New sailor in the house.

Coasty

New Member
Hello everyone. Just bought my first sailboat today! :D:D:D

I haven't even thrown it in the water yet! Upon purchase I decided to research to find out what model it is and the history. Also to see if I could get a new main sail for it. the owner said it's a 1975 Ray Green. From what I can tell it's a Rebel, but it's 14-foot long and all I could see for that model was 16-footers. Anybody know anything about this boat?
 
Well, we launched it yesterday, but not for very long since there was a huge thunderstorm on it's way. Practiced putting the sail up & down, went around a little bit, but there wasn't much wind to speak of. We discovered quickly some things that need to be done to make it more usable, but so far I have paid 600 bucks for the boat and trailer and 200 bucks on top of that for replacing stuff (mostly trailer wheels and hubs) and getting the necessary safety equipment. Hopefully I can keep the entire restoration under a grand... it looks like it's possible.
 
Not much to look at, but you asked for it:

hull.jpg


interior.jpg


front.jpg


interior2.jpg


Here you can see the oxidation on the bumper track, I scraped all that off now.
track.jpg


There are a handful of chips in the hull, this is the big one in the front.
chips.jpg


The first owner had brass snaps screwed all along the track, unfortunately
the screws were not also brass. I have since removed all of these.
snaps.jpg
 
I tried to post some pics earlier today but it said they had to be screened first... it sure is taking a long time. :confused:
 
huh. I can only see the two I posted today, the ones from yesterday aren't there, either is the message that went with them.
 
Nevermind, NOW I can see all of them... that was weird.

I'm gonna work on it summore when I get off work today, I will add pictures of stuff I do if anyone's interested.
 
There was a slight technical glitch preventing your pictures from showing up to some users. The problem has been fixed!

Good luck with the repairs...looking forward to seeing more pictures.
 
Here's a question for you... My boat used to be solid yellow, someone down the line added the anti-fowling paint. When I re-do it can I just paint the whole thing one color with topside paint or do I need the special bottom paint? I only plan on leaving it in the water maybe 3 or 4 hours at a time, possibly over night sometime (rarely). It will be stored on the trailer mostly.
 
You need to remove all the anti-fouling paint, then you can paint the entire hull one color. Be sure to use a good quality paint, either epoxy or linear polyurethane. If you are only leaving your boat in the water for a few hours you won't need anti-fouling, which by the way is something that is more relevant to boats stored long term in salt water.
 
That's what I figured. It will be in salt water, and maybe occassionally brackish water. But like I said it won't be sitting in the water longer than over night ever. Do I need to use any solvents or anything when I prep it or just sand paper?
 
First of all the removal of the anti-fouling can be done by scraping, or through the use of a product such as Pintoff (for fiberglass), which is made by International Paint. If this isn't available and you decide to go with another chemical stripper make sure that it will not harm the gelcoat. Once the anti-fouling has been removed you will need to fill in any gouges or scrapes, for this you can use an easily sandable produce such as PolyFair, this product is basically a factory made paste using polyester resin and micro balloons (thickener) it is awesome to work with, and is good above and below the water line. In any case check with a marine supply shop to make sure you have the right product for the job. Do not use automotive fillers such as "Bondo". If you are going to use a light colour then your prep won't need to be as perfect as it would for a dark colour. If the colour is light then you can probably get away with an overall fine sanding, and then a primer coat. If you are using a dark colour then I would spray the hull with a high fill primer, this is easily sanded and it will fill slight imperfections. Lastly apply the paint, Linear Polyurethane paints can be applied by brush and will cure relatively brush stroke free. Other two part epoxy paints should be sprayed. I suppose you need to assess the value of the boat and that should help determine how fancy you want to go. Maybe a good sanding and a brush job will suffice. Better to bury the money into the engine (sails)
 
I was planning on just sanding and painting with Rust-oleum Marine Topside. I think Interlux Bright Side is the all around best/easiest from what research I have done, but I don't know how to get any and it costs twice as much as the Rust-oleum that we sell where I work. Has anybody used either of these products?

I was also wondering about the bumper track around the hull... I guess it's aluminum. It looks kinda rough, it has a lot of scratches and some gouges. I'd like to polish it, but maybe painting would be easier?

One last thing, you will probably think I'm crazy, but I was thinking of using Homax Professional Welder to seal the chips. :eek:

It's an industrial-strength waterproof adhesive that says it permanently bonds fiberglass. I guess it's like JB Weld, but you don't have to mix it and I don't think JB bonds to fiberglass (at least it's not listed on the packaging).
 
I'm not familiar with Homax, but if it is a marine adhesive it may be formulated to remain somewhat flexible, in other words it could be a nightmare to sand. Rust Oleum I am familiar with, but not with their topsides paint, Is it just enamel? If your going to put some effort into this I would go with the previously mentioned paints, or the Interlux product. If you can obtain Interlux paint you should be able to get any of their marine products, all of which are of good quality.
 
Found out some cool info today on my boat! I contacted someone from the National Rebel Class Association who told me I have a Rascal II, not a Rebel! It's a racing sloop! I did a search using the identification# on a website called boathistoryreport.com which is generally used to see if a used boat has been in an accident or something. It was manufactured in 1974, not '75 by Rival Boats of California in Riverside, CA (ID code formerly assigned to Ray Greene Co Inc. of Toledo, OH). That makes the little bugger 35 years old! And the funny part was my dad said I should name it the canary since it's yellow and the actual manufacturer color is called "Canary Yellow". haha, funny...
 
And I found out the number on the sail is for identification in single-class racing and means mine is the 601st Rascal produced!:D

At least the sail was the 601st...
 
Welp, I finally finished re-furbing the trailer yesterday, so the boat is next!

I ordered me some Marine-Tex to patch the dings. Anyone have any experience with this, like maybe know any tips & tricks? I started chipping away the gelcoat around the dings and I'll be sanding tomorrow. I also sprung for the Interlux for the hull since they had yellow, but I'll probably still do Rust-oleum on the top white parts. I'll get some pics later, my camera memory card is full right now.:rolleyes:
 
Just a few observations. From the pictures of the trailer I do not see any "V" on the winch stand to hold the bow of the boat,(bow stop) just the strap to winch the boat up. I would think you would need something to keep the boat from sliding forward on the trailer. On my 16'er my winch stand also has an extension that hold the mast off the boat. Something has to keep the boat from sliding forward and hitting te winch. Looks by the snaps that the boat had a mooring cover at one time, thus the antifouling paint, as she must have been keep in the water. The edge you show (bumper rail) usually has a rubber insert that snaps into the groves. I know inserts can be bought at an RV store, as it is used on RV's on the awning rai, you would just have to match the width of the grovel. As far as the number of the boat, classes do it differently. On 2 of my boats the sail number is the boat production number, while on the Sunfish the sail number is assgned by the class (I believe) On my Comet the sail numer is also engraved in the centerboard trunk, thus boat and sails match. Looks like a nice boat that would sail/race with a crew of 2 but would also be a daysailer for 4.
 
Yeah, the trailer photo is the "before" picture. I have no idea how they hauled the boat around with the trailer in that condition. I've replaced the wheels, hubs, carpet, wiring, lights, and paint and added a wench and V-shaped pad in the front. I might still add another stopper up front if the pad doesn't do the trick.

I also already have the bumper rail replacement but I'm waiting till after I clean up the aluminum rail to put it in. The new inserts are pretty flimsy so I'm going to put a rope behind it all the way around with waterproof caulk. Can't wait to get everything spruced-up!:D
 
Haha, actually I didn't even mean "wench" or "winch"! Just not paying attention to what I was typing. It already had a winch when I got it, I added a trailer jack to get it off that bucket I was using before!:eek:
 
Hey, how about some updated pics??? Yellow is my fav. color. I bought a Rascal last fall and got to sail it for a week on vacation this summer. Lots of fun!
 

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