Here are some photos of the progress on the new W-37 fast daysailer as she took shape on the building floor at Brooklin Boat Yard last week. We’ll hope to get some periodic updates for you to look at on a regular basis.
She’s built in an interlocking “egg crate” construction method, where the longitudinal girders are notched to receive the transverse bulkheads (all made of 9mm mahogany plywood, and precoated with epoxy). Here you can see one of the girders installed between the aft bulkhead (left) and the midhips bulkhead. The straight edge on the bottom of the girder will mate with and support the cockpit sole. You can see the notches in the girder, ready for the bulkheads. The oval holes are to lighten the structure and allow plentiful ventilation.
Forward of the midships bulkhead, the girders are reinforced by adding solid Douglas fir stringers. These stringers run forward to the bulkhead forward of the mast, and help transfer the large loads of keel and rigging into the rest of the structure. You can see these stringers protruding through the bulkhead; the port one has been bonded to the girder with WEST epoxy.
Here’s the stem and the forwardmost laminated frame. The stem is laminated of many layers of 1/16″ thick mahogany, and is a gorgeously curved piece, sexily beveled to receive the hull planking. It has the forestay chainplate glued into it– the chainplate is made of plate composite material rather than metal. The chainplate will have a belowdeck roller-furling unit pinned to it.
Here you’re looking at the port side; you can see the stem at right, with the first four laminated frames erected, followed by the heavy stringer, already notched to take the big laminated frames in way of the fin keel.
The keelson was installed yesterday, and the crew is doing the final fairing on all the frames and bulkheads. We’ll get you some more photos soon!
Bob Stephens