sailing the farm - join our sea gypsy commune!

[JohnN]

The hull welds are now 2-3 years old. They'd probably be showing issues by now if they had screwed things up, wouldn't they?

I must say that an aluminum-planked self-forged tig-welded hull is just about the nuttiest and also fantastically awesome idea I've run into in a longtime. Somebody must have gotten very good at managing their puddles. I dorked around with welding aluminum, it goes from solid to dripping through to the floor in the link of an eye.

Agreed, but I've done enough sailing to have an inordinate appreciation of the forces waves can place on a boat.

As I indicated, reliably TIG welding aluminum is beyond my skillset, however just because the boat hasn't sprung a leak yet doesn't necessarily mean it will take a knockdown.

 

[PeterNBiddle]

Agreed, but I've done enough sailing to have an inordinate appreciation of the forces waves can place on a boat.

As I indicated, reliably TIG welding aluminum is beyond my skillset, however just because the boat hasn't sprung a leak yet doesn't necessarily mean it will take a knockdown.

The whole idea behind state-of-the art ~1800 ship building was to create hulls that had some give to them, wasn't it? You don't attach the planks to each other you attach them to the frame and then caulk them with tow and pitch which creates a flexible watertight (ish) seam.

Aluminum has some spring to it but this is putting a lot of stress onto those seams. I wonder if they tried channeling/chamfering the edges to make really good at holding a traditional caulk seam?

 

[zeyang]

Please tell me your welding guy is a TIG zen-master. My limited experience TIG welding aluminum is that without a fresh edge (< couple hours old), Aluminum oxide makes the joint highly suspect.

I think we have the skills of master alloy by now and everything below waterline is always welded on two sides to be on the safe side + some watertight bulkheads inside is also of help.

---------- Post added June 2nd, 2013 at 05:46 AM ----------

The whole idea behind state-of-the art ~1800 ship building was to create hulls that had some give to them, wasn't it? You don't attach the planks to each other you attach them to the frame and then caulk them with tow and pitch which creates a flexible watertight (ish) seam.

Aluminum has some spring to it but this is putting a lot of stress onto those seams. I wonder if they tried channeling/chamfering the edges to make really good at holding a traditional caulk seam?

This boat is just like an egg. Its very little flexible due to its small size. An oiltanker is very much different. They need to be flexible due to its share size.
Since we are talking about overlap its welded on outside and inside with a minimum distance by approx 2 inches (5cm) It means the HAZ zone doesent affect each other. the thickness of hull is 8mm. Inside the boat its frames welded in every 40-50 cm. (after the hull was finished) then she have bulkheads etc which also stiffens up the boat.
Its not an icebreaker but compared to so many other boats out there i think this is one of the more stronger ones.
im especially proud of the portholes. The casting girls did a really good job. Never seen anything stronger than this.


ze

 

[PeterNBiddle]

Color me incredibly impressed with the work you guys have done. I'm only a few massive obligations away from just heading out to help you.

 

[zeyang]

August 2013

Dear Sea Gypsies


Its been a busy summer up here. plenty of volunteers and plenty of
work to be done. Our community is growing bigger and bigger and soon
we will take over the ocean.

July has been a good one. 3-4 weeks with stable nice weather, even
some start to complain about too much sun... That was close to end up
on the plank...

Our 10 new chickens are all getting big now. We are still curious how
many of them are roosters - and will end up in the soup

The garden loook really good thanks to 2 girls who spend quite alot of
time weeding.. we got plenty of peas this year - all kinds and some
really tasty. I didnt know yellow peas could be sweet if you eat them
raw. raspberries are soon ready to ripe and berry season are here in
some weeks.

The boat is really start to look like a proper boat. mostly all
portholes are in. skylights and railing seems stong and seaworthy.
there are quite a bit of woodworking to do inside, but we all look
forward to this.

So in sum, we are doing quite a bit of progress and its still a couple
of month until the winter is back so things look pretty good keeping
the schedule.

If you have an interest in joing our sea gypsy tribe dont hesitate to contact us.


Love from Sailing the farm.

Pictures: (courtsey ela/photograephin)

a: weeding the potatoefield
b: queenbreeding
c: picnic at the lake.
d: welding stuff on the deck
e: travelling outdoor library (kind of)


http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=447311&stc=1&d=1376214077
http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=447321&stc=1&d=1376214095
http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=447331&stc=1&d=1376214109
http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=447341&stc=1&d=1376214121
http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=447351&stc=1&d=1376214135

 

[zeyang]

September 2013

Dear Sea Gypsies

The autumn is here soon, but its been quite mild to be september
sofar. It feels more like august... But we are not to be fooled so
easily... Winter is coming soon enough so we work hard to finish up
all stuff before its getting too cold to work outside.

We are more or less finished on the deck. The hatch is in, the rail is
on (just need a little shaping) water intakes, and all bits and pieces
are there. It start to look like more like a war machine for
blood-thirsty vikings and not for a bunch of friendly sea gypsies.

The naked oats (or rather half naked oats) are harvested, potatoes are
still in the soil but will be harvested soon. Our sugar peas are dried
and harvested for the thursday peasoup and waffles, not exactly self
sufficient but we have at least for one thursday

Out of the 10 chickes we got, 1 was taken by a fox or something, 7 are
males (which in this case is lots of sound and and no use) and the 2
last one will give us eggs. So in sum quite a bit of work and hardly
more eggs than we have today But they are mighty fun to watch -
Chicken-TV is addictive.


Ok, thats all for this months from Sailing the Farm - a place where
crazy dreams come true. If you are interested in joining, just drop us
a line.

Love from Sailing the farm.
A sea gypsy tribe of tomorrow.

Pictures:

a: Boat seen from the bow.
b: Lots of head scratching to get all the pieces togehter.
c: Out swimming (yes, we are not always working)
d: The noahs ark chickens waiting for the boat to finish.
e: Dumpster dinner again.

a:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=493641&stc=1&d=1379162385
b:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=493651&stc=1&d=1379162393
c:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=493661&stc=1&d=1379162403
d:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=493671&stc=1&d=1379162411
e:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=493681&stc=1&d=1379162418

 

[zeyang]

November 2013

Dear Sea Gypsies

Whops. time is flying so fast and soon october was gone and no
newsletter sent out so here it comes a little late.

Still no snow up here, which is just incredible. Should have been half
a meter by now.. but the good thing is: it feels like mid-europe
climate so why migrate to Spain when Spain is coming to us!

Farming season is over, everything which was planted during summer is
in the basement. We got around 300 kg of potatoes which will keep us
going until spring. We have turned into professional dumpster-divers
and find way too much food - so we are getting a little picky - What
about raspberries from Brazil? Its hard to believe so much food who is
just wasted. Someone should do something... ahh. enough political
rambling..

Boatbuilding is going really good. She is happy as a fiddle. Latley
she got shiny bowrollers installed, (both forward and aft), tiller,
and soon to come: bowsprit! We just have to cut down the tree.
Everyday we see changes, and its a good sign... We are making the fat
lady ready for the 7 seas. She will be the strongest boat ever sailing
out there.


Thats all for this late october newsletter, If you are interested in
becoming a seay gypsy, just drop us a line.

Love from Sailing the farm.
A sea gypsy tribe of tomorrow.

Pictures:

a: A little crowded on deck. Even the anchors are soon installed.
b: Picnic and out looking for a bowsprit in the forest. (6 meter long)
c: Hardcore welders in action.
d: The sea-monster looking trough the porthole
e: Fancy dumpster lunch with sushi!


a: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=526681&stc=1&d=1383332827
b: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=526691&stc=1&d=1383332836
c: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=526701&stc=1&d=1383332847
d: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=526711&stc=1&d=1383332855
e: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=526721&stc=1&d=1383332862

 

[zeyang]

December 2013

Dear Sea Gypsies

December again! This one has has been quite warm. (today is only -10C)
We still have frostbites from the one last year so we are happy as a
fiddle up here. Makes life and boatworking much easier.

Its been a really good year on sailing the farm with lots of stuff
accomplished and its still some more work weeks to go before we can
sum up 2013.

Deck fittings, deckhouse and most of the stuff up there is
finished. We are proud to say that everything is home-made. Not a
single thing is from the the boat-store.. Main reason for this is:
its hard to get stuff in alloy who looks like wood..

We have probably put another 2000-3000 hours into the boatproject this
summer (with the help of all of those nice and skillfull volunteers)
and still some 2000-3000 hours to go until we see her finshed.

This christmas will be a traditional one on the farm with St. Claus
(Julenisse in norwegian) coming down from the northpole with the
sledge, raindeers and ofcouse packets. I usually dont fancy soft
packets, but im in dire need for a new welding overall so if the
julenisse reads this...

ok. I know its a little early early, but we wish new and old friends
of sailing-the-farm a peaceful and quiet christmas and a prosperius
new year and hope to see you all up next year.

Love from Sailing the farm.
A sea gypsy tribe of tomorrow.

Pictures:

a: the boat start to look like a wooden boat now.
b: shaping up the bowsprit. 6 meter long
c: boat from stern. Sexy lines.
d: welding up the bunkbeds.

a: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=554741&stc=1&d=1386583072
b: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=554751&stc=1&d=1386583080
c: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=554761&stc=1&d=1386583088
d: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=554771&stc=1&d=1386583097

 

[zeyang]

February 2014

Dear Sea Gypsies


The winter has been kind to us this year. During Christmas and New
year there was hardly any snow up here, which is kind of unusual at 60
degrees north. January has been mostly down to -10C which is really
good when we work outside. In January we got plenty of snow so skiing
is as close to perfect as it is possible to get and we have plenty of
those old and wooden army skiis around.(we use to call them
NATO-planks) For first termers its perfect skiis. Slow and heavy.

The Boat work is going pretty good . We are working on insulating
inside and we are more or less finished with the aft cabin (named
princess cabin), since its getting really nice and spacious.

We are soon ready to start insulate and plate the main cabin in the
boat. Its a little more tricky due to the galley (kitchen for those
landlubbers out there). and also the navigation station. Then its more
casting. Basically more cowl-vents to get more fresh air into the
boat..

We usually run with lower staff during winter but this year we will
scale up in February and aim for getting the boat ready for sea-trial
this year. It will be a busy summer.

So if you think you have some useful skills (welding, mechanics,
sewing, interior wood working) or are really good at cracking jokes
you are more than welcome to join us.

This is hopefully the last year of boat building (Ok, I know we have
said that before but...) so hurry up if you want to be part of the
fun. (Ok, I admit sailing is also fun) But it gives a good feeling
knowing that you have been part of building something moving around
our planet with zero pollution...


Love from Sailing the farm.
A sea gypsy tribe of tomorrow.

Pictures:

a: Plating and insulating inside the boat
b: one of the crew made an icebar! How cool is that!
c: the chicken-sisters is busy hatching golf-balls! Not the most
clever sisters.
d: Aft-deck with rudder, and boxes. With wooden deck this will look
like a wood boat.

a:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=615091&stc=1&d=1391961044
b:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=615101&stc=1&d=1391961045
c:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=615111&stc=1&d=1391961049
d:http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=615121&stc=1&d=1391961052

 

[zeyang]

April 2014

Greetings to all sea gypsies, past present and future!

The springchickens and bees are active and so are we!

Anotherbusy month for boat building. The gang has been shaping,
painting and fitting the interior panels with plenty of insulation
underneath. The bunk cabins are shaped and even one of the volunteers
has tested one with an overnight sleep - very comfy! English Tony has
been busy designing the wiring and circuitry, and Frenchy has helped
determine the electrical needs and the outputs we can expect from the
solar panels and windmill. Will we be able to boil the kettle often
enough at sea?

Lorna, the English girl has been attacking with gusto and positive
energy the mold-making for the cowl vents, and hopes to start smelting
and pouring some aluminium this week. Frenchy has calculated and drawn
up the sail plan, and has made a 1/10 model to verify his design.

Sarah the token yank is spoiled in the warm indoors sewing up
custom-sized boat mattresses, cushions and curtains. Are Czech girls
sweet? When they've been covered in honey for 2 days like Micha they
are: 60 jars of lovely honey and we're happy to have some at every
meal! Jams as well, lingonberry, strawberry and plum, and some great
banana cakes from Lorna as well.

The weekend was warm spring weather and all volunteers descended upon
the spa and pool at the cloest town for an outing. Happy at work and
at rest. There is still plenty to do in the coming months - have you
the skills to help? Woodworking, electrial and engine skills, sewing
and more. We hope to hear from you!


Love from Sailing the farm.
A sea gypsy tribe of tomorrow.

Pictures:

1. American sewing-lady busy making stuff for the boat.
2. Happy Frenchman and his sails
3. Potato planting.
4. Inventive cat-litter dance. (basically crush catlitter bentonite
to cast the cowl vent) This will be the dance of the summer.

a: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=712511&stc=1&d=1399400767
b: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=712521&stc=1&d=1399400769
c: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=712531&stc=1&d=1399400772
d: http://weldingweb.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=712541&stc=1&d=1399400775