Meet the new La Rea!

captkevin

Hard to believe everything was there but it was not hooked up

Ian

We checked out a Wellcraft cruiser once around 2013 that was HIN’d as around 2000,2001 and the pads for the berths and seats still had their plastic wrapping on them. Guy rarely went below - or even used it. Or looked after the outside, such as shame too.

LaRea

Almost got the boat stuck today -- but not like you'd think.

I need a haulout to fix the trim tabs and swim platform.  I had a 3-day window between business trips, and had a clockwork schedule:  haul at today's high tide, then splash at Wednesday's high tide.

Except it didn't work. 

The travel lift is 17' wide, and my beam is 17' 1".  Halfway into the lift, the rub rails were literally wedged between the legs of the lift.  I was afraid she was stuck, but I managed to back out with a bit of throttle.  

The only damage was to my schedule.  The next closest place with a big lift is 80 miles downriver.  We'll make a late-season voyage and hope to finish before they get jammed up with winterization work.  

rasbury

Wow, the bigger the boat tge bigger the problems...but in a good way!

captkevin

How wide is the lift at other marina?

LaRea

It's a 75-ton lift, so I'd guess around 25' wide.  Plenty big enough for my "little" 28-ton runabout.  But the 160-mile round trip makes it an expensive haul-out.  First-world problems, eh?

LaRea

Now that’s a lift. No problems this time.

captkevin

Plenty of room to spare.

YYZRC

Did you get to meet the guys who built that lift in their backyard or are they all long dead? Yikes. 

captkevin

How long will boat be out of water? Does it come out for winter?

Rich_

Your yard needs some new paint at minimum.


Newest 85 metric ton travel lift in town.

LaRea

Boat's on land for only a week.  Yesterday I replaced the trim tab actuators and removed the swim platform hydraulic hoses so I can get new ones made.  

I'm looking forward to having trim tabs.  They worked during sea trial, but failed on the second day coming up from Florida.  Without trim tabs, the boat just plows.  To see the horizon, I have to raise the seat almost as high as it goes.  I'll probably gain 10% in fuel economy and 2 knots in cruise speed.  

@captkevin - I'll keep her in the water this winter.  She'll be 3 minutes from home, and I'll be working on her all winter.

captkevin

Dumb question but why not leave boat out of water for winter?

Aqua_Aura

This is a lift, 500 T 😂. I've posted this before though. 

oscar1

Did you remember the name of the Rust primer you said is expensive but it work great. I have some rust in my home generator diesel tank, and I would like to use a good primer before paint it. thx

YYZRC

POR-15 ?

LaRea

Yes, POR is the stuff @oscar1 -- no primer needed.  POR stands for "paint over rust".  Just sand and paint.  

@captkevin - I have an aggressive schedule of upgrades to tackle this winter.  With the boat in the slip, getting there from home takes 3 minutes instead of 2 hours.  Also, the slip has 50-amp power and easy boarding with no ladder.  

oscar1

Thank you two both of you.

PickleRick

You need to get the loose rust off of the surface before painting @oscar1 they make a metal prep you can spray on after hitting the tank with a wire wheel.   The cleaner the better as rust will grow under it, slowly but it won't just magically disappear. 


I used to go as far as acetone cleaning before painting.  Now I'm cheap and have found your 90 some odd % alcohol from Walmarts pharmacy mixed 50/50 with water, clean with lent free cloth is fine.  It also doesn't eat any good paint that is still on there.  Great window cleaner too. 

. 

oscar1

Appreciate,  I have to do something quick, because the weather is eating the tank away.  Thx

rasbury

I have rusting on the intake manifold. I'm not sure how the water was getting on it- I have the dingy package so that back seating underneath is set up to put the outboard there and has a vent going into the bilge.  I also had a bad sensor on the power steering cooler. PO had broken it off and then stuck it back on with jb weld or something...I'm sure it was leaking. The "webbing" in some places is rusted away and I'm not sure of the damage- I think I need to just replace it. Not sure what happens if it does rust through but I'd guess it can be good. Worst part would be getting the distributor shaft back in correctly...from the other leak I had over the mid ship was leaking all over the generator and that framing is about dust. I guess I will have to fab something for that one day...generator is fine.

LaRea

Awesome day today!  

Woke up in California at 2AM, and landed in Virginia at 12:30.  @aero3113 my boss flew us in his Citation CJ3+ that I've mentioned here before.   

Picked up my new hydraulic hoses, repacked my suitcase, and took a 2-hour Uber to the boat.  Took me 2-1/2 hours to install the hoses, finish the trim tabs, and replace the zinc anodes with aluminum.  Tomorrow morning I splash at 8, fuel up, and head to DC for corporate "business development meetings" on the boat.  

Long day, but I'm stoked about launching tomorrow.  I was terrified that somehow I'd get stuck on land and miss the rest of the season.  

aero3113

Very cool @LaRea
That Jet can be flown single pilot. Did you get a chance to sit in the right seat or was there two pilots flying? 

LaRea

Yes, I right-seated the first leg out!  The nav package on that plane is bad-as$.  And I love the acceleration on takeoff.  

Got back in the water this morning and made it to DC.  Here's how much this boat appreciates having trim tabs: 
Down-river without trim tabs:  200 gallons at 23 knots
Up-river with trim tabs:  160 gallons at 25 knots

I'm at Capital Yacht Club in the "vanity spot" right next to the boardwalk.

captkevin

thats quite a improvement. Congrats

Dream_Inn

The name looks nice on it.  

aero3113

Very nice @LaRea !! ⚓️👍🏻

LaRea

Thanks!  In Venezuela she was named "Anemona" which is a female name of Greek origin.  In the US, that name was awkward ... people kept calling her "an enema" until I took the name off!

raybo3

Totally awesome

captkevin

Beautiful picture