Hey guys, glad youre back on the project. For a bit of ispiration check out Free Range Sailing from 2020-2021 they did a complete refit on their Clansman 30 complete with hard dodger and synthetic rigging and stunning interior.
Shalom My wife & I love all your helpful information you both put out It gives us ideas for our 1984 31 Irwin Citation we live full time on the Anchor It needed a lot of work & Still does this week Was a big success we adjusted all our rigging we have outer chain plates we love it our deck is open to walk down like you said easy to inspect also Happy Winds and thank you very well much Shalom
I'm so excited! I've been waiting for this refit and changes to Dove becoming Windpuff to start. I'm sure you've been busy with your new family. A new baby DEMANDS everything from you for 3 or more months, so I understand why you have not started this project any sooner. I'm looking forward to every "Howie How To" to come. It sounds like a great plan. You now have your 5 years of cruising experience to put into the upgrades and modifications. It will turn out to be a much better boat because of this. I've seen devices advertised that are more than just stud-finders. They claim to be able to show wiring and piping inside the walls. Is there some new smart tool that you can use to verify the "soundness" of the hull before you proceed to put all this work into it? Something like an untrasonic depth mapping of the hull to verify that no delamination within the hull has occurred? Smart sensors and testing equipment have come a long way in the past 5 years. Best to you and your family.
Metal hulls are regularly thicknesses mapped to know when to replace plates. Various methods can be employed in FRP I am not aware of reliability there. Wet core can be found with thermography now cheap.
I have lived aboard my Alberg 30 for over 8 years and sail almost daily. The boat is excellent as is. Sheet-to-tiller steering works on every tack and in almost all wind conditions. The steerage is very neutral so long as the boat is not over canvassed. Weather helm only becomes a problem if the boat is allowed to heel more than about 35°. Sail with a working jib or at most a 110% genoa and know when to reef the main. The boat also heaves-to nicely with a furled jib and a double reefed mainsail. I have owned many boats and I doubt there is anything that can be done to improve the design of this one.
It is an excellent boat! For ocean crossing where winds vary in intensity I like to use the monitor windvane for steering. The big reason and big improvement for this addition is to create a sturdy place to mount the stern anchor.
You are living one of my favorite schemes !! I need to pay strict attention and take crisp notes so I can eventually replicate. Stay strong, happy n healthy. ⛵️🌴🌞
I love the look of a bowsprit, but have had second thoughts after hearing a story about a guy who had a major rigging failure. His bobstay got ripped out creating a sizeable hole at the waterline letting in a bunch of water. I look forward to seeing how you construct yours.
Subscribed. We have a 1967 Bristol 27 that is very similar. We bought it as our learning boat and did a major refit in 2019 then sailed her around the east coast from NC to Key West. We moved to Europe in 2020 but the boat is still waiting for us, on the hard, back in Georgia. In about a year we go back. I'm sure you will give me some great ideas to get her back in the water.
Yes! This will be the series I watch immediately upon releasing. I've had a Pearson Vanguard and a Pearson Wanderer which do look very similar. Love the idea of bowsprit, weather helm definitely a problem. Glad you have somewhere else to live during the refit!
Started a similar project on a 28er, synthetic standing rigging, cutter rig with a short sprit, hank-on sails, loose footed main. I had to sell the boat due to swapping coasts. Look forward to following your progress!
Very much a young person's project. At my age (68) my choice, a sound boat, ready to sail that needs electrical up grade. Agree that 30' is a really good size. Big enough to go anywhere, small enough to be cost effective and single handable.
Looking forward to the refit. My parents have an old 28ft Van de Stadt which has done a circumnavigation by a previous owner. Its currently on the hardstand and looking very sad. I am keen to get it refitted and back on the water so I'll be watching all your videos and getting some motivation. I probably won't be ready to do a refit for at least another 12 months so will have plenty of time to take in your refit. I really like the idea of a hard dodger and bimini as it makes a great frame to fit solar and a traveler.
Awesome! These small boats are so capable!! The boomkin we are building is not as necessary for getting a boat seaworthy but the hard dodger is on the mandatory list!
Looking forward to watching. We sold our CD 30 mid Summer this year. Probably a 1st cousin to your boat. She had such a soft sailing motion. We had an Electric Yacht Quiet Torque 10 and a 350 amp hour battery back. I personally would never do electric again. We were hoping battery tech would improve but seems to be stuck. Great idea to get rid of the glassed in chainplates. We loved the opening ports or the CD 30. Wonder if you could add them to yours. She did have a ton of through hulls. Loved the cutter. There is some fantastic information online that Mr Stone did with the bow sprit on his 36. The gelcoat crazing will come back through the Kiwi Grip if not dealt with somehow. Good luck, We sailed the lower Chesapeake in Virginia. Dee and Deb
When you're done, you'll have practically a new design. I take it that with the bowsprit and boomkin, you will be adding considerably more sail area. Are you going to go for a keel-stepped mast? I would suggest having a tabernacle so you can loer the mast yourself.
Very cool plan. The only thing I would caution you about is the Kiwi Grip. I was talked into trying it on my last boat and was not really satisfied with it at all. It certainly goes on easily and looks great initially and is very effective non-skid. Overtime the very tops of the peaks rub/chip off and it is then a different color. It also does not always stick as well as it should. So overtime it takes a lot of maintenance to keep it good. Yes, maintenance is supposed to be easy, but the recoats exhibit the same problems faster. I have gone back to using the interlux non-skid additive to the finaly coat of paint. I like it a lot better.
The interlux one is what we have been using for years. Do you use it with a 1 part or 2 part paint? We have found that the 1 part paint chips off during the year and takes the nonskid with it.
I have completely given up on the Interlux Brightside, I always had the same problem as you, when a local pro (who is very good) told me he couldn't get it to stick consistently that was my final straw. Perfection on the otherhand, is a really great paint. As for one part, I think easyPoxy with their cross-link additive is really good also. Both work well with the interlux non-skid additive. The interlux non-skid is the best as to non-skid and not horrible on knees when kneeling down. But it is a total pita to sand off paint that has the non-skid additive applied. Also, I have not had luck premixing the additive in the paint and getting it to look even when applied. So I get a big salt shaker and apply a lot (and I mean a lot) right after appling a small area of paint. Will end up vacuuming a lot off the deck when you are done though. It can, of course be reused.
I'm glad to see you have set a reasonable time table for the work. This will minimize burnout, relationship stress, and spread the cost out so you can afford to keep the quality as high as possible.
Looking forward to this, especially interested in how you “modernize.” You seem to have a great sense of when to go with tried and true and when to incorporate new technology.
Glad you think so! We have been wanting to rebuild Windpuff for some time, we were just far away at that time. Now that we are back, we can get to work on him :)
Are there possible problems due to a potential very sudden increase in sea state caused buoyancy force & resulting stress due to the shape, position & leverage of the stern extension?
Hey! I've enjoyed your channel, but this new series is particularly interesting to me, because we just got our very first boat (that we own ourselves) a 1981 Catalina 22, and of course we're doing lots of work on her. We're in Baltimore, if you ever do a gathering to visit your lovely new boat we'd love to see her and say hello!
I did something similar.. have a boat on the great lakes, but bought another for a song to take south It's a classic 37. Very similar to alberg 37. But heavier.. I'm doing the systems KISS.. so it will be low budget and easy to maintain.
Go Wind Puff! Hope it goes well. You always are smiling and enjoying life. I appreciate your thoughts and fix up ideas for these old CCAs. Our old Douglas is slowly coming along every summer
Fun, so many similarities between a few I have. You have entered guinea pig mode. Touchstone will get the cockpit eliminated along with a mini pilot house. The reasons are clear now. At least hard dodgers for oceanic. Though I do understand dodgers the standard for racing.
I don’t mean to be a Debbie downer, but holy moly that’s a lot of work, especially with a new family. Do you have jobs? How do you have the time? I work full time and have a two year old and there’s literally no time to get anything done. This project could take five years. More power to ya.
Love the energy and insights you both bring to such a huge undertaking. BTW I was first inspired to cruise by the story of Robin G circumnavigating "Dove" back in the 60's so it was exciting to see the original name on your transom. I owned a 1969 C&C which had a lot of rotten balsa core in it's decks and cabintop ... when I saw the brown stains inside overhead on your boat it made me worry for you ... best check that out soon.
When I bought the boat I first wondered if it was the same boat, but then I remembered that Dove sank and he finished the voyage on The Return of Dove. I am concerned about the deck and will be opening it up to investigate. It has a Masonite core in the deck so it’s probably going to be a total rebuild situation.
Your toes will thank you for moving the chain plates outside. That project alone makes total sense. Can't wait to see the plans for the bump-out on the stern. Are you going to use the slide out extending solar panel solution Mads installed on Athena?
I haven’t seen his setup but I’m planning on a slide out system from the hard dodger. Basically, it will triple the solar power when they are deployed.
@@RiggingDoctor I have always wondered if the lower panels can be bi-facial at least putting them on their own controller could give you some power? You guys rock.
Good on ya! I’m the proud owner of an Alberg 35, keel stepped mast, Yanmar diesel, inner forestay sail, steering wheel, propane stove… Albergs are great boats I suggest you thoroughly check out the rudder.
I will be stripping every part of this boat down to its raw material to inspect it thoroughly! The rudder post needs upgrading so I will be building a new rudder regardless, it’s just a question of what material is the most cost effective and available when I get to that part of the project.
Pearson bought a couple of the designs for their early boats from Alberg., I believe the Pearson Triton was an Alberg design. Then Bill Shaw joined the company and designed their boats .
Good luck guys, that's a lot of work. Great boats the Alberg 30s. Fine sailors just as they are.I had a similar boat, a Rhodes 32 Chesapeake built in Denmark. Dreamy sailing boat. I don't think a couple of the things you guys are doing are great ideas, but we all know what opinions are. I'm excited for the refit.
@@RiggingDoctor Lol, it wouldn’t be my first improvement I’d say. Not huge on bowsprits either, but… a short one would make sense to carry more sail forward. My friends on the Chesapeake Bay put on a small carbon fiber one on their Freedom 42, maybe 36”? out from the stem. And it’s worked out well for them to fly a spinnaker. You could add that and not the bumpkin. The one thing I was actually referring to is the extra water storage in the bow. Those boats will hobby horse a lot with heavy ends (which adding the bumpkin will also do) The other water below the cabin soul is great. Exterior chain plates, awesome! Ours are too. Bulwarks, love ours. Stoked to watch and learn from you guys once again.
We have 100 gallons in the V berth of Wisdom and have found that when we have wind, she sails on rails. If the wind dies, we start slapping and sloshing around as we hobby horse. The goal is to keep the wind! Thankfully the motion is rather slow and sluggish since it is so much weight far out there, but it is still happening. The goal of adding weight in the bow with the tanks will be balanced by tanks under the quarter berth as well. I want to carry close to 200 gallons which will mean 1600 pounds of water added or removed from the boat as we sail. Keeping the water in numerous smaller tanks will let us control sloshing as well as control weight changes as we draw from our supply. Naturally, the tanks will come much later in the build, but weight is a very conscious concern during the design and buildout of the boat.
@@RiggingDoctor Yeah cool. Smaller tanks definitely helps with weight distribution. You guys are pros, I’m sure the build will be killer! The boomkin looks cool and functional in the pics. As long as you don’t have to go out on the bowsprit. 😉 I grew up literally on the Chesapeake Bay, we had our boat at our dock. I only power boated then. Didn’t start sailing till years later in my early 20s. Been sailing now and outfitting yachts for twenty years. I’m also a certified NMEA and Marina Electronics Installer, but I really still make a living as a woodworker/artist/musician. Dig the vids, been following for a couple years now. Cheers
Wow, Windpuff's rebuild looks like such an exciting project! It's great to see you taking on this challenge and sharing the process with us. I know you've been busy with your new family, but I'm glad you're finally getting started. Your 5 years of cruising experience will definitely come in handy for the upgrades and modifications. By putting in this work, the boat is going to be even better than before. And hey, have you considered using some of the new smart tools available to verify the hull's "soundness" before proceeding? It could save you some unexpected surprises down the line. Can't wait for all the "Howie How To" episodes to come. Best wishes to you and your family, and I'm looking forward to the new adventures ahead! ⛵🌊🌞
It’s a solid hull so I wasn’t worried about the core, since it doesn’t have one. I have seen the meters that tell you the hull thickness and they seem pretty cool, but I think I’m just going to drill test holes in the hull to see what we are working with. Some areas will be getting strengthened and I need to know how much more strength they need to have.
This is wonderful news. I have a Pearson 28 Triton, early hull number from 1958 - 60..? I just re cored most of the cabin top. So far, I have been using episodes of Atom Voyager for some inspirations. My boat is at the lower end of the Chesapeake Bay on the hard for now. I have begun work for a bow sprit and I have absolutely been guessing on what to do. The beam is just under 5 inch square and a total of 8 and a half feet long. I am using ammonia fumed white oak for the lamination. I bought a three inch mast head bronze for the end fitting. The aft of the beam has a pair of one and 3/8 inch wide bronze tubes bored and glued in, about 30 inches apart, to fit a pair of foot long 316 stainless steel bolts. I am building a frame for this. Now the hard part. I have created this square, laminated, white oak DONUT to go around the beam. This is to allow attachment on the forestay so that it stays centered on the line of the boat. I plan to use bronze plates to sandwich the donut and be the connection piece for the fore stay. The beam intersects the donut and the fore sail stays basically in place, probably adding some length to the stay line that will have to be adjusted. Will this work? The only other option I could think of was to offset the bowsprit to one side of the center line, which would be less than ideal.
I’m going to have the staysail stay that starts at the stem attach to the bowsprit and then the bowsprit have a toggle that secures it to the stem. This will transfer the load from the stay to the stem and skip the bowsprit and let the sprit stick out for the other stays to attach to the end. Let me know how it works and I might go with that system.
I'm putting 6" high bulwarks on my cape dory 30c also. Make sure you bolt them through the hull /deck joint to strengthen it. I'm using 2x6 cedar bolted through. A proper bow sprit is my plan as well with a good anchor roller. These are small boats so storage spaces need to be creative.
I was planning on glassing them to the hull and making them part of the deck hull joint with fillets on the inboard side and knees in key areas for additional support.
I’m trying to have 0 holes through the deck which isn’t possible when you throw the rigging onto the boat! So I’m trying to minimize the number of holes as much as possible.
One of my dream boats, I have a grampian 26, which might almost have the same interior room, but I am SO looking forward to following this channel. Love to you guys from Ontario Canada.
SO EXCITED! I have a '77 Cape Dory 30 (Carl Alberg Design, I think) and am about to start many of these same projects (Fairing and painting, Kiwi-Grip, etc.) and cannot wait to see how you do it first!
I grew up sailing an Albert 30....... My biggest pet pieve was head room forward of the bulkhead......can't tell u how many thousands of times I smacked my head.the earlier ones built were the best for quality. Whitby boat works let there quality slip after 73. Major coring issues on relatively new boats. Deck to hull leaking and gelcoat cracking issues were common. Other than the standard stuff it was a decent boat.
Very cool H&M... BTW: hope the new parenting is going well... very good tip about the stern overhang... never understood that design concept... (now I do...!) Anyway, too late for me I have 2 years ago converted my Islander P40 to all electric... And, with the same QT20 motor you have on Wisdom... And, one of the reasons I will definitely be following the refit I'll be curious about the new electric motor performance... (I need to compare)... Notwithstanding, have a great time witht the refit and as usual... Fair Winds...!
Well... i believe you are going to stick with the deck stepped mast. More room below and easier to unstep. I was "this" close to buying an Alberg 30 (i really like that boat) when my lovely wife was like; naw... i think we need a bigger boat...Gawd i love her! I can't wait to see what you guys do next! From day sailer to ocean going?...WWAAAhhhhhh?!!!! I have my J30 in the Sparrows Point area..... i would love to meet up!
@@RiggingDoctor Going on 2 years now. I work full time, so it's been a slow process. I hope to splash next year, sail in and out of San Francisco Bay for a couple years, then when I retire in three years (hopefully) my wife and I will head down to Baja and beyond. I've been following atomvoyager on RU-vid. He double circumnavigated in a Triton and he has done some amazing refits on Tritons and Alberg 30's. His videos are not super detailed, though. I've really enjoyed your other videos and I'm looking forward to seeing your perspective on this rebuild.
I have chuckle, you two this is what I'm doing almost the exact same refit on a Cheoy Lee, 31ft off shore ketch ( Herschoff) except for the head arrangement. What are the odds of that ? I will definitely be watching your project go forward. I'll have to send you a few jpegs . Best to you both . Angus SV Violet Walters.
This project is going to be absolutely wild. I've done some rebuilding though not necessarily reengineering of my own boat, Looking forward to seeing what hardware you use and what techniques work.
I am really looking forward to this project. I am working on my 1966 Bristol 27, which is a very similar boat. I would share one thought for consideration. Because these boats have a very short waterline and large overhangs , they tend to pitch quiet a bit, especially with added weight in the ends. I solved this issue by stowing heavy items as close to the middle of the boat. Adding structures off the stern will add weight and increase the tendency to pitch (hobby horse) in rough choppy seas.
I know what you mean. Our Morgan is 46’9” and has a 32’ waterline! The smacking splash sound for being becalmed with sloppy leftover seas is a sound I am very familiar with.
Looking forward to seeing the work on the old girl. I have always loved Albert designs especially the 30. If I’m not wrong the 30 has an encapsulated keel so no nasty keel bolts to worry about. She looks to be a blank slate and I’m sure y’all will do a top notch job. Have you watched any of the Atomvoyager videos? He’s done some interesting things with the 30. Let the fun begin!!
So having a 30ft boat is a good thing but we are adding a bowsprit and a boomkin.... so LOA will be how much? Will they be retractable? Anyway, it will be interesting to watch. I always learn something. I am also looking at doing a hard dodger. If nothing else they are easier to keep clean than cloth.
As you're replacing the mast and shifting the door between saloon and heads/forecabin to off-centre, I'll put my money on your choosing to have the new mast keel-stepped. Electric motor?: Hmmmm...., although I'm aware of the advantages. 30-foot (on deck) is a great size boat to choose for the job. I'll be watching with interest (and taking notes).
My 1970’s Compass28 has had a 2.5kW electric auxiliary since 2010. Works great for getting in and out of modern marinas built like pacman mazes. Actually only use 400-600 Watts to move her at 2.5 to 3 knots in smooth waters. Have enough Amphours in battery for 4 hours motoring but usually only go for 10-15 minutes motoring to get out and return. Recharge (200-400 Watthours) with solar panels. Then cruise and anchor for a week without any motor use at all. Very practical and easy to use.
I’m very excited for the lower power requirements on Windpuff. With Wisdom, we need 2000-5000 watts to move comfortably at 4-5 knots. About 1000 watts will move us at 2-3 knots in calm waters. I can’t wait!
You hit the nail on the head! We plan on having the mast come down in the shower and be keel stepped. It’s going to be some major re-engineering to build it right, but we have the time and know how.
@@RiggingDoctor I love the electric motors: compact, quiet, no smell or noise, no through-hulls, but not the (presumably) lithium batteries: Expensive, potential disasterous fire risk, environmental questions re. mining and recycling, vastly less range than diesel. Still, I haven't ruled it out for my next cruising boat project - just not Li batteries, thank you. I will, nevertheless take careful note of how you do it!
I've been looking forward to watching this project, and it's good to have you back making videos. I'm considering getting a smaller boat for many reasons, I'm thinking maybe a Grampian 26, a westerly pageant or a westerly nomad.
Looking forward to this new project of yours. As I enjoy your previous content both refit/repair and sailing. You mentioned that you would be sharing the cost of the project. I heard the boat cost $4500 but how much does it cost to store on the hard? I understand you may not be able to share that, but it would be nice to know. Paul
I love this project. It's too small by half for what I would be comfortable cruising in, but it will be a great size for a coastal traveler. The whole spider web thing was terrifying and I would just be in there right away with a shop vac sucking those bad boys. I think you're going to switch to a keel stepped mast because it changes the righting motion and puts the load in a lower center. Also, I'm with Herbie and just love a bowsprit. Beyond the practical aspect, they're just pretty. Good luck guys, I'll be watching.
I like sails that are stayed because when stuff goes bad, you just release the halyard and pull the downhaul to bring it down to the deck. Any unstayed sail can become a handful in a hurry at the wrong time! I like them and think the kites are cool, but I don’t want to need to deal with it.
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