Sailing Nandji Adventures… Four Episodes in One!

26 June 2020

351 3 minutes read

Cutting a HUGE HOLE in our Boat. Let the Repairs Begin!… Ep 179

In this episode of Sailing Nandji, we are in the boatyard after the worst night of our lives. A mooring we were on failed during a heavy squall in the night and Nandji ended up on the reef. We managed to save her and sail the 50nm back to the boat yard where we are here. After a week of red tape, we are finally able to get stuck into the repairs. I tell you, there is nothing quite like therapy with a grinder as I spend days on end grinding back the hull to expose the damage. With the damage visible the daunting task of cutting massive oles in the boat begins…

Saving $25K by Building our own Rudder | Part one… Ep 180

In this episode of Sailing Nandji, being back in the boatyard this early was not what we had planned for 2020, but in hindsight, I guess now noone had planned for the current world situation… When we ended up n the reef back in Febuary, it was the worst experience of our lives. We were so close to losing everything, but luckily some how we managed to save our home and got her back to the boat yard. There is nothing like therapy with a grinder to rectify the situation and after days on end of grinding we now have 2 massive holes in the side of Nandji. Bonita convinced me that it best to get the professionals to do the re-planking of the hull and I agree. This means I can move onto the next project of building the rudder. I have never built a sailboat rudder before but felt confident my skills were up for the task. I dissected the original rudder to learn of the design and thought I shall copy the construction, with a few adjustments. This is part one of the rudder build as we source the materials to use in Thailand and then begin the construction. We get a new rudder staff made and then begin the epoxy gluing of the structure to shape.

Caulking our wooden Sailboat, the Old School way…. Ep 181

In this episode of Sailing Nandji, being back in the boatyard this early was not what we had planned for 2020, but in hindsight, I guess now noone had planned for the current world situation… With the repairs to Nandji now in full swing, the destruction is over and the construction has begun. After sanding back the hull to bare fibreglass and then exposing the damaged timbers, I removed all the broken wood and employed a local Thai contractor to complete the re planking of the hull.

As I had my hands full building the new rudder for NAndji, I relied on the carpentry skills of the contractors. Thailand is known for great woodworkers so I was confident they would do the job to a high standard. After re planking the the hull with a local hard wood, they continued to begin the caulking of the seams with an old fashion wood building technique using cotton thread. Traditionally, when the boat is launched back in the water, the cotton expands and fills the seams to prevent any water coming in. I was surprised to see this happening on Nandji as I figured it would all be epoxy glued. Not to be! If it worked for all those years, I am sure it will continue to work now! This is a little different though as in the old school days there was no epoxy filler layered on the top and then fibreglassed over again! It is a great feeling to have Nandji steadily becoming one again and she is not far off splash day!

Saving $25k by Building our own Rudder… Part two | Ep 182

In this episode of Sailing Nandji, it is time to finish off the rudder build. I had been busy gluing and screwing the plywood together to form the foundations of the rudder. With a solid platform to begin with, it is time for sanding and shaping and then fibreglassing the blade. I really enjoyed shaping the rudder blade as it quickly took shape and once glassed will be a solid new rudder. I take you through the design of the glassing complete and how I went about the lay up of the fibreglass construction. I tell you, rolling on those last nits of anti foul with the new rudder blade attached is a very rewarding feeling!