Almost finished!

Before

After

 

Three months later and we're still on the hard.  We wouldn't have thought it possible but here we are, still working away fixing things.  In truth, we would usually be rushing in order to get the major work done such as the preparations for the anti-fouling prior to the painting itself, but we are doing all this in a relatively relaxed manner, checking a myriad of other items off the 'job list'.  One by one we're working through them.
 
Paul has worked non-stop at a host of drudgery jobs which aren't really Kodak moments. In other words, they needed to be done but there's not much to show for it.  All in all, the job list included sanding, polishing, ding repairs, new running rigging, galvanising, repainting of the navy side stripes and boot-topping, water heater repair, radar arch repair, signage, Nav lights, radio, SSB ground strap, greasing, oiling, servicing, checking electrics, electronics, plumbing, bilge pumps, gas connections, winch servicing, windlass switches, dinghy davit modifications, antenna - the list goes on and on.  

We started with 20 items on the 'job list' but, each day, it got longer and longer until it reached to over 50 items, each taking an exorbitant amount of time and each with their own idiosyncrasies. Just one example, the replacement of the SSB ground strap took two days and involved completely dismantling the aft berth to get to the inside bottom of the hull, through lockers and bulkheads.  All this in 35°C heat with unbelievably high humidity (heat index of +/-40°C). 

He won't be wanting to do that job again in a hurry - he's several kilos lighter!  Happily, the job list has now been reduced to five non urgent items.

The 'toilet seat'

On the more visible side of things, besides the paintwork, were the manufacture of a new stow pack for the mainsail, a repaired spray dodger and a host of other canvas work in addition to a new fibreglass ring for the spinnaker snubber (aka the 'toilet seat').  

Paul designed and manufactured this from scratch to replace the old stainless ring that jammed up every time we flew the genniker which ultimately caused it to blow out when we rounded the northern tip of Borneo.  Now to try it out!

Ultimately, we hauled out do the bottom paint and improve the appearance of our dear lady.  She was such an embarrassment when we left Jepara due to the black tyre marks and all the damage to the paintwork.

Many weeks were spent buffing and polishing the hull.  The damaged navy stripes were resprayed and the worn patches touched up.  She now looks beautiful again.  We haven't been able to find the right coloured paint for the teal stripe so that will just have to wait until we do but, as it consists of only two small areas, it's not earth shattering.  

The rainy season appears to have passed on but not before one last lightening bolt took out our battery charger.  We sure didn't need that but fortunately nothing else on board was wiped out.  We've come across many boats that have lost all of their electronics so we can be thankful for small mercies.

Time is moving on and we'll shortly have to do a visa run up to the Thai border.  We tried to book our 'splash' for immediately upon our return but there are two strikes against this; the tides are too low and its Chinese New Year.   We still want to stop off in Penang before a quick trip into duty-free Langkawi and then on up to Thailand.  With this in mind, hopefully, we'll be off investigating wonderful new anchorages again very soon.