I worked for a
Cheoy Lee distributor back in the 80s. We
sold several of these Pedrick series boats new and used in the 36, 41 and the final 43' size.
To answer some of your questions.
The hulls were not cored. They were solid.
All decks are cored and these are no different but it was "rumored" that the coring in a lot of the boats was mahogany strips laid out and with some gapping and encapsulated in resin. So the teak is laid down over the glass decks and the coring is mahagony. That being said the teak is not gunwale to deck house covered. There is a gap of gelcoat/fibreglass. So the teak decks were "laid on" after a fiberglass deck was built. Technically if you took the teak off, filled all the holes and non skidded the decks they were be fine.
The deck screws do go down thru the glass upper deck and into the coring. While any coring can get delam or water in it, in my opinion these boats had less than most boats their age because of this construction. However, a good
surveyor with sounding hammer and moisture meter needs to really check over the deck and it's harder to do with teak over them as the
wood can stay wet for days after a rain.
The Pedrick series was the last built by CL. They were also the most modern and had the most American of
gear (lewmar hatches/ports) and US or better European
gear and
hardware.
David Pedrick's design assured that he boat was a good sailer. I'd take one of the boat anywhere you want to go and have sailed several
offshore. Cheoy Lee as a yard was one of the best in the Far East. Originally a
commercial yard, they built ships and ferries, they got into the recreational side because of the demand. There are still a lot of
commercial related things on the boat like some of the cockpits had "manhole" sized commercial covers to access the
steering and behind the
engine. Lights inside were heavy duty looking, etc.
Shortcomings- Far east
wiring,
plumbing and black iron
tanks is it. The same with just about any boat that age. Their glass
work (construction wise) is good, but their gelcoats wear out over time, like most boats of this age. A
hull and deck
paint job will be inevitable if you want a bristol boat. The 36 layout was a little weird also for some folks because the
engine was in the center of the boat. I asked David Pedrick about that and he was trying to get most of the weight directly over the
keel and he accomplished it.
The dealer I worked for shut down in 91 and I sent tons of original brochures to the owners site and I think they are still on there.
Cheoy Lee Association