No problems to report

[Dave Neptune]

Can't say much more than I'm surely impressed !!

Dave Neptune

[Oldlaxer1]

Wow, so somewhere between 1973 and 1977 they must have swapped the water tank and fuel tank. My water is under the port settee and fuel is under the stb settee.
Do you have the model of the replacement tank you fitted? If I ever need to replace I like the way yours fits. I'm assuming it has less capacity than standard but for me that perfectly fine.
Thanks. Good luck with the mast stepping.
John

[wristwister]

Wow Tom, thanks much for all the pictures and description. VERY inspirational, and a beautiful T30 you've created there. In my case, I got a screaming good deal on a very original 1973 T30. It was left on the hard in Michigan, fully covered and pickled, for many years after the owner died as they tried to figure out what to do with it. They finally found a next of kin, who brought the boat to the PNW. He and his wife took her out a couple times, decided they really didn't like sailing, and sold her to me for a song. It's an amazing boat, very original right down to the upholstery that still looks like new. It's like it was stored in a time capsule or something. Even the original sails were fully serviceable, including several head sails that looked like they'd never even been hanked on. I've been keeping her up, slowly upgrading systems, and racking up the sailing miles on her. I'd LOVE to paint the hull, as the original gel coat is very sparse and oxidized, but there don't appear to be any boatyards in my area that allow an owner to do such work, and they want in the neighborhood of $8000 to do a proper hull paint job!

Oh, and I'm also quite enamored with that original A4. Simple maintenance and a couple Moyer upgrades and she Purrs like new and never lets me down.

[TomG]

Wow, so somewhere between 1973 and 1977 they must have swapped the water tank and fuel tank. My water is under the port settee and fuel is under the stb settee.
Do you have the model of the replacement tank you fitted? If I ever need to replace I like the way yours fits. I'm assuming it has less capacity than standard but for me that perfectly fine.
Thanks. Good luck with the mast stepping.
John

Yes, they swapped things around in '75 I think. I don't have the model number for the fuel tank. It was a "one-off" from Great Lakes Skipper. These folks sell factory over runs, and discontinued but never used fuel tanks (and lots of other stuff). They have all kinds of shapes and sizes and are very reasonably priced. I think I gave less than $150 for mine - new in the box. The inventory is constantly changing, so if it comes time to replace the tank, just keep checking back every week or so until a good candidate surfaces. The new tank is much smaller (11 gallons) than the original, but I'm typically more concerned about fuel going bad than me running out.

[TomG]

Wow Tom, thanks much for all the pictures and description. VERY inspirational, and a beautiful T30 you've created there. In my case, I got a screaming good deal on a very original 1973 T30. It was left on the hard in Michigan, fully covered and pickled, for many years after the owner died as they tried to figure out what to do with it. They finally found a next of kin, who brought the boat to the PNW. He and his wife took her out a couple times, decided they really didn't like sailing, and sold her to me for a song. It's an amazing boat, very original right down to the upholstery that still looks like new. It's like it was stored in a time capsule or something. Even the original sails were fully serviceable, including several head sails that looked like they'd never even been hanked on. I've been keeping her up, slowly upgrading systems, and racking up the sailing miles on her. I'd LOVE to paint the hull, as the original gel coat is very sparse and oxidized, but there don't appear to be any boatyards in my area that allow an owner to do such work, and they want in the neighborhood of $8000 to do a proper hull paint job!

Oh, and I'm also quite enamored with that original A4. Simple maintenance and a couple Moyer upgrades and she Purrs like new and never lets me down.

Dan, thanks for the very kind words. I know every mama crow thinks hers is the blackest, but I am very partial to the lines of the T-30. I get the utility of the sugar scoop transoms and the big beamy sterns. I think the new boats are pretty and I dig the new features, but there's something about the lines of the Tartan 30 that I really like. To find one in a "suspended animation" had to be extremely exciting!

Paint was one the many compromises that I made on my project. A tented and sprayed paint job by professionals was just simply cost-prohibitive for me. I wound up doing a "roll and tip" of Interlux Perfection LPU. LPU paints are very finicky and fussy paints and heat and humidity can wreck the finish in minutes. When it lays down and glasses over, it is a thing of wonder, but boy is it ever a PITA.

[roadnsky]

...an AC electrical system added, water source marine air conditioning added...

Tom-
I just completed installing a Blue Sea AC panel and all new wiring this past weekend.
(A lot of wedging in and out of tight spaces)

My next big project is installing a marine air conditioner in the hanging locker.
Do you mind telling what unit you installed and what size (BTU)?
Also, are you happy with it so far?

If this is getting too far off topic maybe just PM me.
-j

[wristwister]

It's not just you Tom, anyone who knows anything about boats HAS to acknowledge the superiority of the T30 lines (with the exception of that starboard chain plate).

By the way, I race mine several times a year. I'm typically the highest PHRF in the fleet (198), and I typically finish amazingly well compared to the other boats. I had it hauled for bottom paint a few months ago and had them epoxy coat and re-fair the keel while they were at it (what's another boat buck!). I also clocked the 2 blade prop and marked the shaft so I can hide it behind the keel. Maybe it's my imagination, but the boat seems to absolutely haul ass now. Looking forward to the next race in August to see how she does.

[TomG]

My next big project is installing a marine air conditioner in the hanging locker.
Do you mind telling what unit you installed and what size (BTU)?
Also, are you happy with it so far?

Hi Jerry, I think "off-topic" is where this whole thread started! Also, off-topic is where most great discussion is born.

I'll tell my air conditioner story, but if anyone makes fun of me I'll keep all my dirty laundry to myself going forward!

I priced several of the marine ac units from the typical sources (Defender, Jamestown, eBay, etc.) and kept hitting the financial wall. I kept gnawing at the idea of a water-source, permanently installed marine ac unit, but never really got anywhere with it. Then one day, serendipity led my to the "back room" at Bacon's Sail here in Annapolis. Those who have been there know what I'm talking about and for those who don't, just imagine if Fred Sanford had been a sailor. It's a treasure trove of all things sailing and sailboats. I forget what I was actually there to find, but what I stumbled across was a large Samsonite suitcase modified with a few air conditioning vents straight out of a 1976 Chevrolet Malibu with a big label stuck to the side proclaiming in bright blue letters "Kruzin Kool".



What I had stumbled upon was a portable, water-source, sho-nuff marine air conditioner stuffed inside a Samsonite suitcase. I opened it up and marveled at the simplicity and just how perfectly it would fit under my galley cabinet once I removed it from the case. I had to buy a water pump to supply the heat exchanger and had to add a little ducting and thru hull for the water exhaust, but a few days later I was pumping out 7,000 BTUs of cool! I paid Bacon's a little less than $300 for the Kruzin Kool. I did some research when I was putting it in, and the actual unit is a marine ac unit from one of the name brands - Marine Air I think it was.

I have been very happy with it and more so, Mama has been happy with it!

[roadnsky]

Great story! Do you find that 7K of BTU does the job?
I'd assume my 30' boat is the same approximate volume to cool.
The unit I'm considering is 10K. But, I'm also in a desert!

It will just fit in the hanging locker and perfect for the required ducting.
It's just cutting that thru-hull for the water exhaust that keeps bothering me.