"Still active and always useful "
The hull, OMG! THE HULL!
The day came when the Marina staff strapped her in and up she went, gracefully emerging from the water for the first time in at least 10 years.
We expected the 3 inches of sea life on the hull, so as they scraped the hull free of most of that we felt pretty good.about what we were seeing at that moment. Once the Sailboat was in the yard and began to dry a bit we were able to see more and more little blisters showing up, but they looked small so after a few weeks of drying out Captain John began to grind and grind and get shot in the eyes by the glycol escaping under the pressure; what a mess!
We suppose there were at least 2500 blisters by the time Captain finish the entire hull. They would look like a small pocket that you wanted to just stick a pin in it and let it drain,but as he ground them out they grew to what made me think of caverns , some 12-18 inches in diameter. Some so deep you could stand inside the boat and look in the cabinets and see daylight through 70% of the holes left to refill with fiberglass and resin!
This job was beyond stripping the hull and relaying fiberglass. The pits were so deep they must be done one by one. Layering the fiberglass clothe and resin for THREE FULL YEARS before we completed that job!
We had "Beer Parties" for friends and family to help, they did a great job. We hired people to help and had to re-do most of their work. We did have a few family and friends that gave their weekends to work on her and they did good work, but that was only a fraction of what had to be done.
So, if you want it done right, what? Do it yourself! We DID IT....it was hard to believe the day we filled in the last divot.
We named her "Sea Leopard" during this time period.
I really never want to see anything like that again and know it is a DIY project. Check out the slide show, I think the hull is there. If not, go to Captain John's page and I know they are in his collection!
Whew! Glad that was over! Now it was ready for putty and sanding smooth; 4 coats of epoxy sealer and 3 coats of bottom paint.
Who knew there was THAT MUCH hull and keel under that boat! We know every inch of it now though, intimately!
We expected the 3 inches of sea life on the hull, so as they scraped the hull free of most of that we felt pretty good.about what we were seeing at that moment. Once the Sailboat was in the yard and began to dry a bit we were able to see more and more little blisters showing up, but they looked small so after a few weeks of drying out Captain John began to grind and grind and get shot in the eyes by the glycol escaping under the pressure; what a mess!
We suppose there were at least 2500 blisters by the time Captain finish the entire hull. They would look like a small pocket that you wanted to just stick a pin in it and let it drain,but as he ground them out they grew to what made me think of caverns , some 12-18 inches in diameter. Some so deep you could stand inside the boat and look in the cabinets and see daylight through 70% of the holes left to refill with fiberglass and resin!
This job was beyond stripping the hull and relaying fiberglass. The pits were so deep they must be done one by one. Layering the fiberglass clothe and resin for THREE FULL YEARS before we completed that job!
We had "Beer Parties" for friends and family to help, they did a great job. We hired people to help and had to re-do most of their work. We did have a few family and friends that gave their weekends to work on her and they did good work, but that was only a fraction of what had to be done.
So, if you want it done right, what? Do it yourself! We DID IT....it was hard to believe the day we filled in the last divot.
We named her "Sea Leopard" during this time period.
I really never want to see anything like that again and know it is a DIY project. Check out the slide show, I think the hull is there. If not, go to Captain John's page and I know they are in his collection!
Whew! Glad that was over! Now it was ready for putty and sanding smooth; 4 coats of epoxy sealer and 3 coats of bottom paint.
Who knew there was THAT MUCH hull and keel under that boat! We know every inch of it now though, intimately!
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"Have a 2010 43 and whilst racing recently and well heeled over on port had similar experience. Only in the aft heads and haven’t as yet sorted out where the ingress came from but suspect the shower drain. Never happened before in 15 years with…"
IS SEAKNOTS BENETEAU 40/43 ACTIVE.
I note there has been no activity on SeaKnots Beneteau 40/43 since early 2025.Is one of my favourite boating sites still alive and kicking?BilgolabandsSee More
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