Franklin has left the stage...

[Franklin]

After owning Dreamboat, my 1996 H376, for 13 years, living aboard for 12 and cruising for almost 7 years on her, 30,000 miles and sailing halfway around the world, I have sold her to a Canadian living in Fiji. I will surely miss her.

We moved to a bigger boat because we needed more room for our new baby. We purchased Cookie Monster IV in Trinidad which is a Whitby 55'. This boat will need a lot of work to make it cruising friendly. Currently it is setup for being a dock queen. 120 volt everything you could think of. Getting rid of the huge satellite dish, dish washer, 50 bottle wine rack, trash compactor and 120 volt fridge system to make room for long voyage food/supply storage and simplicity. We are keeping the washer/dryer, sink disposal and room for some Rum though

Going to add stern arch for dinghy and solar panels plus hard dodger/bimini with more solar panels.

It is going to take a while to get this boat into what I think a long term cruising boat should be like (we have time...not going around the world again for another 5 years) but we really love this boat. Very nicely taken care of and solidly built. My heart though still belongs to Dreamboat. That was an awesome boat.

There is no Whitby forum here but I will check in from time to time.

 

[jssailem]

Franklin... you are a "Cruising Sailor", a "Big Boat" sailor. etc... There are all sorts of places we can enjoy your ideas and insight as you go through the process of refitting your 'new to you' boat.
How about a picture or two of the "Whitby". You have an opportunity to see what is needed to bring a boat up to the Cruising standards from an experienced cruiser.
You have a great future. Please share.

 

[kappykaplan]

How about a picture or two of the "Whitby".

 

[Benny17441]

Where have you been? Long time no post.

 

[Scott B]

After owning Dreamboat, my 1996 H376, for 13 years, living aboard for 12 and cruising for almost 7 years on her, 30,000 miles and sailing halfway around the world, I have sold her to a Canadian living in Fiji. I will surely miss her.

We moved to a bigger boat because we needed more room for our new baby. We purchased Cookie Monster IV in Trinidad which is a Whitby 55'. This boat will need a lot of work to make it cruising friendly. Currently it is setup for being a dock queen. 120 volt everything you could think of. Getting rid of the huge satellite dish, dish washer, 50 bottle wine rack, trash compactor and 120 volt fridge system to make room for long voyage food/supply storage and simplicity. We are keeping the washer/dryer, sink disposal and room for some Rum though

Going to add stern arch for dinghy and solar panels plus hard dodger/bimini with more solar panels.

It is going to take a while to get this boat into what I think a long term cruising boat should be like (we have time...not going around the world again for another 5 years) but we really love this boat. Very nicely taken care of and solidly built. My heart though still belongs to Dreamboat. That was an awesome boat.

There is no Whitby forum here but I will check in from time to time.

There is Sailboatowners, which is the main site and Ask All Sailors which is the generic forum across all makes. Don't be a stranger. We're all interested in what you're up to.

 

[Franklin]

I'll post pictures once I get the boat how I like it.

 

[jssailem]

Oh... Like my girls... No pictures till the lipstick and eye liner is just perfect.
Well know we want to see the boat warts and all. It is our way of celebrating your success as we see the developments.

 

[Franklin]

Here is a link to the previous owner's videos he took for me to help me see the boat while I was in Fiji.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOHKBtznW93WdFItxC-n7jw/videos

 

[Rick D]

Nice. Looks perfect for a family cruising boat. 55 ft looks like a challenge to get used to but plenty of others have.

 

[jssailem]

Nice looking boat Franklin. Can not wait to see your modifications. Thought it looked pretty good as is. Maybe not ready for your passages, but pretty darn nice. Congrats..

 

[Jerry Clark H356 SV Persi]

Congratulations on your new boat. I remember one of your early posts where you went offshore and got very seasick and the reality of the dream came home. So many have the dream and so few actually do it. You stuck it out and have become one of the most seasoned and accomplished cruisers on this forum. Fairwinds and many more miles under your keel!

 

[Tally Ho]

After owning Dreamboat, my 1996 H376, for 13 years, living aboard for 12 and cruising for almost 7 years on her, 30,000 miles and sailing halfway around the world, I have sold her to a Canadian living in Fiji. I will surely miss her.

We moved to a bigger boat because we needed more room for our new baby. We purchased Cookie Monster IV in Trinidad which is a Whitby 55'. This boat will need a lot of work to make it cruising friendly. Currently it is setup for being a dock queen. 120 volt everything you could think of. Getting rid of the huge satellite dish, dish washer, 50 bottle wine rack, trash compactor and 120 volt fridge system to make room for long voyage food/supply storage and simplicity. We are keeping the washer/dryer, sink disposal and room for some Rum though

Going to add stern arch for dinghy and solar panels plus hard dodger/bimini with more solar panels.

It is going to take a while to get this boat into what I think a long term cruising boat should be like (we have time...not going around the world again for another 5 years) but we really love this boat. Very nicely taken care of and solidly built. My heart though still belongs to Dreamboat. That was an awesome boat.

There is no Whitby forum here but I will check in from time to time.

No! Not the wine rack !

Can’t wait to see how you make her yours.

Greg

 

[artboas]

After owning Dreamboat, my 1996 H376, for 13 years, living aboard for 12 and cruising for almost 7 years on her, 30,000 miles and sailing halfway around the world, I have sold her to a Canadian living in Fiji. I will surely miss her.

We moved to a bigger boat because we needed more room for our new baby. We purchased Cookie Monster IV in Trinidad which is a Whitby 55'. This boat will need a lot of work to make it cruising friendly. Currently it is setup for being a dock queen. 120 volt everything you could think of. Getting rid of the huge satellite dish, dish washer, 50 bottle wine rack, trash compactor and 120 volt fridge system to make room for long voyage food/supply storage and simplicity. We are keeping the washer/dryer, sink disposal and room for some Rum though

Going to add stern arch for dinghy and solar panels plus hard dodger/bimini with more solar panels.

It is going to take a while to get this boat into what I think a long term cruising boat should be like (we have time...not going around the world again for another 5 years) but we really love this boat. Very nicely taken care of and solidly built. My heart though still belongs to Dreamboat. That was an awesome boat.

There is no Whitby forum here but I will check in from time to time.

I just went through all the videos.
While I’m sure you know this, all of the systems, electronics, etc are needing replacement. This is a massive job.
The systems for bow thruster are obviously re-fit a few times, and the use of hydraulics for this powered by a PTO is scary.
I do not believe those were the original masts, as in-mast furling wasn’t around when Whitby built this boat.
It looks like a number of the power winches are reasonably new.
Very scary is the rotten timber under the toe rail. That will be a major fix.
The main engine is new, but I believe the generator is original. The 6kw unit which was removed was probably a DC genset.

I cannot imagine doing a refit of this nature without a professional yard, and several capable people being involved.
I wish you good luck with this!!