In the ongoing coverage of John Zs Classic Moth build, last week I stopped over at his shop to gauge his progress and have a beer. The Classic Moth modified Mistral design is now upside down awaiting gunwhales and a layer of 4 oz. glass over the bottom.
This photo, though perhaps a tad distorted, shows how deeply Veed the Mistral design sections are around the midships.
Transom view with a pretty swirly pattern from the okoume plywood.
John, with the about-to-be-opened bottle of stout peeking up above the keel-line of his Moth.
A man and his workbench. John graciously took down a Marblehead RC sailboat he built many years ago so I could take a closer look.
A man and his workbench - take 2.
From the previous photo, you can see that John has some interesting stuff hanging from his walls. This is the box containing his F1 rubber-band indoor airplanes. These are extremely finicky to make, with a minimum weight of one gram. John has all the various tools to test balsa density and strength; tools to strip balsa into extremely narrow widths; tools to check rubber band elasticity; molds to make the tricky propellers, and the various techniques to apply the ultra-thin microfilm covering. To make a F1 takes a methodical, painstaking craftsman.
John also has two half models of the Americas Cup, IACC keelboats, the class that precedes the current foiling catamarans. Surprisingly, it was through his wifes connections and not his Naval Architect circle of friends that these two half-models now grace his shop.
Sunday, February 7, 2016
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