So much to do to my little boat, how do you prioritize?

[Cheechako]

You prioritize by the most dire need. But often YOU get prioritized! ... meaning you start one project, and realize that 3 other things are dependent upon that project. One example might be you are going to rebuild the cabin sole... but you find out the under sole tank is leaking or shot... then you do the tank first...
Another thing I started doing after many years of rebuilding boats.... I take a deep breath and think this way: If I do this project, what will be the reward and the cost?
I see many new boat owners changing the interior of the boat entirely, some even completely strip the inside! Most boat designs were well thought out in the first place... there are always compromises.
If you spend 100 hours changing the galley... will the reward be worth the time? Could you have been using that galley as others have for 30 years and not really missed a thing?
I guess I'm saying, peruse your list very thoughtfully... there is plenty to do on a boat without changing things that already work!

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by DefinitelyMe

I stuck with it and am glad to have done so despite the fact that i could have saved a ton of money overall by just waiting, saving up and then buying a boat that was already in good shape.
.

+1,000 But too late now. The idea of doing the homework with what you have, and then dcide whether it's worthwhile to continue is CRITICAL.

Don't do anything until you've made this decision.

We went through this three times in our lives, and always found that, while we never could justify a new boat, an older one in better condition always beat a fixer-upper.

Good luck.

[Scout 30]

Wow! Just checked out the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. Pearson 30 in decent shape for $2,995 right now. For a floating home it really can't get any cheaper than that. There's a neat video on the website showing the auction inventory back in August. Some neat boats.

[mrlee]

Hi CaptainHooks...I am doing the same thing and I have found that I do my damdest to FINISH a project before starting another one...At one time I had 3 or 4 things going on at once and then it started to overwhelm...especially with me now bad memory! Knock one out and move on to the next...I started at the bottom and after everything below the water was ok, I went to the mast and rigging...I wanna step the mast this week and start to focus on getting out on the water and get my feet wet (or NOT).so to speak...
Good luck, and no matter what, you still are doing what most only talk and dream about!
Be safe and happy

[CaptainHooks]

Originally Posted by Scout 30

Wow! Just checked out the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. Pearson 30 in decent shape for $2,995 right now. For a floating home it really can't get any cheaper than that. There's a neat video on the website showing the auction inventory back in August. Some neat boats.

Why must you tease :P Wish there was something similar around New Orleans.

And yes mrlee that's what I'm going to do. There are still small things I can accomplish with some elbow grease on the boat that I want to get to and then I can start tackling the large ones.

[mrlee]

Hey CaptainHooks...let me know when you get to your lighting and such...I have some cool LED options I have played around with and they are fairly cheap compared to just going out and buying the expensive things online etc...
all_as@hotmail.com
have a good day

[Yofy]

You've been given good advice on where to start and how to prioritize. One thing that really helped me cope with our huge list of jobs on Yofy was Manny's advice. He told me to just focus on one thing at a time.

When I was working on refinishing all the wood in the interior (a job that took me over a year and a half) and I got depressed by all the time it was taking, Manny told me not to look at the whole job, but to just focus on the bit I was doing - like just the V berth, or just that bulkhead. One bit at a time. It really helps.

So make your list and then just focus on the one project that your doing.

Also we've seen people give up because they'd stripped the whole boat bare and then were totally overwhelmed by how much work it would take to finish. Remember that its easy to take things apart but much hard to rebuild them. Again, just do one thing at a time.

Robyn