The Ballad Exchange

Be warned :) I'm an absolute novice when it comes to working with fiberglass. As I believe I've mentioned in another post my boat had the small bulkhead in starboard side glassed in as opposed to bolted on to the hull (like all the other bulkheads). I was able to remove the bulkhead without using fo...

Thanks for the heads-up, Peter. I hadn't checked those bolts yet, but you can see dimpling of the coach sides around them, so they probably missed the blocking on ours, too. There was very poor communication between the hardware people and the deck builders -- or the templates were garbage. Besides...

Looking good! One thing you might check: Just ahead of the forward cabin window are three bolts on either side holding an angle bracket that attaches the upper part of the main bulkhead to the cabin sides. The cabin sides here (between the inner liner and the outer shell) have a block of wood inser...

I was hoping to paint the inside of the hull before winter sets in. Looks like I'm in luck :) First coat of Hempel Multicoat has been applied. If it gets "too" white I have the option of using Hempel Brilliant Gloss in slightly "darker" white for the final coats. Hempel claims th...

Why they didn't use brass tacks, I have no idea. The heads were all rusted away, but the nails themselves were quite resistant to pulling out! We're planning to skip the vinyl trim, mostly for aesthetic reasons. We're also re-shaping the header itself, to follow the curve of the cabin top (and prov...

I replaced mine with Vinyl Welting which I found in a shop that makes awnings, boat tops, etc. Make sure to use stainless steel staples or tacks to fasten it (they are hidden between the bulkhead and the cabin top), not like the ones Albin used that rusted away. Thanks, that was exactly what I was ...

Does anybody know what the white plastic thing between the top of the large bulkhead and the underside of the deck is called? I'm looking to replace mine. Any suggestions of what material to use are very much welcome :-) https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-7ZZK8t9-mzk/UmGUO3gEdiI/AAAAAAAACwc/h12wUHo1...

Turns out a car jack and a bit of brute force did the trick :D The two large bulkheads are now in place and I can get on with test-fitting the interior. It looks like i need to use the jack again with the two forward bulkheads. My new best friend! https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-JvG_bRT_osk/Ulq12...

First the good news. The plywood for my Ballad interior has arrived. I have two weeks off from work and was planning to test-fit all of the interior. :) Then the bad/annoying news. I'm going to paint and reuse the old bulkheads. They seem the be in reasonable condition discounting the worn through ...

Bob, do you read minds? ;) I've been mulling it over ever since I posted and have arrived at the same conclusion. My plan is to do exactly as you described (rebed the bolts) :) Looking forward to seeing new progress pics :) I'm stuck waiting for plywood. In the meantime I'm trying to dissolve the gl...