Three Years Too Late!

Alex, my buddy at work, is great at finding great stuff on Craigslist. Cars, tools, materials, you name it, Alex seems to find great deals on it. He checks out all of the different Craigslist cities and I am always amazed at what he finds. Yesterday he sent me a link to a Craigslist ad for a BMW marine diesel D12 for $500 in San Francisco area. The same as the original engine in Something Else. If Alex could have found this three years ago I would have bought it. I am 80 percent done with my Yanmar installation, there is NO way I’m going to go back to the old engine.

I sent the ad to Rich with V12 engineering. It looks like the engine is sold today. Rich gave me $325 for parts off my old engine.

Thanks Alex, and search on my friend... search on!

My old rusted out BMW D12 head.  My finger are going from the exhaust port into the water jacket.

How thick is your gelcoat?

I've been thinking about something else. How thick is your gelcoat? In fiberglass construction gelcoat is like a hard thick paint applied to the inside of the mold and then covered with fiberglass. When the part is removed from the mold the gelcoat is the smooth shiny s surface everybody sees. The fiberglass provides all the strength while the gelcoat provides the beauty. The gelcoat on boats is usually white however it doesn’t have to be. The gelcoat on a Chevy Corvette is the color the car. I’ve read the maximum thickness of gelcoat should be 35 mills, (1mm).

I have “core samples” that were left in the nav station drawer by the prior owner. I have one that looks like the cutout for the speed transducer. I would estimate the thickness of the fiberglass to be about 7mm while the gelcoat thickness is about 9mm. I have another sample from my transom and it looks like the fiberglass is 2mm and the gelcoat is 2 mm. Finally I have a sample from my deck and it looks like the fiberglass is maybe 0.5mm and the gelcoat is 3 mm.



Hull sample, white gelcoat on top fiberglass on bottom

 


Transom sample, white gelcoat on the bottom, fiberglass on top



Is this excess gelcoat? Was this a quality control problem? Does it matter; after all it is a 35 year old boat?   I ask because on old boats many people grind off the underwater portion of gelcoat and apply an epoxy barrier coat to prevent blisters. The gelcoat is ground off because epoxy does not stick well to it. When I did my bottom paint in 2010 Something Else had a few blisters. I ponder if I should just treat any new blisters locally or something else.

I've been Sick

I've been sick for the past week. When I started feeling better I watched an endless supply of YouTube videos while in bed.

This couple in Tulsa OK is building a 74ft steel sailboat from scratch. It’s way over 250 videos but It’s a hoot. http://www.youtube.com/user/submarineboat

The reason why?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gr7A4GpeosQ

I'm hooked! Makes my little rebuild look like childs play!

Mary has got the cold now. I hope she can recover faster than me.

Canvas Work

I can sew… not real well but I can sew. I learned back in A&P School. Aircraft wings and fuselages used to be skinned with cotton. They haven’t been done that way for production aircraft in over 60 years but you had to know how to sew to obtain an A&P license. My Dad had an airplane with cloth covered wings. But that was back in the days when he was dating my Mom. In fact some of Dad’s buddies wrote “Just Married” in shoe polish on the bottom of the wings and he said he was never able to remove it. Not sure sewing is an A&P requirement today.





Armed with a dim memory of sewing and Don Casey's book, “Complete Illustrated Sailboat Maintenance Manual” (a guide to fix EVERYTHING on a sailboat); we bought a used industrial sewing machine thinking I would sew something for Something Else. A whole chapter in the book is dedicated to sewing everything that could need sew’n on a boat. Tips to cover things that are exposed to weather, bags for every use imaginable, (like a bag to hold all the covers when they are not in use) and handy accessories like an awning to keep the sun at bay. Mary bought me a few yards of 2nd quality Sunbrella on eBay to play with.




Companion way hatch cover

 

1st project I made winch covers with elastic inner cuff to keep the winch cover on.

2nd project I made a simple tiller cover that will need “refinements” to incorporate all the lessons I learned along the way.

My latest sewing project I made a companion way hatch cover that has a batten at the bottom that holds the lower cover in position.  The scratches in the picture are from dragging the material under the arm of the sewing machine.





I cussed a lot. I’d hate to have to make a living doing canvas work. It’s tough making things fit correctly. The machine is too fast (or I'm too slow), I’m afraid I’ll sew my fingers into the seams! I put a smaller pulley on the motor and is slowed it down a little, but it’s still too fast. A co-worker suggested putting an adjustable stop under the pedal. That way when you mash the pedal all the way down it can only go to the adjusted speed.

I’m not too bright (or a glutton for punishment) because I bought some upholstery material too. I am going to attempt to re-upholster the settee cushions. The backs should be easy because it’s all strait seams and stapled down on the back. But the bottom cushions are curved and sloped where it meets the hull and they have a zipper. Another topic for another time.

Welcome AWON Readers!

Welcome American Westerly Owners Newsletter (AWON) readers. Please enjoy reading about Something Else my GK29 and seeing what I've been up to. Feel free to leave comments or ask questions.

Logo

I've created a Logo inspired by the half star Westerly logo and Westerly Owners' Association (WOA) logos. I made it in PowerPoint so it’s awful simple. If you feel it is copyright infringement let me know. I think it is new work from my creative genius that pays tribute to Westerly heritage.

My Logo I created 11/08/2013

Exhaust System Project - Mock UP

I had to replace all exhaust system components from the old engines 1 ½ inch system because the new engine uses a 2 inch system. This is the mock up of the new exhaust system. A sailboat with an inboard engine is usually water cooled. Instead of a radiator like your car (water to air heat exchanger) boats use a water to water heat exchanger. Sea water is pumped from outside the boat and used it to cool the engine coolant. The sea water is then disposed of through the exhaust system. The water cools the exhaust and is used to muffle the sound in a water lift muffler or wet muffler. The water lift muffler instructions give a generic layout (see below) with key dimensions required to function optimally.



From Centek muffler installation instructions

 
Here is what the 1st mocked up exhaust looked like inside Something Else.




1st Mock  up.  Exhaust elbow silver piece on the left, muffler black object on right of picture.



One concern after putting it together is the water fall dimension from the exhaust manifold and the top of the muffler. The requirement is 12 inches minimum. It is hard to measure because there is a bulkhead between the engine and the muffler and everything is on a slope. I have about 11 inches. So I need to raise the engine exhaust elbow a little since I can’t lower the muffler. I’ll raise it by installing a longer pipe. This mean the exhaust elbow will go above the engine compartment and into a storage area above the engine compartment. I made a cutout to accommodate the exhaust elbow and have installed a loaf pan to close out the area… No Mom, the loaf pan is not a good one, I bought it at a thrift shop.



Final Mock up.  Exhaust Elbow is silver object on the left and muffler is black object on right of picture.





Loaf Pan close out for exhaust elbow.



The water lift portion of the mock up looks good. I have not decided all the details of the installation from here to the transom of the boat but I have a plan.



Muffler and water lift portion of mocked up exhaust system.



TBD... How to plumb a slope from A down to B.  I think I have a plan.

Catalina Island

Mary and I are in Avalon on Catalina Island for our anniversary.  We arrived yesterday and will go home Tuesday.  Nice weather, sunny and high in the 70's.  Lots of walking is wearing us out but still having a good time.

Engine Troubles!

BMW Marine - D12 Diesel Engine

During the deliver of Something Else from Chula Vista to Long Beach California the engine died 15 miles off shore and over 50 miles from our destination. When I bought the boat it had a 10 HP BMW D12 marine diesel engine. Yes, BMW made marine engines for a very brief time. The D12 model has a single cylinder and has some “interesting” design features. However the design flaw of thin casting in the head was the down fall of the D12. They are raw water cooled. That is they circulate sea water in the engine to cool them. Salt water is very corrosive and the cast iron head rusted out. A new head today is made of “unobtainium”. Rich at V12 engineering in Canada bought up all the spare parts in the world and has cornered the market on BMW Marine parts. He sales a usable head on Ebay for $2500. I had a useable head I bought for $200 in my hands in 2011 but I decided to re-engine now instead of later when the replacement head rusted away.

The BMW engine was not the original engine for a GK29. From what I’ve read they came with a 9 hp Peters diesel. But maybe my GK29 wasn’t completely finished at Westerly and it was finished by the original owner?? I read Westerly did home completion on a few boats. BMW Marine was in business from 1977 to 1987. My boat is a 78. I have been unable to find the elusive "build number" so I don't know if it's the 1st boat or the 182th GK29 made between 1977 and 1982.

I bought a 2 cylinder 15 HP Yanmar diesel engine I found on Craigslist. I like Yanmar because the parts are plentiful and Yanmar/John Deere tractors engines have many common parts.  Also the purchase price was in my budget (CHEAP).  The engine was a taken out of a scrapped boat. It didn’t look too bad but I rebuilt it to be sure of its condition.  It is a little tighter fit than the old engine and I had to custom make brackets for the engine mounts for the engine to align on the BMW bed (white fiberglass shell the engine bolts to).

2QM15 Yanmar Diesel Engine

Aft of Bulkhead Paint Project

On The List the task called Aft of Bulkhead Paint Project is more that just applying primer and paint. The area is inside the boat behind the engine compartment. It also includes the lazarette and quarter birth. All of it is under the cockpit.

Now is the time to do this work since the engine plumbing (fuel, water, exhaust) control cables, and electrical systems are removed for the new engine installation. It has been messy, time consuming but I’m almost ready to paint. The highlights include:

Stiffened the cockpit floor and seats using fiberglass laminated marine plywood doublers.

Installed a longitudinal member between the engine bulkhead and the prop shaft support bulkhead to match the one on the quarter birth. This makes the area structurally more symmetric and better supports the battery shelf.





Taken from quater birth.    A) Muffler Shelf.    B) House Battery Shelf.   C) Longitudinal Structural Member

Installed a battery shelf for the house battery and a new shelf to support the wet muffler.

Installed a 2nd battery shelf under the quarter birth for the starting battery.

Starting Battery Shelf In Quater Birth .  Marks are Location for Battery Tray.

Filled on all the old openings for engine panel and throttle/transmission control.

Filled in Holes for Panel and Throttle Lever.    Primed and Ready for Paint.

I've done something else on this task but I just can't remember what it is right now.

Delivery of Something Else

3 years ago, (10-09-2010) 4 of us left Chula Vista California bound for Long Beach aboard Something Else. The trip is over 100 miles most of it in the ocean. This was my first trip aboard a small boat overnight. This was also my first time (other than test runs the week earlier) as a skipper. Yeah, if you own the boat they call you skipper. I have NO experience whatsoever but I’m the skipper. The guy in charge! Looking back, I knew nothing. And I’m in charge? It was my good fortune that I enlisted help of my friend Greg, who is an off shore sailboat racer. He enlisted the assistance of another off shore guy, a youngster named Luke. I told Greg candidly, “I know NOTING, Nada, Zip... Zero”. He patiently explained that the skipper is the one who owns the boat and pays the bills. That’s all I had to worry about. I’m broke because I bought a sailboat; all I can worry about is paying the bills. The forth person on the trip was Dave from my reserve unit. He is working towards his USCG captain’s license. So yes I’m the only one that knows nothing and I’m in charge. Perfect!

All the logistics preparing Something Else for this day seems like a blur. A lot of work and the time flew. But finally on Saturday morning the five of us up packed up into the Mary’s car for the drive to Chula Vista. Mary came along to drive the car back; an important player in the plan. Everybody else parked their car in the Alamitos Bay Marina parking lot, the soon to be home port of Something Else.

Chula Vista is not far from the Mexican boarder.  Long Beach is at the top of the map.

The plan is to motor about 25 hours all the way to Long Beach. We are motoring because the prevailing winds and current is south and we want to go north. Sailboats can sail to toward windward but it’s slower, longer distance and allot more work as one has to tack back and forth. The plan was to be in Long Beach Sunday. We left the slip in Chula Vista around 3 PM. Chula Vista is on the southern end of San Diego Bay. One has to follow the buoy markers in order to stay in the deeper water channel. I missed a marker and went strait when I should have turned left. We came to a slow stop. Something Else has a lead fin keel that requires around 6 foot of water. The keel hit the sandy bottom. Luckily we were not hard aground so we were able to back up and continued on carefully following the channel markers. At the north end of San Diego Bay near North Island we decided to recheck the oil in the engine. When I pulled the dip stick it seemed like un-chucking an air hose, like a woosh of air pressure. It was down a quart. That seemed odd but I had 12 quarts of oil. We added a quart of oil and decided to check it again in 2 hours.

North Island aboard Something Else 10-9-2010

Past Point Loma and out of San Diego bay you have to go south following the marker buoys because of the kelp beds. Luke was at the tiller when he turned it over to me. I take the helm but I see kelp everywhere and can't see my next bouy. I ask everybody “where is the next marker?” Luke missed a marker… so I feel better about my error earlier in the day. We have to back down several times to remove the kelp from the keel and rudder. Finally we reach the final buoy and into open water. Greg asks “What heading Skipper?” I’m not prepared for such details! I jump down to the navigation station and look at the charts. I determine heading Three One Zero Magnetic. Greg was testing me as he has done this trip so many times he knows without looking.  A lesson well learned, preparation requires more than buying sandwiches and having friends meeting someplace.

Greg and Luke sugested we arrange a rolling watch; rotating one person every 2 hours. Two people will be sleeping and two people on watch in the cockpit. That agreed to we all start changing into our foul weather gear. The temperatures fall pretty quickly once the sun sets. We noticed the cabin is smokey. We check the oil again and it is down another quart and it still has the woosh. We decide to throttle back and not work the engine so hard. Two hours later we check the oil again and it needs another quart. Three quarts in 6 hours is not good. Each time we check the oil it is becoming harder and harder to start the engine.

While the boat is underway everything seems surreal. The water is like black ink and the wake is luminescent. It’s amazing and awe inspiring! I definitely see myself doing more of this!

Just before it is time to check the oil again… the engine quits. We check the oil, it needs a quart but that wouldn’t make the engine quit. We try to restart it but it won’t start. I try both WD40 and starting fluid and I won’t start. Diesel engines are pretty easy. They need fuel and compression and they will run. I turn the engine over with the hand crank… It was too easy. We don’t have compression. I take off the valve cover and find the exhaust valve spring is broken. Oh boy, were done. From euphoric to despair... It’s past midnight; we are 15 mile offshore west of Oceanside with a dead engine. There is no wind and the once smooth ocean is now pitching up and down as we bob around like a cork on the waves. I’m feeling weak and sick and I’m the skipper.

Greg springs into action like a one man crisis response team. Here are your options, and the pros and cons of each. Luke throws out some more options. You choose skipper and we’ll get it done. I decide vessel assist is the best for all of us if they will tow us to Long Beach. Greg and Luke made the arrangements over the VHF radio. Vessel Assis is like AAA. Depending on your membership coverage they will tow you X distance. Bottom of the line coverage will tow to the nearist port. Luke had access to Ultra Platinum coverage and we were towed to Long Beach. The Vessel Assist had to leave from San Diego they found us about 4 hours later. 8 hours of tow and we're at Long Beach. The tow boat towed us fast. Hull speed for my boat is around 6.7 knots. Riding the tow boats wake we are doing 8.5 knots. The only way Something Else could go faster would be to put it on a trailer and tow it freeway speeds!
I am so thankful Greg and Luke were there cause I could not have done it without them. They were Pros.

Blue Heron

Snapped this picture of a blue heron on the sailboat moored next to Something Else. He seemed to be staring at a whirligig meant to scare the birds away. They are large pretty birds and are fun to watch fishing.

whirligig like the pig on the Geico commercial… Wheeeeeeeee whee whee Wheeeeeeee

The List

I've heard it said if you want to get something done write it down. To that end I've created "The List". The Something Else to do list. My current list is the tasks required to put the boat back together so I can go sailing. It is not a list of future projects just the current things that are taken apart. Yes, it is a broad list. Completing an engine change with sub-tasks related to the engine change. On the list I have a column for tasks that are held for other tasks. I also have columns for estimated completion date (ECD) and things that need to be bought. I created the list in April with ECDs of May, June and July. In August I removed most of the ECDs cause I failed to declare what year I intended. I must of meant 2014.

How I Put a Square Peg in A Round Hole

Something Else had two logs (aka knot meter aka speedometer) one was a mechanical VDO (brand) log on the side of the nav station panel. The second log was older electronic unit on the face of the panel along with the DC circuit breaker panel and light switches. On Something Else the nav station is situated so you sit at the quarter birth facing forward and the panel is in view. I've seen pictures of other GK29 where the panel is on the port side and is viewed from the center cabin. The VDO unit was in a 4 inches hole with a teak trim piece surround. When I removed teak trim piece I tore the wood where it was bonded to the teak casing. It looked pretty bad.

I decided I wanted to put my new VHF radio (Christmas present from Mom... Thanks Mom!) where the VDO gauge was. The radio required a rectangular hole. First I glued a piece of teak to fill up the hole. It still looked ugly. Then I cut the hole for the radio. The radio didn't cover the all of the messed up wood. I looked at allot of alternatives to cover up the mess I made. I decided to fabricate a stainless steel plate to cover the mess.

The open area above the radio will have a DSC (Digital Select Calling) instruction sticker. The stainless looks pretty good buffed up with fine scotch bright. The next owner may remove the radio and look at the mess and think what was the PO thinking (or doing).

I had to do something else

Monday after work I went to Something Else with plans to work, however the boat was covered with bird poo.  I swabbing the deck to clean the mess.  In my “Wild Live” blog I said every fall an osprey comes and spends the evenings atop the mast three boats down.  Last night I snapped a picture of the osprey 3 boats down.  The joy of boat ownership is getting up close with nature in all its power and majestic glory; as well as the occasional chance of poo.

Acrophobia

The mast on a Westerly GK29 Half Tonner is 39 feet tall. Earlier this summer I attempted to ascend to the top of the mast to service the halyards sheaves. I was looking forward to going up there. I brought my camera planning to snap the view from above. However halfway up I became nauseated and agitated. It was my first time to climb a sailboat mast. I think the most discomforting thing was the rocking of the boat. The boat rocked a little and the mast swung allot. I had to come down... a failure.

Acrophobia is an extreme or irrational fear of heights. I never thought I was afraid of heights. Is it irrational to fear going up an aluminum straw 39 feet in the air? What if you add in the motion? At what point it is irrational? I felt safe... I had 2 halyards attached to a bosun’s chair, 1 to lift and 1 as a back up if the first one failed. It was perfectly safe. Sailors climb the mast all the time. While my boat is not this big, watch this video and tell me do you feel anything odd?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdJlgLasCLw

Next time I go up the mast I plan to use a mountain climbing harness and ascenders. I've read others use this method to climb the mast. I got to do it, those sheaves aren't going to do themselves.

What?

This blog is about Something Else… Something Else is a Westerly GK29 sailboat. My GK29 was purchased in 2010 and it was already named Something Else. Henry the prior owner (aka PO) said it was named Something Else because it sailed like something else… However in my experience the boat always needs something else fixed or replaced. I would name the boat something else… but it already is. So that is where I am, working on Something Else.

Sins of the PO

Let’s talk Something Else before me. The prior owner (PO), Henry, was the 2nd owner of Something Else. He bought her in the mid 90’s. Henry was a CPA in Chula Vista California and enjoyed spending his free time sailing Something Else. In his office was a large picture of him and his son aboard Something Else off the coast of Mexico. He was obviously proud of both his son and daughter who were now adults. He wanted them to have Something Else. Henry was older, and had prostrate cancer. He was no longer able to really take care of the boat let alone enjoy it. But the kids didn’t want or have time for Something Else. He didn’t want to but he had to let Something Else go to a stranger.

In 2008 something else was put up for sale. The economy in the US was tumbling and so were the boat prices. In the UK GK29 prices were listed for around ₤15,000 or $22,000 depending on the exchange rate. Henry’s price for Something Else kept going down but nobody bought her. I started looking at sailboats in 2010. I looked at mostly Ericson’s and Catalina’s. When I saw the ad for Something Else the price was down to $6,500.

I went to look at Something Else in August 2010. It was “love” at first sight. I offered $5,000 and Henry accepted without hesitation. Henry was to have prostrate surgery the next week and that weighed heavy on his mind.


I was a new owner of a 1978 Westerly GK29 Half Tonner. I knew she was a fixer upper. A little TLC and she would be an awesome sailboat. Since then I’ve heard several times that “they” have seen better boat cut up and thrown in a dumpster. I guess love is blind.



Something Else in Chula Vista



Henry recovered from his surgery and helped me with logistics with the boat since I lived more than 100 miles away. A lot of work was required to prep Something Else for the sail up to Long Beach. In October 2010 a few guys were helping me with the final prep for the trip. I invited the crew and Henry to dinner at the marina restaurant as a Thank You for all the help. The beer and conversation flowed freely. Henry and I were talking about boat insurance. He was shocked I only paid $75 per year. I explained it was only liability insurance. To which he replied “I was so glad I had full coverage insurance when the boat sank”. I’ve never been so shocked!

Thus began what I call the sins of the PO. Any past transgressions I’ve inherited. It was Henry’s… and now its mine. Fortunately I am happy with Something Else, but perhaps I should have bought something else…

The Wild Life!

Today I’ll blog about something else… The wild life.

Last night about 2am I woke with a fright because of the sounds of a little man drilling a hole in my hull then the sounds of water pouring in. glub glub glub. I got up, peed and went back to bed.

No this isn’t the result of my wild life, but rather something else; the wild life in the marina. In the quite tranquil water lurk many animals ready to wake one from their slumber or prevent it all together. Birds, seals and shrimp all make sound that make a paranoid skipper worry. Sea gull, heron, and terns catch muscles and fish and dine alfresco on deck. They make a sound of someone on deck scratching their way looking for a way to break in. Seals bang into the keel (the fin that sticks five and a half feet below the water) and make a “Puffff” sound as they blow out air at the surface. But the most constant sound is the snap crackle pop of the snapping shrimp. They sound as if they are on the hull trying to cut and pinch their way in. This link can give you an idea of what I am talking about. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONQlTMUYCW4

In the fall an osprey comes back for the winter and stands watch atop the mast 3 boats down. This carnivore eats well… It expels a lot of waste as well. He leaves a mess on deck. A few times I’ve heard the thump of its BM and laid there hours waiting for the other shoe to drop. I enjoy the raptors return, I’m so happy he prefers somebody else’s mast!

In the case last night the unmistakable sound was the wild life of my fellow boater 4 slips down coming home from the bar. His electric powered dingy augering its way through the water, his wake gently slapping my hull making a glub glub glub. Ones imagination can be deceiving aboard Something Else!

Stanchion Action!

Something Else had some Stanchion issues when I bought “her”. I’m not sure Something Else is female but traditionally boats are called “her” so I will fall in step. A stanchion is a post sticking up from the perimeter of the deck to support the life lines. My boat and many boats made in Europe during the 60’s and 70’s used solid aluminum stanchions. They are 24 inches tall with a triangular base held on with three screws. The life lines are stainless 3/16 steel cables and are intended to prevent the crew from falling overboard. Two of the stanchions bases on the port side had broken thru the deck. This must have been caused by an impact with a dock or another boat. The stern pulpit was also bent over on the port side. Oh the sins on the PO. With the outer layers of the deck broken, water was able to seep into the balsa core of the deck. The balsa rotted locally and no longer provided structural rigidity.

The first step was to remove the stanchion. The nuts were encapsulated in fiberglass. This had to be ground and chiseled away. The nuts and screws were removed and the stanchion was easily removed. Exploratory surgery was required to determine the extent of the damage to the core. Deck material was removed until all the damaged deck and core were removed and solid good material was exposed. The area was bowled out to provide a tapper of about 10:1. This allows the layers fiberglass area to bond to. Next a new core was fabricated from marine plywood. The core was bonded with thickened epoxy to the existing core and the bottom fiberglass layers. 12 oz. fiberglass cloth was laid up with epoxy resin. This was topped with peel ply (a Dacron fabric), waxed paper, a piece of plywood and finally a 25 lb weight. After the epoxy cured the weight, plywood and waxed paper were removed. The peel ply was pulled off which left a nearly perfect surface. The area was sanded and faired then painted to protect the epoxy from UV exposure. The original aluminum stanchions are being replaced by polished stainless steel stanchions that are the norm on sail boats here in the US. I got these at the yacht salvage store. They sure are pretty. I had the stern pulpit straitened at a local shop that makes pulpits for many manufactures since the 60’s. I am holding off the final installation of the stanchions and pulpits until I paint the whole deck.

Damaged deck from stanchion

Inside veiw of damaged deck.  View looking up.

Rotted balsa core.


 



Replacement core and 10:1 tapper for fiberglass repair



Repair prior to sanding and paint.



Sanded and primed.




I have 8 solid aluminum stanchions for sale!



I Can See Clearly Now!

The second project on Something Else was the replacement of the portlights or windows for the land lubbers. The portlights on a GK29 were just Plexiglas. FYI in England where my boat was made Plexiglas is called Perspex. On the port side (left side if you are looking fwd) the Plexiglas was original. Scratched, crazed and cracking Plexiglas bolted onto the cabin side. At least the port side didn't leak. The starboard side (right side if you are looking forward) was another story. The PO "modernized" the portlights on Something Else (bad PO bad). He attempted to bond the Plexiglas flush with the cabin side. Unfortunately, the fit and the bonding were poor and leaked badly. I'm glad he gave up after doing the starboard portlight. I had to duct tape it until I could replace it.

What to replace the port lights with? I looked at making new ones like the factory; however the starboard side was cut larger by the PO. I looked at many alternatives. And decided I would buy Lewmar port lights at Minney’s Yacht Surplus. Minney's is my favorite store and their motto is "WE KEEP BOATING AFFORDABLE". They had a ton of them, new in the box. The price was less than the cost of buying Plexiglas to make replacements. Lewmar is English too. It took some work to fit them but they look so cool and they don’t leak at all. Take a look at the before and after pictures and tell me what you think.

Port side before - Factory original

Port side after - Lewmar port



Starboad side before - Non factory flush



Starboad side after - Shows fiberglass reworked areas

Fix it

The first project was replacement of the mast step. The Half Tonner version of the GK29 is keel stepped. This meaning that the mast goes through the deck and terminates in the bilge just above the keel. The fitting for my mast was corroded almost beyond recognition (Figure 1). Luckily the Selden part number cast into the part was still there. I had no idea of the manufacture or where to find a replacement. An internet search of part number identified the manufacture and where to purchase it. I did not have the yard remove the mast for the step replacement. Instead the mast step was replaced with the mast in situ while the boat was moored in its slip. To lift the mast I built a strongback (Figure 2) on the deck. Straps were attached to the strongback fed thru the mast partners and then attached to a come-along on each side of the mast. The lower end of the come-along was attached to the lower fitting of the mast. A line was tied off low on the mast to prevent the lower part of the mast from moving in the horizontal plane. I had four helpers the day the mast step was replaced. The helpers kept the stays loosened and I was inside working the come-along. Once the mast was lifted about 8 inches (Figure 3) the stainless structure the mast step is attached to was removed. A spacer fabricated from G10 Garolite and installed under the step fitting and sealant was used to prevent future galvanic corrosion (Figure 4). The mast step structure assembly was installed with new stainless hardware. The mast was lowered and stays tightened. This project worked well for me. Quite a bit of static and dynamic analysis was examined to ensure the structural limits of the cabin top were not exceeded and the ability to control and balance the mast while it was raised. I do not recommend this for everybody. Examine all the risk factors and mitigate those risks prior to doing this yourself.






(Figure 1) Extensive corrosion of mast step.  Note attachment screws.

 


(Figure 2) Strong back to support the weight of mast during lift.



(Figure 3)  Mast lifted and structure and step removed.

 

(Figure 4)  Old & New Mast step fitting.



BBC 79 Fastnet Documentary

I was reading a GK29 bulletin board on line and in 2006 the BBC was looking for a GK29 to use for filming a 79 Fastnet documentary they were making. I did a search on YouTube and found the Documentary. They show a GK29 here and there. It is interesting, but I need to get a life! To put everything into perspective in 1979 my GK29 would have been brand new and I would have been the same age as the son in the documentary. Wow! That is Something Else. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHTKMGO0YYw