Steel Hull v. Fiber or Wood

[Cjwelch]

I just purchased a steel hull 40'. Advantages v. Disadvantages, what say ye?

[gjordan]

Cj, if you use the search feature on CF you will find at least a thousand posts about steel boats. Lots of good information, lots of opinions, and a fair amount of just plain BS. I owned 1 steel boat, and would have bought another, but my wife said NO WAY. The next boat was fiberglass. What type of boat did you buy and what is your location? Sometimes members are close enough to each other to go look at ideas on another similar boat. Good Luck with it all._______Grant.

[boatman61]

Bit late to be asking the question...
just follow the learning curve..

[conachair]

Originally Posted by Cjwelch

I just purchased a steel hull 40'. Advantages v. Disadvantages, what say ye?

I say buy this.

Metal boat maintenance-A do it yourself guide by Scott Fratcher (eBook) - Lulu

[romanos2b]

I'll never buy a steel boat, they all start to die from the inside, most of them look very good, but once you look carefully in the bilges (if having any access), you ll understand why a lot of them are bad. A lot of friend have steel boats, they all agree on that it is faster to build a new steel hull than to renew an old one.
My former boat was GRP with polyester resin, which is good but after a time some blisters start to appear (I would not recommand Balsa sandwich GRP).
My new boat is Epoxy GRP only, I know I will never have an issue with the hull, like a ferro boat (even if a lot of people hate them, the ones that are professionally built are very very reliable).
I like wooden boats, at least you know when something is wrong with the hull, the repairs are easy but can be very expensive. The only bad thing is that you'll spend 3 months a year just varnishing...

Funny you ask the question after buying the boat.

[Matt sachs]

Another steely owner, welcome to the dark side...I love mine, but I can easily see every square inch of the inside of the hull below the water line. If you cant see it, you cant maintain it.

[S/V Alchemy]

Originally Posted by Cjwelch

I just purchased a steel hull 40'. Advantages v. Disadvantages, what say ye?

I say "try the search function" as this has to be the one-hundredth similarly titled thread.

Congratulations on your purchase, but I have to wonder why you would buy steel without already knowing its pluses and minuses. It is not a material that tolerates an incomplete understanding.

[Cjwelch]

Originally Posted by gjordan

Cj, if you use the search feature on CF you will find at least a thousand posts about steel boats. Lots of good information, lots of opinions, and a fair amount of just plain BS. I owned 1 steel boat, and would have bought another, but my wife said NO WAY. The next boat was fiberglass. What type of boat did you buy and what is your location? Sometimes members are close enough to each other to go look at ideas on another similar boat. Good Luck with it all._______Grant.

I bought the shay 40 listed on this site. It is in Greece I am use for a little longer. I will refer immediately to the search feature ..thanks for all those posts.

[Cjwelch]

Originally Posted by conachair

I say buy this.

Metal boat maintenance-A do it yourself guide by Scott Fratcher (eBook) - Lulu

Thank you I will take that advice!

[Boracay]

If you haven't done so already go through every nook and cranny of the interior with a fine tooth comb looking for water that has not drained.

Do anything within your power to stop water pooling.

You should have checked the underwater parts as part of your pre purchase inspection. If not do it now.

If there is any evidence of electrolytic action then add anodes nearby. If any of the anodes are less than 50% then schedule them for renewal sooner rather than later. If any have vanished then replace immediately.

[Gazelle Family]

one important factor is what type of steel?
mild steel? or maybe Cor-ten? lots of happy and sad stories start and end with carbon. ok ... and neglect..

[Cjwelch]

Thanks again for the input.

[beiland]

Originally Posted by Matt sachs

Another steely owner, welcome to the dark side...I love mine, but I can easily see every square inch of the inside of the hull below the water line. If you cant see it, you cant maintain it.

Just wondering what 'new ideas' you have explored/ experimented with to maintain your steel boat?

I understand there are some new concepts that steer away from the 'zinc based formulas' that pretty much became a standard in the past??

I'm asking as I come from the multihull field that really never used steel, yet I'm now considering 3 new monohull designs that might be built with steel hulls and composite superstructures
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...es-106073.html

[Cjwelch]

I will have to say that it is my understanding that all boats have pluses and minuses so I am not sure what the question really is. I do see a trend on the forum to not assume someone is intelligent or that they are not thoughtful or something because they are either considering sailing for a few years without the experience of some members. I am not us if it is an ego thing or if so many people really don't know there are more than one right way to gain experience or make good decisions. All of our paths are different, we all begin differently no matter what, but let me assure you the one guarantee is that we will al meet the exact same finish line. I really appreciate the input form the people who aren't trying to assume I am an idiot and just on a whim laid out 40,000 in cash from my hard earned reserves without any prior fore thought or investigation. I wonder if this is just the sailing community or if other online forums in other interests are as condescending? Either way I will be glad to introduce information on my journey both at sail and in service to my new boat and I am still glad to be here.

[bizzy]

i had a 60 ft twin screw launch ,looked great on the outside ,no salt water leaks at all ,went in the engine room to de scale and started a few small fountains . THEY RUST FROM THE INSIDE OUT .......BEWARE mine was cor ten steel built in naval dockyards ........never again .