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I have owned my Bristol 29 for 21 years now, and have studied her lines,
especially her sheer a lot. Since I sail offshore and singlehanded, I've
always felt the biggest safely flaw in her design was a lack of bulwarks.
For me the cute little teak toerail, one inch tall doesn't cut it. So for
this refit I have decided to improve her sheer and build bulwarks
This is a
cross section of the idea.
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On top
of the original toerail is a board (teak at the areas of the hawse
pipes, closed cell Styrofoam elsewhere) the width of the toerail and
glued to it.
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Outside is another board of teak or foam that varies in width and taper
in order to extend the angle of the topsides. Thus at the bow, as shown
in the drawing, the bulwark will be considerably wider than as if
follows aft. The teak areas where the hawse pipes need reinforcement
will be secured through the teak board, through the toerail and the hull
to deck joint with long carriage bolts.
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The
boards on each side are covered in layers of biax and cloth in epoxy.
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The
insides and outsides are faired smooth and painted.
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A 1"
thick teak caprail finishes off the bulwarks.
The sheer
will be trimmed so that at the bow the bulwarks are about 5" tall, dropping
to about 3" at amidships, and about 3-1/2" at the stern. I haven't figured
out how to handle the taffrail yet but I think it will be open for about 3
inches on each side adjoining the bulwarks, for deck drainage and for space
to mount some serious fairleads.
 This
past weekend I built the scaffolding I will need to start work on the
bulwarks. It ain't pretty but it's solid.
 Today
I initially ground down thru the gelcoat on the starboard deck and topsides
and began shaping a recess to glass into for the bulwarks. The gelcoat was
cut back to the cove stripe and about 4 inches in from the toerail on the
deck. I will epoxy glass to about two inches down and two inches in.
 Then,
I fashioned the bow and mid-beam sections of the bulwarks where the hawse
pipes will be located. In the bow, mid-beam and stern sections of the
bulwarks I will use teak. This is the bow section, about 16" long by 5-1/2"
tall and 2" wide. It is positioned in thickened epoxy. After the epoxy set
up, I thru-bolted it at the front and back with 5/16" carriage bolts.
 I
did the same design at the mid beam point. Two pieces of teak about 3-1/2"
by 16" glued and then thru-bolted.
 Next,
I cut the scuppers for the bulwarks. Two on each side of the mid-beam hawse
pipe, each 3" inches wide by 1 inch high.
 I
cleaned out the seam between at the hull to deck joint, washed it in acetone
and filled it with thickened epoxy. I added two coats of unthickened epoxy
to the edges of the teak and the area of the deck as well.
 Here
is the scupper taking shape--still needs some fine sanding and shaping.
 For
the sections of the bulwarks between the teak hawse pipe areas I will use
Styrofoam. I bought 4 x 8 ft 2" thick slabs at Lowes,
 and
these I cut on my table saw to the dimensions I need. I rabbited the bottom
face to account for the size of the toerail. I positioned it place and
used lag bolts and fender washers to hold it in place temporarily. Then, I
painted the
toe rail and the Styrofoam with unthickened epoxy, buttered up both surfaces
with thickened epoxy, and screwed the lag bolts down to position it and hold
it until the epoxy set up. Later I removed the lag bots.
The
interesting thing about Styrofoam is that you can handle it like wood: cut
it with hand saws or electric saws, sand it, shape it with a rasp, drill it.
It makes a million little loose beads that have to be vacuumed up but it's
very forgiving to work with.
After
installing the Styrofoam between the teak hawse pipe bracing, I added two
layers of biax on each side.
 Then
I installed teak braces every 24 inches that are glued in thickened epoxy, tying
the deck, toerail, and hull together. The 2" square teak posts give the foam
tremendous strength and provide strong points for me to screw the cap rail
to the bulwarks. To add the posts, I cut out a section of the foam slightly
larger,
cleaning away all the foam that stuck to the teak of the toerail and the
hull to deck joint. Then I painted the area heavily with unthickened epoxy,
then filled the cavity about a third full of thickened epoxy and pressed the
teak post into the mush, being careful to get a good seat without any air
pockets. Once it is all cured and hard, I will trim the bulwarks to the curve
of the sheer I want.
Today I
added a second layer of 24 oz biax to the outside of the bulwarks, giving me
two layers on each side. When the epoxy was still tacky I mixed several
batches fairing mix with microballons and faired over the biax and the
bottom edge against the hull. When it thoroughly hardened, I went after it
with my Festool Rotex 150 with 50 grit Saphir abrasive. The Festool took it
all down smooth in about 20 minutes of dust-free work. While the 150 is
certainly the most expensive sander of its kind in the world, it continues
to prove itself to also be worth every penny it cost.
Creating the Sheer
The sheer
of the bulwarks will be as follows: from the bow going aft 10 ft the
reduction will be 1/4" per foot. Then leveling off at 3 inches for about 10
ft and finally increasing to 3-1/2" at the stern. After I add a layer of
biax to the inside of the bulwarks I will screw a batten to the inside
to establish the correct sheer and use a skill saw to cut the teak and foam.
 The
first step was to measure and mark the sheer carefully and align painter's tape
to the marks. I gauged it by eye like this photo and adjusted it several
times until it just looked right to me. Then, I bought some 8' lengths of
molding at Lowes. The molding seemed very consistent and offered a clear straight
edge.
I measured down from the top edge of the tape 1-1/2" (the inset
measurement for the
skill saw blade) and screwed the molding to the bulwark. Finally when it
established the
 exact
line I wanted, I took my Bosch skill saw, and using the top edge of the
molding as a fence and guide, cut the top of the bulwark to the sheer
measurement. This weekend, I will add two layers of 6 oz fiberglass tape to
the top of the bulwark and finish faring and sanding.
 Today
I sealed the top of the bulwarks with 4 layers of 6 oz 2" wide tape epoxied
to the top edge.
Cleaning Up the Scuppers
Cutting
the Hawse Pipe Openings
Mounting the Hawse Pipes
Installing the Caprail
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