how to get out of project rut

[Drummer79]

When I bought my CAL 29, I was always going up there 4 hour trips to get to the boat and get it going to get it home, paying fees for it to sit on land in Virginia just irked me so bad, I wanted her home, so i jumped on it and got it done. It took a lot longer than I would have liked just due to finding weekends I could devote to a 4 hour one way trip just to get there, and had to plan out parts deliveries and all before I could go again, etc..I got that done, got the boat here, where it's literally 10 minutes away tops, if i catch all the lights, and I just can't seem to get over there and finish all the stuff I want done to her. Repainted the inside, got all the new lights for her, already traced and fixed most of the previous owner's hack wiring, and got basically ALL the parts to just jump on it and finish the boat, besides the cracked fiberglass from a storm, that's a different project. I have all I need to finish her, just can't get my act together and get there. I need inspiration or a good kick in the butt. help me please?

[rcvesselstyn]

Mary must have the answer. She is in the same situation as you were. She has been amazing, accomplishing huge projects. I'm afraid I'm from the other side. After the initial push to replace the steel beam and get her seaworthy we have been taking our time with the other projects. Whatever breaks is the next project. I have been working on boats all my life, And I try and keep the sailing to a maximum and the working to a minimum. We have had this boat almost 9 years now and there is still 70% of the work to do. We had the last boat 30 years and didn't come close to finishing all the projects. If there's a project that's keeping me from taking the boat out I'll spend every night after work till past midnight to get it done. Sailing is my motivation.

[Drummer79]

Mary must have the answer. She is in the same situation as you were. She has been amazing, accomplishing huge projects. I'm afraid I'm from the other side. After the initial push to replace the steel beam and get her seaworthy we have been taking our time with the other projects. Whatever breaks is the next project. I have been working on boats all my life, And I try and keep the sailing to a maximum and the working to a minimum. We have had this boat almost 9 years now and there is still 70% of the work to do. We had the last boat 30 years and didn't come close to finishing all the projects. If there's a project that's keeping me from taking the boat out I'll spend every night after work till past midnight to get it done. Sailing is my motivation.

There's the rub. I've never sailed her, I motored the whole way home, the sails seem great, but broke a mast spreader, and then the other broke because i'm sure both were rotten. I've had replacements built, just waiting to get them installed. I've got a rewiring to get modern day shore power inside, all the parts for solar charging for the batteries so that I don't have to deal with the nightmares of shore power and 12v systems co-mingling and eating the zinc's, etc..I've got it all figured out, got 95% of the parts, Honestly in 3 weekends of hard work I could have her in ship shape, but I just don't do it. part of it is i hate working alone, I like someone there to bounce ideas off of, or at least someone who doesn't know anything but will sit and talk while i work, etc.. or maybe i'm just burnt out on it cus i did the big adventure and that's over now. i dunno. I need new inspiration.

[rcvesselstyn]

Getting out on the water always motivates me. Check down on the dock see if anybody needs any crew . Or if you have a yacht club around stop by and put your card on the board, make yourself available for the midweek races. You might try paring down your list of things to do until just the things to get you out sailing are on it. Don't give up. More adventures await you. Good luck.

[Mary Mac]

I like to prioritize things that will get me sailing. I love sailing, and it motivates me. When I first got my boat, it was in no shape to sail or even motor. It took me over a year of hard work before the first sail. Then I proceeded to tackle projects that took a long time and made it so I couldn't sail. I made sure to go out sailing on other people's boats though. I have been able to sail my boat a handful of times. A year ago, I moved a 6.5 hour drive away from my boat. I have been driving or flying back and forth every weekend. It is exhausting and rewarding and I'm motivated because I want to sail her down the California coast this year. Some days, I tackle huge projects and exhaust myself because I just can't stand having it half done. Some days, I pick a few smaller things to finish. Make sure to stand back and look at the progress you've made along the way instead of always looking at what is left to be done. I do most of the work alone, but people at the marina know this nutty chick at the end of L dock doing all this work to her boat and they will stop by to chat. I have a couple friends who are also doing projects on their boats. We help each other, or sometimes they just come by and drink my beer while I'm working. Maybe you need more beer?

What are the things you need to do before you can sail?

[allen]

I inherited Papoose in 1989 and have spent countless hours working on her. She needs lots of work. The thing that I recommend is to make a list of what you want to do and list things by category. 1) What needs to be done so the boat can sail. 2) What needs to be done so the boat won't rot. 3) What needs to be done to make it the way you want.

Then do everything on #1 and go sailing. Then the magic realization. You will never finish list 2 or 3. Just work on them when you have time but don't let them stop you from sailing. Occasionally walk around the boat and look at what has moved from #3 to #2 and make sure you work on it before it gets to #1. Decide what things you are going to do this year and when you can do them without interfering with your sailing. But remember, you will never finish. Don't try. It is a fools errand. You will make progress but the worst thing you can do is try and finish.

I need to paint the cabin top. That is my next project. Five days? I also need to paint the deck. Last time I painted the deck it took 17 days. Lots went wrong. So before I paint the deck, I need to figure out a different process so that one can wait until after sailing season. August has nice weather and no wind so probably then. I will do parts of the cabin top between races this summer. It is in category 2 so higher priority than the deck when is category 3.

[Drummer79]

I had the boat checked out today by a guy who does fiberglass work to price fixing the little cracks in teh deck where it beat the dock last year in a storm. he priced it about where I expected, but he told me the deck core is soft up front. Not fatal yet, but soft, real soft. I know the hull is solid, and maybe some flex should be expected for a 50 year old boat, but investing thousands of dollars in redoing the deck just isnt going to happen. he knows a guy that tkes old boats like this for parts, salvages what he can from it, mast, rails, engine, all the good stuff, and does away with the rest. how scared should I be of the soft deck up front in front of the forward hatch? My beam of death is in good shape. I'm considering cutting my losses at this point and buying a better boat once i sell my house.

[rcvesselstyn]

Go with your gut. The more time and effort you invest in a boat the harder it is to part with her. However concerning your foredeck

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This is a shot of it's construction. You have about a quarter of an inch of hand laid fiberglass and then 3/4 of an inch of marine plywood and then a layer of fiberglass on the interior. My boat is a later 2 29 in has a quarter inch fiberglass liner in the entire forward section of the boat

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20210613_172903.jpg (2.83 MiB) Viewed 15258 times

The flexing will not kill your boat. It is extremely sturdy. If you're planning on challenging the North Sea in a Gale then I think you should fix it. Otherwise I would live with it until you had the opportunity to peel off the inner plywood and fiberglass and replace it with a fresh sheet of 3/4 inch marine plywood and a single layer of fiberglass roving. Unlike a lot of the older sailboats out there these Cals were heavily built and sail well. But as I said before, you've gotta go with your gut. A sailboat is an emotional relationship not a practical one.

[Drummer79]

Go with your gut. The more time and effort you invest in a boat the harder it is to part with her. However concerning your foredeck20210613_172532.jpg This is a shot of it's construction. You have about a quarter of an inch of hand laid fiberglass and then 3/4 of an inch of marine plywood and then a layer of fiberglass on the interior. My boat is a later 2 29 in has a quarter inch fiberglass liner in the entire forward section of the boat20210613_172801.jpg20210613_172903.jpg The flexing will not kill your boat. It is extremely sturdy. If you're planning on challenging the North Sea in a Gale then I think you should fix it. Otherwise I would live with it until you had the opportunity to peel off the inner plywood and fiberglass and replace it with a fresh sheet of 3/4 inch marine plywood and a single layer of fiberglass roving. Unlike a lot of the older sailboats out there these Cals were heavily built and sail well. But as I said before, you've gotta go with your gut. A sailboat is an emotional relationship not a practical one.

Agreed on the emotional, not practical. My intent has been to have a liveaboard boat that I can also take off to Bermuda with, etc..one day. Repainting the deck and resealing every single through bolt on it is on the list, but the list never shrinks. I bought her for 2800 bucks, and have put at least that much more in her, not counting monthly slip fees, emotional me is like keep fighting, practical me is like how much should i put in a boat this old to keep fighting a losing battle?

[Drummer79]

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2 feet smaller, but seems a lot more ready to go than mine. I've got an outboard i can put on it. makes me think about it hard.