Can't find where this thread started ... I've been staying warm in Arizona, away from a computer. 120 days without measurable rain out there. Sure is dry.
Anyway, re: moving jackstands around and dropping pads, etc ... Two years ago when I bought Different Drummer, she had a good barrier coat and ablative paint on her, worn down in the usual places. She was on a cradle. I sanded her down WITHOUT MOVING THE PADS, put on a new coat of ablative paint, and an additional coat in high wear areas. Then, when she was in the sling ready to go in, I quickly scuffed the areas where the pads were, and hit it with a coat of paint. She sat for an hour before going in. She was then in the water for two years. When I pulled her last fall, I could not tell any difference where I did the quicky job on the area hidden by the pads. So I'm just not going to fool around with all the tricks for trying to carefully prep and work under the pads. Probably doesn't work for you racers (I've decided I'm not going to race her, I'm going to crew for a guy on a J24), and wouldn't work for a barrier coat job, but for routine maintenance of a cruiser, my experience is you don't need to get so dogmatic with your prep. Oh, one other observation ... I'm on a warm freshwater lake, and I used the West Maine paint with the new slime chemical in it. Really worked well. Two years in the water, no grass, and no slime at all for the first year, minimal when I pulled her the end of the second. Tom Monroe 6219 Different Drummer >>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] 02/12/06 7:37 PM >>> Art - For what it's worth - When we did the total bottom job on "Slightly Askew", we cut a "V" notch in a 4X4, placed it on a bottle jack atop a few solid cinder blocks, and jacked the hull up enough to raise the keel off the cradle to insert another 2X6 directly under the keel. This was done in conjunction with placing automotive transmission jacks next to, AND chained to, the cradle pads. Then we raised the transmission jacks up incrementally (they were the spiral twist type) & lowered the cradle jacks all the way down to get access to the entire pad area. Did the front in one day, let everything totally dry over the weekend, and put the cradle pads back up and switched the tranny jack setup to the rear after removing the bottle jack. In retrospect, we probably didn't need to be so overly-cautious, but everyone survived unscathed, and we felt secure scrambling around underneath! You can check out a picture at http://www.slightlyaskewstudio.com/SAS_SAILING_page3.html Best of luck with your project! Cheri B Slightly Askew '74 C27 #1327 > >> I have been considering putting a barrier coat on the bottom this year >> while still on the hard. The boat rests in a cradle on a stabilized >> gravel surface. Has anyone successfully used a jackstand(s) to allow >> access under the pads that are attached to the cradle? It is too long a >> process to just paint those areas while in the hoist before launch. That >> is how I did the VC-17. >> >> Art Snapper >> Sabbatical #6610 > Dixie Chicken is FOR SALE: You can view the boat at: http://www.taborek.net/Dixie_Chicken/For_Sale/For_Sale.shtml ----------------------------------------- Join ISP.COM today - $8.95 internet , less than 1/2 the cost of AOL Try us out, http://www.isp.com/
