Looking for advice from experienced Vega owners

[brockhaus77]

Hi,

I'm looking at a 1971 Vega. It's real cheap, but I'm worried that I
will be spending a lot of time and money fixing it up. I would be
grateful if any of you could share your experience on what things can
go wrong/broken and how much money it takes to keep up such an old
boat. In particular, any information on the Vetus Diesel engine
(typical problems, repairs, lifetime, costs...) would be appreciated.
Also, I noted some signs of the dreaded "sunken cabin roof" syndrom
(i.e. the mast is pressing down too hard on the mahagony beam). Has
anybody actually have that beam break or other expensive repairs due
to that problem?

Unfortunately I am NOT a natural tinkerer or have unlimited time and
energy to do a lot myself (beyond cleaning, small fixes, painting).

Thanks - Sebastian

 

[hielke007]

Hi Sebastian,
the mahoni beam isn\'t a real beam on the \'71 Vega. It is just a plate to
cover up for an inverted U-beam made of polyester. The U beam has a hole in
the middle for feeding cables through and is thus not very strong...the
wooden part that you see is only a plate/cover! It is not a real big
operation to put something stronger in place (there is a photo shooting on
the Yahoo! Vega group\'s files directory) but is something that absolutely
needs to be done when the deck shows sagging. For the rest, Vega\'s are
pretty tough but I have seen them in all forms, good & pristine, to pretty
bad and neglected. Needles to say that it depends on lot on this on how much
money your going to spend.
Is there really a Vetus diesel inside? (can be because \'71\'s where
originally fitted with an Albin petrol engine, later -\'72/\'73- they went to
Volvo MD6 and the last models where fitted with a MD7 from Volvo.) This
would mean that there is a pretty young diesel engine inside...
P.S. all the Vega interior can be unscrewed an taken home to rework and a
lot of parts are available. In general if you are looking for an older,
seaworthy cruiser, with excellent seakeeping capacities the Vega is a pretty
good choice!
Where are you located and where do you plan on going sailing?
Best regards,
Hielke van Oostrum V1033 Drivfjäder Holland (p.s. not very experienced...)

 

[chris20636]

I am not a good person to get advice from, since I just bought a
"fixer upper" and don't have a lot of experience with the boat, yet.
However, I'll add my 1 cents worth to the excellent information in the
previous email.

Three words: Sea Trial, Survey.

A sea trial with the previous owner, will let you know right away, if
the engine starts, if it runs, if it seems to run smoothly, etc. Of
course, this may not be an option if the boat is on land, and the
owner doesn't want to put it back in the water.

I know that making the decision to get a costly survey on an
inexpensive (I won't use the word cheap ) boat, that you may not
buy, can be a painful decision. I'm fighting that battle now. But
here are some of the thoughts that I would be having, if I where in
your shoes.

What is the intended use of the boat? If used for cruising in
sheltered water, for day sails or weekend outings, in fair weather, I
would probably not worry too much about getting a survey or doing too
much to fix the sagging roof (unless it looks really bad). I would
consider loosening the stays/shrouds and maybe having a compression
post handy for wedging under the mast, in case of emergencies.
However, I would want to get some more opinions on that polyester, U
beam "thingy". Like you, I was assuming that it was wood.

If you plan to use the boat hard (racing, or offshore use), and you
don't want to do a lot of work on the boat, then a survey would be
recommended.

Finally, if the boat is so inexpensive, that you could afford to throw
the money away, then I would just buy it and take a chance. If it
becomes a hassle, sell it off, or donate it for a tax break. Of
course, if you end up not keeping the boat, you are that much further
from buying the boat the "fits" you.

Another thing to think about, is that the price of the boat may be
your cheapest expense. For example, I bought my boat for US$500. Boat
stands were US$600. Haul-out and storage was US$400. Liability
insurance is US$90 for the year. I had to move the boat to it's new
home, via water, so I had to buy basic safety gear and inexpensive
life raft, for about another US$300. Since I plan to fix her up for
offshore use, I will most likely get a survey done for US$450. So I'm
down US$2340 for a US$500 boat, that I haven't even started working on
yet.

Good Luck,
Chris
Vega #265
Chesapeake Bay, USA

 

[stevebirch2002]

Hi Seb

The engine should push the Vega along at 6 knots. Check if the engine is a
diesel Volvo MD6A (10HP) or MD7A (13HP) or if it is the Albin Petrol engine
(12HP). You should be able to tell what type of engine is original by the
number of the Vega.

0 - 1375 (about) = Petrol Albin engine 021 or 022

1375 - 3000 (about) = Volvo MD6A or MD6B Diesel

3000 - 3450 = Volvo MD7A Diesel

They all came with a variable pitch prop that automatically change pitch with
the engine revs.

Kind Regards

Steve Birch Vega "Southern Comfort" V1703

At 20:14 27/07/02 +0000, you wrote:

 

[brockhaus77]

I took the Vega I'm looking at out for a trial sail today. She sails
fine, but the engine barely got her up to 3 knots even with full
throttle (after a while, the engine also overheated, in 90+ degrees).
It didn't seem to be an engine problem, though; I think it could be the
propellor, clutch or transmission. The propellor had been cleaned 9
weeks ago, but the locals think that in our hot weather it might have
fouled up with barnacles again. Could that really slow her down that
much? (The motor seems to have around 10 hp, not exactly a lot, but
both Chris' experience with a 6 hp outboarder and the fact that with
just the Genoa up and light wind we were going 4.2 knots into the wind
tells me that the motor should have given us more speed than we got).
Also, I am a bit uncertain about the question of propellor pitch - some
material I saw seems to say that the pitch is variable, but this Vega
may not have original equipment. Maybe there is a way to adjust the
pitch?
I would appreciate any info you have on what's a reasonable speed to
expect under full throttle with 10 hp, what possible problems might
have slowed us down and how much money and work it might possibly take
to fix those things.

Thanks - you guys are great! - Sebastian

 

[skipperjs]

Hello Sebastian -

I can definitely confirm that seaweed and barnacle growth can impede the speed to 3 knots and even less. I have a Westerbeke 18 HP diesel which normally moves my boat along at an easy 6-7 knots. A couple of summers ago when the boat sat for a couple of weeks in the harbor during a stretch of really hot, still days, I dropped the mooring line and headed into the dock to find that she just barely made any headway. I let her drift back to the mooring to check this out. I was sure that it was the engine. I dove under to check out the prop and found that the prop was bound up with seaweed and barnacle growth that took a lot of time and effort to chop, cut, and scrap to free it up. I can see how the engine could overheat in that situation. After 9 weeks, I am surprised you could move it at all! I bet you don't have any engine problems, just a fouled up prop!

Good luck,
Drusie

Drusie Sheldon
"Spindrift", Vega 1879
Saunderstown, RI

 

[brockhaus77]

Hi Stephen,

meanwhile the prop was checked and found badly overgrown, so I guess
that's the problem. One of the previous owners actually replaced the
Albin gas engine with a Vetus Diesel (7 kW which I think is about 10
hp). I suspect they also replaced the propeller and drive shaft, so I'm
not sure there is any pitching going on.
Thanks for y'all's advice.
- Sebastian (soon to be owner of Vega 1060)