Closing the Loop: A Return Flange at the Site of the Original Hull Crack

Some of the best footage this week came from behind the camera rather than in front of it — a week away at work meant the boys took over documentation duties, catching two genuinely separate projects happening in parallel aboard Paikea.

Sanding Down Harry’s Bunk and the Old Bathroom

The lining had come off Harry’s bunk area — in the port bow — a while back, with bog applied and left to cure since. By this week it had gone properly hard, and sanding it back became the job: a genuinely substantial task that fell to the boys. The adjacent space, an old bathroom, got the same treatment — stripped back and ready for the next stage.

A Return Flange That Closes an Old Chapter

Elsewhere, a lower half-bulkhead with an integrated return flange has been going in under the floor — and the location matters. This is the same section of hull that was home to the original structural crack, found and repaired early in this refit. That earlier fix addressed the crack itself; this piece finishes the job properly, tying a structural connection into the floor at exactly the spot that needed it most. It’s a satisfying kind of continuity — watching a repair from months earlier get its final structural piece put in place.

Priming for What’s Coming Next

With the bulkhead work progressing, the next step is priming ahead of the floor going in. The primer being used has a notably high build, meaning it fills and smooths more than expected going in — genuinely useful given how much surface prep this refit demands. Most of the boat is due to get a coat of it, and while it can technically function as a barrier coat in some applications, that’s not the role it’s playing in this particular area.

Stripping Ayden’s Old Shower and Toilet

Ayden’s room — previously the shower and toilet area — has been stripped back entirely, with a fair amount of rotten timber coming out along the way. The plan here follows the same pattern as everywhere else: fibreglass and foam replacing what was there, sanded and finished properly once the new structure is in.

An Honest Moment

Worth including, if only because it’s true: not every part of this process is enjoyable, and the kids doing the sanding this week were honest about that rather than pretending otherwise. Hard work is hard work, even on a boat everyone genuinely wants to see finished — and that honesty is as much a part of documenting a real refit as any of the technical detail.

In This Series

Closing the Loop: A Return Flange at the Site of the Original Hull Crack is one part of Paikea’s bulkhead reinforcement. Follow the rest of the build here:

Follow the rest of Paikea’s interior transformation on the Paikea’s Refit page.