Just got my first boat in San Carlos, Mexico - need your advise on repair

[jhughes]

I agree with tkeithlu, error on the side of caution, go deep to understand degree of damage.
Also, on the side, I too have been considering purchasing a boat in Mexico (San Carlos) but have put on hold due to Covis-19. Any feed back on how you made your purchase, traveling in and out of Mexico etc... would be greatly appreciated.
Garcia's mi amigo.

[Celestialsailor]

I agree with Don. All my boats being full keeled, they all had fairing compound around the gudgeons and pintles. The picture of that clearly shows that, otherwise you would see an outline of the bronze body. Cracking there is a common occurrence over time.

As far as the painting of the bowsprit is concerned, it's not a huge deal to remove it, inspect it and renew it via sanding down to bare wood and bring with you top notch marine primer and paint. Years after that you can paint in place.
The scratch?...leave it. You'll accumulate many more in Mx. with all the cruiser wanna-be's and rude panga drivers down there playing bumper cars on your vessel. The next haulout, you can take care of them.
BTW...I found boat labor in Mx. to be mediocre at best. I asked for a quote to have bottom paint removed from my boat in Guaymas. The guy showed up in the morning while I was making breakfast. I heard a grinder start up and I thought to myself..."What?" Then heard a loud grinding sound on the hull. I ran down the ladder screaming "STOP!" He looked at me oddly. To my horror he had taken a 4" grinder with a metal grinding disc and gouged a 4" long 3/8" wide, 1/4" deep gouge! He told me that he was testing the hull to see if I needed a peel. This was on my Halberg Rassy. I can only imagine what the result might have been if I had not been onboard.

[Ruso]

Originally Posted by jhughes

I agree with tkeithlu, error on the side of caution, go deep to understand degree of damage.
Also, on the side, I too have been considering purchasing a boat in Mexico (San Carlos) but have put on hold due to Covis-19. Any feed back on how you made your purchase, traveling in and out of Mexico etc... would be greatly appreciated.
Garcia's mi amigo.

Regarding travels - see previous post.
Buying in San Carlos.. San Carlos Yacht Sales - temporarily closed for business. There is another brokerage firm there.
https://www.unitedyacht.com/United-Y...isa-Velasco/83
Hiring Marisa to be your purchase broker to locate a boat you might be interested, might not be such bad idea.
Some boat for sale owners from overseas hesitate to travel to Mexico right now and sitting there and waiting for the boat to sell is not what many of them looking forward. I heard the San Carlos Yacht Sales will reopen in November.
Keep in mind... No annual taxes, low storage fees make the owners hesitant to do fire sale.
The key is locate the boat owner and work directly with him.
I got lucky and was able to located the boat owner. Secondary I got lucky with the boat owner - very trustworthy man. All maintenance/repair records for 7 years of his ownership. He is committed to spend all time I needed to get me up to speed with the boat - I could not ask for more in my wildest dreams.
Travel there. Survey, sea trial. Hired escrow in USA. Owner had to travel to USA to sign paperwork with notary public. Now waiting for USCG paperwork. Once in hand - TIP transfer.
My advise - travel there, fly to another places (Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan) and spend time asking around. You might find something.

[Ruso]

Originally Posted by Celestialsailor

I agree with Don. All my boats being full keeled, they all had fairing compound around the gudgeons and pintles. The picture of that clearly shows that, otherwise you would see an outline of the bronze body. Cracking there is a common occurrence over time.

As far as the painting of the bowsprit is concerned, it's not a huge deal to remove it, inspect it and renew it via sanding down to bare wood and bring with you top notch marine primer and paint. Years after that you can paint in place.
The scratch?...leave it. You'll accumulate many more in Mx. with all the cruiser wanna-be's and rude panga drivers down there playing bumper cars on your vessel. The next haulout, you can take care of them.
BTW...I found boat labor in Mx. to be mediocre at best. I asked for a quote to have bottom paint removed from my boat in Guaymas. The guy showed up in the morning while I was making breakfast. I heard a grinder start up and I thought to myself..."What?" Then heard a loud grinding sound on the hull. I ran down the ladder screaming "STOP!" He looked at me oddly. To my horror he had taken a 4" grinder with a metal grinding disc and gouged a 4" long 3/8" wide, 1/4" deep gouge! He told me that he was testing the hull to see if I needed a peel. This was on my Halberg Rassy. I can only imagine what the result might have been if I had not been onboard.

The boat on hard - I can address the hull issues right away.
The bowsprit was removed 6 years ago and I am sure it is cosmetic issue.
I would like as minimum remove pulpit, light send bowsprit, primer, paint it and reseal pulpit screws. That I can handle myself.
I hear you on quality of workforce there... Once I expressed the concern here and was accused of "gringo attitude"... Hmm.. I am Russian and I have "attitude" expecting reasonable quality job for my hard earned money.
I have a couple contacts with references and will explore them.
Another issue is material... Traveling south through Mexico border in the car loaded with supplies definitely put me under scrutiny from Mexico customs.

[Celestialsailor]

Originally Posted by Ruso

Once I expressed the concern here and was accused of "gringo attitude"... Hmm.. I am Russian and I have "attitude" expecting reasonable quality job for my hard earned money.

Well that seems to be the thing these days. I have been a Toolmaker most of my life, building quality. I was actually raised with a work ethic. For people under 40 they have grown up in a disposable environment in which you buy from Home Depot of Harbor freight and when a tool fails, you throw it away.

If you complain about Chinese product constantly coming up short, you are labeled as a racist. Complain about illegal workers in the U.S., you're a racist and so on. I don't have a dog in that fight, I usually just do the labor myself or trade labor with friends. I'm a blue collar guy and also work for my money. I expect craftsmanship.

[alansmith]

Russo, I have a boat in San Carlos for three years. Married to a Russian girl from Moscba. She passed away. I know Russian men are famous for having golden hands. Can fix anything.

You are new to Mexico. It is not western culture and you need to learn how to navigate that culture. Confrontation will get you black listed as gringo with attitude. My boat stored there three years now. The guys who been there for years and come down during the sailing season... we kinda know each other. You can get advice from gringos in the yard. I’m sssuming you are in Marinaseca. We have a saying ... “ check your gringoness at the border.”

I work only with Jesus, he managed the whole boatyard for many years. Now he is private contractor. He is intelligent and honest. But even then he is pulled forty ways from Sunday and can be hit or miss with some days. It is Spanish culture.

Let’s say you are Jesus And everyone from San Carlos to Guaymas knows you. Every wealthy Mexican sport fisherman knows you and even the name of your daughters. If they call you up are you going to work on the gringo’s boat or your God father to your daughter’s baptism? They have very strong familial connections in Spanish culture. They simply can not say no to friends and connections to family. It would be a slap in the face.

About your TIP. Check what the expiration date is on the skippers TIP. Make sure you get a copy of it. It is a must have document. I have many hours trying to get mine done. Even went to the Army bank I downtown Guymas twice. Talk to the boys at the front desk at Marinaseca. You can get the previous owner to sign a captains letter allowing you to use the boat. This transfer of TIP is not as slam dunk as you think. Mexican authorities can change regulations rapidly and even officials are sometimes contradicted when investigating.

If you pay the yard fees by the year instead of monthly billing you get free haul outs and launches. Cheap to sleep on the boat in the yard. Wish you luck.

[Ruso]

Appreciated for advise, Alan.

[Celestialsailor]

I will ad to what Alan has said about Mexico...when hiring local talent, do not pay the full amount for the job before it is over. If possible, only enough for materials. A greater likelihood of them showing up.

[zeehag]

there are paints and epoxies in mexico. imagine that..
mexico isnot your common latin american nation--mexico actually has an economy and infrastructure..hahahahaha
comex--sinclair--dupont-- and other paints are sold in mexico and not difficult to find,. hell there are even autozone stores and realllly goood autobody shops to consult for fiberglass and other coating needs. we found the imron paints and coatings acceptable in use on my masts. bottom paint is also locatable in mexico, as are zincs, but not in san carlos for some reason..and other cool boaty items.. even much needed boat parts are sold in mexico, there are actual chandleries. imagine that.
you will need to bring cotter pins, res Q tape and some other small items often difficult to find here... bring spare toilet pump.
you are not venturing into an abyss. itis not a desert of inability to find parts and items. except zincs in san carlos..hahaha those are found elsewhere, just not san carlos for some reason.
mexico marine ships all over mexico and are located in la cruz de huanacaxtle.. there are other chandleries also who ship parts around mexico. there are also folks who are in residence and can help with location of parts and paints. itis not as if you are wandering into a desert without water. it is not as desperate as many will have you believe. there are many in place here to assist and facilitate your efforts.
dono tpay for work done until after the deed is complete.. money may be needed to be shelled out to buy necessary items used for working on your boat, so those will need to have payment in advance--most mexicans cannot afford to front for ye.

[Ruso]

Now on water and reporting back to you, guys with some personal experience.
Marina Seca: Good facility. Star Marine (service provider) trying to accommodate your service requests - not always work since high season here. I was waiting for 4 days mañana (tomorrow) for wax the boat hull. Finally they brought another guy to do the job.
Parts and supply: Learning, collecting information where to get what. No distilled water can be found, except Autozone for price of beer in a bar. This one is really strange..
Local sailors very helpful - appreciated for guidance and help.
Local talents: Of course this is high season but... Rig service guy.. if you booked - just put me on-schedule. Don't tell mañana (tomorrow) 10 days in the row. I am back to USA and getting ascender equipment and do it myself - no hard feelings, just reality.
Lesson learned:
Barrier coat is nasty stuff if you do fearing - full suit is required. My skin suffered big time.
If you want to have something done - do it yourself. I have done everything, except hull wax, by myself... And you know? I really enjoyed the lifestyle. Lost 12 pounds, feel more healthy and motivated.
Looking forward to return in a few days.

[Training Wheels]

First thing to learn in Mexico. Manana doesn’t mean “tomorrow”, it means “not now”!

[Jon J]

My response is actually unrelated to your repair. My wife and I plan on going to San Carlos in November to look at a boat that Marisa (referenced in one of the responses) has for sale. We heard that the summer is so hot that people put their boat on the hard. We are hestitant to select a location where it is not year round sailing. I would greatly appreciate your opionion based on your experience.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Jon J

My response is actually unrelated to your repair. My wife and I plan on going to San Carlos in November to look at a boat that Marisa (referenced in one of the responses) has for sale. We heard that the summer is so hot that people put their boat on the hard. We are hestitant to select a location where it is not year round sailing. I would greatly appreciate your opionion based on your experience.

It's very hot. Can be 102 daily. I have cruised in that situation in June and September and it's doable staying in the right anchorages etc. But there can be some very hot days if no wind. You can just jump in the water though! July through August, can be tough.
The trouble comes when trying to go somewhere on land. You need to get food etc.

[Jon J]

How about the winter months? Does it get to cold to be out on the water? We have many days in high 50s F in the Santa Barbara Channel in CA?

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Jon J

How about the winter months? Does it get to cold to be out on the water? We have many days in high 50s F in the Santa Barbara Channel in CA?

It can be pretty good. 70's etc. However, the Sea of Cortez gets strings of strong northers in the winter that can blow very hard for days, creating huge and steep rollers moving south, but you can work around them as long as you are not on a tight schedule and watch the weather.