CP16 Refurb while in the water?

[vanler]

These Forums have been a great help so far.  I've read the repair threads extensively so I hope I'm not going to ask too many duplicate questions but I felt like I needed to start my own thread. 

I'm buying an old (late 70's) CP 16 from a co-worker (accountability:).  I have no yard or garage to speak of and also no car with a hitch to trailer the boat.  The coworker will be helping me by trailering the boat and helping me launch it.  I have a house on a canal here on merritt island florida and will keep it at my dock.  Of course, it needs some repair.  The hull and bottom paint look to be in pretty damn good shape except for some dings on the forward and bottom of the keel.  They seem to penetrate the gel coat but not much of the fibreglass if any.  so......

-Does it seem reasonable to just launch the boat, dock it, and attempt repairs in the water?  I'm anticipating doing the scupper leak check/repair and extensive interior refurbishment(paint and wood).  It also needs some rigging hardware but the sails/mast seem to be in very good shape. 

-How soon should I think about taking it to a boatyard or something to have the bottom repaired/repainted?  Again, I can't do it myself b/c of the lack of space here on land. 

I'm getting the boat (currently named BAD lil' Boat) for $400 so I'm not averse to spending some money fixin' her up. 

I plan on posting some "before" pics next week sometime.   Thanks, ~vanler

[Cricket Crew]

~vanler ,
Hey ... Congratulations!
If you suspect any problems with the bottom of your boat, it might be best to tackle that issue first before you launch at your place/dock. Is it feasable to do any bottom work first, before you have/take the boat at your place?
That way, you'll have no worries and can devote your attention to other tasks at you leisure.
Can't wait to see your pics!
Later,
AJ    '75 CP16 'CRICKET' #60

[mgoller]

Hey Vanler,
Yeah, I second that.  You probably wont get any leaks from a few dings as the layers of fiberglass matt are pretty thick in those areas.  But why not take a few minutes and fix them on the trailer.  Scuff sand the areas with 80 grit by hand if needed.  Fill with some gelcoat and smooth as best you can.  Next time you pull the boat you can do it better or maybe smooth the area with some finer sandpaper.
otherwise I think your plan is fine.  You can get a 16 into Bristol shape in the water.
In fact, its easier in some ways.

[vanler]

Thanks for the advice guys.  As it turns out, we couldn't put it right in the water anyway b/c the nearby ramp was closed due to crosswinds.  She's sitting in my driveway now and will probably get in the water monday or wednesday.  I'm going to make good use of this time and do the waterline scupper sealent and the rub rails tomorrow. 







I'm also going to repair the dings in the keel.

I'm kind of worried about the interior.  As you can see from that last pic it's in pretty rough shape.  It rained today and there was a 1/4 inch water in a couple places.  Mostly probably due to the lack of a real hatch board.  I'll be ordering new teak and a hatch board from Hutchins, but what I'm concerned about is the wood for the berths.  It felt pretty soft.  What's under these?

Also, there is no foam under the cockpit center like I've read about on these boards.  Just a plywood (probably poor condition) support about 2 or 3" thick about halfway down the cockpit. 

Comments?  I'm off to search threads for help.   
edit:
http://com-pacowners.com/forum/index.php?topic=580.0 found this one.  It can be done.  Mine is in similar condition with the glassed over wood.  I guess maybe I'll ask hutchins for the dimensions of the berths.  And I'm assuming they can go in in pieces cause there's no way an 8 ft berth is fitting through that hatch

[it's not all negative.  Such a well proportioned little boat.  love it already]

[vanler]

Whew!  Getting the rubrails back on is as tough as they say.  I tried setting them in the sun.  No joy.  I tried soaking them in hot water in the bath.  A little closer.  The winner turned out to be baking them in the oven at 200 degrees for about 5 minutes.  Then it was a piece of cake. 

[vanler]

some demolition started so far.

Repairs needed:
-new chain locker
-new compression post
-new bunks and bunk support rail
-new cabin ceiling "core"

Lessons learned:
-it's been said but I really could have bought a boat in Good condition for the money all these repairs will cost me.  That said, I'm not overwhelmed yet and when I'm done I'll have a boat that's thoroughly mine.
-Hutchins folks are quite nice.  Buying a bunch of replacement parts and they were also kind enough to explain that the glassed in plywood headliner is "core" and that the foam that was beneath the bunks is to prevent the hull from dimpling when the boat is picked up with a forklift.






the scary part is that I didn't have to cut the bunks out at all.  I just pulled them out by hand and the screws and glass tape came with them.


the concrete sole seems to be in decent shape.  If I go much farther I might as well build a boat from scratch.

[crbakdesign]

I've been there and done that on my 16.  You've done most of the hard stuff, the rest is a labor of love.  There's more than a couple of sailors aboard in the Gallery who've chronicled their efforts to bring a worthy boat back from Davey Jone's landlocker!

[vanler]

I've been there and done that on my 16.  You've done most of the hard stuff, the rest is a labor of love.  There's more than a couple of sailors aboard in the Gallery who've chronicled their efforts to bring a worthy boat back from Davey Jone's landlocker!

Yeah, I've been checking some of those out.  They let me know that it could be done! 

I'm kind of worried that the hard part will be glassing in new core on the cabin ceiling.  Glassing upside down sounds messy. 

more to come....

[vanler]

Whew!  Refurb complete.  I've upgraded the boat to "work in progress".  Here's the latest:









The gelcoat needs some work, and I haven't painted under the cockpit and in the lazarette area yet, but the hard work is done. 

Yesterday, my wife and I went sailing in our own boat for the first time.  I think she's almost ready to start speaking to me again.    I didn't have a downhaul line on the boom and the boom flew off the mast at one point.  Made a few other novice mistakes too.  I should have rigged the main and jib and bungeed them up at the dock instead of trying to rig them and run them up while trying to keep the bow into the wind. 

Also, I had trouble with the line from the clew in the main to the cleat on the boom.  Does the line just go through one of the eyes on the end of the boom, then to the cleat?  This didn't seem to hold the main very close to the boom, but it could have been right. 

If anyone has any questions about the refurb on the boat I'd be happy to answer them, but I'm trying to forget the parts involving epoxy and fiberglass in my hair. 

[Paul]

Congratulations on your project and your first sail!!

The interior looks great.  I like the trim piece just in front of the post.  Did you order the post from Hutchins?  I like that you kept the teak forward.  What brand and type of paint did you use in the interior?

Again, nice job.  Enjoy!

Paul

[vanler]

Congratulations on your project and your first sail!!

The interior looks great.  I like the trim piece just in front of the post.  Did you order the post from Hutchins?  I like that you kept the teak forward.  What brand and type of paint did you use in the interior?

Again, nice job.  Enjoy!

Paul

Thanks!  Yeah, I ordered the compression post, teak slides, hatchboard and the "chain locker" from Hutchins.  I really like the look of the new squared compression post. 

For paint I followed the Floridaze repair example and used Killz.  Just white pigmented oil-base killz.  It stuck to everything (even stains, as advertised), but it doesn't cover as nicely as latex paint and I had to do 3 coats.  that takes a while when it's pretty much impossible NOT to paint yourself into a corner when painting inside a very small cabin.  What was nice is that Killz also comes in a spray can.  Very useful for those hard-to-fit-a -brush areas. 

[B.Hart]

Great job! another com-pac back from the grave. Now for the fun part, SAILING