First trip getting my boat home nightmare!

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by zeehag

under 10k, survey per self.
sounds like you had an adventure. you will have more.
next time try hydrating day before departure. keep gatorade of electrolit and water on boat, drink every hour.
many folks become sodium depleted and blame the resultant illification on seasick.
try licking some salt out of your hand., it you feel better in less than 10 mins, you need to take some care to rehydrate and suck down electrolites.
potato chips will give salt and something for your willbe dry heaves to call substance until they stop completely. .

what make is your boat...

I understand the reluctance to spend money on a survey for a boat of this value however, It seems obvious that we are dealing with a couple of people with no or extremely limited experience. A good surveyor (yes they do exist) could have saved a lot of grief on this trip and quite possibly what I'd bet is more to come.

[2xcrash]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

I understand the reluctance to spend money on a survey for a boat of this value however, It seems obvious that we are dealing with a couple of people with no or extremely limited experience. A good surveyor (yes they do exist) could have saved a lot of grief on this trip and quite possibly what I'd bet is more to come.

So my friend helped me after the fact of me buying my boat.
If I was going to do anything more than sail out my harbor up and down the Santa Monica bay and maybe to Catalina at most I would understand the survey.
But here's what I got into it now
Cost of boat. 2900$
Bottom paint thru hull and valve $2000
Tow insurance $168
Light bulbs,fuel filters $100
Parts for header $115
BBQ, SUP Rack,bilge pump, parts for tune up. $800
So for a little over 6 grand I got a great little boat that now just needs some paint and to change out some rotten cotton and I have a great studio that I can cruse down the coast comfortably. I'll make this up in 6 month of use.( long story I work 140 miles from home and was paying LA rent for 8 nights a month)

So I feel good with what I got. I've been all over this boat and everything else look good.

[Calif.Ted]

Owned by the original owners, a German engineer, the boat is in beautiful shape and the motor not under a load purred.

Maybe he was a plumbing engineer.

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by 2xcrash

So I feel good with what I got. I've been all over this boat and everything else look good.

I understand she looks good but have you ...

Inspected the chain plates for pitting ?
Are the turnbuckles safety wired ?
Are the chainplates corroded ?
Are the chainplate mounting points sound ?
Are the keel bolts and nut backing plates sound and free of corrosion ?
Is the stuffing box and shaft log secure ?
Is the cutless bearing free of play and fractures ?
If you have shore power, do you have a galvanic isolator ?
Is your AC ground bonded to your DC negative ?
Is you AC neutral bonded to your AC ground ?
When was your impeller last changed ?
When was your stuffing box re-packed ?
Are there fuses in the positive conductors of your batteries ?
Is the foam core of your rudder degraded and saturated ?
What king of play is in your rudder bushings ?

It's hard to know what you don't know !

These questions (and another 50 questions) are a little more important than your new bbq.

[2xcrash]

Inspected the chain plates for pitting ? Slight pits nothing that scares me.
Are the turnbuckles safety wired ?Yes
Are the chainplates corroded ? not that I can see
Are the chainplate mounting points sound ?Yes
Are the keel bolts and nut backing plates sound and free of corrosion ?Yes
Is the stuffing box and shaft log secure ?Yes
Is the cutless bearing free of play and fractures ?Yes
If you have shore power, do you have a galvanic isolator ? No shore power
Is your AC ground bonded to your DC negative ?
Is you AC neutral bonded to your AC ground ?
When was your impeller last changed ? Don't know but at haul out for paint it looked good
When was your stuffing box re-packed ?Unknown but it'll be changed out this fall when she comes out for all new thru hulls and maybe rigging
Are there fuses in the positive conductors of your batteries ?
Is the foam core of your rudder degraded and saturated ? No
What king of play is in your rudder bushings ? less than an inch of play on the rudder

And I like my BBQ too!

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by 2xcrash

Inspected the chain plates for pitting ? Slight pits nothing that scares me.
Are the turnbuckles safety wired ?Yes
Are the chainplates corroded ? not that I can see
Are the chainplate mounting points sound ?Yes
Are the keel bolts and nut backing plates sound and free of corrosion ?Yes
Is the stuffing box and shaft log secure ?Yes
Is the cutless bearing free of play and fractures ?Yes
If you have shore power, do you have a galvanic isolator ? No shore power
Is your AC ground bonded to your DC negative ?
Is you AC neutral bonded to your AC ground ?
When was your impeller last changed ? Don't know but at haul out for paint it looked good
When was your stuffing box re-packed ?Unknown but it'll be changed out this fall when she comes out for all new thru hulls and maybe rigging
Are there fuses in the positive conductors of your batteries ?
Is the foam core of your rudder degraded and saturated ? No
What king of play is in your rudder bushings ? less than an inch of play on the rudder

And I like my BBQ too!

Some of your responses are a little disconcerting as you obviously don't undrestand the question or the gravity ...... Good luck, I wish you well.

[2xcrash]

Well how about helping a newbie out....
What should I be looking for ?
Maybe I don't understand the question. Here's a chance to teach someone rather than dismiss them.
Again, it's my first boat that I'm learning with.

[lifeofreilly57]

Originally Posted by 2xcrash

Well how about helping a newbie out....
What should I be looking for ?
Maybe I don't understand the question. Here's a chance to teach someone rather than dismiss them.
Again, it's my first boat that I'm learning with.

Taking one assembly at a time is the best way to learn, otherwise it can be a bit overwhelming. Look at your boat as an assemblage of systems, motor, hull (including through hulls), rig including mast, standing rigging, chain plates and running rigging, electrical and electronics. When broken down into the seperately systems it's not as overwhelming.
Start by going over all the things that keep it floating, then move to all those things that keep the mast from falling down, then on to propulsion, etc, etc. If it floats, sails and moves the rest are creature comforts.
Cheers.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[GILow]

Originally Posted by 2xcrash

Well how about helping a newbie out....
What should I be looking for ?
Maybe I don't understand the question. Here's a chance to teach someone rather than dismiss them.
Again, it's my first boat that I'm learning with.

Good work 2xcrash, sounds like you are making progress to me.


As per the previous post, I started by dealing with all the things that kept the boat floating first. In our case that translated to removing all the skin fittings, glassing up more the half of the holes, and putting in just the bare minimum of new skin fittings to meet the very simplified needs of the boat. Also I replaced the shaft seal (we have the dripless sort and they fail badly when they fail, ours was over 10 years old.)


Once that job was done I felt I could breathe calmly again, and the heartrate had come down from a high pitched whine to something more reasonable.

After that, I think it starts to become more discretionary.

In our case I dealt with some horror stuff in the keel, then the engine plumbing, then the house plumbing, then the electrics.

Next I have a lot of deck leaks to sort out (read NEW deck needed) before I touch any of the interior cosmetics. No point doing anything below decks if it is just going to get water damaged.

Finally, when all that is done I will pull the mast down and give it the full treatment.

I guess the point is, I took the logic of attending to stuff in the order of those things that presented the greatest risk to the boat first,(or the greatest unpleasantness) and worked my way from there. (Though I concede some would consider the mast a higher risk item than I have allocated to it, in our case the rig was hugely over-designed, so I am betting on it surviving if I take care of it. But I do regularly go up the mast to inspect it.)

It might help to make a DETAILED list, and put it in front of people you trust to help you prioritise. They will also point out the things you forgot to include in the list.

Matt

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by 2xcrash

Well how about helping a newbie out....
What should I be looking for ?
Maybe I don't understand the question. Here's a chance to teach someone rather than dismiss them.
Again, it's my first boat that I'm learning with.

My grandaughter was assailing my wife with typical 4 yr old's questions.
My wife said "ask Papa, he knows everything". The little one turned to me and said "Papa, tell me everything right now".

Try Marine Survey 101 for a start.

[dennismenace111]

Originally Posted by 2xcrash

I posted this as a reply to asking for help getting my boat home from Dana Point to King Harbor. I thought it deserved its own thread though.


My buddy that talked me into getting a boat came along.

We got on the boat and everything started right up, It was fairly still so we were going to motor out. We made it a whole 100 yards before the motor went out. I got a quick lessen on how to use the rudder for power.

I had kinked an O-ring on the fuel filter and we loss suction. I had a spare but we decided to get a basic 5/16 as a spare just incase. it's a whole lot faster to get on and you can see the flow with the clear plastic. It wouldn't be a permanent fix.

Off we go again. 8am. About an hour and a half into the trip and I get sea sick. FML! I had used a couple different bands but that didn't do anything.
Then about 45 min later the motor makes a squealing noise and is smoking, like a belt was failing, it also felt like the trans was really hot. The motor never went over 160 deg. So we shut it down and started sailing.
Mind you I'm down, I'm not learning anything except that the next time I go out I'll have a patch on. we were making around 3-4 knots.

About the time we got to the derricks off of Huntington we lost all wind. Down to about a mile an hour. It's 2:30 and I say were calling a tow. We are concerned about crossing the Long beach and LA harbor shipping lanes and making it around PV.

I'm soooo glad I sprung for the Gold tow package. We called and within an hour and a half we were hooked up. In that time we had gone about a mile.

As soon as we start getting towed we start taking on water. We cant find where it's coming from. We have a small drip coming from the exhaust water line but not enough to be filling the boat at the rate of a 5 gal bucket every 5 min. Guess what else we found out. The bilge pump doesn't work. My buddy's bailing water cause I'm holding the tiller and barfing.
If anyone has any ideas where this water could be coming from let me know. Most of my thru hulls are plugged except for the inlet, outlet to the motor and the bilge. I might be missing something, I'm a nube. Once we stopped being towed we stopped tanking on water. Thank God cause we we're spent. Today I checked to oil for water but it was good. Ill pull the plugs tomorrow since I didn't have a plug wrench or the energy to work on her.

So at 9pm we get her into the slip. Ill say this The Captain that got us home was impressive getting her into the slip. Supper smooth and accurate.

So I have been humbled. I'm going to get her set up for living a couple nights a week and then start working on the motor. I won't be taking her out for a while. I plan on getting some lessons, if anyone has any recommendations around Redondo beach let me know.

So you handed over your hard earned cash BEFORE you did a sea trial with the seller? Interesting... Want to buy a bridge? Cheap?

[Scout 30]

Before everyone starts piling on & you end up feeling bad about buying your boat you might want to just move on from this thread. If you have a specific problem you need help with you can always start a new thread. Personally I think you're one of the success stories. You bought a decent quality boat that's not too big to start out with & won't break the bank to maintain. I think this will be a great adventure!

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by boatpoker

My grandaughter was assailing my wife with typical 4 yr old's questions.
My wife said "ask Papa, he knows everything". The little one turned to me and said "Papa, tell me everything right now".

Try Marine Survey 101 for a start.

Young lady, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

Great link for the OP.

Here's another one:

http://forums.sailboatowners.com/ind...p-tips.102541/

Always helps to look at your own boat critically.

[Don C L]

Great weather for going to Catalina lately....

[buzzstar]

"When was your impeller last changed ? Don't know but at haul out for paint it looked good"

I believe this is one of the questions you may have misunderstood. It appears you are referring to the propeller that moves the vessel under power, while the question was more likely directed to the impeller as a vital component of the water pump.