Sun Odyssey Lifting Keels

steveej

steveej

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I went to see a 2003 sun odyssey 32 today with a lifting centreboard that swings up between two minature bilge keels.

When lifting up the sole boards to check the bilge, there was what appeared to be lots of epoxy filler around the inner moulding.

Over the past few months I have also seen all three sun odyssey 26's currently on the market with the same keel configuration. They all had the same issue. I cannot believe it is a factory job as they are all very DIY by the looks of them.

Can anyone highlight to me what the issue is here.

Is this from drying out and the boat pounding on hard sand in swell with the result being delamination of the inner moulding from the hull? Is it structural? The bolts are in a square configuration to hold the mini bilge keels and what is effectively the grounding plate to the hull.

Great boat but it also needs new sails and a complete re-rig (running and standing) any idea of ball park costs for these?

Cheers
 
steveej said:
Great boat but it also needs new sails and a complete re-rig (running and standing) any idea of ball park costs for these?

Cheers
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Professionally done

Sail(basic)£3500 (Better) £5000

Standing rigging £2000 minimum

Running rigging£800-1000 depending on rope quality and how much requires complete replacement

Opportunities to save money on rigging by doing some of th standing rigging yourself and buying cordage in bulk and making your own up. Probably best to take all the existing ropes, wash them and then decide what needs replacing.

Can't help on the first question but doubt it is anything to do with repairs, particular as it is common to all the boats. Suspect it is part of the bonding of the internal framing into the hull which can look untidy on many boats of that era.
 
Thanks Tranona,

It is definately to do with bonding between the inner moulding and the hull, I just cant believe it came out the factory like that. But the fourth one today got me thinking it must have come out of the factory like that.

Hard to believe because it is quite messy work but maybe they took the opinion that because it is hidden under the sole boards, who cares.

The sails are ten years old but I don;t think the boat has been used much the last few years, so there may be some life still left in them. They feel crispy compared to the ones on my old Hurley 22. The standing rigging is 15 years old so may be good for a few more.

The running rigging is crusty and green.

Just keen to secure a boat for next season. It has been two years of non ownership due to the house move and its driving me nuts.

Appreciate your help and guidance.
 
Chap on our moorings bought a lifting keel Jeneau about 28ft long.
Within 2 months of buying it he noticed that the centreboard had disappeared.
He now sails it with just the stub keel; although not far & not in windy weather. Motors mostly, for obvious reasons.
Not the first person on our moorings to find their lifting keel no longer where it should be :ambivalence:
 
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Daydream believer said:
With so many dirt cheap second hand boats about, does one really have to buy a boat that may have something suspect, or something about which they may not be absolutely confident.
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I would like drying out ability, but I don't want a 1980's bilge keel boat due to the maintenance issues. Modern boats that can dry are few and far between. All second hand boats are going to have concerns. I am just trying to determine whether my concerns are real and legitimate concerns.

I have a £30k budget (which seems to be changing all the time but I'm hoping it will settle down now the house move is sorted) and would like something post 2000 build around 30 feet and at £30k there are not actually that many for sale.
 
I had a 2004 (I think) lift keel SO32. It also had some rather clumsy grp work in the bilge that worried me in case itcwas a repair. However my suspicion is that for the lift keel boat they took a standard hull and hand modified it.
 
Plevier said:
I had a 2004 (I think) lift keel SO32. It also had some rather clumsy grp work in the bilge that worried me in case itcwas a repair. However my suspicion is that for the lift keel boat they took a standard hull and hand modified it.
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was that from new? seems awfully rough to put the heebie jeebies up me.
 
When i lost my rudder in a grounding near inverness I had it replaced & sailed home. The boat was lifted at Bradwell & the insurance Co provided a surveyor FOC to do a check of some slight crazing in the bilges laminate. he confirmed that it was superficial & made the comment that he had seen this on yachts & not worried. -- But if it had been a Jeneau it would have been a different matter. Some had needed extensive repair, as a few (not all) were so badly built in the first instance.
 
steveej said:
I would like drying out ability, but I don't want a 1980's bilge keel boat due to the maintenance issues. Modern boats that can dry are few and far between. All second hand boats are going to have concerns. I am just trying to determine whether my concerns are real and legitimate concerns.
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Why do you want to dry out? is it because you only have a drying mooring or that you think that you are going creek sailing.
I ask this because there are 2 distinct differences. Drying mooring would necessitate a boat taking to the ground & in my view, something to be avoided long term. Others will certainly disagree.
However, if you feel that you want to go sailing & take to the ground on some far off sandy shore or up some muddy creek then think again. I always say that creek sailing for many is a myth & people buy shallow draft so they can sail in shallow water, but I bet many panic when the sounder shows 1.2m below the keel.
as for drying on a beach !! well get caught in a swell or sit on a small boulder & you might not want to do that again
My point being that whilst lifting keel for some, to get in & out of a marina, over that bar, or whatever, is Ok, I would query if you really do want to take to the ground that often-- if at all-- Apart from on a mooring that is.
 
the boat is going to Cardiff.

There are a few harbours I have not yet visited that dry out.

I have no intention of drying out on a regular basis, but would like a boat that can dry out when conditions are perfect so that there is no damage to the boat through pounding on a hard packed sandy sea bed.

I do not want the economic write off that is a 1980's bilge keeler.
 
steveej said:
was that from new? seems awfully rough to put the heebie jeebies up me.
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No I didn't get it new, but it was in absolutely as new condition. There was extra lamination around the edges of the framing around the keel area, somewhat clumsily done in chopped strand mat.
 
I'm selling a Jeanneau 29.2 that's within your budget. For less than half the price of a swing keel repair you could procure some yacht legs (the boat was designed to take them) for the few times you want to take to the ground.
 
RobF said:
I'm selling a Jeanneau 29.2 that's within your budget. For less than half the price of a swing keel repair you could procure some yacht legs (the boat was designed to take them) for the few times you want to take to the ground.
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I notice you are also Bristol based. Wheres the boat? I have offered on the 32 late this afternoon.
 
dancrane said:
Have you any particular builder in mind, with that remark?
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Well Dan, For starters---I have a friend with a Westerly Centaur & he said that in 2016 he could hear the bilge keel clonking from side to side on the mooring. He effected "repair" & now has it ashore trying to stop the leak that he still has, even though he dropped it & re fitted it.
I am told that it is a typical Centaur problem. Others may wish to deny/confirm
 
Daydream believer said:
I am told that it is a typical Centaur problem.
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I've heard the same, and since I like drying harbours very much, I found that reputation a considerable discouragement.

On the other hand, the Centaur isn't an 80s boat such as Steve mentioned; also, it seems to be reckoned that most instances of this undoubted weakness have been resolved by a fairly simple job (which I just didn't fancy taking on).

The Centaur may have been a loser for people who bought a tired one a few years ago, but values have dropped so low, a goodish one now looks like a bargain - aside from the styling from another era - not an economic write-off for the new owner.
 
steveej said:
I notice you are also Bristol based. Wheres the boat? I have offered on the 32 late this afternoon.
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I'm based in Stoke Gifford, but keep my boat in Chichester Harbour. I kept a boat at Portishead for a few years, but the tidal restrictions etc meant that I took the plunge and decided to keep my boat on the South Coast. The 32 is a nice boat.
 
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