Elixir Revealed
Dust storm in the boatyard: industrial compressor sand blaster. What will be revealed under all the old paint and rust?
~ January 1988
The boat yard was next to JC’s sandblasting business. Somehow, all the recycled glass and bottles on the island found their way to his yard and were added to enormous piles of colored and clear glass. The constant sound of smashing bottles was part of the boatyard ambience, thepercussion and chimes to the constant drone of the gas generator. There was also a four-legged component of this neighbor, a very large black and brown Doberman guard dog who answered to the name of ‘Tiny.’ Needless to say, we were not on friendly terms with her, no one was, she knew her job and was very good at it!
JC was happy to help us out and clean up the whole boat down to the bare teak planking. A colorful island character, he worked shirtless except for a burgundy necktie - his trademark daily attire. He also used beach sand rather than the commercial grade abrasive generally used. We considered this decision and decided that the hull would need major refinishing anyways so any salt residues from the beach sand would be a moot point.
The decision to sandblast the entire boat was a sound one, allowing us to see the rot was indeed everywhere. The hull needed to be completely refastened.
Sandblasting the entire boat with beach sand. Yup, that’s right, he’s not wearing a shirt.
