Boats made in 1970's and 80'

[captain58sailin]

I don't know why the insulation is breaking down. The outside cover is in good shape, but when you split it back the individual conductors insulation is cracking, like it is dried out. Not all of it is, but as a precaution, I am taking it out and renewing it, PITA, but I have to have something I can rely on and I won't wait until something breaks before I replace it. As far as designs go, they have proven that some of the old designs are better than new, I was just reading an article on gCaptain that told of a 100 year old ship design that was proven more efficient than the bulbous bow sort. The Windjammers that hauled freight down the east coast set records that have not been beaten yet, or at least not until recently. My particular choice is an Ed Monk Sr. design and I will put his design lines up against anyone's. And heavy does not always translate to slow. I am sure there are those who will refute that, I have experienced it first hand, sailing a much heavier full keel design, next to a Morgan O/I and was told that once we got into the lighter airs of the south pacific the Morgan would run off and leave us, that was not the case, most times we had to dowse sails to let them catch up. This was a trip that lasted from Seattle, down the west coast, out to the Marquesas, through the Tuamotu islands, to American Somoa and back to AK, so there was plenty of time to experience all different weather conditions, we were faster on a day to day basis.

[vtsailguy]

I think it depends. It seems to me that different builders had certain eras where they had higher quality than others. For example, the o'days of The 80's very good.

We have a tartan from 1974. I honestly have found it's build strength to be superior to tartans since. We have done 1500 mile offshore trips in her.

http://tartanalchemy.smugmug.com/Alchemy/

As an added bonus, older boats are often completely overbuilt. Designers knowledge of materials was not as great so everything was just made bigger. The deckhardware from ours is the same size as a 55-60' modern boat.

Some above talked about refits. The trick is to get an old boat that someone else just dumped the money into

(Also alchemy is for sale)

[vtsailguy]

And they love small craft advisories

http://youtu.be/b3DAKETTLkw

[Adelie]

Originally Posted by greenbean

We are going to purchase a boat 32-40ft we have several that are on our list. Which decade were better for boat making, from my perspective everything made in the 80's was shoddy, plus I understand after the oil embargo boats weren't made as well for a while....input PLEASE.

How many people as regular crew? Any kids?
Sailing experience?
How handy are you?
What's your budget to buy and outfit the boat? (living and cruising costs extra.)
Where are you? Where do you want to sail out of? Which coast do you want to set off from and more specifically where on that coast?
Where to you want to go?
Are you looking to cruise extensively or liveaboard and occasionally take several weeks or months off to nip around the Caribbean or Baja?
Any really strong preferences to start with? (full/fin keel, mono/multi, spade/skeg/attached rudder, sloop/cutter/mizzen rigged)

[Impetuous too]

We have a 1975 Alajuela and appreciate our over an inch thick hull. A friend was refitting a 1977 model nearby, his hull was 1/4 to 3/8" thinner in all comparable places. You win some you lose some as our feel coat was far too thick and so caused us all kinds of headaches but on the bright side this damage was why we could afford the boat.



Our heavy hull sails like a dream in both strong and in very light airs. We made the trip from Tonga to New Zealand in the same time to an hour or so as an A40 but when we met up they'd had an uncomfortable trip whereas ours had been a pleasure.

In our humble opinion a string solid hull which is pretty and sails well is number one. Everything else can be dealt with later.

Also costs differ so much from person to person. It is possible to get a bargain and refit without it costing the earth. Good luck!

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Impetuous too

We have a 1975 Alajuela and appreciate our over an inch thick hull. A friend was refitting a 1977 model nearby, his hull was 1/4 to 3/8" thinner in all comparable places. You win some you lose some as our feel coat was far too thick and so caused us all kinds of headaches but on the bright side this damage was why we could afford the boat.



Our heavy hull sails like a dream in both strong and in very light airs. We made the trip from Tonga to New Zealand in the same time to an hour or so as an A40 but when we met up they'd had an uncomfortable trip whereas ours had been a pleasure.

In our humble opinion a string solid hull which is pretty and sails well is number one. Everything else can be dealt with later.

Also costs differ so much from person to person. It is possible to get a bargain and refit without it costing the earth. Good luck!

It's a good point for sure, and often not mentioned. I have also seen a huge difference in two "same builder/type" hulls built in the 70's also. I often think the original "gas crisis" had something to do with it. All of a sudden oil tripled in price, those builders who just "laid them thick" had to rethink what they could afford to build them out of at the price they sold them for!

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by captain58sailin

I don't know why the insulation is breaking down. The outside cover is in good shape, but when you split it back the individual conductors insulation is cracking, like it is dried out. Not all of it is, but as a precaution, I am taking it out and renewing it, PITA, but I have to have something I can rely on and I won't wait until something breaks before I replace it. As far as designs go, they have proven that some of the old designs are better than new, I was just reading an article on gCaptain that told of a 100 year old ship design that was proven more efficient than the bulbous bow sort. The Windjammers that hauled freight down the east coast set records that have not been beaten yet, or at least not until recently. My particular choice is an Ed Monk Sr. design and I will put his design lines up against anyone's. And heavy does not always translate to slow. I am sure there are those who will refute that, I have experienced it first hand, sailing a much heavier full keel design, next to a Morgan O/I and was told that once we got into the lighter airs of the south pacific the Morgan would run off and leave us, that was not the case, most times we had to dowse sails to let them catch up. This was a trip that lasted from Seattle, down the west coast, out to the Marquesas, through the Tuamotu islands, to American Somoa and back to AK, so there was plenty of time to experience all different weather conditions, we were faster on a day to day basis.

Err, Cap'n, being faster than a Morgan o/i isn't something I'd bother bragging about! They are not known for speed under any sailing conditions.

Jim

[robert sailor]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Err, Cap'n, being faster than a Morgan o/i isn't something I'd bother bragging about! They are not known for speed under any sailing conditions.

Jim

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by captain58sailin

I don't know why the insulation is breaking down ...

Insulation Dielectric Breakdown

In addition to either mechanical damage or from voltage surges, wire/cable insulation may experience subsequent degradation of electrical safety performance (dielectric breakdown) during its service life from a number of factors that include:

High-temperature exposure due to overload and/or increased ambient temperature.
Exposing to elevated temperatures can cause accelerate loss of additives, including stabilizer(s) and plasticizer(s). This is likely to reduce the dielectric strength of the insulation.

High humidity exposure.
Exposure to humidity may result in moisture penetration into cable insulation, which could increase the insulation leakage current and reduce the insulation breakdown voltage.

Exposure to salt and other contaminants.
Salt and other contaminants or pollutants may penetrate into the cable insulation and accelerate cable insulation decomposition and thus will increase the insulation leakage current and reduce the insulation breakdown voltage.

UV exposure.
Ultraviolet radiation has higher energy than visible spectrum photons. If the UV photon energy is higher than the insulation additive activation energy, UV exposure will accelerate the loss of insulation additives including stabilizers and plasticizers, and depending on the temperature material decomposition may also occur.

[captain58sailin]

Thanks GordMay, that is good to know.

[gbot]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

The Ontario 32 is a nice old boat designed by C&C. I don't think it was ever designed as an offshore boat but several of them have crossed oceans and are well laid out for their size.

Timely for me as I have just purchased an old Ontario 32 that has been repowered and while showing its age in many ways, still seems like a very solid boat.

My reasoning for going with a boat this age was along the lines of what others have said already in this thread - I didn't want to sink a quarter million into something I was not sure myself (and my wife) would love, and I also see value in the challenge of bringing an old boat back to good or great condition.

The boat itself is certainly heavily built and the hull and decks are both in very solid condition. The lack of a core in much of the fiberglass was a positive for me and the size and layout work well for us. We still have a lot of work to do before cruising season, but should be able to enjoy the boat as soon as the weather gets better around our area.

[JTHAW]

most boats built before the fuel crisis are heavier layup/built...the builders had to cut back on hull and deck thickness due to higher pricing for resin and roving...frankly I would much prefer my boat 1976, to anything of similar class built after late 79 ish... I was lucky to find a structurally refit heavyweight beauty that sails exceptionally well...not an easy feat....but she is very thick, 1 1/3"-1 1/2" @ turn of the bilge/ not cored., with an overbuilt thick deck. as a result; she doesn't have any soft spots and she doesn't creak and crack when you jump on the deck..no spider web cracks either....that's over 200lbs jumping mind you...this is not the case with most eighties boats I have been on...I passed these at purchase time...I consider myself very lucky to have found my refit great sailing tank, not an easy thing to accomplish..

[s/v Beth]

I love how so many people are bashing old boats. As boats get on in age- maintenance becomes important. A well maintained Valiant, preblister or Swan does just fine from 41 years ago. I sleep well on passages. Do you in your current flat bottomed blade configured what cha ma callit?
As for slow, I will go against the swells around Cape Scott with any of your 40 foot newbies. We'll start at Neah Bay and call it a race.

[hamburking]

Originally Posted by gbot

Timely for me as I have just purchased an old Ontario 32 that has been repowered and while showing its age in many ways, still seems like a very solid boat.

Here on Lake Ontario the Ontario 32 is still a very desirable boat. Its factory diesel (most were yanmar equipped, although a few were atomic 4) and shallow draft make it a good boat for the ICW and Bahamas. I know of several that have done just that. They still get a premium price around here, likely due to the excellent original build quality.

[hamburking]

Originally Posted by s/v Beth

I love how so many people are bashing old boats. As boats get on in age- maintenance becomes important. A well maintained Valiant, preblister or Swan does just fine from 41 years ago. I sleep well on passages. Do you in your current flat bottomed blade configured what cha ma callit?

I've owned 8 sailboats. 6 of which were built between 1971 and 1975.

I'll be honest, I would LOVE a new boat. I go to the Toronto International Boat Show every January and dream. The reality (for me at least) is that old boats are affordable. To be blunt, old boats are cheap. Dirt cheap. For many people, myself included, these wonderful old boats make sailing a reality.

And right now, with the Canadian Dollar swirling around in the toilet, old boats on the Canadian side of the Great Lakes are a huge bargain if you have USD to spend.