As an engineer I'm impressed. It doesn't look ugly it looks like it will do the job. A broken mast lying across the deck in a storm looks a damn sight uglier

I wouldn't worry about the backing plates looking "ugly". The important thing about a boat is that it works. It's coming on great!

Ive been a wood worker for years. You’re doing a much better job than you’re giving yourself credit. Keep up the good work!

If Hanneke approves that's more than good enough.

Mark, I think I'm 50 years older than you. I really enjoy your style. You're doing a great job - both on the boat, and the filming. I would have used many more 4 letter words, but you've got a lot more class than me. Keep up the good work!.

That welded chainplate with all those crazy angles looks like a nifty piece of industrial art to me.

Brilliant video Mark! 👍 Chainplates are looking solid and your filming skills are top notch. Nothing like an exciting dinghy ride to add some spice to your day... Keep up the great work mate, Chris 🙂 P.s. Everyone accidentally puts the drill in reverse occasionally [at least that's what it looked like at 0.25 speed]... P.p.s. The above comment might further increase your watch time if other people go back to the 4 minute mark and do the same investigation... 😂😉👍

The up side about undertaking such a project is this : you will know your boat better than most people know theirs who buy a boat ready to go.

As a metalworker and fellow project boat owner, I have to say you're doing great. And about the chainplates you called ugly sometimes things just need to be done, it's a tough choice but it's strong enough and will do the job perfectly fine. Keep up the good work!

Solid work as usual. You have a much more exciting and dangerous trip to Aldi than I do! Great content, thanks.

I don't think your interior chainplates look ugly... they look functional. Perhaps they can be a reflector to a kerosene lamp although nobody uses those anymore (I'm an old fart!). Keep on keeping on, Mark. You're making progress.

There is something deliciously honest about the chain plates. Sometimes function trumps form, however the engineering looks pleasing for its angles and it speaks of its integrity.

What you have to keep thinking. This boat was sat abandoned with holes and water inside it. You've done a great job so far repairing it just keep persevering. You might not get things right first time but that life. Great work so far

Just a little hint concerning screw holes: Instead of just "waterproofing" them with the cotton tips, it would be better to drill them a little bit oversized, then completely filling them with expoxy by help of a syringe, and when it's hardened, you drill the "real" size holes. So you make sure that the wooden core is never coming into contact with water. 😉

Don't be so hard on yourself the plates look good be proud off yourself People Will always have there own opinion.

My friend!!, donot fasten them bolts to the fullest with sikaflex......first fasten them semi tight, let the flex dry and next day fasten to the fullest. this way it is absolutely waterproof...the sikaflex will block every little hole in tghis way,, so in its solid form if you know what i mean. GG on the progress, big up!

Mark the inside angled chainplate supports you said look ugly, will give you heaps of peace-of-mind sailing in storm and they won't look ugly when you paint them the same colour as the cabin and the backing plate nuts could be swapped for nice dome nuts - much nicer.

Mark your content is never boring fella these 24 minutes of your vlog are the best 24 minutes of every fortnight love it when my phone tells me you’ve posted your content sorry your brilliant content get a brew on with some choccy digestives and get comfortable too see what amazing progress you’ve made each time…apparently lipstick is good for dabbing on the end of u clamps if you ever need too mark up where you need too drill the holes…keep going mate your doing fantastic glad the weather is good aswell thats half the battle mate🦾🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

🎉 you'll know every inch of her, and she knows what love is!

Your character, talents, perseverance, temperament, respect, kindness, and appreciation all warrants the attention you are getting! Beers on me when you get to Florida.

I finally just bought myself a little boat ! I am excited for my own little adventure 😅

crossing the canal in the dingy is like playing the old video game FROGGER.

Whenever you drill a thru hole, you must over drill it, fill the larger hole with epoxy, then re-drill the hole the correct size thru the epoxy. Otherwise you will be repairing the rotten hull later on.

So cool you have Hanneke on speed dial so you can get advice at anytime. You should just move her in with you until youre ready to sail. 😎

You can beautify chain plates by buffing them up with a buffing wheel so that they shine like a mirror. Normally done in the workshop before fitting but could be done with an electric drill and buffing attachment.

I must admit that one chain plate looks damn good .

Good to see those chain plates so well engineered. No such thing as ugly. Just functional !

Please remember to use locking nuts on the chain plates so that vibration doesn't loosen the nuts and you could put quarter round edging on the sides of the plates so that it looks finished off keep up the good work

Approaching 110,000 subs! Week after week, best channel on the Tube.

A Maintenace man of 20+ years, I am proud of where you have come. You may not have noticed, but I have. Continue on this path and you will look back to see how great you are doing. Good job young man!

You're doing a great job. We have a place for you to keep your boat here in Florida. We really enjoy observing your progress. Just keep the faith.

Haha like watching real life frogger dodging those big boats

Protip about having a perfect fit piece to a curved one: throw a bit of spray paint on the hull, then rub the wood against it following the profile of the curve (so not along the axis of the wood plank). You'll have the contact points rubbed with paint on the wood, which you have to take down. But before that, a bit of acetone will wipe off the thin coat. You repeat this a few times and by the time you're done, you'll have a perfectly fit plank of wood to a curved surface.

Mark your skills have improved so much over the years. You’ll doing great

I do not think the chain plates are ugly. When you are at sea in a blow they will provide reassurance.

It will be solid when you are done and you will have the know how and experience to deal with most things that will come up. Props for sticking with it and following your dream. Cheers

just my 2 cents - drilling stainless steel is a pain in the behind. It sounds counter productive but I always use some kind of lubrication, like simple wd40. It reduces friction, the drill doesnt burn, and it reduces the drilling time. please dont mind my rumbling if you employ this already. wishing you enjoy your project and your goal of going sailing

Well done. You have taken on an enormous challenge with limited skills. Your skills have improved tremendously and the challenge is getting easier. I know you’ve had help but your determination and tenacity are really what has brought this boat back to life. Keep up the good work. Looking forward to the progress.

Personally, I like to see the solid looking backing plates. Having looked at some sailing yachts before buying my own, I saw some shockingly flimsey set-ups using thin steel bands. Your plates will give yourself and any passengers more confidence.

great job. Measure a million times, build it in your head 300 times, then do that all over. Sweat it out while making the first cut/drill. I am impressed.

I don't think the chainplate backing plates are ugly at all ... I like 'em! Nice and solid.

Every other minute I’m like “ oh dear, I hope he’s going to…” and before I could complete the thought you did. Great work and thanks for sharing it.

There you go, drilling holes in your boat again 😂

bro your chainplates are good-looking, and sturdy af. You're getting better and better.

Hi, to make a good seal with sika fasten the bolts with just a little preassure, Then wait one day until its halfway hardend, Then you give it some real torque down.

Keep pushing forward! Keep pushing forward forward! Quitting isn't an option! Improvise, adapt, and overcome! Your boat is beautiful! It is because you are making so!! God speed!

Pieces of the puzzle are falling into place. I remember when you were starting on this huge undertaking. Didn't think the boat was worth it.........and look at her now!.......and over 100K subscribers!! Congratulations!!!

Not only are those custom made chainplates overkill and over engineered... They should hold up for many decades and give you not only peace of mind but fond memories of learning to weld with your uncle and Dad. Priceless!

So the old rock song goes Once, Twice, Three Times a "chainplate"?? You cannot measure enough. Looking good, keep it up!!!

You have probably heard this already, but anywhere you have a nut, you need a Lock Washer to keep the nut from vibrating loose. Love the work you do!

Suggest you glass in those hardwood backers inside hull.

Its nice to see your confidence increase as you tackle the scary stuff. Just remember there isnt anything you break that you cant fix so just dig in and give it a go.

Mark the man, Mark the legend

The sound of the brushless makita drill is pure pleasure for me

Looking good….. should be “Happy Sailing” soon congrats and kudos……..⚓️⚓️⚓️⚓️⚓️⚓️⚓️⚓️⚓️

Those chain plates look awesome industrial to me. I like the mix of metal and wood. You should invite Anika for a sail when the whole boat is done.

I would have counter sunk the bolts a little bit (more treads) and put lock tight or nylock nuts. don't want it coming out. I might even upset a thread as well.

I admire your tenacity at sticking to the job.

Dont worry you are doing a great job with everything, you should be proud of what you have done so far, can't wait until shes sailing!😂

Thanks!

shes comming together great that man . chainplates are function over beauty, as papa dar would say from the fabrats " Hammer it to fit and paint it to match " . shes looking good man .

Hi Mark, Interested in how you managed to stay in Holland so long on a British passport? I would have thought you would be restricted to 90 days in 180? Those chain plates are looking strong 👍 One tip, with sikoflex don’t tighten up tight. Tighten a bit but leave 2mm gap, let the sikoflex dry for 48 hours then fully tighten down. Otherwise if you fully tighten when wet you squeeze all the sikoflex out. If you leave 2mm or so the sikoflex cures then you tighten it’s like a 👍⛵️gasket

The first one is always the hardest. The others will go faster as your confidence improves. Wharram's are forgiving boats. Functional and the goal to sail this summer/fall.

Nice work! You definitely have an eye for the details. This suggestion may be overkill but I am mentioning it because I have just done something relatively similar: first off, I would suggest butyl tape on the topside outside upper part of the hull) tang threads @ 7:25. Most people are using a 45deg bit to slightly enlarge the outermost portion of the hole - then putting butyl tape around the thread and pushing it in. I would personally also consider creating a small tapered backing plate out of metal or hardwood, for those two nuts/bolts again, 7:25 - both on the inside and the outside. When you install that type of U-bolt, you have kind of a push pull type of situation where one of the bolts will be pushing whilst the other is pulling. So the lower bolt of the tang will be pulling from the hull whilst the top most part of the tang will be pushing into the hull (from the outside) The more taper you have from the bolt to the hull the more of the load is distributed through the backing plates. Right now I see the nuts and washers creating a bit of a pinch point. The backing plate looks good enough, but it’s just something I would consider as it’s easy to drill out a piece of mild steel, treat it well, and place it underneath those washers. I do things a little bit more than necessary though, perhaps? 🤷🏻 Anyways, great work thanks for the videos. We are engaged in the same process at the moment, so I appreciate the inspiration… Wish I had some videos to inspire you as well. Keep well.

You’re going so well Mark. Sadly I missed a couple of episodes but so much progress is happening. You can see the overall changes and steps along the way as the sailing machine takes shape. Brilliant!

Backing plates always look somewhat incongruous- best thing to do is to highly polish them & make ‘em a feature. When you’re in warmer climes you can set to with some wet & dry followed by some polishing paste. Believe it or not, it’s actually quite a therapeutic process! Great episode & keep at it! 😊

Brilliant work Mark. As per previous comment regarding the chain plates strength over aesthetics , when your out in a blow you'll have confidence your mast won't fall down, and if you like you can always paint them white. Drilling holes heart in mouth hoping all goes well...I know the feeling I'm a retired maintenance fitter they can only teach you so much in tech school and experience tells you that you measure and plan as best you can but then you just have to drill that hole 😁.. You've got good reason to be proud of what you've achieved thus far 👍👍👍

Wow, video footage of your canal crossing as well as the view of Mahi on your return was spectacular! I admire your courage and tenacity, and I'm really glad you rescued her and are restoring her for the sea. Surely, sunny days await you both. Cheers, Mark❣

a few steps closer to that first sail ! Sail, did you get it😄 Your getting there, well done Mark.

Nice to see you working under blue sky at long last, great progress and great filming.

I would dearly love later this year, or early next year, to fly to Los Angeles and buy a 30 to 35 foot GRP yacht, sail it via the Panama Canal to the North Atlantic to visit my daughter in Montreal, then my aunt in Essex. I would love to meet up with you in the UK, Europe or en route to Cape Town or possibly in my home harbor of Richards Bay! I want to get my travel documents and foreign exchange ready in the next few months. I am 64 but really admire what you have achieved - on a wooden boat.

You need backing plates dude. I’d also take that D hoop for your stays and weld up a large backing plate as well. You have all the stress on the bolts.

Looking really good, Mark! Your dream has become reality, and you have made it happen. 😎🥰😎🥰😎

You're doin' it skipper. Putting your energy into your windship has a lot of meaning Highest blessings

I've seen other channels prescribe wetting any wood with epoxy before attaching it...letting unthickened epoxy soak into the wood avoids any dry areas that might not fully adher

Love it. So cool watching you do this. 108K subscribers should give you plenty of evidence that you are certainly doing something right. Going to be a nice ride when you done. Kudos.

I just figured out another reason I love your videos; your sound work is excellent. Both the production side and your post work and final mixes are really well done. Excellent job, especially, considering how nice your camera work is already --even when over exposed and out of focus, the story is coming through emotionally and draws us into your journey... Love it!

Nice work! You are becoming an impressive owner, making your boat your own -in a real sense.

Uhh, I remember your first attempts at glassing and tabbing on Minke. It was terrible! The work your doing now is right on!!! I think you just struggle with confidence. Learn to trust yourself!!

Paint the chaiplates white..they will blend in nicely with the interior...boats coming along nicely..I was doing this exact same job 7 yrs ago on a warranty.. going from a crab claw schooner to a sloop rig

Mark I want to complement you on the new, smooth handsaw technique. No more vibration! You may become a boatbuilder yet!

Wonderful work and looks really strong enough to firmly hold up a strong “stick” to drive the boat with confidence!

Stainless steel don't like being cut and drilled does it? Tears up tools and drill bits. But it won't rust or flex and break. Great job brother.

Thank xou for this amazing VIDEO. I don't doubt for a minute that this project will be a complete SUCCESS. What we can do is comparatively small compared to what is offered to us. The persistence in continuing to pursue the project, even in the proverbial rain, combined with the technical skills that everyone certainly recognizes, and the ability to make the right decisions at the right time and to have and get support at the right time cannot be valued highly enough. This is the stuff winners are made of. It is therefore not surprising that the project is taking more and more shape. You are on the right way. Best wishes

Always an inspiration! It has to be an awesome feeling when you sit back and realize how much you've accomplished and what youre capable of now.

Your sheer determination guts and ability will see you through.You are not alone your fine family backup and helpful people along the way are with you to help.Well done.

I feel your pain at drilling holes in your dream, and the "ugly" plate, however it will be super strong and probably look better with some paint on it? Also if Hanneke is saying it is good then, well, enough said 🙂

_QUALITY!_ Real extra sense of achievement when you've bitten the bullet and gunned through a major obstacle. Rock solid installations and the editing of this episode was top notch!

Nice work!! I bet your departure date feels a lot closer every day.

Your U-Bolt will leak in a couple of years but that's fixable :) But depending on the load you plan to put it through, you should consider using lock-tight.

Dude, that looks great. I've been a carpenter for a long time and have done many things. Boats included.

You are so clever the way you work out the difficult problems. Your skills are progressing wonderfully. Keep going. You will be sailing soon.

Hi Mark, with regards to the chain plates and moving th top holes dawn leaving an open hole in the plate, you could cut the top hex head off the bolt off and appoxy them on, a false bolt.

And the pleasure just keeps coming. I love your approach to your project, the soundtrack, your patience and your humility. Personally I think that it looks amazing and is a credit to you, you’re the modern equivalent of “giving it a lash” and make the picture in your head become a reality. Fair play to you.

Well done.

At this point, it looks like you are a professional showing how things need to be done. Your father must be proud of you...mom as well of course. C u next week...friday here is your day on my list. Ciao.

Actualy buzzing for ya! Chain plates look solid bro! Trust your gut. you've got this 100%

Hi Mark. Great job, never mind it looking ugly. As long as it's 💯 safe, it's looks really good, I think. Good news about the chain plates. Keep it up, Mark. Brilliant video again, bro 💯👌🙏🇨🇮

Well done Mark, Out of My Depth, is a humble place to be, there's lots on the line, so attention to details is critical.

Awesome! The chain plates are ready to take on the world!