Fair Seas Fuji...

Fuji, the Best First Mate Ever!

It is with a sad and heavy heart I report that my First Mate, Fuji, has set sail for distant shores.

He was almost thirteen years old and had been with me for nine of those years. Originally, he was my daughter's dog and she hand picked him from a large litter of pups, (I think he was the runt). I met Fuji when I went to visit her in Tybee Island, Georgia. I immediately loved him. He was only one year old at the time and was full of love, excitement, plus, he took to me also. I still remember him running full speed through the mud flats of Tybee Island when the tide was out... he was headed to the water. He was so happy about being alive, it was contagious.

When my daughter went into the Air Force, she asked me if I would keep him until she finished Basic Training and School. I agreed. He ended up staying with me for almost two years. Eventually, she took him back and honestly, I was lost without him.

In time, my daughter married and had a son and life instantly became overwhelmingly busy for her. She asked me if I would take Fuji permanently and I quickly agreed. From that point on, (2009), he was with me all the time, including Annie's refit, launch, and he lived aboard Annie with me until recently, when we moved to Carrabelle.

In the last six to eight months, his health deteriorated rapidly. Because he was a large breed and having Lab in him, he began to suffer from Hip Dysplasia and was experiencing considerable pain. It recently had gotten to the point where he could barely walk and would often fall. It was time to say "Good Bye" for mercy's and love's sake.

Today, I held him close as the Veterinarian released him from his pain. My heart is broken. He was my best friend.

Fair seas Fujiman. I will never forget you! My Sweet Boy.

Just a Pup...

He often slept with his tongue out...

Chasing his tail... one of his favorite past times when he was young.

Merry Christmas! 2007

Christmas Bone -2011

Taking over Dad's Pillow...

I don't want to get up yet...

Hats...

More Hats...

Aboard Annie!

Windy Day!

I'm Ready!

Sleeping on the Boat...head on Dad's leg... Big Baby!

My Ear is Stuck!

Overseeing the Refit.

SELFIE!

He loved to Run!

He loved the Water!

Rolling in the Sand!

I Love the Beach!

He loved to ride in the Car... Best Adventure Ever!

Excited about going for a ride in the car. (2014)

Staying with Nanny...
(This was his last picture)

Delayed & Discouraged...

When I decided to paint Annie's topside, and once I had decided on the color, I began a Q&A with a number of boat owners with considerable refit experience:

   What type of paint? 
   One part or two part? 
   What about weather conditions? 
   What type of primer should I use?
   Roll & Tip or spray?
   How many coats?
   Temperature?
   Etc. Etc. Etc...

I won't take to time and space to get into the variety of all the different answers I received, but one answer was pretty consistent... "Two Part!"

BUT... I saw a couple of videos on Jamestown's TotalBoat Wet Edge Topside paint and saw its 4.5 star review on Amazon, and because it fit into my budget, I decided to ignore the voices of experience and pulled the trigger.

The paint was great! It had good flow and leveled well. It was super glossy and covered well. For the most part, it was perfect... BUT... because it's a one part polyurethane paint, IT TAKES ABOUT TWO OR THREE WEEKS TO CURE!

It dries to touch in about two/three hours. You can apply follow-up coats within twelve hours. BUT... it takes from two to three weeks to cure, (hardened enough to sand/buff). If the weather is inclement, it can take up to four/six weeks. Of course, I received that information only after I called Jamestown and specifically asked, (they don't publish it on their website).

Why is this an issue? Many reasons... time in the boat yard, repairing runs/sags, TAPING FOR BOOT STRIPES.

Planning on splashing next week, I started early Monday morning and taped off Annie's boot stripe. When I noticed a small section of tape on the starboard side was dipping a little too low which would be reflected in the width of the soon to be painted boot stripe. When I went to reposition the paint masking tape, this happened!

ARRRRRRGGGGGGGG!

I sprayed Annie's final coat of paint last Wednesday... SIX DAYS EARLIER and the paint was still not set well enough to handle paint masking tape!

Now, I have to wait another seven plus days before I can repair this disaster and then another two weeks before I can tape the boot stripe again.

Needless to say, I will be on the hard for another month... splash February... maybe... knock on wood!

NEVER USE A ONE PART PAINT!

ALWAYS USE A TWO PART!

LISTEN TO THE VOICES OF EXPERIENCE!

Delayed & Discouraged - and it's my own fault!

A Video Tour of Annie

I've had a few people who have requested I make a video of the inside of Annie so they could get a better feel for the boat, you know... what was where and where was what... perspective.

So, by special request, I made one... Take a look.

Fair seas and God bless!

Setting Switches...

Now that I've installed overhead cabin lights, I had to install a switch that would adequately handle all five LED light strings and the overhead lights.

The switch I decided to go with was from, you guessed it, Amazon. I went with white, which would work well with the Galley area where it had to be mounted. Due to the size and type, the switch needed to be housed... since I had some extra King Starboard laying around the boat, I decided to construct its housing from that. I still have to do a little trim but overall, I'm pleased with the installation.

Fair seas and God bless!

Added 12/9/2016

Little Side Job...

If you've followed my blog from the beginning, you know I have LED lighting inside Annie's main cabin and in the V-berth. At first, I used the multi-colored LED's but they could only be controlled by the IR remote controllers that came with the strings and the controllers started malfunctioning within a few months. (I think the salt-water environment was the culprit).

I moved to 5050 plain white LED strings with upper and lower dimmer switches and they did fine... BUT... the lighting was reflected light and sometimes, a little too dim. I needed something overhead to supplement the LED's...

Amazon to the rescue. (Amazon and Home Depot should sponsor Annie considering the amount of merchandise she carries that came from them). After a quick search, I found exactly what Annie needed, RV Boat Recessed Ceiling Light 4 Pack Acegoo Super Slim LED Panel Light DC 12V 3W Full Aluminum Downlights Warm White. (Amazon loves descriptive looooong names).

Had to remove a little bit of trim work to run the wiring between the vinyl Wainscott I used for the headliner, but after a couple of hours, the lights were in and the cabin is as bright as day.

Just a little side job on this short Thanksgiving week. (BTW, Happy belated Thanksgiving).

Fair seas and God bless!

Rudder Repair... Check!

The rudder repair is now complete.

There were numerous cracks in the rudder at the two lower hinge points, (I detailed this problem in this post). I completed repairs on the rudder as well as reinforcing all three hinge points with numerous layers of fiberglass cloth and epoxy, and repainted as needed.

Tomorrow, if I can round up a couple of dudes from the boat yard, Annie will be back in one piece and capable of steering. I'll add those pics to this post once the rudder is reattached.

Fair seas and God bless!