Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 126

The transom and decks have been painted with the same light cream International Toplac paint

Eventually this series on building a roof rack keel boat will come to an end, to be replaced with other articles, mainly about small sailing boats. Of course, I shall report back giving details of how ‘Sharpy’ performs, along with write-ups of my adventures aboard the new boat. Meanwhile, if there’s anything of note in the building process I’ll mention it.

More varnishing done today

Today was spanking hot which was ideal for painting the deck with an upper coat of light cream International Toplac paint, the same colour as the interior of the boat. Hot conditions helped me with the varnishing because the heat thinned the varnish, so that it readily and evenly flowed off the brush onto the spars and cockpit coamings. I also varnished the stem post and the rudder stock, along with the rudder. These latter items were already epoxied, but I varnished them to preserve the epoxy which is affected by direct sunlight. Two or three coats of varnish will be sufficient for protecting them from UV rays.


The sides of the boat are ready for their first upper coat of paint, and there is no paint on the bottom, as yet. Several days could pass before I finish painting the hull and decks, at which time I’ll be able to concentrate on bringing the road trailer up to scratch.