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.
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| Port side before - Factory original |
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| Port side after - Lewmar port |
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| Starboad side before - Non factory flush |
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| Starboad side after - Shows fiberglass reworked areas |
This land lubber thinks you did way better than the factory did. Do you hire out?
ReplyDeleteNobody could afford me!
DeleteWow! Does buying a sailboat also come with a massive owner's manual or instruction book? Your repair jobs (mast baseplate, portlights) involve lots of boat-related handyman skills. You display that you are truly a man of many talents...a real "jack-of-all-trades" sailboat-wise.
ReplyDeleteI'm really surprised an Air Force guy is doing so well as a boat owner. It's more a Navy thing...right? It seems the "skipper" of the boat needs to be able to do an endless variety of repair tasks to keep the boat "ship-shape"...and you seem to be doing them very well.
You did a fantastic job with the new "windows." A huge improvement over the ones that were there, and a very stylish and professional-looking finished product. Well done!
Thanks Russ, I am proud of my work so far. I did not receive a manual specifically for my GK29. I did receive a manual for the stove, engine, VHF radio, and toilet. Oddly Westerly produced only a small generic manual that applied for all models. I have a PDF copy of one. Its 40 pages but pretty thin on details. Most of the “how to” for these projects comes from my handyman father, military, A&P School and articles on the internet. As an added bonus I’m not smart enough to know I can’t fix XYZ, so I’m not limited in what I think I can fix.
DeleteYou're doing a great job of figuring out how to do the various repairs you've undertaken. From the photos, the work looks very skilled and professional.
DeleteIt is amazing how much we can learn from reading what's on the internet...so, your own abilities plus a few manuals and the internet seem to have put you in good stead to fix what needs to be fixed...and absolve the sins of the PO!