Dismasted, a photo album on my profile page

[Sailor Sailor]

In June 2016, I suffered a dismasting while sailing in the lower Chesapeake Bay during a small craft advisory, due to a rotted chainplate knee. I was able to pull the sails and mast back in the boat and motor to Deltaville. My insurance company declared the boat a total loss and I bought it back from them for $250 salvage value. The photos illustrate the process of repairing the boat myself, and re-rigging it with a Tartan 37 mast I found in Boston and had shipped to Virginia.

After extensive repairs, my Sabre 34 is in better condition than when I bought it.

[Bullshooter]

I don't see any photos.

[wyb2]

I can see them. You have to click on his username then “Albums Created by Sailor Sailor”.

Looks like a job well done. What were all the slots in the plywood for?

[Sailor Sailor]

The slots are for double or cross tabbing through the material itself, not just along the sides. High density polyurethane foam sits between the marine plywood and the hull sides to prevent hard spots. Fiberglass cloth tape goes through the slots to either side, securing the material perpendicularly. Then tabbing runs the length of each side. The idea is the material cannot pull out of the tabbing. (It is Don Casey's idea, not mine.)

[wyb2]

I suspected something like that, but I couldn't tell exactly from the pictures. Should be significantly stronger than what was there before.



I'm sure the bulk of the damage was inherited from a previous owner (I know it was on my boat), but I'll bet you are absolutely religious about checking for leaks and rebedding the chain plates from here on out.

[Bullshooter]

That looks like quite a project. Boat seems well worth the $250 now!

[Sailor Sailor]

Originally Posted by Bullshooter

That looks like quite a project. Boat seems well worth the $250 now!

Yes, the odd thing is my wife has never really liked sailing and boats the way I do, but she wanted me to keep and repair this boat, because it was more stable than my last one, and the cabin floor was large enough for my sons to play Lego.

The insured agreed value insurance payoff was greater than the purchase price, so when it was totalled, for awhile I was actually ahead: I bought and owned a boat and received more money than I paid for it, so I had to spend money repairing it for an IRS Section 1033 Nonrecognition of Gain to avoid taxes. That turned out to be no problem.