Monday, June 17, 2019

 The tanks have been fabricated of stainless steel and pressure tested. Now they’re ready for installation.

Hashimoto has begun production of the circular surround for the sail locker hatch (all the other hatches are square). The plan (below) shows its location.

And work is continuing on the pattern for the coverboard that will show the shape, the joint positions, and the stanchion positions.

Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Three craftsmen from Stirling & Sons have been fairing the hull to make the surface perfect.

Ben and Richard continue to work on the placement of the tanks and engine.

General repairs are continuing in the workshop . . .

. . . on the circular sail locker hatch . . .

. . . and repairing original hatches where old fittings have allowed fresh water ingress.

Chuck and Nat have set up their workshop for working on the mast.

Wednesday, June 19, 2019

This primer coat helps in the hull fairing process. When the hull is bare timber, only the most obvious imperfections can be seen. But with the uniform color of the paint, more detail is visible. The hull is then sanded with long boards (long, flexible sanding boards made of plywood), which remove the paint from high spots—showing where sanding is needed.

Wada and Kakimoto started painting the sail locker in the interior of the stern, seen in the plan above. This is used for the storage of sails, lines, deck gear tools and spares.

The three men from Stirling & Sons are using long boards as they continue to fair the hull.

Thursday, June 20, 2019

As Ian sands, the high spots appear as the wood shows through the paint. As the hull becomes fair, most of the paint will be removed.

Samples of the refurbished original lights and door handles have arrived back from the UK. One of the old ones can be seen in the background of the top photo. The patterns all date from Cynara’s original build in 1927.

Friday, June 21, 2019

Nat sanding the masts.

The sub-deck part of the coverboard is ready to install at the base of the stanchions. Things have really picked up with all the various work going on around the yard,

Monday, June 10, 2019

Chuck began work today, as did his assistant Nat. Paul and Ben brought them up to speed on the restoration.

The seams between the planks are being cleaned before being painted with a primer.

 The propeller also arrived today. It has folding blades that swivel flat when Cynara is under sail, which minimizes drag. Her previous propeller was “old style,” with fixed blades.

Tuesday, June 11, 2019

Despite it being the middle of the rainy season, the weather was fine, and it seemed to lift the spirits of everyone. Nat made a workbench, recycling the material from the jig that Lewis used to drill the propeller shaft hole.

Not all the bulkheads land directly on a beam, so Ben is cutting packers to fill the space between them. A bolt will tie them together.

Masa working on the main deckhouse.

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Richard and Michael are setting out the deck planking. We have to establish fair, symmetrical lines along the length of the deck to ensure that both the deck planking and the king planks (the planks running fore and aft at the center of the deck) are symmetrical. This also helps set the king plank widths. We can only make adjustments at this point, not after we start laying the deck planking. Also, because we’re making a composite deck, the cedar planking on the underside of the plywood must mimic the teak planking that goes on top. We use the data to fix the planks under the plywood on the same lines as the teak planks.

The bulkhead on the forward end of the engine room is steel, but the aft end has a wooden bulkhead that Paul is installing (above).

Thursday, June 13, 2019

Ben is still fitting packing pieces for the forward steel bulkheads . . .

. . . while Nico is bolting the bulkhead in place after the packers are in.

Friday, June 14, 2019

The old sail locker hatch. At first we thought we could salvage it, but the steel fasteners created issues that would have taken too much time to remedy.

The mock-up for the tank was finished and put into place to check the fit.

This steel frame will be bolted over the ballast to keep it in place. The tanks fit on top.

Monday, June 3, 2019

Ben is leading the last-minute preparations for the interior lead ballast loading that will take place tomorrow. The area was painted, and Ben shaved the lead bit by bit in order to make the shape of the lead fit perfectly.

There’s a story behind this faded section of interior paneling. This is the spot of a medallion that was attached during Cynara’s years in Japan was attached. When we removed it, the surface underneath showed the original finish. We suspected that the original interior paneling was shellac that had yacht varnish applied on top some time ago. We wanted to recreate the original finish, so we send some samples for analysis to Letterfrack, a conservation company in Ireland that handles estates, and museum-quality restorations. They informed us that we were right—the original finish was shellac and a modern varnish had been applied on top. This guided us in the restoration of the panels to their original condition.

Tuesday, June 4, 2019

It was a very big day, starting first thing in the morning.

At 8 AM, the ceiling sheet was removed, and the new ceiling material was first lifted up to the roof by a crane.

From around 11am, the generator was lifted up and installed on the ship.

Work on installing the interior lead ballast started after lunch . . .

. . . with the crane lifting the heavy lead pieces . . .

. . . and Richard Burke directing lowering them into the proper place.

With Ben in place insuring that everything went smoothly, all seven pieces were put in place this afternoon.

Meanwhile, work onboard continued with more carlings being fitted (above), and work on the ship’s interior being done in the tent next door (below).

The installation of the new ceiling sheet will be completed tomorrow, and the masts should arrive on Thursday. The week will continue to be busy, with Chuck scheduled to arrive on Saturday.

Wednesday, June 5, 2019

Some beams had yet to be installed so there would be room to lower the ballast and generator. Today, with the crane work completed, those beams were finally installed, along with more carlings.

Thursday, June 6, 2019

The masts arrived safely, all nine of them in one 21-meter box. The driver of the truck said people all along the road were staring as he went by.

All the contents were taken out and checked by Paul, who confirmed that there was no damage.

The masts were moved to their own purpose-built tent, where Chuck will start working next week.

Richard Sills is building plywood mock-ups that will be used to make the complicated shapes of the tanks.

The skylight over the passageway is being restored in the workshop.

Friday, June 7, 2019

A new Japanese member joined the team today. Tatsumi has been making Buddhist altars at a furniture company, and it’s the first time he’ll be working on restorations.

Richard puzzles over a pattern to position the windlass on the foredeck.

Sections of a steel web frame is being lifted on deck. We frames are used at the mast and midship to add strength to the hull.

Thursday, May 23, 2019

Richard and Lewis are fairing the beams to make sure they are all level with each other and follow the curve of the deck as they should. The dust was flying, so everyone was wearing masks today.

We discussed the upcoming schedule for the installation of generators, tanks, and lead ballast that have to be handled by crane, and decided to install them on Tuesday, June 4 instead of May 28. We’ve just been informed that the steering gear, windlass, and portholes have arrived at the port of Tokyo, and customs clearance will begin tomorrow.

Friday, May 24, 2019

The deck beam fairing was largely completed yesterday, but some fine tuning was being done today. Paul and Lewis were pleased that the curvature of the beam after the fairing matched the blueprint perfectly.

Most of the activity is on board, but Hashimoto is still working on the main deckhouse in the interior restoration tent next door.

These are the parts of the old circular sail locker hatch that we bought teak for the other day.

Monday, May 27, 2019

The stanchions are in and a baton has been stretched around the tops to check if they’re all in line with each other and follow the curve.

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Lewis and Nico are working on the stanchions. Richard and Michael are in the background, setting out the deck in preparation for the installation of the subdeck.

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Nico and Lewis are making a pattern for the coverboard, the wide plank that runs around the perimeter of the deck. We need a form because the coverboard is curved and needs to fit closely around the stanchions. So we use plywood to find the curve and cut holes to fit the stanchions through. The pieces of wood (below) are glued around the base to show their true position before the plywood is removed and used for precise measurement of the coverboard.

Thursday, May 30, 2019

The interior lead ballast pieces that were cast to fit the bottom of the bilge have arrived, and Ben checked to make sure they all matched the forms.

There are seven pieces in all, with a gross tonnage of 3.3 tons. They will be installed under the tanks.

Friday, May 31, 2019

More restored hardware has arrived. The U.S.-made windlass dates from the seventies, after Cynara arrived in Japan.

The restored portholes date from the original construction.

Meanwhile, Ian and Leo are working on the hull caulking.

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

Fitting carlings and partners.

Makoto is cutting off the teak bungs flush with the hull planking.

Fairing the planking at the counter, the overhanging part of the stern.

We heard that the masts recently left the UK and are headed our way, so we’ve begun construction of another tent that will house them and all the other hardware. Some of the rigging—wire, rope, etc.—is being shipped from Palma.

Thursday, May 16, 2019

Kawashima is assembling the main stairway.

Ben has begun working on the interior ballast. There were five tons of lead ingots in Cynara’s bilge before.  We’re placing the internal lead under her tanks at the bottom of the bilge.

To use the space most efficiently, we are casting lead blocks that will fit these spaces and not take up any more space than necessary. We made tapered wood patterns (above and below) so that the lead castings will fit without having to adjust the heavy blocks on site.

Friday, May 17, 2019

Michael, Lewis, and Richard are continuing to fit the beams. The two carlings that create the opening for the main deckhouse are in (running fore and aft between the beams, with shorter deck beams (half beams) on either side. The carlings are made of teak instead of the oak that is used for the deck beams because teak doesn’t distort as much, and the carlings need to stay straight.

Monday, May 20, 2019

Paul, Matsui and Takamiya went to try and find some teak material that can be used to replace the circular sail locker hatch.

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

It poured rain all morning, and we found there were some minor leaks in the tent. We’re replacing the roof next week, and we hope it will be finished before the beginning of the rainy season, which will begin next month.

Most of the team on deck is focused on fitting the carlings.

Wednesday, May 22, 2019

The amount of work that’s been done on the beams is clear from this overhead shot.

Ben is still working on the patterns for the interior lead ballast. We hope this will limit any trimming to make them fit.

Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Leo and Ian are fitting the hanging and lodging knees into the hull.

Paul is making a copy of the ship’s numbers. He took a rubbing to get a completely authentic copy, including any original quirks.

The Japanese members of the team are learning about the importance of varnish and the need for multiple coats. Varnish is most effective the more coats you have, as a thicker layer is not only more durable but offers more UV protection. According to Paul, it is common to underestimate the amount of varnish needed, and 10 to 12 coats should be considered the minimum—16 coats is sufficient.

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Kawashima is making the crew companionway door.

Demetri is caulking the garboard strake. The garboard is the lowest plank on the hull, and is attached to the keel (which is attached to the ballast). Caulking exerts enormous pressure between the blanks, so we didn’t want to caulk this seam until the ballast was in place to resist the pressure.

Thursday, May 9, 2019

Richard will start work on the mast partners, and it’s obvious from the condition of the old ones that they are too badly degraded from years of water leaking around the mast to be used. So new ones will be made. The term “partners” comes from the days when several beams would be joined to hold the mast in place. Today, most partners are a single piece of wood or steel, and ours will be made of one solid block of oak with rivets through them to prevent splitting.

The team is discussing the deck layout, and the issue of setting out carlings for the hatches. The beams’ placement needs careful planning so the hatches can be fit in the correct spots.

Friday, May 10, 2019

Michael cuts the joint ready for the new mizzen mast partner.

Today, Paul talked about the members of our team during our break. He said that almost all of them are independent craftsmen in their home countries, working on their own to find customers and sometimes hiring people, so they have the ability to think for themselves, take responsibility for their work, and find solutions for themselves.

Monday, May 13, 2019

Setting out some of the interior cabins on the workshop floor.

We left the centerline unpainted until now because it would have needed repainting after all the tramping all over it with dirty boots and working on it with heavy, greasy tools. But now that all the keel bolts are in, we’ve painted it and will try to keep it clean.

It’s started to get crowded on deck now with so many of the beams fitted.

Lewis and Michael are working on the placement of the main mast partners.