Thanks to all about the Atomic 4 gas engine replacement. I was surprised at
how much it would cost. I will need to do some more research to decide in
what direction to go.

Next question: The Pearson Vanguard is old, 1968. The hull is sound, the
decks are sound BUT..

the finish of the deck, especially, looks chalky. And the inside looks like
CRAP.

I painted an old boat once. First, I sanded. Then, filled the devits, then
clean with solution,,, and then I had the boat painted with a tough paint
,,, Enron ???? or something.

What about deck paint. What or how does one redo an old deck? Since the
fiberglass has little grooves for footing, and all ... how or what can be
done to refinish?

Can you cover the existing deck with something like a laminate? Of course,
you would take off all the old fittings etc first, I presume. That might be
a good thing since then everything could be checked out and replaced if worn
out.

======

Another engine question. With a 33' sailboat. What if there was no engine?
Could I use a rubber dingy with an outboard as a tug? I remember the
schooners down in Maine used this method. They didn't have an inboard
engine that pushed the boat. I think they had an engine just for power,,,
lights etc. But getting in and out of the harbor they used a tug method.

What are your thoughts???

===

Hey, the boat if FREE. I'm just trying to keep it that way.

Learn to sail it. Hal and Margaret Roth covered thousands of miles in a
boat about that size with no engine. In one of their books there is a photo
of Whisper sailing off the coast of S. America. Margaret took it out alone
while Hal climbed the mountain to take the picture.

Get oars/paddles. I once helped paddle a 34' sloop out of Belmont Harbor in
Chicago in a calm. Used the dinghy's oars; one of us on the bow, one on the
stern; throw the water aft; eventually the harbor mouth comes closer. (No
tide, and of course, no wind.)

Engines are for schedules.

As for "free" -- ROTFL

Roger

http://home.insightbb.com/~derbyrm

"Thomas Wentworth" wrote in message
news:83eqf.20768$AG1.20099@trndny04...

Another engine question. With a 33' sailboat. What if there was no
engine?
Hey, the boat if FREE. I'm just trying to keep it that way.

Thomas;

My advice is probably different from most.
1) Paint
Don't do it. No matter how it looks today it will look about the same
in 5 years. If you paint it, it will look great for a while, and look
terrible in 5 years. Scrub it, try some rubbing compound and wax. Be
happy with it as is.

2) Engine
Proper is proper. Fix the atomic 4. (Some day)

3) Rigging
How is the rigging? That probably needs replacing more than the engine
does. 1968 is a long time to a turnbuckle.

In all subjects, don't look for the easy way, there isn't one. Don't
try too much, you will be defeating yourself. Put your energy into
learning how to handle the boat. And fixing what needs fixing.

Go sailing in the mean time and think about it.

No reason to hurry.



Thomas Wentworth wrote:
Thanks to all about the Atomic 4 gas engine replacement. I was surprised at
how much it would cost. I will need to do some more research to decide in
what direction to go.

Next question: The Pearson Vanguard is old, 1968. The hull is sound, the
decks are sound BUT..

the finish of the deck, especially, looks chalky. And the inside looks like
CRAP.

I painted an old boat once. First, I sanded. Then, filled the devits, then
clean with solution,,, and then I had the boat painted with a tough paint
,,, Enron ???? or something.

What about deck paint. What or how does one redo an old deck? Since the
fiberglass has little grooves for footing, and all ... how or what can be
done to refinish?

Can you cover the existing deck with something like a laminate? Of course,
you would take off all the old fittings etc first, I presume. That might be
a good thing since then everything could be checked out and replaced if worn
out.

======

Another engine question. With a 33' sailboat. What if there was no engine?
Could I use a rubber dingy with an outboard as a tug? I remember the
schooners down in Maine used this method. They didn't have an inboard
engine that pushed the boat. I think they had an engine just for power,,,
lights etc. But getting in and out of the harbor they used a tug method.

What are your thoughts???

===

Hey, the boat if FREE. I'm just trying to keep it that way.

Thomas:

See: http://www.triton381.com/

which chronicles - in excutiating detail - the complete restoration of
a Pearson Triton.

If you can't find your answers here, you'll never find them.

MW

On Wed, 21 Dec 2005 14:57:08 GMT, "Thomas Wentworth"
wrote:


Next question: The Pearson Vanguard is old, 1968. The hull is sound, the
decks are sound BUT..

the finish of the deck, especially, looks chalky. And the inside looks like
CRAP.

I painted an old boat once. First, I sanded. Then, filled the devits, then
clean with solution,,, and then I had the boat painted with a tough paint
,,, Enron ???? or something.

What about deck paint. What or how does one redo an old deck? Since the
fiberglass has little grooves for footing, and all ... how or what can be
done to refinish?

Can you cover the existing deck with something like a laminate? Of course,
you would take off all the old fittings etc first, I presume. That might be
a good thing since then everything could be checked out and replaced if worn
out.

I get the impression this is a free or near-free boat. In that case,
air it out, power wash the deck, paint the bilge, consider redoing the
cushions, and wipe the teak parts with cleaner, then orange oil. It
will smell better, look better and be more pleasant.

Then focus on the safety stuff: radios, bilge pumps, thru hulls. Fix
if needed. Are the sails OK? Lifelines? Halyards? Rigging? If you
can't tell, get an opinion. The colour of the deck would be irrelevant
if the mast comes down in a gale because you have 38 year old
turnbuckles and deformed chainplates.

Then focus on comfort: are the cushions perished? Is there mildew
anywhere? Does the head work, or does it stink?

There's a hell of a lot you can and should do with hot water, TSP and
elblow grease to make a stinky old boat into "a classic, with
character". The pricey or time-consuming upgrades can happen later, if
at all. The point is to make it safe, pleasant and easy to handle.
Beautiful will come in the use, not the sparkle of the decks.

======

Another engine question. With a 33' sailboat. What if there was no engine?
Could I use a rubber dingy with an outboard as a tug?

Awkwardly, yes, and in a seaway, alone, probably dangerously.

I remember the
schooners down in Maine used this method. They didn't have an inboard
engine that pushed the boat. I think they had an engine just for power,,,
lights etc. But getting in and out of the harbor they used a tug method.

What are your thoughts???

You've be better to just bolt an outboard to the stern, I suppose, but
weight in the ends, the awkwardness of handling an outboard while
steering...it's not so hot. Also, you'd need about a 15 hp, which
means a biggish mount and a 120-140 lb. engine, minimum. Then there's
the issue of boat power...the magneto on an outboard is pretty
minimal, so you'd have to charge batteries aboard for a radio, cabin
lights, etc. The inboard engine is the bird in the hand...why not fix
it and get a charge every time you leave the harbour?

Hey, the boat if FREE. I'm just trying to keep it that way.

That ain't going to happen. Boats cost, and cost fairly consistantly,
by the nature of the environment around them and the sporadic nature
of their use. You can keep those costs down, but at some point the
boat and eventually you will suffer. You can pay others to keep it
nice, but most of us just do incremental "boat jobs" and maybe one or
two "projects" a season, so we can enjoy sailing for its own sake.

R.

"rhys" wrote in message
news
On Wed, 21 Dec 2005 14:57:08 GMT, "Thomas Wentworth"
wrote:


Next question: The Pearson Vanguard is old, 1968. The hull is sound,
the
decks are sound BUT..

the finish of the deck, especially, looks chalky. And the inside looks
like
CRAP.

I painted an old boat once. First, I sanded. Then, filled the devits,
then
clean with solution,,, and then I had the boat painted with a tough paint
,,, Enron ???? or something.

What about deck paint. What or how does one redo an old deck? Since the
fiberglass has little grooves for footing, and all ... how or what can be
done to refinish?

Can you cover the existing deck with something like a laminate? Of
course,
you would take off all the old fittings etc first, I presume. That might
be
a good thing since then everything could be checked out and replaced if
worn
out.

I get the impression this is a free or near-free boat. In that case,
air it out, power wash the deck, paint the bilge, consider redoing the
cushions, and wipe the teak parts with cleaner, then orange oil. It
will smell better, look better and be more pleasant.

Then focus on the safety stuff: radios, bilge pumps, thru hulls. Fix
if needed. Are the sails OK? Lifelines? Halyards? Rigging? If you
can't tell, get an opinion. The colour of the deck would be irrelevant
if the mast comes down in a gale because you have 38 year old
turnbuckles and deformed chainplates.

Then focus on comfort: are the cushions perished? Is there mildew
anywhere? Does the head work, or does it stink?

There's a hell of a lot you can and should do with hot water, TSP and
elblow grease to make a stinky old boat into "a classic, with
character". The pricey or time-consuming upgrades can happen later, if
at all. The point is to make it safe, pleasant and easy to handle.
Beautiful will come in the use, not the sparkle of the decks.

======

Another engine question. With a 33' sailboat. What if there was no
engine?
Could I use a rubber dingy with an outboard as a tug?

Awkwardly, yes, and in a seaway, alone, probably dangerously.

I remember the
schooners down in Maine used this method. They didn't have an inboard
engine that pushed the boat. I think they had an engine just for power,,,
lights etc. But getting in and out of the harbor they used a tug method.

What are your thoughts???

You've be better to just bolt an outboard to the stern, I suppose, but
weight in the ends, the awkwardness of handling an outboard while
steering...it's not so hot. Also, you'd need about a 15 hp, which
means a biggish mount and a 120-140 lb. engine, minimum. Then there's
the issue of boat power...the magneto on an outboard is pretty
minimal, so you'd have to charge batteries aboard for a radio, cabin
lights, etc. The inboard engine is the bird in the hand...why not fix
it and get a charge every time you leave the harbour?

Hey, the boat if FREE. I'm just trying to keep it that way.

That ain't going to happen. Boats cost, and cost fairly consistantly,
by the nature of the environment around them and the sporadic nature
of their use. You can keep those costs down, but at some point the
boat and eventually you will suffer. You can pay others to keep it
nice, but most of us just do incremental "boat jobs" and maybe one or
two "projects" a season, so we can enjoy sailing for its own sake.

R.
================================================== ================

By far ;;; one of the absolute best postings I have ever read on the net!
You hit a home run!

And, you are sooo right! I am still working on the details of the "getting
the boat" so I will post when I am at that point.

I will ask about the bilge, the bilge pump, the cleanliness, the
turnbuckles, the chain plates [ as a former owner of an old sailboat ..
this is very important ]. In fact, I will use a copy of this posting as a
guide!

Thanks for the input.

Tom

On Thu, 22 Dec 2005 14:02:48 GMT, "Thomas Wentworth"
wrote:


By far ;;; one of the absolute best postings I have ever read on the net!
You hit a home run!

And, you are sooo right! I am still working on the details of the "getting
the boat" so I will post when I am at that point.

I will ask about the bilge, the bilge pump, the cleanliness, the
turnbuckles, the chain plates [ as a former owner of an old sailboat ..
this is very important ]. In fact, I will use a copy of this posting as a
guide!

Thanks for the input.

Tom

Glad to help. I am currently shopping for what I hope will be a world
cruiser, so I am constantly thinking of this stuff. It's amazing the
number of people who've let good boats go to crap...and I'm not
talking about the varnish, but about the systems, amateur
installations, forgotten maintenance, etc.

I am seriously thinking my best course would be to find a
part-finished hull and to do it to my spec (not myself..it would never
get finished), or to find an old guy with obsessive-compulsive traits
and a nice, well-maintained vessel, and to make him an offer.

A Pearson 33 should clean up nicely, though, and it's a capable
coastal cruiser that could repay much of your repair/fix-up investment
in many happy hours at sea. Good luck.

(The A4 freshwater comments are right on. Go to the Great Lakes to
find perfectly good raw water cooled A4s "retired" by diesel lovers
who really wanted a bigger alternator...a couple of acid flushes and a
few bits and pieces and they will "drop it" at 20% of the Westerbeke
price.)

R.