Ferro Cement Hulls ?

[banyandah]

Originally Posted by awab

the major problem is what level of perfection is needed.

The closer you get to perfection, the more imperfections appear. A high gloss finish will highlight every imperfection, and make you more nervous of jetties and unguarded dinghies.

Recently we used an acrylic driveway paint on our decks with poor results. The coating was too hard and chipped, then let go in patches. Hope that helps.
Ciao,

[OldPelican]

Back around 1988 I spotted an old ferrocement schooner on the hard in Ventura Harbor, CA. I was already happily living aboard and coastal cruising a Catalina 30 so I didn't really need a boat...but...I had dreams of serious passagemaking and I love classical lines on a boat.

She was about 32' on deck with about a 4' bowsprit; full keeled, keel hung rudder, wooden masts and boom. It had plywood deck, coach and interior; a tiny aft cabin I used as a paint locker, a tiny cockpit with a small, salty wooden wheel, very comfortable using the forward bulkhead of the aft cabin as a backrest. The interior of the cabin was voluminous with lots of deep and wide storage. The foredeck was vast, the sidedecks wide and she had honest-to-goodness buklwarks.

Some inquiries revealed that she had been professionally built in a Vancouver, B.C. yard in 1970 and had been on the hard for ten years. the owner, who apparently never really worked on the boat but came out to the yard so he could drink his beer without the nagging from the SO. He had a 'For Sale' sign on her with some discouraging price but I caught him well into his second six pack and after some heavy haggling handed him $3,800 cash for it

She had a hole in her hull below the waterline near the starboard bow. More of a deep gouge, actually. It didn't penetrate and the steel and mesh were nearly undisturbed. I spent the rest of the month filling the hole, sanding fairing and painting.

Launch day came and the yard lowered her into the water. I had them keep the slings under her while I checked for leaks inside and out. She was dry as a bone.

She had an ancient hand cranked one cylinder diesel that I regarded with great suspician and pursed lips so I lashed the dinghy with outboard running to her quarter as a yawl boat. Astonishingly, the diesel fired up on the first crank!

I sold the Catalina and moved aboard the schooner. She was short of a full complement of sails so she needed a good breeze to get her 10 tons moving. All of California is a lee shore and things got interesting if the breeze died as I left the harbor; but, otherwise she was a joy to sail the Channel Islands in.

Unfortunately, I was offered a job overseas that I couldn't refuse and had to sell her before I finished fitting her out. I wish I had her today.

[BillAU]

Originally Posted by OldPelican

Unfortunately, I was offered a job overseas that I couldn't refuse and had to sell her before I finished fitting her out. I wish I had her today.

I'm sure many of us have made a similar wish mate we can all be wise men/women...After the event.
Never mind, before to long you may be lucky enough to find another bargain priced FC Scooner

Bill
Australia

[DolphinBuddy]

Great story Old Pelican. I now regret selling Wren, my ferro cement Flicka that I sold last year after my 90 day ICW voyage.
Kevin

Originally Posted by OldPelican

Back around 1988 I spotted an old ferrocement schooner on the hard in Ventura Harbor, CA. I was already happily living aboard and coastal cruising a Catalina 30 so I didn't really need a boat...but...I had dreams of serious passagemaking and I love classical lines on a boat.

She was about 32' on deck with about a 4' bowsprit; full keeled, keel hung rudder, wooden masts and boom. It had plywood deck, coach and interior; a tiny aft cabin I used as a paint locker, a tiny cockpit with a small, salty wooden wheel, very comfortable using the forward bulkhead of the aft cabin as a backrest. The interior of the cabin was voluminous with lots of deep and wide storage. The foredeck was vast, the sidedecks wide and she had honest-to-goodness buklwarks.

Some inquiries revealed that she had been professionally built in a Vancouver, B.C. yard in 1970 and had been on the hard for ten years. the owner, who apparently never really worked on the boat but came out to the yard so he could drink his beer without the nagging from the SO. He had a 'For Sale' sign on her with some discouraging price but I caught him well into his second six pack and after some heavy haggling handed him $3,800 cash for it

She had a hole in her hull below the waterline near the starboard bow. More of a deep gouge, actually. It didn't penetrate and the steel and mesh were nearly undisturbed. I spent the rest of the month filling the hole, sanding fairing and painting.

Launch day came and the yard lowered her into the water. I had them keep the slings under her while I checked for leaks inside and out. She was dry as a bone.

She had an ancient hand cranked one cylinder diesel that I regarded with great suspician and pursed lips so I lashed the dinghy with outboard running to her quarter as a yawl boat. Astonishingly, the diesel fired up on the first crank!

I sold the Catalina and moved aboard the schooner. She was short of a full complement of sails so she needed a good breeze to get her 10 tons moving. All of California is a lee shore and things got interesting if the breeze died as I left the harbor; but, otherwise she was a joy to sail the Channel Islands in.

Unfortunately, I was offered a job overseas that I couldn't refuse and had to sell her before I finished fitting her out. I wish I had her today.

[Steve Bean]

That 32-footer sounds a lot like a schooner-rigged version of a Samson C-Mist 32. Samson Marine Design is based in B.C. and adapted the Atkin "Eric" design for ferrocement. The Eric was a scaled-down version of a Colin Archer 47-foot double-ender. It's very very similar to the Westsail 32. I have a C-Mist built in the Samson franchise yard in Monterey in the 70's. This is the same design as "Suhaili" in which Robin Knox-Johnston won the first singlehanded round-the-world nonstop race in 1969. Not because he had the fastest boat but because he was the only one who finished...

[Stonefloat]

Originally Posted by Steve Bean

That 32-footer sounds a lot like a schooner-rigged version of a Samson C-Mist 32. Samson Marine Design is based in B.C. and adapted the Atkin "Eric" design for ferrocement. The Eric was a scaled-down version of a Colin Archer 47-foot double-ender. It's very very similar to the Westsail 32. I have a C-Mist built in the Samson franchise yard in Monterey in the 70's. This is the same design as "Suhaili" in which Robin Knox-Johnston won the first singlehanded round-the-world nonstop race in 1969. Not because he had the fastest boat but because he was the only one who finished...

Glad to hear from another happy Samson owner, we sail a C-Farer 39 ' gaff cutter from the pencil of Cecil norris built at the Samson yard in Vancouver in 1977 . Dry as a bone and great cruiser you need a full press of sail to move all 17 tons but once there no need to reef for awhile.

Loved story about 32' schooner , one thing that is common in this thread owners regretting selling a FC boat

[awab]

Big hello after the holidays,
I am in my winter break and doing research.
I came along an interesting system to fairing out before painting.

this is the text

A slick way to fair a large area and avoid a lot of tedious sanding is to use a serrated trowel like the metal one floor tilers use to spread mastic. Apply the fairing putty using this tool leaving a series of parallel ridges that stand proud of the surface. Allow the putty to cure, and then sand the area with a long board. Notice that all you are sanding is the tops of the ridges, about one fourth of the total surface area being faired. Sanding dust falls into the valleys. Once the ridge tops are fair, the area is cleaned of sanding dust and the valleys are filled with fairing compound using a broad knife with a straight edge. Only a light sanding is then required for final fairing following cure. Seal with epoxy before painting.

Now my question.
What kind of fairing compound you guys would use to do this on a ferro hull. I am thinking to try this on my decks. I already started to remove the old paint with a torch. It came off relatively easy this way. Now some sanding and I can try the above system.
I also have to find some material what is not to expensive. The area I have to cover is quite large.

Hope to hear some ideas and nice to be back on the forum

peter

[woff]

"Unfortunately, I was offered a job overseas that I couldn't refuse and had to sell her before I finished fitting her out. I wish I had her today."

Hey don't be sad, look what's out there! If you cast your net beyond CA. you will certainly find what your looking for. Good chance you'll find your old boat on the principle that all boats are for sale and 50 yrs is not old for FC. Best wishes!

1975 Ferro Cement Sailboat Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

[banyandah]

Originally Posted by awab

Now my question.
What kind of fairing compound you guys would use to do this on a ferro hull. I am thinking to try this on my decks.
peter

We have used this technique when fairing alloy boats, but I just recently discussed this technique with a luxury boat builder and he Po-pooed it saying it can form hairline cracks along the ridge lines... Maybe for a sheik, you may not want to do it this way..

Only use epoxy compounds, polyester sticks well only to itself and is good for laying up GRP shapes, but terrible for adhering to wood or ferro.

Hope that helps,

[Yachts66]

Playing the role of devils advocate here, but why fair at all?

No matter what fairing compound you use, it will not be nearly as strong as the underlying material. So, when you bump or rub something, the fairing compound will be the first thing to go!

[banyandah]

I agree with yachts66. Decks can take a fair bit of abuse. And unless really lumpy, by the time antiskid goes on, most will not be seen.

Hope that helps,

[awab]

hello
Perhaps the way to go is doing nothing and leave it rough. I will try this technic on parts of the pilothouse. Would be nice to have some slick areas.

I could rough the concrete with heavy sandpaper to provide a type of non scitt. I saw also that the needle scaler makes some nice pattern on concrete.

thanks
peter

[Outwest34au]

Originally Posted by awab

I could rough the concrete with heavy sandpaper to provide a type of non scitt. I saw also that the needle scaler makes some nice pattern on concrete.

thanks
peter

Hi Peter,
a needle scaler maybe a bit aggressive if you aren't very careful, but it will more chip the mortar.
Consider sandblasting please. It will leave a nice satin matt finish.
Sandblasting can be done with a basic $80 home water pressure washer with an attachment hose. It isn't as dusty as dry blowing, doesn't upset the natives as much.

[awab]

hello,
Wet blasting is somehow a new idea. Thanks. I have been looking up some you tube videos.

Wet Sandblasting - Water Sandblasting - PressureJet - YouTube

and I have even a very good and strong hot water pressure washer I can use for this.
I have been reading always that sand blasting is a NO for ferro. But with water is should be very mild and easy to control.
I found another product for the fairing out of the decks instead of expensive epoxy fairing compounds like awl fair etc.
What do you thing about this
http://www.xypex.com/docs/product-da...0.pdf?sfvrsn=2

To find the right products is really a challenge.

all the best
peter

[Outwest34au]

Originally Posted by awab

What do you thing about this
http://www.xypex.com/docs/product-da...0.pdf?sfvrsn=2

To find the right products is really a challenge.

all the best
peter

That product looks good on paper but I am afraid I can offer no advice on the bonding rate/ tensile strength when used in this application. The figures are supplied in the material data shhet, hopefully someone can interpret them for you.

I have only used internal house floor leveller crete before and therefore it's better I don't try and compare the two.

Cheers