Ewwww!!!!

So I've finally come to terms with my cockpit/steering plan, it ended up being a bit of a compromise.  I had originally planned on removing the wheel and going back to tiller steering.  Unfortunately, this would require removing the rudder, having a new longer shaft fabricated and rebuilding the rudder.  No small task, and the cost in both time and actual dollars (rudder stock is not cheap) would be large.  I was prepared to do it, but when I told my family they were not happy.  They like the wheel and the convenience it offers.  I am smart enough to know what battles to wage, and this was not one of them.  So I am sticking with the wheel, but there is still a ton of work to do on it to make it ready for water.

I don't know how long the steering cables have been in place, but I can only assume they have been there for 20 years or so and they clearly need to be replaced.  I also need to redo the cockpit sole and that will require removing the pedestal, so with the exception of the quadrant and the sheaves, I will be basically installing the whole thing from scratch and given the tight quarters underneath the cockpit and my 6'5" frame, I don't anticipate it will be all that fun.



I haven't really gotten too deep into it yet, but I did remove the compass and steering guard from the pedestal and found a huge mouse nest that must have been there for years.  It reeked of urine and I was so revolted by the whole thing that I donned my respirator and latex gloves to clean out the mess.  I forgot to take a photo, but it wouldn't do it justice anyway.  Finding that pretty much took the fight out of me and I tabled the whole project and moved onto more priming.

Over the next 2 days I managed to get the 3rd and final coat of primer on the decks and 2 coats of primer in the cockpit, so I haven't come to a complete standstill.  Over the next week or so, I'll be doing a light sand (220 grit) paper on the areas that will receive the Interlux Perfection topcoat (the other areas will be hidden underneath KiwiGrip, so no sanding there).  Also, I'll probably get one more coat of primer in the cockpit before I commence tearing up the teak and figuring out the best replacement material and method (it will be wood, but not neccesarily teak because of the cost).