Gentlemen, start your engines!

[Mo]

docks in

We put our marina in today. 24 main floats and 40 or so fingers. Had a photographer on taking pics the whole time (his hobby). I'll be darned it he didn't take step too far back and end up in the drink. Took 3 of the boys to fish him out and that water was cold...not much hope for pics....

Crane put in 24 main floats 7000lbs each in 2 hrs...0800 -1000 hrs. Loader with forks put in the fingers 1000 hrs to 11:30 hrs. By 12:10 we were all sitting in the club eating lunch that I had arranged to be prepared for the guys. All stacking blocks were also gathered up and stowed until fall....real good hustle. About 20 of us working pinning them together with linch pins. The whole thing from start to finish took 4 hrs and 10 minutes.

Was thinking of launching today as well but the wind was up around 20 kts by noon out of the NW....not worth the hassle. Will look at launching Odyssey around 10 am tomorrow.

[Mo]

I'm still waiting for the yard to move 4 more boats before they can launch me. Fired up the engine yesterday. Smokey due to the MMO but started right up.
I've been busy over the winter. Now I'm chomping at the bit to get sailing!

I guess you've been busy. Looks good. I love that skeg rudder too!!

[Skywalker]

Hung up the phone.

Launch scheduled for May 10.

I'm ready to go, but college is getting in the way. My daughter graduates Temple U - a two day process, May 5-6, then I immediately have to drive to Notre Dame and pick up my son and on the way back, pick up my daughter, who attends OSU, on my way to see my 90 year old father in the Poconos!

On top of this, I have to get working on the J24 I'm partners in and prepare for the seasons first race on May 14. She's on a trailer, we launch and step the mast ourselves, so at least that takes some pressure off.

Chris

[sastanley]

I'm still waiting for the yard to move 4 more boats before they can launch me. Fired up the engine yesterday. Smokey due to the MMO but started right up.
I've been busy over the winter. Now I'm chomping at the bit to get sailing!

Wow! Are those after & before pics? Looks great!!!!

[Oldlaxer1]

Wow! Are those after & before pics? Looks great!!!!

I may have chosen the worst before picture for effect, but yes, before and after. In addition to painting the hull and topsides, I scraped about 15 layers of hard bottom paint the po's had accumulated before sanding. Probably the worst job in boating. Hindsight says have it soda blasted but I'm a hard head and figured I'd save the money. Good result but really bad choice. Having the A4 Fire right up sure was a welcome sound. Hopefully launching on Saturday. I had a few engine cut outs right at the end of last season and found a loose connection at the coil positive that I hope was the issue. As Neil pointed out, I found A problem. I just hope it was THE problem. Time will tell. This forum will be the first to know, that's for sure.

[sastanley]

John, Don't show my wife those pics...she'll have me painting the hull too..(actually, i am working on that..i took the windows out last year and painted the area around them. Eventually, I work my way to the hull after I finish the rest of the deck.)

This spring, I am working on interior cushions. I don't see the hull when I am on the boat, so it can be the last "upgrade" as far as I am concerned!

[southcoasting]

I bought an old yard trailer years ago when I first had my Tartan. My neighbor owns a steel manufacturing business, so we customized it. Had an extension tongue to boot. Unfortunately, I sold it after I sold the Tartan to some guy in Connecticut. Wish I had it now. The T27 has an 8.5 foot beam, 7000 lbs. My buddy's dually was all we needed.

When I got the boat back, the paint was awful. Harry paid some guy to slop two part poly on. He used a brush in random stroke directions! It was like having cross hatching. So this winter I decided to sand and polish. Started with 1000 grit, moved to 1500, then 2000. Buffed with a wheel with two different compounds. Passes the 20 foot test. The starboard side's paint was a little thin and the primer bled through here and there, but it will last me a couple of seasons until I get inspired. I painted the boot yesterday, the cove is tape.

Skywalker

[ATTACH]11642[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH]11643[/ATTACH]

Looking good Chris! Is that the stern rail from the salvage yard?

[Skywalker]

Thanks, yes it is.

I wasn't sure how I felt about it when I first put it on. The open transom look and ease of getting on/off appealed to me. But now, I love it.

Chris

[Mo]

...and she's in.

...and she's in for the season. Uneventful, eased her down the ramp with trailer attached to rope, into the water and backed her out until she came off the trailer...whole ordeal...maybe 20 minutes start to finish.

[sail_flathead_lake]

We got our T27 in the water a week and a half ago - first boat on the lake.

Trailer launch and mast raised with an A frame:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbrSjcK9SUU

[YOUTUBE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbrSjcK9SUU[/YOUTUBE]

A4 started right up. I'm playing with fire here as I didn't add any gas last season and the PO says she didn't use the boat the season before I got it. We're on year 3 of gasoline! I'll let you all know when she finally quits, or if I manage to make it to the bottom of that 15 gallon tank.

Happy Sailing!

[Oldlaxer1]

We got our T27 in the water a week and a half ago - first boat on the lake.

Trailer launch and mast raised with an A frame:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbrSjcK9SUU

[YOUTUBE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbrSjcK9SUU[/YOUTUBE]

A4 started right up. I'm playing with fire here as I didn't add any gas last season and the PO says she didn't use the boat the season before I got it. We're on year 3 of gasoline! I'll let you all know when she finally quits, or if I manage to make it to the bottom of that 15 gallon tank.

Happy Sailing!

Very impressive. Good luck on the fuel.

[Skywalker]

That's awesome!

Love this time of year.

Chris

[toddster]

While I did get to go sailing a couple of times a month all winter (not the couple of times per week required by resolution) I am feeling a bit jealous of you guys who have an annual haul-out. My boat could certainly use a bit of spa treatment if I could get it hauled up behind the barn again. I'ts probably time for new bottom paint and certainly could use some touch-up on the top sides. And I just discovered that someone sideswiped it in the marina again, and left a set of horizontal scrapes on the stem.