Richard, a very good question as a lot of moulders don't put on on, which usually ends in a ragged uneven finish to a moulding.

The flange is there to support the first half of any mould that is laid around the plug in the vertical position, and then it is taken away once the first half laid up has gone hard.

That flange is then taken away, and dumped.

Then the second side, with aid of wax and release agent can be laid up against the now flat face of the first half, and gives a perfect joint for the two halves of the mould.

HOWEVER, the flange on the base of the cabin, and the top of the hull has a different purpose.

Once this flange has been trimmed and comes away with the plug from the moulds, what is left is a nice smooth surface sticking out from the mould and this is used as a trim line for the bottom of the cabin or the top sheer line of the hull, and in that way, both moulds are a perfect replica of the plugs before the flange made from wood was stuck on to the plugs……

It will be easier to see when the moulds are released from the plugs.

Edited By neil howard-pritchard on 02/10/2022 13:53:14

The last flange has now been released from the engine casing, leaving the grp to form the flange for bolting the mould together.

Release agent has been applied to the plug and, as I want this mould to be finished tonight at the latest, I have added a little artificial heat other than the normal heat of the radiators already in the workshop.

I'll give it an hour to dry and then add the gelcoat for the final time on the moulds.

And on my last layup after a week of work I might have "cooked" it………..literally!!!

By becoming blase' with the last mix I skipped the process of weighing the resin before I put a measure of catylist and think i overdid the cat, by putting too much in to the pot, and I ended up with a "hot" mix, hence the brown colouring seeping through the resin and matting.

And I won't know if I have done any damage to the mould, or the plug or both until i seperate it all….just have to waite and see. The good sign is………the resin didn't smoke which means it didn't get so hot that it was at the point where it would become brittle and crack……….but as a precaution I put it on a workmate out in the garden for the night temperature and cold wind to cool it off , and I shall just have to wait now until tomorrow to look for any signs of damage.

Morale is……..you only waste time by rushing.

This is what I like to see!!!

Drilled, trimmed, rubish in a bag ready for disposal and the moulds ready and aching to be used.
I shall split both moulds tonight….and looking forward to that.

But I can't believe, by looking at it stretched across the workshop, that it is still smaller than the Clyde moulds I made from an old wooden hull that I bought off a gentleman from Appledore 12 years ago….and the rest is history on that one, lol.

IT'S come a long way sinse July and a trip to Ulverston for some scrap plywood to make the keel and frames.

Edited By neil howard-pritchard on 03/10/2022 15:25:50

All of the moulds have now been washed in warm soapy water in the bath to clean off the blue release agent that transfered from the plug to the moulds……..a very usual occurance.

Once washed they were put out onto the garden to dry, but it started to rain heavily so took them into the workshop to dry.

I have been out this evening and sanded, with a sander, and NOT by hand, the outside of the grp matting that usually sets and cures with sharp needles. THESE WILL HURT, if not removed! As one has to handle the moulds to both prepare the inside moulding surface and move the moulds your hands come into continuous contact with the outer skin of the mould.

And so all the surface areas were well sanded.

Tomorrow I will sand by hand any bumps and lumps in the surface that were hollows in the plug and which I could not get at easily to fill and sand smooth!. Most of these irregularities are around the tunnels and the fore and aft ends of the belting.

That all should take me tomorrow and then later tomorrow evening and night I will wax all of the parts up [the white bits of the moulds] will be also be coated with release agent before bolting together.

And hopefully by wednesday lunch time, i will be able to start moulding my first of 3 sets of hull and cabin.

To say thay I am disappointed this evening is an understatement!

Two days ago I had my covid booster and my flu jabs, and after fealt a little dizzy but carried on with bits i was doing on the boats' moulds.

However by last night I was feeling as rough as a bears ass and knowing i had to press on with these moulds I was feeling very rough by tomorrow night and so went to bed early.
Got up this morning feeling just as bad, I took my daughter to work and then came home and lay on the sofa and………woke up 4 hours later feeling much better.

And so decided to clean up the cabin moulds first……….It was then that my fingure went through a thin piece of gelcoat with no resin/matting support behind it.

NO EXCUSE!!! I hadn't spent enought time stippling the matting down where there is a raised piece of sprue attached to the cabin, and on both halves it had left a hollow air space.

Luckily it is on the edge of where the sprue line is, and so was an easy fill with Dolphin glaze fine filler, and can be sanded down to level with fine abrasive paper, But, I am still annoyed with myself for not pulling a perfect mould in the first place.

I couldn't wait until tomorrow.

I have now filled the gaps in the seems, made by the undercuts in the moulded sections where plasticine had been used to form the original flanges on the plug.

The inside of the mould has now been waxed again giving a total of 6 coats. With the coating of PVA release agent tomorrow, there is a very fair chance that the moulding will release wall from the mould.

Edited By neil howard-pritchard on 06/10/2022 00:45:54

Edited By neil howard-pritchard on 06/10/2022 00:48:59

And the gelcoat has now been laid into the mould.

Tonight after getting back from Liverpool I will lay up the cabin assembly and trim before it finally hardens, around the top rim with a Stanley knife to leave a clean cut finish.

That is what the top flange is for…..the trim line.

well, here it goes Richard……….only a couple of hours more for you to wait.

It took just over an hour to start going off reasonably hard enough to trim the overhang with a stnley knife, and even then some of the rim was still soft, and yet some hard as nails and just about cutable……..but it has now all been trimmed and left to harden, ready for taking out of the mould tonight.

And so!….work on the moulds of the hull tomorrow getting those two pieces fit for moulding a hull.

Edited By neil howard-pritchard on 06/10/2022 17:55:28

After sanding both halves of the hull I came across a couple of irregulatities at the stern prop tunnels that needed filling and a few hollow spots opened up at the tight seams.

These were all filled with Dolphin Glaze and am now just giving 30 minutes to harden before sanding down before i wax pollish them all and start the big process of a hull moulding.

wish me luck.