Our yard has finally dried out.

We know some of you enjoyed the bird photos. 

The lake is now level with the top of the dock. The wagon is permanently parked on the dock.  Dawn is not sure why.

There are still ducks swimming about, but most of the interesting birds have moved on. 

Progress on many fronts

Dawn came home from a quilting class today to find that John was very productive.

The shaft log for the rudder post has been bolted and tack welded. It looks like a Mayan mask.

It's hard to see but the strut that holds the propeller shaft is temporarily bolted on.

The exhaust hose arrived yesterday and John has done a trial fit.  He made brackets to hold the mufflers and hoses in place.  The string won't be permanent.

Early November

While Dawn was away, John welded in all of the top bars on the ribs.  He didn't realize that this was an important part of the structure until it was almost too late.  The welding method was described in an earlier post.

Dawn had to climb up on the hull to give John a hand and notices how much more solid it feels.

Here is a fiberboard mock up of the transom shape. 

Machining to true up the strut.  The heat from welding warped it. The finished strut is on top.