04 April 2016

Pause on the Dinghy

I think, maybe, a good rule of thumb for doing any planned project is to not accept kind offers of help. Sometimes, that can be difficult, as some just jump in without really extending the offer.
Such was the case in our third session of building our new sail dinghy. The form had been completed, and it had been time to fiberglass the outer hull. Things did not go as planned.
I have observed with a project such as this being accomplished in the public eye, there are different types of "looky-loo's" that wander past the project room.
The first type walk by and glance, but continue walking.
The second walk by, take a look, than walk a-ways, turn around and come back for a second look.
The third type walk by, stop at the bay door entrance, talk amongst themselves about the project, and, eventually, continue on their way.
The fourth type is like the third, but they will talk to Keith about the project, ask questions, etc.
The fifth type is like the fourth type, but they don't ask questions - they will tell Keith how to do it. They are the experts.
Out of the fifth type comes at least one person, who insists it is being done all wrong, and wants to help "fix it".  This type also, somewhat, blends in with the beautiful and well-meaning friends who just wants to help with such a tremendous time-consuming project, but does not know anything or have any knowledge of the task at hand.
Now, in my opinion, there is nothing wrong with any of these types of "looky-loo's".  The first four are simply curious. The fifth can become a lesson in patience, at times. 
It is the other two types that come out of the fifth that one has to risk offending, but say no, as politely as possible.
This is where Keith and I fail miserably. We do not like to offend people - or hurt feelings of people. So, we didn't say no.
As a result, the fiberglass applied to the outer hull now needs a grinding and sanding almost down to the first layer, or more, and the bow section needs to be completely redone. More time. More money. 
First lesson learned. It is better to politely say no.
On top of that, Keith has been told he cannot grind or sand in the project room. So, our only other option is to find a way to bring the project out to the boat and do that here. 
We did not work on the dinghy over Easter weekend. Keith worked on it a bit yesterday. He wants to get the inner hull done before repairing the outer hull. I did not know he was going to work on the inner part, but having been sunburned and energy-drained from Saturday's trip down to Boca Chica for the Air Show, I probably would not have been much help anyhow.
I guess the problem of transporting it out to the Sue will be a bridge we cross when we come to it. Keith thinks the only way is to tow it out, although he admits it will do some harm to the outer hull by doing so. He is hoping that if we get it out of the water right away, it will minimize the damage. I think we should ask around and see if anyone has a large dinghy that could hold the hull and we can tow it up out of the water. 
I'll just have to wait and see what Keith decides, I guess. 
Forgive me for not having photos of the fiberglass session. I forgot to bring my camera.




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