dream brought back to life. A few weeks later Alen receives a response saying that the boat is his... and so the story begins.
