cal 29 purchase

Hello, my name is Eric and I just joined the group today. I'm looking to buy a cal 29.I just read about the compression post beam and wondered if anybody had any more tips/info that I should be aware of/looking for.What are some of the good/bad points about these boats? Are people taking these on coastal trips? I'll be sailing on S.F. bay and mabey out the gate (on nice days). Any info would be greatly appreciated, thanks...... Eric

Eric, Welcome to the list. The CAL 29 is a wonderful boat. Yes it has the beam. It depends on the condition of it to have to replace it. Hope you purchase it and join the list. Randy CAL 2-29 Out Patient Channel Islands Ca --- On Sun, 7/27/08, bergsboat <be… [at] yahoo.com> wrote: From: bergsboat <be… [at] yahoo.com> Subject: [Cal_Boats] cal 29 purchase To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Date: Sunday, July 27, 2008, 12:05 PM Hello, my name is Eric and I just joined the group today. I'm looking to buy a cal 29.I just read about the compression post beam and wondered if anybody had any more tips/info that I should be aware of/looking for.What are some of the good/bad points about these boats? Are people taking these on coastal trips? I'll be sailing on S.F. bay and mabey out the gate (on nice days). Any info would be greatly appreciated, thanks...... Eric

Eric, I love my 29. It sails very well for it¹s era ‹ will out sail most boats of it¹s age in it¹s class. I really enjoy the layout. Works well for my weekend Island trips around the Santa Barbara Channel. I sailed Puget Sound quite a bit as well. She is a little tender initially, but stiffens up nicely. She likes a #2 headsail when it gets up around 18 knots or so and a reef in the main usually nets an increase in boat speed as she likes to sail fairly flat. These boats have been sailed off-shore. I know guys that have taken them to Hawaii and back and say they are very friendly off shore. Like her big sister, the Cal 40, she loves to surf under spinnaker or even on a deep reach with the genoa out. The truth is, I¹ve even surfed her up-wind when the wind went light and shifted against an earlier established swell. The beam is a random source of concern. I¹ve seen 29s that were pretty neglected that had perfect beams and, of course, just the opposite. It may depend on how well the wiring pass inside the mast has been caulked over the years, as well as chainplate leakage and in my case the ice box drain was routed inside the web of the beam. I urge you to find a way to inspect it. You can start by using an extending mirror (Kragen or Pep Boys sell these cheap) and flashlight. Angle the flashlight onto the mirror near your eye-sight path and the beam will be reflected into the interior in the same direction that you are viewing. The opening around the head discharge thru-hull will give you a little view. The most forward storage bin under the port settee will get you a side view from the port end of the beam and you can learn a lot by looking at the tab in the center (visible under the transverse portion of the settee.) Other concerns are similar to production boats of their age and chainplate and through deck fittings can lead to core rot and delamination of the deck glass to the plywood core. Check around those. Blisters seem to be a reasonably mild concern ‹ most reports are gel-coat blisters with occasionally more severe osmosis on older boats. The rudders blister easily and if you put the boat into the yard you should cover the rudder with some white plastic to defend it from the sun. Flexing of the hull along the turn of the bilge into the keel was a topic of concern, but usually not a problem on the 29. I have become pretty conversant in these things, as I had some noticeably increased keel wobble on my boat this last haul-out. It turned out that there wasn¹t significant damage to the hull-layup, but internal tabbing had broken loose as a result of the prior owner¹s mechanic cutting out part of the pan in the engine room. I have taken the time to reinforce everything. I haven¹t heard of any other real concerns along these lines on the 29, but have seen 27s and 28s with fairly severe cracking along this area, which could eventually lead to failure. I¹ve been told that this is pretty obvious on your haul-outs, as the cracks weep sea water after the rest of the hull has dried. Apparently, the 27 had a tendency to crack at the aft edge of the keel where it met the hull, resulting in a need for fairly minor repairs. Hope this helps. Wilkie From: bergsboat <be… [at] yahoo.com> Reply-To: <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2008 17:05:28 -0000 To: <Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com> Subject: [Cal_Boats] cal 29 purchase Hello, my name is Eric and I just joined the group today. I'm looking to buy a cal 29.I just read about the compression post beam and wondered if anybody had any more tips/info that I should be aware of/looking for.What are some of the good/bad points about these boats? Are people taking these on coastal trips? I'll be sailing on S.F. bay and mabey out the gate (on nice days). Any info would be greatly appreciated, thanks...... Eric