New member hello

Use this forum to discuss anything that doesn't fit anywhere else.
Post Reply
Keith66
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2013 9:14 am
Location: Benfleet UK

New member hello

Post by Keith66 »

Hi All, I just joined up as i am in need of advice.
I have just been offered a Freedom 35, built in ther Uk in 84, she is what you would call a project boat & is in need of Tlc. Primary problem is the boat is in a very inaccessible location & will take a considerable amount of ingenuity & hard graft to move.
She was partway through a refit when her owner sadly died. She is very dry having been stored in a barn for 20 years but there are ominous signs of past damp problems, on several bulkheads the teak veneer has lifted & curled up & all her sea cocks have been removed & the glass ground back.
I believe it likely that there has been some water ingress into the core around these.
I will be taking a moisture meter to her imminently.
Question is are these boats prone to core failure?

whimsy
Posts: 57
Joined: Wed Jan 14, 2009 10:00 am

Re: New member hello

Post by whimsy »

I only have experience with a US built model, not a UK version.

I haven't heard of any where the core was sealed properly with resin at the factory, although things were bedded. I know it wasn't done that way on my boat. I have done various core restoration projects, but they have mostly been small areas, as water does not migrate rapidly through end-grain balsa. I had more problems with the deck than the hull.
s/v Flutterby, Freedom 33 cat ketch, now junk rigged

User avatar
1980raven
Posts: 101
Joined: Mon Feb 15, 2010 8:50 pm
Location: Warwick Cove, Rhode Island

Re: New member hello

Post by 1980raven »

Having spent the last 3 years bringing a Freedom 28CK back from the grave: I can tell you that water will get into the core anywhere that hardware is improperly bedded. I opened up from the top side and replaced approximately 60 to 70% of the balsa coring on Ravens decks. I also found wet coring in the transom which came in around the rectangular opening that the steering quadrant passes through. Replaced lower 1/2 of transom coring. I removed and replaced all the thru hulls. Fortunately the coring around all the factory installed thru hulls were properly isolated with solid FRP around the openings. I still have some wet coring below the waterline on the port side (Raven is port side low at the waterline). I decided to replace all that I could from inside the boat and leave the rest. The starboard side is totally dry. I believe the water entered the hull from the inside when the boat sat on the hard for 3 years and filled up with about 1 ft rainwater. Back to your question. If the boat has spent 20 years in a dry barn you should not find a lot of wet coring as a result of the storage. If you find any I am sure it occurred prior to the storage.
Freedom 28 CK Hull# 14, centerboard, wrap around sails with WB booms
Narragansett Bay, RI

Keith66
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2013 9:14 am
Location: Benfleet UK

Re: New member hello

Post by Keith66 »

We will soon find out as i will be surveying her shortly. The owners have agreed to me pulling core samples from the inside & im going to do this in any suspect areas that i find with the moisture meter. I dont expect she will be too bad. Main problem is the old boy dismantled so much that she needs a lot of work, rebuild galley, nav station, heads, saloon. Thats for starters, all the headlinings are out & the wiring has been stripped. Basically its pretty much start again with all systems. I do fancy having a crack at it as she is a good looking boat as to if its viable probably not!
Its all going to come down to getting her out & the cost. I estimate 10 days for 2-3 men to move her to where she can be lifted on to road transport.
There is not enough room on site for a crane & low loader & only way to shift her is if she will go on a hiab lorry. I have found a specialist transport firm who has a wagon with hiab capable of lifting her & if i take the pushpit off & winches off the deck she is 2" under the height limit. If he cant move her i think she will probably be broken up &t hat would be a shame. Still we shall see!

peaceandfreedom
Posts: 258
Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2009 8:51 pm
Location: F33 CK & F38 CK Milford ct

Re: New member hello

Post by peaceandfreedom »

Breaking her up would indeed be a shame. I say go for it. Regardless of the possible core problems, stripped interior or location, you are already in love with her. You can overcome all the obstacles and end up, as Garry Hoyt says "The prettiest girl at the dance". Take lots of pictures or better yet, have the BBC turn your journey into a documentary.

happy sailing
Jim D

Keith66
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2013 9:14 am
Location: Benfleet UK

Re: New member hello

Post by Keith66 »

Did the Survey today. moisture meter read zero everywhere. light hammer testing found no bad spots & 8 core samples came out with the balsa as sound & dry as the day she was laid up. It is obvious that under the skip like appearance of the interior She is in good sound condition. The interior is done in light oak & there is enough matching plywood stood next to her to finish the job. In reality she is a time warp boat, all the elecftrics will need replacing &the instruments are obsolete, but they may work so what the hell. Now its head scratch time & work out how to do it & pay for it.

Keith66
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2013 9:14 am
Location: Benfleet UK

Re: New member hello

Post by Keith66 »

Post script on this boat, I did not take her on. Unfortunately she is laying in a barn that is extremely inaccessible. The access where she came in by road was sold some years ago & then built on. The only way to get her out now is to winch her out on skids some 150 yards through the woods. The access is so small a crane or trailer cannot be used. I worked out how to do the operation & it was going to take a truckload of equipment & three men approx 2 weeks to get her out, followed by specialist hiab lorry to load & transport. Moving her came to an eye atering cost once everything was factored in.
The owner started to move the goalposts, i made an offer & he thinks she is worth far more than she is. The sad thing is that he will probably end up cutting her up in a few years.
I will stick with my smaller yacht & eat steak!

Post Reply