Well, it looks like this will be the last posting on our blog, as the boat, Legacy, is now put away for the winter.  It was hard to do that, as it has been so nice to look at her in the shop for all of these months.  We did take her out one more time on Friday.  We once again went to Flathead Lake and it was a beautiful calm fall day.  We were able to get a few pictures of Legacy zooming across the water, and also had a lovely quiet ride for a couple of hours.  Changing the prop made all the difference in the RPMs and all systems worked well this time.  The picture of the boat traveling is at half speed-it flattens out more at faster speeds.  It was hard for me to take a picture at faster speed because the  sunshine interfered with the camera viewer.  We also took some pictures of  a " cabin" for sale on an island in Flathead Lake.  We decided not to buy, though.  All in all it was a lovely day on the lake and it was hard later to tuck Legacy into the pole shed for the winter.  We are looking forward to many good rides and maybe even some

fishing next year.  This has been a wonderful project and what will be do for projects this winter??

Launch day was Sunday at Flathead Lake.  We decided to go there instead of Salmon Lake because the ramps are better and we could give the boat a better trial.  We got up there about 9:00 in the morning and the wind was just starting to blow.  We checked out the Polson city ramp but decided to go up to the State dock and campground at Big Arm, about 11 miles further.  We had used the State ramp and dock before and it is a good one.  While waiting for another boat to launch, we drove through the campground and people kept stopping us wanting to look at the boat and admire it.  We weren't sure we would be able to get out of the campground to launch!  The launch went well and all systems were go, except the lift on the shift mechanism didn't work so we had to use the one on the motor.  We also had broken one of the side windows.  All else was fine and off we went!  What a lovely ride we had, out around Wild Horse Island and by the sailboat marina.  We were a little surprised at the volume of motor noise from the new generation 2 stroke Evinrude motor.  It was louder than we expected, but some of that was because of the pilot house being semi- enclosed.  The boat handled beautifully-quickly up on plane and is very smooth in the choppy water.  We found that she is tricky to handle when coming in to the dock because she is so light.  That is going to take some practice!  We did manage to get her tied up to the dock even though it was quite windy when we came in,   We had hoped to take some pictures of her zooming along in the water, but it was just too windy to drop me off on the dock and have Richard go out and zoom, so we will have to wait until next time for those pictures.
On Monday we took her in to Anchor Marine in E. Missoula because of the problem with the lift  button on the shift control.  It was an easy fix-a plug was not lined up and pushed in properly-and we also changed the prop to one with a higher pitch.  The RPM's were pushed too close to the red line. 
We also replaced the broken glass side window with an acrylic one, as there is a little distortion on that side of the window track which is what caused to glass to break.  So now all the little things are repaired of changed and Legacy is ready for the water again.  It was such a good feeling to be out on the water in a new boat, and such fun to get so much attention.  She is so pretty and so very unusual in this part of the world.  Everywhere we take her, people admire her.

  I say to Richard, "Job well done!"

We are back from our trip to Seattle and Port Townsend.  We brought home stainless rub rails, and a few odds and ends, but not much.  We got one windshield in, and will get the second one in soon, we hope.  We took the boat in to Anchor Marine in E. Missoula, to have the new Evinrude 60 HP motor installed.  There seems to always be a hitch in installing anything, and this one was no exception.  It seems that the steering arm on the port side didn't line up with the pipe we had made for it.  So it was time for modifications!  As you can see in the picture, we had to cut out the PVC pipe and move the space closer to the stern.  Richard will have to make a box to fit around the steering arm.  This was not a terrible problem, but a screw up none the less. 
While we were waiting for the motor installation, we drove up to Salmon Lake to see if

that would be a good launching place.  We think it will work, and it is closer than Flathead Lake, so we may launch there.  So we wait for the second windshield and the steering arm repair.  Oh yes, we also are having our trusty welder lengthen the part of the trailer that has the rubber bumpers which come in contact with the front of the boat.  The bumpers don't quite reach the bow.
In the meantime, we are installing the stainless rub rails, more cleats for bumpers, and are figuring out where to put the cabin reading lights.  So even though we are close to being done, we are not quite there yet.  The pictures today are of the motor and the new rub rails,(which really dress up the boat)  We also installed the stainless rub rails on the wooden rub strip towards the stern, although I didn't get a picture of it in place.  The metal should protect that wood, which doesn't have fiberglass cloth on it.
Hopefully the next posting will be of the launching.  We will see. 

The boat is getting a lot of finishing right now,getting ready for the front windows and the motor.  The last two weeks have seen more varnishing in the v berth, two stainless side hand rails, glass sliding side windows, several cleats mounted, non-skid floor painted in the cockpit, and bright yellow cushions in the cockpit.  The v berth cushions, which are primary color stripes, are not made yet, but will be shortly.  We also got the boat registered and numbers put on,both the hull number in the rear cabinet which had to be inspected by a fish, wildlife and parks warden, and the registration numbers.  The boat also got its name, which is Legacy.  So we accomplished a lot these last few weeks.  We hope to get the front windows installed when we return from the Seattle area, and then get the motor mounted by the Evinrude dealer in Missoula.  Then it will be very close to launch time, but where?  The water is so low around here that it will be hard to find a place to get her bottom wet.  We will find a place, though!  While we are in Seattle we will drop by Fisherman's Supply store and pick up a few items, one being the rub rails for the sides.  We will also look for a reading light for the cabin.  I am sure there will be other items we will just have to include, as that always happens in a store like that.  We will let you know what we find.

The big day arrived,(not the launch day, but the big paint day)  We painted the hull blue.  More correctly, "Bikini Bottom Blue".  Is this color what bikini bottoms are supposed to be?  I guess now we bill have to get new swim suits to match?  Anyway, the paint job turned out well and we do like the color.  We are getting close to the finish line now-little things to attach, windows to have cut and installed, wiring to finish, etc.  

Richard finished up most of the wiring yesterday, and lights go on, so he must have done it right.  We keep trying to figure out where we should launch the boat this fall, but the possibilities are running out of water.  Lake Como, the closest place, is so low they had to remove the docks.  Flathead Lake has been lowered a foot, which makes using the docks more difficult.  We don't know about Painted Rocks Res. but will check it out soon. 
We will keep posting pictures, but there won't be a lot of changes from now on.  Keep looking and we will keep posting. 

This week was a productive one for the boat project.  We spent a lot of time doing wiring; running wires for lights, various instrument gauges, etc, The wires were run through the instrument panel in the pilot house into the cabin where they were hidden behind a hinged mirror.  It is a very clever idea and looks clean and and neat. 
We also attached the white trim to the plywood sides in the pilothouse and cockpit.  The trim made a big difference in finishing that edge and it looks good..
Our biggest frustration this week had to do with the wiring for the new Evinrude motor.  We want to have the wiring in place before we take the boat to the Evinrude dealer to install the motor.

  We ordered the wiring online and it arrived without any instructions.  We had no luck finding instructions online, and there are all these different colored wires.  Who knows where they go?  We certainly have no clue.  The other problem is that it is almost impossible to connect with an Evinrude technician for help.  So we don't know what our next step will be.
In the meantime we put two coats of primer on the hull of the boat, and are sanding that in preparation for painting the hull medium blue.  We look forward to seeing how the boat will look with the finish paint on the hull. 
We also picked up the glass for the side windows of the pilot house.  They had to go back to the glass shop to be trimmed, though, as they didn't quite fit.  We had forgotten to take into account the silicone we put under the bottom track.  We are also waiting to see which glass shop will be willing to put in the front windows.

It has been a while since we made a new posting on our blog.  It is much harder to keep up with it in the summer, what with outside chores like gardens, watering, dog swimming, etc.  However, we are making good progress on the boat, which you will see on the current pictures.  We were a bit nervous about the Two Part varnish, but it is great to work with, and flattens out well.  After putting three coats on the outside top, sides, and roof, we took on the inside of the pilot house.  The first job was the ceiling , and it looks fantastic.  The two seats in the pilot house are getting varnished, as are the sides and dash.  The timing for using the varnish is critical.  It must be done early in the day when the temperatures are cool.  Otherwise the brushes drag.  Each coat is lightly sanded before the next coat goes on.
The floorboards have a two-part white border, and the center part will be painted with some sort of a non-skid surface.  We haven't yet figured out what we will use, because we don't want a surface which is too rough on bare feet.
One thing we have wished for many times during this construction project is a boat equipment store here in Corvallis, Mt.  We end up spending a lot of time on the computer looking for parts and equipment, and ordering lots of stuff online.  Thank goodness for the internet!