Well, I read a lot, thought about it a lot, and when the paint arrived, I dove in. The 73 Oday 22 I recently purchased (for a pittance) is in reasonable shape considering her age (still much younger than I), but being a first time sailboat owner I was not sure of what awaited me. She seemed reasonably sound at the time, and now, after much more detailed inspection I think I am aware of all of her faults.
The hull was my immediate concern (after all, what is a boat in not a hull), because my trailerable sailboat is destined for a marina. I launched her once at a public boat launch, not a bad experience except for the long drive to a steep enough ramp, but recovery, that was a nightmare - partly because of the awkwardness of the boat itself, but mostly because of the other idiots, un, boaters, that were competing for ramp time. Sorry, never again.
But of course I'm posting here in the trailer sailor forum because as of today, I am indeed a trailer sailor, and that has given me a distinct advantage as a do-it-yourselfer.
Before she goes in, and each off-season, I will pull her out and perform the due diligence of bottom maintenance.
Painting on a trailer is rather non-technical, except for how to get under the rails (as I call them). I employed the technique of jacking the trailer all the way down, supporting the rear, than jacking it up to lift the rear off the trailer. When dry, I reversed and did the opposite for the front.
I also repaired some of the more severe blisters, though many smaller ones still remain and will be dealt with this winter. Here as some photos of my progress so far, showing the small but workable clearance I achieved through jacking. The precarious angle of the saw horses on the rear of the boat caught my attention after I took the photo and was corrected, though due to the boat resting firmly on the front portion of the trailer there was never any danger of collapse.
The hull was my immediate concern (after all, what is a boat in not a hull), because my trailerable sailboat is destined for a marina. I launched her once at a public boat launch, not a bad experience except for the long drive to a steep enough ramp, but recovery, that was a nightmare - partly because of the awkwardness of the boat itself, but mostly because of the other idiots, un, boaters, that were competing for ramp time. Sorry, never again.
But of course I'm posting here in the trailer sailor forum because as of today, I am indeed a trailer sailor, and that has given me a distinct advantage as a do-it-yourselfer.
Before she goes in, and each off-season, I will pull her out and perform the due diligence of bottom maintenance.
Painting on a trailer is rather non-technical, except for how to get under the rails (as I call them). I employed the technique of jacking the trailer all the way down, supporting the rear, than jacking it up to lift the rear off the trailer. When dry, I reversed and did the opposite for the front.
I also repaired some of the more severe blisters, though many smaller ones still remain and will be dealt with this winter. Here as some photos of my progress so far, showing the small but workable clearance I achieved through jacking. The precarious angle of the saw horses on the rear of the boat caught my attention after I took the photo and was corrected, though due to the boat resting firmly on the front portion of the trailer there was never any danger of collapse.
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