Dell Quay Dory - foam core?

[David_Jersey]

This question is NOT related to my recent post about the boat I am in the process of buying and was looking to take care of the VAT position!

Back in the summer whislt I was trying to find a sailing boat to buy, I very nearly bought a 17 foot Dell Quay Dory, just for the occassional blast around the bay and the odd trip over to France - I met the chap selling it by accident and had a good chat to him and a quick look over the boat - it was quite old (10 years + but the 4 stroke 70hp was more recent (5 years?) and seemed in good order with a reasonable enough price.

The reason I didn't buy it was firstly I could not really justify the expense of two boats (surprise surprise!), but secondly having done a few searches on the internet the question of the foam core being waterlogged cropped up.

The advice I found was that once it had occurred that the cure is basically that it needs digging out and replacing (a job which would not be fun or economic to do).

However I never really found an answer that I could feel happy with as to how to tell if she was waterlogged in the first place.

Kinda been bugging me since, especially every time I drive past her (still for sale) - anyone have any ideas?

 

[Bandit]

I have a DQ Dory 14 ft a bit tatty and it is sodden with water it must add 250 kg, you can feel it , but i use it as a tender so not important.

A seasonal answer is to fit a drain plug and put it upright against the wall with the bung out to drain as guernsey harbour authority do for a couple of months.

People in Guernsey dig out the floor and remove the foam and re floor with a flat floor but it is a big job.

DQ dorys have a poor ride i would not recomend them against a dep vee rib for channel crossings.

 

[David_Jersey]

Cheers for that - unfortunataly I have no idea what a 17 foot dory should feel like! and in any event I doubt if I could pick one up - even if it was not waterlogged!

A Dory would not be my ideal small fastish boat (I'd probably go for a RIB as well) - more based on price for something that would do the job for occassional trips to France - probably mostly either when someone else is in Portbail or Carteret at the weekend (my father stays for weeks at a time), with available accomadation onboard! or a quick day trip and back to Les Ecrehous - or for POSSIBLY quick shopping trips to France when they bring in the GST over here /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I was thinking of something that could sit in a drying harbour all year - and would be low maintanence - and wouldn't matter if I did not use it a great deal.