The ressurection of "Phoenix"

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 5:19 am

Well.. I have finally begun to work on the boat I have been talking about here for several months.. I have renamed her "Phoenix".. after the mythical bird that was consumed in flames and arose from it's ashes to live again. I thought long and hard about a name for her.. I think a boat's name should say something about her, the owner, or something like that. The boat's last name was "Sea Ya".. yech! I have been able to hire, on a part time basis, a guy who is from the Charleston, SC, area, who knows the waterfront inside and out. He is a delivery captain and has a lot of knowledge on boat systems. We have worked together while I was there for 3 days, and he has worked alone for a few hours after I returned home. The yard, which does not allow DIYers, agreed to let us remove old stuff, but I agreed to not do any of the kind of work they do. That has worked so far. The problem I have that requires me to stay in this yard for now is because the survey said the boat was "uninsurable" due to the large number of loose wires (some energized) dangling in the bilge and everywhere else, and the 120 volt electrcal system with missing grounds, I can only get Builder's Risk insurance (which requires that the boat be on the hard only) until the boat is upgraded and resurveyed and the defects removed. The yard has to do all the bottom work, plus a few other things, plus I will have the fuel polished. I have spoken with a certified electrician who will look at the boat once we are done ripping junk out and we will come to some agreement as to what has to be done electrically to bring her up to acceptable and insurable standards. So far we have ripped out almost 2 five gallon pails worth of old, unused, disconnected wires. We also have found some wiring between the battery charger and the generator battery that does not make any sense. The Autohelm wiring was cut and stuffed in the back of a compartment, the Lectrasan head has been disconnected, with the hot positive lead hanging in the bilge (but the negative was tie wrapped up and out of harm's way!). The fresh water tank was gone, and the hoses for it were loose, with one laying up against the stbd engine flywheel, worn completely through. I can go on and on.. but as of today my guy there tells me all the defunct wiring has been removed. We also took out the crappy cabinetry the last owner installed behind the windshield.. from port to stbd, from the counter top to the headliner.. effectively making the boat dark and cheap looking. Some good news emerged after we did that.. what I thought from looking at the windshield from the foredeck were cracks in the inner layer of glass of windshield were actually ripples and tears in the sunscreen plastic film someone installed inside all the windows.. so the windshield glass is not cracked at all. There are a couple of leaks at the aft end on the side windows.. I suspect rain water enters the boat after working it's way behind the sliding windows along the tracks, and it appears at the aft end of the window track. The last owner had put some cheap plywood covers over the fore and aft triangular windows, so when these leaks occurred the plywood (not marine grade naturally!) rotted and was soft, gooey, and black. These were also removed. The salon is a lot brighter now.. and I am considering removing the blueish plastic sunscreen film, which will allow even more light. The owner told the broker that before we ever started the engines we had to be sure to shut off the "converter" or it would burn up. I assume he means "inverter". But.. I have been all over the boat, and can't find an inverter anywhere. I will trace the "converter" wiring from the main electric panel and see where it goes. It is amazing how much junk I removed.. old magazines, dried up and torn foul weather gear, dirty towels, cooking utensils, probably 20 misc bottles of sunscreen, 5 tubes of "personal lubricant" (maybe I misread the previous owner somehow), old soap bars and toothpaste tubes.. etc, etc. The previous owner wanted to take the PFD's, which I agreed to.. I gathered about 1 dozen of them from various compartments.. and promptly cut 4 apart with a knife and tossed the pieces in the dumpster because they were so rotten they were dangerous! One final item.. I found two Olin flare kits way in the back of a compartment.. one was still in it's unopened box.. with an expiration date of 2002 on the back. The other was in it's round orange screw top container. I opened it and found several hand held and cartridge flares.. which expired in 1985! But.. worst of all.. I took the flare pistol out.. it was cocked inside the container.. and when I opened the breech inside was a live but burst flare cartridge which also expired in 1985! I almost messed my pants.. I was handling a cocked flare gun with a burst defective cartridge that had expired 21 years ago! I took it out carefully, walked as far as I could out to the end of the travel lift slip, and threw it as far as I could into the water. So.. the resurrection has begun. There has been nothing to take pics of yet.. but I will do so when there is something interesting to show. Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com New owner.. 1983 FBC! Finally!!

Post by **dougl33** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 5:30 am

Wow! Sounds like you've got your hands full, but it also sounds like you've got a plan. Try and take as many before and after pictures as possible. What is your rough estimate for when you'll be back on the water? You should think about moving this thread to the Convertable page. Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth Marblehead, MA [img]http://www.bertram33.com/photogallery/p ... sabeth.jpg[/img]

Capt. Ed · Post by **Capt. Ed** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 5:59 am

quote:You should think about moving this thread to the Convertable page. Ah... Doug, we are on the Convertable page. 1979 Bertram 33' FBC ALEXANDRA Port Richey, Florida HAVE YOU SIGNED UP FOR BERTRAM PRIDE '06 yet? DO IT NOW... SPACE IS LIMITED!

lobsta1 · Post by **lobsta1** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 6:42 am

Ed, Doug wants David to create a new convert-A-ble forum as the Phoenix gets converted to useable. Al 1978 33 FBC NITES OFF

Post by **dougl33** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 7:05 am

My bad. Its been crazy at work the past few days. Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth Marblehead, MA [img]http://www.bertram33.com/photogallery/p ... sabeth.jpg[/img]

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 7:59 am

To answer Doug and ignore the fact that I am where I am... My slip here in our subdivision is supposed to be out of service for about 2-3 months while we have a contractor build a new bulkhead after the heavy Katrina rains caused some damage. My plan is to get the work done that keeps the boat from being insurable in the next 1-2 weeks, depending on the electrician's and the yard's schedules, then have the insurance changed to "port insurance" (where she can be in the water) until everything else is done, then have her insured normally. I have already signed a month to month lease in the marina where she was kept before I bought her, and will keep here there (in Charleston, SC) until my slip here is usable, then bring her back here (a 200 mile trip) as soon as I can after that. I have developed a small network of good contacts in Charleston.. better than I have here in Wilmington, NC, so it is better if I stay there until everything is completed. Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com New owner.. 1983 FBC! Finally!!

jav · Post by **jav** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 9:34 am

Frank, I'm sure you've already thought of this but figured I'd mention it in case you didn't. Have you condsidred having only the minimum amount of work done (expensively) to have the vessel insured? Having yanked out as many wires as you already have, there may not be a great deal of work left for insurance compliance.

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 11:04 am

That is what I am doing.. removing all the mess that the surveyor noted.. but I need some electrical work done as well.. hence my bringing in an electrician the yard accepts. My objective is to do the minimum to get the boat insurable in the water.. and then do the rest.. ie: a new head, a fresh water system, new instrumentation, etc. myself in the marina. The yard where I am now will be doing the stuff needed below the waterline.. namely the backup boards for the oversized trim tabs, mounting a new transducer for the new fishfinder/speedo, thermometer, plugging the hole where another transducer was mounted, painting the bottom, polishing the fuel, and installing new zincs. Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com New owner.. 1983 FBC! Finally!!

Post by **Admin** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 11:55 am

As an aside, I moved the topic from General to Convert(a)ible.

Post by **dougl33** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 3:06 pm

Ok. So I'm not completely insane. Whew! Regards, Doug L. 1986 33 Bertram FBC Queen Elizabeth Marblehead, MA [img]http://www.bertram33.com/photogallery/p ... sabeth.jpg[/img]

CB35 · Post by **CB35** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 3:53 pm

Good luck on your project. The converter the broker refered to was the battery charger. They call the it the converter because it converts 120V AC to 12V DC. One mystery solved. Charlie

Capt. Ed · Post by **Capt. Ed** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 3:56 pm

quote:Ok. So I'm not completely insane. Whew! Well, let's not jump to conclusions quite yet! [:D] 1979 Bertram 33' FBC ALEXANDRA Port Richey, Florida HAVE YOU SIGNED UP FOR BERTRAM PRIDE '06 yet? DO IT NOW... SPACE IS LIMITED!

IRGuy · Post by **IRGuy** » Tue Feb 28, 2006 7:04 pm

Thanks CB35.. I feel silly, but that term never occurred to me! Actually two mysteries solved... I thought I started this string on the General Forum. One more note... I mentioned above that I found some flares that expired in 1985.. I just realized.. the boat is an '83.. they must have been some of the original equipment on the boat! I wonder if I can sell them to some fanatic Bertram 33 owner on EBay? Frank B - IRGuy@aol.com New owner.. 1983 FBC! Finally!!

richcatch22 · Post by **richcatch22** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 1:37 am

I think the fanatics are all here. First bid..... Great luck with you project! Capt Rich Catch 22 1989 33 FBC

photo finish · Post by **photo finish** » Wed Mar 01, 2006 2:36 am

I always just keep my old flares as spares...who knows if they really ever go bad as you cant just shoot one off to test.You cant have too many.