Trip 120 - Sunday October 18th

 

After I did work around the house yesterday, I took today, and the nice weather it offered, to go to Empty Pockets and advance the cause.

A GPS for your car is kind of fun sometimes. Out east, whether Marcia or myself or both, it is mandatory. Especially at first. This one shows your route, traffic delays, for freeway on and off ramps the overhead signs and lanes and where you should go. Plus arrows in the upper left indicating lanes and the next turn. Plus, it talks to you as you drive along.

That, is what I use it for. Tired of politics and talk radio, I just listen as the computerized voice lulls me to sleep.

 

Here is where we start.

 

Then, favorites, where I have stored the addresses I need around these parts.

 

In order by distance. And, by accident, these are the four most important to me.

 

I touched the Marina.

 

And, away we go ...

 

Looking like a boat car again?

 

Looks pretty small next to these Big Boats.

 

Just enough room for a ladder on the side opposite from last year.

 

Today's Instruments Of Torture.

When I first had the boat, it was never named. Verbally or physically. When the previous owners had it, they named it, but never put the name on the vessel.

Therefore, I was safe to put a new name on the boat without incurring wrath from the Gods Of The Deep.

It felt good, finally, putting the name on. I wished Marcia was here to see it, but I had to take advantage of the weather.

I decided to make the words parallel to the deck stripe and used this wide tape to indicate such. I would then butt the paper backing material into the edge of these patches.

 

Sizing it up a bit.

 

In position. I had to slit the two words apart as the material would not "bend" along the bend of the deck. Even then it was hard to keep things correct to the tape spacing above.

Then, I would take a deep breath, lift one panel enough to spray soapy water under it then peel off the base paper between the vinyl and the boat.

The letters stick to the upper paper just fine. Then, I sprayed a generous amount of soapy water on the letters and the surface of the gelcoat and eased the panel onto the gelcoat surface again.

Oh. Before I did anything, I wiped the surface down with lacquer thinner. Divided the area into four zones and soaked a half piece of paper toweling with thinner and wiped just one zone with it. Turned it over, and wiped again.

I did this eight times, 32 zones in all, to make certain all the wax was removed from the surface.

After that, I washed it down with soapy water and dried it.

Then, I started to tape and hang the letters.

 

The folks who made the letters for me, provided this squeegee. At first I thought it was too hard, but, the paper takes all I could give the squeegee against the paper/boat surface.

The idea is to get the soapy water out from under the letters and to make the vinyl letters lay down flat - without bubbles.

The soapy water makes positioning the letters easier as they are quite sticky.

 

All evened out, time to let it dry.

 

The starboard side is done.

 

While that was drying, I attached the posts for the mast. Front and back. I will fuss with the mast another day.

 

After an hour and a half, time to peel off the paper. When doing this, do not make the edge where it is peeling, parallel to a broad edge of a letter. And if a slender strip of tape as you see here, comes off with the paper, lay it back down and peel from the bottom.

Instead of peeling a wide strip of paper, it worked better to do a smaller strip. And, peel the paper back as I have done here. Do not lift the paper straight off the surface, but right next to it. This will not lift the letters much, or at all.

 

The finished product. The letter is brown and the shadow effect is gold - with metallic flecks in the vinyl.

Looks quite nice, it does ...

Later ...