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Old 15-07-2017, 19:35   #1
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Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

My wife bought me an Olson 40 for my 60th birthday this year.

We took the boat to Finco Fabrication to do a complete refit. We removed everything: all deck hardware, the engine, tanks, electrical, electronics, pumps, etc.

Here is a video from Wednesday, July 12 2017.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1wbepct32l..._2889.jpg?dl=0

All the workers were very excited to show me what they had accomplished over the previous 4 weeks when my wife and I were on a camping trip.

In the video, the deck color seems weird in some places, because most of the boat is under a sun shade -- its a hot summer in Southern California. The shade is a mesh, so makes odd shadows. The color is perfect.
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Old 15-07-2017, 19:44   #2
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

Here are photos.

First, some exterior pictures. Note the new high aspect ratio keel and bulb rudder. The shaft, log, strut, and prop are all new. All seacocks are removed and will be replaced in the next few days with new Forespar Marelon: you can see where we filled in almost all the old thru-hull and transducer holes here the bottom is darker blue.

Note how fair the hull is. The boat was in a fatal collision a couple of years ago, and Finco repaired it. I can't see where the repair was, and nobody else has been able to see it, even if I show exactly where the damage occurred.

We fixed all the places where the Balsa Core was soggy, which was very limited: about a 1 square foot area in the deck, and about a half inch around a transducer thru-hull that was installed without sealant! When I removed that depth transducer, I was dismayed that the core had the consistency of mashed potatoes. But the water only penetrated the core about a half inch! We cleared that stuff out, new core, new glass, so as good as new now.
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Old 15-07-2017, 20:01   #3
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

The interior was completely stripped: I removed a dumpster load of wires, hoses, old electrical and electronic junk, pumps, water maker, and so on. The tanks and engine also were removed. All thru-hulls were removed.

Then the entire interior was sanded and ground smooth. All the wood work was finely sanded.

Here are pictures of the interior from Wednesday and Thursday this week, July 12 and 13 2017.

First, the galley area. The galley is along the port side near the mast. The original Gas Systems stove is dead, so we will get a new stove. Have not yet purchased the stove, but probably a Force 10 two burner.

There is a deep ice box that will have a new refrigeration unit installed: its an air cooled unit that will be mounted in the bottom of the "hanging locker" just forward of the galley counter. Its and Isotherm Compact 2501 kit. This should give us a good tiny freezer section, enough to make ice cubes, and the rest of the box being a refer. The 2501 has the larger compressor, so it may be able to freeze the entire box if packed for a crossing.
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Old 15-07-2017, 20:09   #4
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

The main salon has pilot berths and settees port and starboard. Storage behind the settees and under the pilot berths. Under the settees will be water tanks and two T105 batteries each side.
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Old 15-07-2017, 20:15   #5
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

We tore out the chart table.

The chart table was probably one of the best chart tables ever, for paper charts. It was huge and flat, so big charts could be spread out. It had places for all the tools of plotting, and lots of space for paper charts. It had a comfortable nav seat, and a single master electrical panel where every single wire began its way to all the electrical and electronic gizmo from bow to stern -- the typical rats nest.

But as we all know from experience, paper charts are a total waste of time today.

So this chart table was a complete waste of space.

So we tore it out. We replaced it with storage. Every boat needs more storage. This storage is right over the keel, and convenient to the galley. So heavy stuff, food stuff, with plenty of room for booze on the top shelf. The design for the storage is straight out of Santa Cruz so it just looks right.
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Old 15-07-2017, 20:22   #6
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

The forepeak is now wide open, like it was when new.

We added a chain locker just aft of the foredeck hatch, and just forward of the head compartment, on the starboard side. The chain locker has a door and a step that are beautiful and ready to be installed. The chain locker is sealed -- it does NOT drain into the bilge. There will be a little automatic bilge pump in the bottom.

The windlass will be at the starboard aft corner of the foredeck hatch, right where the deckhouse begins. This means it will be ergonomically possible to use a winch handle in the top of the Lewmar vertical windlass.
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Old 15-07-2017, 20:27   #7
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

Great project. I'm a long term fan of the Santa Cruz design school, and so am delighted to hear of your efforts.

IIRC, an Olson 40 was the only boat that washed ashore in the Cabo San Lucas debacle (83?) that was refloated without damage and sailed away. Light weight but hell for stout, and your findings should be noted by all those who decry cored hulls.

Do keep us informed as to progress... and add our thanks to your wife, who really knows what us old guys want for our birthdays!

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Old 15-07-2017, 20:28   #8
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

The deck took a LOT of work.

Here is the result. The sun shade over the boat -- necessary in the Southern California summer sun -- causes the mottled shadows. The color is perfect.

The nonskid is sprayed Awlgrip, using their special grit that has the perfect density so it can be sprayed. The paint edges are simply perfect, everywhere.
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Old 15-07-2017, 20:39   #9
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

More deck shots.

The perfection of the color is apparent in the foredeck shot, as the foredeck is fully in the sun. Note the sharp paint lines.

The only holes remaining in the deck are for the bow pulpit and mooring cleats on the bow and near the transom.
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Old 15-07-2017, 20:45   #10
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

Many, many holes were filled. Large and small.

Each hole was ground, glassed, and ground, with core when appropriate.

Just before painting:
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Old 15-07-2017, 22:36   #11
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

Wow, standing ovation! George Olson would be smiling if he could see this. But then George was usually smiling... I love that keel - I'd think you'd be able to carry a somewhat taller rig, maybe fractional, and really boost the upwind performance. Likewise the factory rudder made it a bit of a wipeout machine offshore, so a lot of the boats that did Hawaii or Cabo races had an elliptical rudder made, These are one of my favorite boats. What was her name?

Good call on the awlgrip deck. All the Olson 30/40's had a non-skid that wore off pretty badly, and the Awlgrip and Kiwigrip decks are the best coating I've seen. We put crushed walnut shells down on an Olson 30 and that was a big mistake (it made non-skin instead of non-skid). Had to sand it all off and do something else. Pay close attention to the chainplates and their bulkhead connections, because that was a common leak point.
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Old 16-07-2017, 10:56   #12
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

Quote:
Originally Posted by gjorgensen View Post
Wow, standing ovation! George Olson would be smiling if he could see this. But then George was usually smiling... I love that keel - I'd think you'd be able to carry a somewhat taller rig, maybe fractional, and really boost the upwind performance. Likewise the factory rudder made it a bit of a wipeout machine offshore, so a lot of the boats that did Hawaii or Cabo races had an elliptical rudder made, These are one of my favorite boats. What was her name?

Good call on the awlgrip deck. All the Olson 30/40's had a non-skid that wore off pretty badly, and the Awlgrip and Kiwigrip decks are the best coating I've seen. We put crushed walnut shells down on an Olson 30 and that was a big mistake (it made non-skin instead of non-skid). Had to sand it all off and do something else. Pay close attention to the chainplates and their bulkhead connections, because that was a common leak point.
Thanks!


The new nonskid is just so nice. The original was pretty worn away.

The chainplates on this one are better than on the first boats, and we've detected no leaks there.


I've never sailed an Olson 40, so I'm looking to hear "lessons learned." If you have any stories to tell, I would love to hear them!

We are putting a J length sprit on the nose. Similar sail plan geometry as a J70 for example.

Basically taking the carbon spinnaker pole and mounting the mast track car on the deck just forward of the tack fitting, with whisker stays from just forward of the mast, from the toe rail track (effectively a 40' long chainplate) to the middle and the end of the pole for side force, and from just above the boot top to the middle and end of the pole for vertical loads (headstay loads). This will allow triangular sails to be as large as the stock spinnaker, and an asymmetrical chute that is about twice as large.

From what I have heard and seen on videos, Olson 40s are so fine forward that they don't have enough buoyancy to resist the bow down trim from the 50 foot mast. Hence they seem to exhibit a "speed limit" of about 18 knots, when the bow goes under. By flying downwind sails (even triangular sails) from the sprit, that makes a large upward force with over 30 feet of leverage ahead of the center of gravity. The upward strain from the tack line will be about 1500 lbs, so thats about 45,000 lbs of torque lifting the bow. Should make a difference.
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Old 16-07-2017, 19:15   #13
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

Loved everything you're doing but we still carry paper charts. They can be studied in advance and are infalible and didn't go dead when we were struck by lightining ($24,000 in damage).
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Old 16-07-2017, 22:17   #14
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

I had an opportunity to sail Hull #1, I think, about a week after she was launched. It was time for the Jack and Jill Race in Santa Cruz, and the new owner couldn't be in town for it, so I and I asked my sort-of girlfriend if she would crew for me. While we managed to return the boat in good shape to her owner, it was a total cluster. We managed to put up the kite sideways (actually, I did) and we didn't go very fast like that. We had kelp on the rudder and keel, we went the wrong way, etc.

The boat is a really great boat, and you've done a wonderful job of solving potential issues and doing an A+ job of keeping with the Santa Cruz design philosophy of quality, simplicity, and speed.

George and Ln are/were lovely people, and his attention to detail was as good as anyone in the ULDB world. His sales manager, Bill MacMurray, recently passed away after a long struggle with cancer but he introduced so many sailors to the wonders of quality ULDBs.

I ended up buying the "shop" Olson 30, #26, Collage, from George and Ln, and sailing it in the 1982 Singlehanded Transpac, among other races. I ended up selling it to Richard Spindler of Latitude 38 fame, where it became "Little O".

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Old 17-07-2017, 00:20   #15
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Re: Olson 40 Refit at Finco Fabrication

Sweet (re)build, & quite the choice gift to receive! I'm looking forward to hearing more, including your reports of her handling under sail. If, that is, your computer doesn't short out from your drooling on the keyboard when reliving said sailing experiences

BTW, how weight sensitive are they up front? And was it difficult to get the alignment right between your bow roller & the windlass so that the chain feeds well? I'd be curious to see some pics of the windlass mount if you'd be so kind. And or a description of same. As I too am a fan of pulling the chain out of the bow, but it's tricky to do on anything but a flush decked boat. So any tricks or tips you could pass on would help.

Oh, & if you ever need any crew...
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