Here's a short video which shows the operation of my wipers I'm finishing installing. The biggest challenge was putting all 3 wiper motors on one switch with a momentary bypass to allow me to clear spray off the windows. The motors mechanical self park switch kept backfeeding the other motors so they would keep running in the off position until all 3 internal switches were in the same position finally allowing them to stop at the same time. Adding a couple of 5a diodes into the circuit stopped the backfeed and would allow each motor to self park on their own! Problem solved.

Oh man! I'm getting stuff done left and right. Some projects get started in the morning and need time to setup or dry before the next step which gives me time to tinker or start another area of the boat. Yesterday, I plugged away at filling holes and cracks on the main cabin bulkheads to prepare for paint and while that was setting up to dry I worked on electrical odds and ends. I'm almost done with electrical but there's always another project to add somewhere on the boat.

In the middle of the day I made a trip to ikea to buy my galley sink and accessories. I went with the Bredskar 24"x18" sink. They sell a variety of accessories that go with the sink to increase usability. That included some strainers, a wash bin, and a cutting board. I decided to maximize the available space with the biggest sink I could fit. I know counter space is at a premium, but I plan to offset the faucet and use a cutting board to cover most of the sink for food prep.

I took all the doors off to prep and paint the bulkheads. I was able to get a first coat on the galley and most of the helm station and nav table. I'm using an oil based high gloss white and will trim out with Brazilian cherry.

I finished the day by grouting the tile for the stove inset area. All I have left to do for the stove is to run fuel lines and figure out how to secure the stove to the side rails...I have a plan for that! You're supposed to screw down the stove from the front, but it's kind of an awkward setup, so I'll be making some minor mods to utilize pins through the rails and bottom of the stove.

A bit of a random day today. I just sort of plugged away at a bunch of projects switching when I got to the end of materials on hand. I installed a couple 12v outlets into the helm station. I ran a 12v circuit for the nav station which will provide power for the stereo, ham radio and some task lights.

I cut and installed a few small pieces of tile for the stove and started cutting the stove pipe. I'm realizing I'll need to do some more cutting to allow clearance around the stove pipe. I had to go a little more vertical to accommodate the barometric damper which needs to be installed 12" above the stove top...

I also took advantage of the nice weather and put a first coat of paint on the interior cabin. I focused mainly on the metal areas that will be left exposed.

I've bee plugging away at mounting my Dickinson Bristol diesel cooking stove that will also double as the cabin heater in the colder months. I had to allow for 2" of airspace around the unit with 1/2" of insulation material all the way around. After building in the rough cabinetry I used concrete board in preparation for ceramic tile. To keep the stove in place I cut and installed some aluminum angle bar and u-channel to act as a guide. The stove unit will slide into place and latch under the u-channel.

For now, the tile is set and the next step will be to add grout. I'll be picking up some copper fuel lines and fittings this week to finish the install between the day tank and the main tank. I'll update another post to show that progress soon...

Well, I spent most of last summer working around the state on wild fires. That took me out of the good weather for painting. When j got home late September I only had about a week left to get work done before the cold rain started becoming a problem. I was able to throw down the last 2 coats of primer on the cabin top and deck. I'm really looking forward to putting final paint to the boat this spring as soon as I get a chance to start working outside again. I also have to work on the rails before I put the boat in the water. In the meantime I'll be inside working on finishing the interior. Lots of cabinetry and systems to finish installing. I'll update a little more frequent now that I have a dependable iPhone app and a stable phone!

Woodworking on the boat is a new challenge for me. Here are some pictures of the progress on the pilot house where I cut marine plywood into 6" planks and chamfered the edges. I'm finding that some areas need more support to avoid bending with moisture changes so I'll be taking a couple boards out soon to slip in some extra nailing strips. I could've used thicker wood but it would've covered too much of the overhead electrical panel.

I get my wood supplies from crosscut hardwood in Seattle on 1st ave. Most of the detail cuts are measured and cut by hand. The initial strip cuts are made in the table saw and router table. I have a few video clips of this process, hopefully I'll make some time to put a quick video together soon.

Here are a few pictures of the drawers in the Battalion Chief rig at work. I really like the simplicity of the design and I'm thinking about doing a similar design in my drawers in the pilothouse...

My brother came up for a visit last week to help with a couple wiring projects. All the conduits are installed and wires are run. We payed a visit to my favorite place, Fisheries Supply in Seattle, to buy my dome lights. I needed 9 lights total and chose LED fixtures that had a day/night feature.

We ended up splitting the lights onto two circuits, even though they could be on one. The three lights in the pilot house cabin on one, and the remaining 6 lower cabin lights on another. The total amperage with all 9 lights on is about 1.5 amps total! That's pretty awesome. Next up for lighting is to install additional lighting for task lights which will include a couple of gooseneck fixtures and bunk room reading lights. I'm also considering adding strip LED lights for cabin accent lighting.