Phantom 14 overhaul

Phantom14guy

New Member
Hello, so I've had this phantom for a while. I've never done anything to it. Now I'm a proud owner of property on Lake Michigan on the north shore of Chicago. Because I'm eager to sail I'm taking the boat out Immediately for the rest of the season. I know im getting water. The damn boat weighs a shit load and drains water out of the front drain hole for 20 min. I've seen a lot of advice on reddit and the forums. I know I gotta get the old foam or and replace. I want to reinforce mast hole and resurface the bottom and topside. Any advice would be great. I'm handy, i'm a contractor with a lot of experience spraying. "Paint"
 

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First you need to determine where the water is coming in. You say you need to ‘reinforce the mast hole’. Is it leaking there? Fill the mast step with water. Wait 30 min. If it’s still full, no leak. Do a leak (pressure) test. Use Search on this forum for full instructions. Patch the areas that bubble.
I wouldn’t remove all the foam, but would add two inspection ports and dry it out off season. By next summer you’ll be sailing a nice, leak free Phantom that won’t weigh a shitload!
 
Check your daggerboard trunk, a common leak area due to stress. All seams at the lower end should be closely inspected. If they look sketchy, seal 'em up... the hulls of these small craft "work" in rough water, and that working creates stress, so you'll wanna keep tabs on the hull and regularly inspect it. I used to give my Laser an annual overhaul every winter, and sealing up those trunk seams was always on the list. And as BB recommends, I suggest two inspection ports, far enough apart to allow air flow through the hull when it's stored on land. A small fan or blow dryer will help dry out that hull so you can work on it... the sooner, the better, despite your understandable eagerness to get out there on the water. For hull & deck coatings, I was always partial to two-part linear polyurethane primer & paint, it flexes a bit as the hull works in a seaway. :confused:

If your area regularly has heller breeze and rough surface chop, there's no law against reinforcing the mast step even if it already looks okay... I deliberately strengthened my Laser mast step for island voyages miles offshore, where potential equipment failure posed a greater hazard. You can also upgrade blocks & lines at your convenience and use the old stuff for other applications. Same goes for marine hardware, fasteners, etc., get rid of tired or corroded junk and use stainless fasteners wherever possible. A rivet gun may prove useful as well. You sound as if you're handy, so you can build a simple padded rack or cradle to hold the hull, spars, etc., and just stow the sail, gear, etc., in a bag and keep it in your home, garage, shed, whatever. Never stow anything while it's still wet, always dry everything first, in my Laser heyday I used simple wooden drying racks built for the purpose. Moi, I'd rinse everything but my sail, unless the sail needed it, but I was sailing in salt water, aye? :rolleyes:

Good luck with your project, doesn't look too bad right now but that leak/overweight issue should be dealt with ASAP. You want the boat light and fast, she'll be much funner that way, and a waterlogged hull doesn't do much for boat speed. The sooner you dry her out and get her fixed, the happier you and the boat will be, LOL. A few simple reminders: MARINE SAFETY is your highest priority, especially where kids are involved, so be sure to have proper PFDs for all aboard, most states have laws about this and will cite you if you fail to comply. Learn the "Rules of the Road" by heart, they'll make a better sailor out of you, but NEVER assume the other guy has the first clue about these rules. To free up cockpit space (which is at a premium in these small craft), you can stow gear, extra clothing, etc., in a waterproof bag (the kind used for running rapids) and secure the bag to the mast in such a way that you can access it if necessary but it doesn't get underfoot, interfere with running rigging, or cause other problems. A small soft cooler is best for bringing beverages, sandwiches, and whatnot, this can remain in the cockpit without causing too much trouble. :cool:

THAT'S MY $.02 FOR NOW, CONGRATS ON THE LAKEFRONT HOME, SOUNDS LIKE YOU'LL BE HAVING FUN IN YEARS AHEAD... CHEERS!!! :D

P.S. Most libraries have books on basic sailing on their shelves, and there's probably plenty of info on the web... moi, I'm old school, been around since dinosaurs roamed the earth, so I grew up with books, LOL. :eek:
 
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