New Bertram 33 FBC Owner

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kohna
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New Bertram 33 FBC Owner

Post by kohna »

I have recently purchased a FBC in Florida and will be taking it home to Texas on its own bottom. This is my first boat of this size so please excuse me if I ask some dumb questions in the upcoming months. [:)] If anyone has some tips on navigating the Okeechobee waterway and the Florida to TX inter-coastal I would appreciate it. Weather permitting I will be leaving Ft. Lauderdale on October 8. I have a project manger helping me get the vessel ready for the trip and he is going through it to make sure she is sound.
<hr noshade size="1"> <div align="left">Gary Marsh Kil' N Time 1988 Bertram 33 FBC 7.4 L. Mercruiser's Kemah, Texas http://www.kwshosting.com</div id="left"> [img=left]http://www.aspe-houston.com/Bertram/boat_front.jpg [/img=left]
IRGuy
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Post by IRGuy »

Kohna... Welcome to the Bertram 33 sandbox! Here you will find a great bunch of owners who can pretty much answer almost any questions you will have about your boat. Don't fret if you feel your questions are "dumb".. as someone said here to me whan I first joined.. "The only dumb questions are the ones you don't ask!". So.. ask away. We all started just like you. But I can warn you, so you might as well post it soon.. you will be asked a lot of questions about your boat.. Was she listed for sale on Yacht World or another site? (Some of us follow the sales of our boats closely.) What engines do you have? Where was she kept, where will you keep her? What kind of boats have you owned before? Does she need any work, and do you plan on doing that yourself? Are you a fisherman or a cruising family guy? Stuff like that. Several of us have made major repairs to our boats, so there is a wealth of info available to you. Just feel free to ask. Sorry, but I don't have any experience about the areas you are asking about.. but I suspect someone will post something.. my recent personal ICW experiences have been from FL to VA.. so I can't be of any help with your immediate plans. Again.. welcome.. glad to have you aboard!
Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com "Phoenix" 1983 FBC Cummins 6Bs - 315HP Wilmington, NC
dougl33
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Post by dougl33 »

Gary, Welcome aboard. As Frank noted above, please tell us a little about your boat: Year Engines Etc...
Regards, Doug L.
1986 33 Bertram FBC Cummins 6BTA's Queen Elizabeth
Marblehead, MA
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lwrenn
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Post by lwrenn »

Your trip will depend on the water level in the lake and if the channel is open for the draft of your boat. otherwise motor to Marathon Florida and then you can start the nw trip. My advice is a case of raycor filters on board for the engines. I would also do impellers to be safe. Sounds like a fun trip and where do you plan to cross the gulf bypassing the panhandle, keep an eye on weather even in October. good luck Larry
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buzzk
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Post by buzzk »

Welcome, I'm sure you'll have a great trip. Buzz
buzzk 1988 Bertram 33 FBC Cummins 6BTA's Buzz Off Morehead City, NC
captgene
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Post by captgene »

I can tell you the water level for the Okeechobee waterway is high enough. We were at the St. Lucie lock yesterday (1st one). I would call and find out the lock schedules. There was zero traffic yesterday. Lauderdale to St. Lucie is a all day trip if you have to take it up the ditch. You can stay the night at Pirates Cove or if you get through the lock, there are docks with power about 200 ft after you clear the lock. I don't recommend running at night going across. Gene Dugan Boca Raton, Fl. "Nauti Marie" 1989 33 FBC 2007 8.1 Crusaders
Gene Dugan Boca Raton, Fl. "Nauti Marie" 1989 33 FBC 2007 8.1 Crusaders SOLD 2000 Pursuit 2870 Offshore Twin 2016 Suzuki 200s
kohna
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Post by kohna »

Wow Fellow’s what a great welcome and I appreciate it! I am working this week in Pennsylvania and NJ and have not have any time to check the 33.com until now. I will try to respond to as much as I can tonight but my eyes are a bit weary after a 11.5 hour day. Actually I can’t wait for the trip to flush my mind from the stresses of work. I will start with Frank B.’s questions since he was the first one to post. The boat was listed on Yacht World (http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1988/Be ... ted-States) and I’m sure you fellas were on top of it since you are Bertram 33 buffs. The link will give you all the stats. The last two years she was was kept behind the Owner’s home but she was going downhill. I have always loved the Bertram line for many years and I wanted to be a proud Owner of a Bertram because they are so well built and have beatutiful lines and contours and my love for Bertrams. I was hoping to keep her in a covered slip in the Seabrook/Kemah area in Texas so I will have easy access to the vessel this fall and winter. However, since the tuna tower and out riggers are about 31 feet tall this presents a problem. I had to get a open slip with a floating dock. This will be my third boat and I started off owning a small bay boat and moved up to a 24 ft. (outboards) to fish the near shore waters about 40 miles offshore. I have been boatless for about 20 years now but have been fishing on other boats and on charter boats. My wife and I decided to get back into boat ownership so we will have a boat to spend the weekends on and to fish offshore during the season. This will be my first totally inboard vessel and I will need everyone’s assistance to help me get up to speed. Like all boats that have not been kept in top condition she does require work to bring her up to par for the trip to Texas from Florida. I have a project manager in Florida taking care of the up fit to make her sound for the trip. I would love to do the work myself but being based in Texas and the boat is in Florida it is not possible because I’m still a working gent. Yes I am a avid fisherman but also want a family cruiser. That is why I selected the FBC over the SF so I can please the misses and my fishing addiction. Back to the work required before I make the voyage, I am having the bottom hull bought back to almost the gelcoat and resealed and have two coats of bottom paint on her. The port engine will have a head jobs because of a stuck valve on one side and was seeing compression loss on the other side of the port engine. The pumps will receive new impellers and a rebuilt water pump on the port engine. I am also having the cutlass bearings replaced and new drip-less seals installed on the shafts. My project manager may find this week some additional items that need replacement or repair. Other items include a new Garmin GPSMAP 740S, a good compound and wax, repainting of the stripes on the main deck and the bridge and the bolsters recovered. Frank - I love the picture of your boat she is beautiful. Thanks for the warm welcome. Capt. Larry - What a beautiful classic Bertram you have! I am wondering why a case of Rayco filters. Can you please expand on this? I know this trip is going to be a weather based trip since the storms are really active lately. On the Gulf side I am planning to hug the coast and if the weather is not acceptable run the ICW where possible when I reach the Florida panhandle all the way to the Lone Star state. I prefer to run outside but that is dependant on the weather. My Gulf crossing, as I see it presently, will be from Steinhatchee, FL to the St. George Sound area. You mentioned the Marathon Florida area and NW crossing that I am not aware of. Any additional info will be appreciated. Buzz- Thanks for the welcome and the good wishes. Capt. Gene — Thanks for the info. Hopefully the weather will conducive for the east coast run where I can run outside. If not I will run the laborious ditch the first day. If I can run outside and come in around Port St. Lucie I may be able to make some time. I am planning this trip to be 8-9 days, weather permitting, but will taking off work two weeks just in case. I am not planning to run after dark in waters I am not familiar with. Thanks Everyone, Gary
<hr noshade size="1"> <div align="left">Gary Marsh Kil' N Time 1988 Bertram 33 FBC 7.4 L. Mercruiser's Kemah, Texas http://www.kwshosting.com</div id="left"> [img=left]http://www.aspe-houston.com/Bertram/boat_front.jpg [/img=left]
buzzk
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Post by buzzk »

How long are you planning to take bringing the boat to Texas? That's exactly how we use our boat. It works great. We may good fishing one day and the next day we're with the kids and grand kids riding around. If we ever buy a place in Florida we're planning on taking the boat down for the winter. Buzz
buzzk 1988 Bertram 33 FBC Cummins 6BTA's Buzz Off Morehead City, NC
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Post by Rick »

Welcome aboard Gary and wish you the best of luck. Nice looking boat (in the pic's anyway) and once you've had it a few years, I'm sure that it'll look a lot better ! The trip will be a great way to start ownership, I did something similar, but now where near as long. Rick Ticket 85 SF Merc 454 MPI's Falmouth, MA
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Post by coonjp1 »

I made the trip in 2004 from Jacksonville to Houston with my new 88FBC. There was plenty of water in the Lake and the passage across Florida was uneventful.The difficult part of the trip will be from New Orleans West. Even before Katrina, fuel was hard to find between New Orleans and Lake Charles (we used the ICW through S. Louisiana). I would recommmend a badder or auxiliary tank. From New Orleans, you will see very few recreational vessels until the Houston area. I would be happy to respond as best I can to any questions. Pat patcooney@att.net
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Post by lobsta1 »

Gary & Pat Welcome to the sandbox. Al
1978 33 FBC NITES OFF
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Post by Buy2ls »

Welcme,don't forget to post some pics of the new boat!!!!
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kohna
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Post by kohna »

quote:Originally posted by buzzk How long are you planning to take bringing the boat to Texas? That's exactly how we use our boat. It works great. We may good fishing one day and the next day we're with the kids and grand kids riding around. If we ever buy a place in Florida we're planning on taking the boat down for the winter. Buzz buzzk 1988 Bertram 33 FBC Cummins 6BTA's Buzz Off Morehead City, NC Buzz, I am thinking it will take 8-9 days weather permitting and have no mechanical problems.
<hr noshade size="1"> <div align="left">Gary Marsh Kil' N Time 1988 Bertram 33 FBC 7.4 L. Mercruiser's Kemah, Texas http://www.kwshosting.com</div id="left"> [img=left]http://www.aspe-houston.com/Bertram/boat_front.jpg [/img=left]
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Post by Brian Davin »

Congrats and have a great trip! Very interesting aspect of your boat I noticed in the YachtWorld pictures, you have the separate shower stall like my 1990? Supposedly, the separate shower wasn't offered until 1990, but there it is in your 1988? Lucky you!
Brian '90 Bertram 33' FBC Yanmar 370's "Never Say Never" '70 Bertram 24' Moppie Guilford, CT (Homeport) Kinnelon, NJ (Home)
kohna
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Post by kohna »

quote:Originally posted by Brian Davin Congrats and have a great trip! Very interesting aspect of your boat I noticed in the YachtWorld pictures, you have the separate shower stall like my 1990? Supposedly, the separate shower wasn't offered until 1990, but there it is in your 1988? Lucky you! Brian '90 Bertram 33' FBC Yanmar 370's "Never Say Never" '70 Bertram 24' Moppie Guilford, CT (Homeport) Kinnelon, NJ (Home) Brian, I did some research on this very subject and found that it was in fact it was installed on the 1990 and up. I guess I got some kind of prototype model...............
<hr noshade size="1"> <div align="left">Gary Marsh Kil' N Time 1988 Bertram 33 FBC 7.4 L. Mercruiser's Kemah, Texas http://www.kwshosting.com</div id="left"> [img=left]http://www.aspe-houston.com/Bertram/boat_front.jpg [/img=left]
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