Today was not a big production day. It was a day of new ideas. More on that later. I want to talk a little about working with epoxy. After many batches yesterday, I wanted a day of not working with epoxy. I read the MSDS sheet this morning just to make sure I was doing everything I should be. I am. Known longterm issues with these chemical is a sensitizes of the skin so that you get a rash just by being in the presence of this of epoxy. Here is my sequence for safely working with this stuff. I have a set of clothes and shoes I use for this work. I wash these every couple of days. I often work with gloves on if I used epoxy the day before and it may not have cured. When working with epoxy I first apply barrier cream to my hands and forearms and then rub it on my face and ears (anywhere I might get an itch while working. I then but on nitrile or vinyl gloves which I change frequently while I work. I always where a respirator when sanding or grinding. I use two types, particulate and vapor type filters. Immediately after I finish work I wash my hands and face and shower at the end of work. If I do get an itch while working I use a clean stir stick or a paper towel to clear the itch. If I get resin on my skin I wipe it off then wash up and start over again in my protective practice. Like I said earlier, I'm in this for the long haul, I don't want to not be able to use these materials. It's worked for me, I've built three previous boats using epoxy and I can still work with it. Lastly, I never use any solvents. Organic solvents have no place in this process. If you use them on your skin they will simply transport the substance you are trying to clean up into your body; besides who wants to breathe in the vapors.

As you may have read in earlier posts, I have been trying to understand the function of the diagonals as pictured in the attached photo. Until Jim pointed out that the diagonals actually form the sides of tetrahedra, I wasn't seeing them and much of a structural element. I got it after Jim's comments. I've been thinking about the two sets of diagonals between bulkheads 2,3 and 4 (pictured). I have decided to switch their direction so they sit under the bunk bearer on bulkhead 3 and drop down to the bottom on bulkheads 2 and 4. From the load tracing diagram I did, the way they are called out, they don't seem to help under forces exerted downwards by a wave crashing down at the bow or stern or both nor if the center of the boat was to be in a trough while the ends were suspended on crests. If you turn them around like I am then the forces are resolved.

.....Any comments as to why this might not be wise appreciated?