Cruisers Forum
 


Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on Cruisers Forums. Advertise Here
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 06-11-2015, 20:26   #1
Registered User

Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 40
Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

Hello I have recently come across a Whitby 42 for sale for next to nothing. She has been underwater and will need to be totally redone. Does anyone have experience doing this?

I have lived on a sailboat for a year am 22 and am fairly handy with fiberglass and mechanics.

How much would I be looking at spending on the refurb?

Is it even worth it or cost prohibitive?

Also does anyone have any personal experience good or bad with these boats?

Thank you,
Tommy






tchiffriller is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-11-2015, 20:27   #2
Registered User

Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 40
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

Meant to include that the boat was sunk at one point unknown how long or whether the engine was pickled. You can see waterline in cabin photo.
tchiffriller is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-11-2015, 21:28   #3
Registered User

Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 14
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

I'm in the middle of a restoration of a 42 ft Irwin. I have been at it for 2 1/2 years now. I would tell however long you think it is going to take you. Double that time and then triple it. Same goes for cost. I will tell you its a labor of love for me and if I didn't enjoy working on it.... I would have given up a long time ago. If you buy a boat like this, be sure you will get enjoyment on working on it and not just looking forward to the day you sail it. Also, don't get in a hurry. If you don't finish something as quickly as you think you will, know there is another day. Trying to stick to a schedule just stress you out. Hope this helps.
Regards,
Steve
SWFLman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-11-2015, 23:24   #4
Registered User

Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 3,604
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

The answer to your question depends on what your goals and expectations are. For starters a new engine is probably gonna set you back $20k but could maybe find a rebuild for less.

Maybe you want a solid "blue water cruiser"? You could easily spend five years of parttime labor and $50k and maybe still not be quite there. Maybe you want a nice live aboard that never leaves the dock? Now you are talking a couple months of work and a couple thousand dollars.

Decent boats, have some friends who have one.
Delancey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-11-2015, 23:39   #5
Registered User

Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Santa Cruz
Boat: SAnta Cruz 27
Posts: 6,683
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

How does it compare with this $20k fixer upper (which has not sunk??)

1974 Whitby 42 Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com
donradcliffe is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 07:52   #6
Registered User
 
elschwieb's Avatar

Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Brandon, VT
Boat: Brewer ketch 44'
Posts: 15
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

We have a Brewer 44, successor to the Whitby. We love the boat -- solid, comfortable, and secure. As for the "project" you have in mind, I would count on the engine being pickled given the waterline inside the cabin. I also would imagine virtually all of the cabinetry will need to be replaced as that either will have been subject to delamination (where plywood) or certainly extensive (from the appearance) mold involvement. A major issue will be the wiring -- has that been in contact with salt water? Again, from the waterline, a significant part of the wiring has been underwater and, if all that must be replaced, you are in for a major task. All that said, if you enjoy it, have and take the time to do it right, and can afford all the work, you could end up with a very nice boat. You might want to search for and read about The Incredible Hull, a Whitby 42 being extensively renovated. Doug would be an excellent person to talk with before you take the leap.
elschwieb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 07:55   #7
Registered User
 
Sailshabby's Avatar

Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Oriental, NC
Boat: Baba 40
Posts: 501
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

So Been there, so done that. If you've got the money now, buy a boat in the water. In the end you'll find you've spent that and more and missed out on years of sailing. If you're going to do a "pay as you go" type deal (and like working on stuff like that), might not be a bad idea. Don't buy the fancy stuff (electronics, etc.) until the end. That way nothing will be obsolete. There's a million little lessons...
Sailshabby is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 08:05   #8
Registered User
 
Terra Nova's Avatar

Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Marina del Rey, California
Boat: President 43 Sportfish
Posts: 4,105
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

Quote:
Originally Posted by tchiffriller View Post
...I have lived on a sailboat for a year am 22 and am fairly handy with fiberglass and mechanics...
The restoration project, itself, will require more skill and experience than most people get in their whole lifetime. Even if you were qualified to do all the labor, yourself, the material cost would likely exceed the price of a lovely, used, 42' yacht in seaworthy condition. And you would give up many years of your life learning why the smart money doesn't jump on abandoned wrecks.
__________________
1st rule of yachting: When a collision is unavoidable, aim for something cheap.
"whatever spare parts you bring, you'll never need"--goboatingnow
"Id rather drown than have computers take over my life."--d design
Terra Nova is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 08:43   #9
Senior Cruiser
 
skipmac's Avatar

Cruisers Forum Supporter

Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: 29° 49.16’ N 82° 25.82’ W
Boat: Pearson 422
Posts: 16,306
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Terra Nova View Post
The restoration project, itself, will require more skill and experience than most people get in their whole lifetime. Even if you were qualified to do all the labor, yourself, the material cost would likely exceed the price of a lovely, used, 42' yacht in seaworthy condition. And you would give up many years of your life learning why the smart money doesn't jump on abandoned wrecks.
Good and accurate advise.

If the boat had water in it for more that a few hours I would say 99% odds you will have to replace all the floors and bulkheads in the boat. Just the cost of that much marine grade plywood, the glass and resin to attach it to the hull could be thousands. The time and labor to do this would be huge, even for an experienced boat repair person. For a newby unless very experience as a carpenter it would be daunting.

The Whitby 42 is a fine boat and the project might be worth it IF!!!

- You are willing to restore it to good structural condition but give up all the wood and veneer interior
- You have way more time than money and don't have a job where you could earn a reasonable wage that you could save up and buy a better boat.
- You have the skills or are a very quick study to do: serious carpentry, fiberglass, electrical, plumbing, mechanical.
- You already have all the tool to do all the above jobs.
- The engine and transmission are salvageable or you can get a replacement for free or really, really cheap.
- Other major components are all there and in reasonable condition: mast, rigging, sails, winches, anchors, windlass, lines, pumps, electric panel, etc.
- You have 2-4 years you can devote to this more or less full time, no job, enough money to live on and pay for boat parts. If you have to work a job and do this weekends and evenings it could take 5-10 years. I know I am wrapping up a 6 year boat project that was much less involved than this Whitby.
__________________
The water is always bluer on the other side of the ocean.
Sometimes it's necessary to state the obvious for the benefit of the oblivious.
Rust is the poor man's Loctite.
skipmac is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 08:57   #10
Registered User

Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: SoCal
Boat: Formosa 30 ketch
Posts: 1,004
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

And a FREE place to keep it while working on it.
Bill Seal is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 08:58   #11
Registered User
 
Cheechako's Avatar

Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Skagit City, WA
Posts: 25,453
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

You can find a boat cheaper that has not sunk. By that I mean by the time you spend 3 years or more fixing that one, and $50000 or much more.... you could be sailing one that needs TLC but not sunk.
All the bulkheads may be rotting from the water sitting inside the plywood where it is tabbed to the hull, the cabinetry... same problem. Doors etc warping, all electrical wiring is toast, engine is toast, foam and upholstery is toast.
__________________
"I spent most of my money on Booze, Broads and Boats. The rest I wasted" - Elmore Leonard











Cheechako is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 09:11   #12
Registered User

Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Anacortes
Boat: previous - Whitby 42 new - Goldenwave 44
Posts: 1,835
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

We bought a well-used, but well founded, Whitby 42 in 1999. I spent 5 years, most part time and about a year full time, working on it to get it to where I wanted to go cruising. We took to Mexico from Washington and then across the Pacific to New Zealand over four years. We sold her and the new owner is currently in Britain on their way around the world.

We loved the boat. She was safe, sea kindly, and had one of the most usable interiors I have ever seen on a boat of that vintage and size. A real engine room! Tons of storage. Big reefer. Good galley. The center cockpit was TDF. Huge tankage. We had so many good times on that boat. She was not fast though and did not point well at all. But she had roller reefing for all sails and she was very easy to sell in challenging conditions.

The owner prior to us had sailed her in the Pacific for eight years before we got her. She was well-used. He kept her up though but she was getting tired in many of her systems (except the Ford Lehman engine which never missed a beat). But her wiring was a mess - a "dogs breakfast" was the way the owner put it. The AC wiring showed evidence of a fire. The reefer needed major work. The electronics were old, etc. etc. etc. But the hull was 2 1/2" thick at the keel step! Solid boats. Very solid.

But I put thousands of hours in to a boat that was already in reasonable shape. I replaced every single wire on her (AC and DC) except for one run of AC on the starboard side. New electrical panels. New meters. Thirteen new through-hulls. New ports from New Found Metals. New Andersen winches and blocks. New electronics. New autopilot (using the old hydraulic system which was still good but leaked a little at the cylinder which I replaced in NZ). I replaced all the plumbing - hoses, toilets, all. But the port water tank leaked at the top gasket where the aluminum top mated with the integral FG tank - a common problem on W42's.

Honestly, the work ahead of you is huge. And enormously expensive. I worked at a boatyard where I got parts at wholesale + 10%. I knew how to do all the work myself so only paid for a few hours of help later on. And I had access to a complete boatyard and its equipment. It would take you far longer and much more money and you would have more to do than I did.

Can you do it? Sure. You will learn a lot and have pride in what you accomplished. I literally did not know anything about sailing or boats when we bought her so I was a newbie and an apprentice at the boatyard. But you would learn on your own with advice from others. But honestly, unless you just want a hobby that you can spend all your money on and don't mind waiting for 5-10 years to put her in the water and actually cruise, then go for it. You can get her in the water quicker but you will not be able to get the interior and her systems even close to going on any long voyages any time soon. It is really a shame when boats get to this point.

I think you can find another W42, for much less than what you will spend on the sunken boat, that you can sail right now and still put hundreds of hours in labor and spend many boat bucks and get there quicker with better results. I was proud of what I did to our Whitby but I wouldn't do it again. Well, I may be doing part of it again with the new/old boat but much less than I put in to Maggie Drum. Go figure. If you do it, good luck. If you don't, good luck with the boat you get.
exMaggieDrum is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 09:12   #13
Registered User

Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Ontario Canada
Boat: Corbin 39
Posts: 66
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

I am in process of finishing refurbishment of Corbin 39 also a overbuilt good old Canadian boat. She came with old Volvo engine that I replaced with 40 HP Nanni cost of engine was $9000 and about $1000 for exhaust system. Hull and deck was scrapped back to gel-coat, barrier coated and finished Yes deck was barrier coated cost of canned material $3000. Rudder and some deck work required west-system epoxy repair another boat dollar.
Second fuel tank and systems installed another boat dollar.
Electrical wiring replaced existing panels reused another boat dollar.
Interior fabrics replaced I learned how to sew another boat dollar.
New batteries wiring and switches navigation lights VHF another boat dollar.
Furling systems winches refurbished two new sails & lines $7000.
After three years boat was launched BUT not complete.
Went sailing commissioned sails and engine driveline.
Nav maps, electronic used Panasonic tough-book PC`s Fugawi Marine another boat dollar.
Solar panels 24v/120v, 3000watt inverter two boat dollars.

And the beat goes on!!!!!
dmalcol1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 09:39   #14
Registered User
 
Cadence's Avatar

Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: SC
Boat: None,build the one shown of glass, had many from 6' to 48'.
Posts: 10,208
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Terra Nova View Post
The restoration project, itself, will require more skill and experience than most people get in their whole lifetime. Even if you were qualified to do all the labor, yourself, the material cost would likely exceed the price of a lovely, used, 42' yacht in seaworthy condition. And you would give up many years of your life learning why the smart money doesn't jump on abandoned wrecks.
This is a sensible response.
Cadence is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-11-2015, 09:49   #15
Registered User
 
Terra Nova's Avatar

Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Marina del Rey, California
Boat: President 43 Sportfish
Posts: 4,105
Re: Whitby 42: Bringing her back from the grave?

One other thing we should take note of is this:

A 42' yacht requires an owner of means. That is to say that the ongoing costs of ownership: slip rent, insurance, regular haul-outs for maintenance, sail replacements, property tax, etc, are not for someone on a tight budget.
__________________
1st rule of yachting: When a collision is unavoidable, aim for something cheap.
"whatever spare parts you bring, you'll never need"--goboatingnow
"Id rather drown than have computers take over my life."--d design
Terra Nova is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Bringing Her Home Tomorrow pilotdave Sailor Logs & Cruising Plans 19 18-03-2013 13:31
Bringing US Boat Back to Canada ? westcoastgirl Dollars & Cents 1 25-08-2008 19:59
ssullivan, What was her name? What is her name? Woodsy Multihull Sailboats 1 06-05-2008 18:50
Bringing a 4107 back to life (questions) Flyer Engines and Propulsion Systems 29 22-04-2007 16:42

Advertise Here


All times are GMT -7. The time now is 03:57.


Google+
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Social Knowledge Networks
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.

ShowCase vBulletin Plugins by Drive Thru Online, Inc.