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Chas231

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Posts posted by Chas231

  1. My attitude was not to overthink every detail before jumping in. Otherwise, I’d still be trying to figure out every diagram before making any sawdust. I built my BJ28 as my first foray into boatbuilding. I did complete the Wooden Boatbuilding  night course at Cape Fear  Community College, which provided a good basis for handling wooden boatbuilding tools. The Betsy Lee was built in the breezeway under the house until it was time to attach the cabin top, when it was moved out into the driveway. Of course I made more than my share of mistakes, with the motto “Hey, it’s wood. I can fix it.” The most valuable resources are Mr. Lathrop and the community of Bluejacket builders who will help with any issue, and let you know when you try something that’s not too smart. (Remember my bright idea of covering the hull with mahogany strips?)

    I've sold the Betsy Lee because I don’t have a place to keep her, but the years spent building her were wonderful. 
    Chuck Smith

    www.flickr.com/photos/chas231

     

  2. Finally replaced the flapping curtain I’d been using for the head.  Maybe too much time over the winter resulted in a fancier door than I planned.  Sort of looks like

    a confessional door. 

     

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  3. I’ve had a great time building the Betsy Lee, a Bluejacket 28. I have also enjoyed cruising, and have found the boat to be a comfortable and capable cruiser for two.  But I’m discovering I like building even better than cruising. I really want to start another build, but can’t justify keeping two boats. I’m keeping the Betsy Lee in a slip, and storing the trailer off-site - just don’t have the room to keep the boat or trailer at the house. So, I’m considering selling Betsy Lee. Looking for suggestions or advice. I’m a terrible salesperson and am not looking to make money selling the boat. I figure conservatively that I have over $40,000 invested in the boat and trailer.  The survey came up with a market value of $55,000, but he admitted the price point of a custom boat is not a precise figure. Everything I wanted to do has been completed on the boat and it all works fine. I’d be satisfied with $25,000 for the boat and trailer. Sound reasonable?

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  4. The Betsy Lee is in in a small marina close to our home. After the recent cold spell the water has been shut off at the marina. Still plenty of nice days to enjoy on the water, but without a water source, I’m trying to figure out how to flush the engine.  The Yamaha 90 has a hose port to flush the motor. If I carried some fresh water, say 10 gallons, to the cabin top, would gravity provide enough pressure to flush the engine?  A future project is to install a wash down pump, but  I’d still have to carry fresh water. 

  5. My BJ28 has been in a marina for the past five months. We pulled the boat onto the trailer in preparation for hurricane Irma. Fortunately for us, the storm looks to have moved west far enough to spare us. While the boat is out of the water, I want to clean the bottom. I used Petit Hydrocoat bottom paint. No barnacles, except on the stainless steel keel protector, but there is quite a bit of green "scum', especially from the waterline to the chine. I removed the green scum on the sides with a stiff brush and lots of water, but must also be removing a layer of bottom paint, judging by the color of the rinse water. The bottom is pretty clear, just sort of stained green. I can clean it, but am I doing more damage than good?  After I get all the barnacles off the keel protector, can I use bottom paint to keep it clear?

     

    Chuck

  6. Resurrecting an old thread. The Betsy Lee has a mast and boom!  I'd been wanting to try the birdsmouth joint, and really enjoyed making the sticks. I can't put more on the boat, so am thinking I need a flagpole in the front yard. The mast is about 20', stepped on the cockpit floor and also bracketed to the cabin top. It lays on the cabin top for trailering. No staysail yet; I'm going to need some rigging help if I want one. More pictures at www.flickr.com/photos/chas231

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  7. Thanks Tom. I'll go with varnish on these pieces rather than trying to remove the epoxy. I've gotten to like Cetol.  I used Cetol Light and Cetol Gloss on my handrails and the mast and boom. I like its looks and expect it to last longer than varnish. My varnished rubrails already need redone. 

  8. I have some wooden parts made for the mast I'm working on. I coated the wood with clear epoxy, but they will be outside and need UV protection. Can Cetol be applied over epoxy?  Instructions on the can say to remove all previous coatings. 

    Chuck

  9. Considering the reported conditions on the ICW and a few other issues (I still need a survey in order to get insurance) we decided to cancel the cruise to the Georgetown Boat Show. Hope the show is great; sounds like Georgetown will be ready for the show.

    Chuck

  10. Our plan was to cruise from Oak Island to Georgetown for the show. Considering the storm and flooding concerns in this part of the ICW, I'm thinking we might trailer the boat. Any suggestion for a ramp and parking for three days?

  11. It was a new engine. The boat's in the shop now. I'm still waiting for the damage report.

    I didn't get the engine connected to the GPS. I had an electronics guy look at it, and was told I would need a different (and expensive) harness. He suggested adding a fuel sensor, which should connect easily and communicate with my chart plotter. I think I'll go in that direction; the Yamaha digital tach provides water temp, oil pressure, voltage and engine hours as well as engine rpm.

  12. Great topic. I designed the pilothouse on my Bluejacket28 with the door off-center so I could add a mast. The masts on PAR's boats appear to be just what I want. I know I'll have to do some re-engineering for my boat, but are plans available for these masts?

  13. Happy to report that my son Ben and I completed a 300+ mile shakedown cruise. We travelled north on the Intracoastal to from Oak Island to the Alligator River (just on the southern end of the Albermarle Sound) and back. The boat performed great; its seaworthiness exceeded our expectations. There still remains work to be done, but it was a great first cruise. We did have some motor trouble, and trailered the boat home for the last leg, but stuff happens - we even enjoyed the experience of unexpected events. The boat is a real attention-getter; we had many complements. I didn't want to make this a long post with a lot of details, so I have attached a PDF file with more details, for anyone wanting to know more.

    Chuck

    Betsy Lee, a Bluejacket28

    Shakedown Cruise August 2016.pdf

    • Like 1
  14. i must have the same vintage Moeller tank - i notice a faint smell in the cabin after it is closed up for a day or two.  The smell doesn't bother me; it goes away as soon as the door is opened.  But, i can't seem to get insurance without a survey, and as i understand the regs, an enclosed fuel compartment must be vented.  i did get basic liability insurance, but plan to schedule a survey after a few more updates. Am I wrong about the requirement for ventilation? 

  15. Getting closer to declaring Betsy Lee finished (if that ever is achieved). Still some projects to complete. Looking forward to a shakedown cruise next month.

    I did not vent the fuel tank compartment, but realize this is a project I'll have to undertake. I can mount a blower in the splash well for the outlet, but the inlet will be a little more complicated. It's too late to run a vent hose under the cockpit floor, and I'm not sure I'd want to compromise the longitudinal bulkheads with 3" holes. I'm thinking of something like a sturdy shower drain vent or two on the foreword end of the cockpit floor above the fuel compartment, so the blower would vent the compartment. Might result in a little rain water getting into the fuel compartment, which would drain into the splash well. What do you think?

    Chuck

    post-4417-0-44989800-1469023802_thumb.jpeg

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