For What It's Worth Dept.
I bought a '77 Cape Dory 25 that was sitting on a storage trailer. It had been sailed from Seattle to Alaska and then down to San Diego. It weights around 2 tons or a bit more. After $1,800 getting the trailer legal and restrenghtened, I brought it home to totally redo her. The original survey cost me around $200.We worked on her for almost two years. Did everything to her..I mean everything.It's a solid boat and could probably go just about anywhere. My wife and love to sail it. She's 5'2" and I'm 5'11" so in recent months I've decided to get a larger boat with stand up head room. She can get around pretty good inside but it's getting a bit too much for me. It's great for a for few days but that's it for us. Sometimes I just like to sit in the covered cockpit (we have a boom tent) abd just talk with some of our live aboard neighbors. It' s in a slip and about once a year I'll bring her home to upgrade a few items, etc. Can't beat it. Ericsons are pretty good boats but as in everything, a sailboat is full of compromises.I can't remember if they have keel bolts or not but I'd sure check that out and the stringers, also. Mine happemed to have the ballast encapsulated (which is what I was looking for at the time.)I bought an old '94 3/4 ton Chevy pickup, 4x4 with a 350 to haul it. Does o.k. and the 4 wheel drive really comes in handy when trying to get out of a slippery boat ramp.I made a homemade rig to raise the mast. Takes at least two people.Work on the boat can be seen athttp://svGladysErzella.photosite.comThe Don Casey book was used constantly in the restoration as were a few others.I, too, had to use a smaller engine as the PO had a 9.9 HP but it was a two stroke. We can't buy those in CA. So I went with a 5 Honda with alternator and long shaft. You're lucky in that you don't have to pull it up each time to flush it out.I don't know about insurance as I sent the original survey (which showed two problems) and then a lot of photos showing the completed repairs and the refit.Also, there's a dye I used with the surveyor to check the standing rigging. We found some of the fittings with almost microscopic cracks. I just redid all the rigging and went one size over standard.Hope some of this helps. Repairs, modifications, upgrades can all be done by yourself rather than paying someone else. It's the only way to really learn all the stuff on a boat.Hope this helps.Thanks
I bought a '77 Cape Dory 25 that was sitting on a storage trailer. It had been sailed from Seattle to Alaska and then down to San Diego. It weights around 2 tons or a bit more. After $1,800 getting the trailer legal and restrenghtened, I brought it home to totally redo her. The original survey cost me around $200.We worked on her for almost two years. Did everything to her..I mean everything.It's a solid boat and could probably go just about anywhere. My wife and love to sail it. She's 5'2" and I'm 5'11" so in recent months I've decided to get a larger boat with stand up head room. She can get around pretty good inside but it's getting a bit too much for me. It's great for a for few days but that's it for us. Sometimes I just like to sit in the covered cockpit (we have a boom tent) abd just talk with some of our live aboard neighbors. It' s in a slip and about once a year I'll bring her home to upgrade a few items, etc. Can't beat it. Ericsons are pretty good boats but as in everything, a sailboat is full of compromises.I can't remember if they have keel bolts or not but I'd sure check that out and the stringers, also. Mine happemed to have the ballast encapsulated (which is what I was looking for at the time.)I bought an old '94 3/4 ton Chevy pickup, 4x4 with a 350 to haul it. Does o.k. and the 4 wheel drive really comes in handy when trying to get out of a slippery boat ramp.I made a homemade rig to raise the mast. Takes at least two people.Work on the boat can be seen athttp://svGladysErzella.photosite.comThe Don Casey book was used constantly in the restoration as were a few others.I, too, had to use a smaller engine as the PO had a 9.9 HP but it was a two stroke. We can't buy those in CA. So I went with a 5 Honda with alternator and long shaft. You're lucky in that you don't have to pull it up each time to flush it out.I don't know about insurance as I sent the original survey (which showed two problems) and then a lot of photos showing the completed repairs and the refit.Also, there's a dye I used with the surveyor to check the standing rigging. We found some of the fittings with almost microscopic cracks. I just redid all the rigging and went one size over standard.Hope some of this helps. Repairs, modifications, upgrades can all be done by yourself rather than paying someone else. It's the only way to really learn all the stuff on a boat.Hope this helps.Thanks