[C38] The big renovation

[Tom T.]

Hello Greg,

I'm sorry you are having to spend so much time and money on #95 but I am 
certainly glad to know she is now in good hands.  As a previous owner, 
we dearly loved that boat and had many years of fun and enjoyment with her.

The running gear is now old but I am surprised the engine needs 
overhauling.  She seemed tight when I owned her but she is now older so 
it may be time.

I had a flywheel flex plate failure once when trying to move the boat to 
a better location with approaching hurricane Charlie.  I was idling 
slowly and just lost forward power like the transmission was in 
neutral.  I ended up having to tow the boat with my dinghy. After the 
threat was over, I pulled the transmission and rebuilt it and replaced 
the failed flex plate and also the shaft coupling at that time with PYI 
products.

The reason the original flex plate on the flywheel failed is because the 
original Universal flex plates had a problem with the springs fatiguing 
and breaking.  When they did, the flex plate would no longer drive the 
transmission.  The PYI system uses synthetic material which they claim 
is more dependable than steel springs but also the two parts of the flex 
plate are captive to each other so even if the cushion material did fail 
the boat would not be stranded since the flex plate would still drive 
the transmission.  It seems to be a fool proof design.  Unless Universal 
has changed their design, I would stay with the PYI flex plate you have 
or replace it with a new one like it.  The PYI flex plate also claims to 
better absorbs diesel vibration than the steel springs which can help 
save the transmission gears and make for a quieter drive train.

When you pull the mast, you will have to loosen the three heavy 
lightning protection cables going into the bilge from inside the mast. 
You will have problems removing the forward cable of the three unless 
you first remove the toilet holding tank for access to that clamp on the 
forward keel stud.  To replace the mast tie leader lines to the cable 
ends and tape them well to the cable to feed the cables back into the 
bilge as the yard lowers the mast back into place.  This requires at  
least one person inside the cabin to pull the leader lines but it was 
not a problem.

The toilet holding tanks on the Catalina 38 were flat on the bottom and 
mounted on a curved hull with no support in the middle which caused mine 
to fail in heavy seas on a trip to Key West.

After that trip, I replaced the original holding tank with another 
exactly like it but I bedded it in expanding foam between the tank and 
hull for better support which eliminated flexing.  I first wrapped the 
new tank in plastic sheet so it should be easy to remove and not stick 
to the foam stuck to the hull.  The original tanks were glassed in on 
the sides which made for a hard job to remove but your tank was 
reinstalled using removable aluminum angle to hold it in place so other 
than those #$%^& hoses, it should be easily removed.  A good heat gun 
will help greatly removing and replacing those odor free hoses.

Your boat has better than average lightning protection because I kept 
her in St. Pete Florida which is in the area known as the "lightning 
capital of the world."  Your area has plenty of lightning also but I am 
convinced that every boat should have the best lightning protection 
possible.  A carbon fiber masted racing boat got a direct hit on a dock 
about 125' from us and suffered total mast destruction and thousands of 
dollars of other expense.  Our boat nearby suffered no damage, even to 
our electronics. We were lucky but several other boats even farther from 
the hit lost plenty of electronics.  I believe the good ground of our 
standing rigging helped us avoid damage.

Good luck and keep the group posted on your progress.

Tom Troncalli





-------- Forwarded Message --------
On 12/28/2014 9:51 AM, Greg S. Hart wrote:
> When we purchased our 1981 Catalina 38 Hull number 95, she had suffered 4 years of neglect. Which is especially sad because Tom had taken such good care of her.
>
>   She is out on the dirt now and set for some major work.  I would appreciate your feedback on anything you know or have done you would recommend we do or check while she is out.  I want her right when we splash her.
>
> As of now we have the following planned or underway:
>
> The engine and transmission have been pulled. The engine is being rebuilt and the clutch plate replaced. The transmission checked out fine
>
> Installing a 1,600 BTU AC with heat
>
> Hull painted - Considering Navy Blue but worried about fading and dings being highlighted suggestion appreciated
>
> Mast un-stepped and inspected. The only time the last owner took her out, they bumped a bridge clearing off the the top of the mast.
>
> Replace running rigging and standing rigging as needed
>
> Cutlass barring replaced
>
> Bottom painted. That is the one part that is in excellent shape, no blisters.
>
> I appreciate the collective wisdom of this group.
>
> Greg Hart
> S/V Folly's Best
> Charleston, SC
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Listserve mailing list
> Listserve at catalina38.org
> http://catalina38.org/mailman/listinfo/listserve_catalina38.org
>
>
> -----
> No virus found in this message.
> Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
> Version: 2015.0.5577 / Virus Database: 4257/8825 - Release Date: 12/28/14
>
>