Symmetry of Hull on Hard for a Long Time

[zboss]

Hi... ya'llll.

I have a question regarding the time it takes for the hull of a classic heavily built fiberglass boat to go out of symmetry when on the hard for a while.

I have never bought a boat like that so I have no reference point - I only know that it could be a concern in certain circumstances.

Also... does the boat ever migrate back into symmetry?

I am attempting to filter my search based partially on the time the boat has been laid on the hard without having to resort to visiting each boat or depend on a surveyor.

Thanks!

[maxingout]

I would not purchase a yacht that was so lightly built that it would go out of symmetry when it has been left on the hard. I guess that must be one of the reason I have always liked heavy displacement full keel cruising yachts. No worries about the hull loosing symmetry on the hard, and you have an equally strong hull offshore when seas are rough.

[Orion Jim]

When properly blocked, or jack stands properly adjusted and positioned, on firm ground a vessel should stay in shape till the next ice age.

[donradcliffe]

What makes you think hulls are symmetric to start with?? They were built by hand and they aren't.

[thomm225]

This boat was on the hard for 5 years, and I could see no change in it symmetry .......... from how it was built. (but it is a Bristol) It has now been in the the water the last two years.

I paid the guy $2,000.00 for it. It did not have a for sale sign on it, but I went asking around when I saw it on the hard there.

[GrowleyMonster]

If it is in stands it should be fine, no matter how lightly built. Laying on its side, as in deposited there by a hurricane, maybe it could be an issue but not much of one. In time any deformation should work back out. And anyway you shouldn't even notice it by its sailing characteristics.

[barnakiel]

Symmetry, asymmetry, bathymetry ...

Do not know about asymmetry but seen hulls deformed by bad choice of support devices and their wrong location. One was a crap hull built in Spain (guess no structural support inside at all), the other was a US built boat commonly considered to be a decent builder.

Our hull flexes ever so slightly (not visible unless you look very carefully over the natural curve of the hull) when a less than trained at all boatyard hand places the support exactly half way between internal athwart supports - but only if they tend to pump up the jack (which is actually not necessary as the boat is resting, is supposed to be resting, on her keel). I move such supports to the right spot (which is clearly marked and apparently has been communicated to the hand prior to lifting the boat).

Otherwise I noticed slight deformation in the engine area - I can see this when disconnecting and reconnecting the train. As the book says, this kind disappears when the boat is back in the water. I found the book to tell the truth.

Our hull is very, very rigid I think - solid and thick laminate designed in 1967 and built in 1980. Specs to Lloyds.

b.

[Hudson Force]

The most significant shape change that I have noticed has resulted in a temporary slight sticking of an interior doorway that returned to normal when the boat was back in the water.