bertram31.com

Lars

Thanks!

Tony: It varies, but usually we stay in from early May till the end of September. Sometimes it even makes sense..
Carl: It's in pretty good nick, but it took sweat and cash to get there.. Still, never-ending amount of jobs to be done..

Lars

So, it's been a really nice summer so far - always a bit of a gamble in Scandinavia. Didn't have to take up Yannis on his offer to seek refuge in Greece (although I will take a rain check!). Couple of summer shots. Anybody else chime in with your pics? On the hook outside Oslo. A pleasant 75-76 degr...

Lars

If you are installing hydraulic steering now, I would consider routing in a pump for autopilot while you are at it. A good autopilot makes life so much more pleasant for long straight stretches.

Lars

Beautiful - really adds to the boat! Congrats

Lars

Looks lovely! Enjoy and have fun!

Lars

Awesome old pictures! Amazing what this group knows and has lying around.
The tops and shades must have been well made, as all the boats still have them in good condition today.

Lars

Looks so sweet Cam! Would never have believed it wasn’t intended that way from the factory.
Are you intentionally limiting us to teasers? Getting hungry for more pics...

Lars

Thanks Yannis.

And hey, the Norwegian summer weather turns disappointing, I just may come knocking... Looks like a wonderful place.

Lars

Agreed, was thinking the same thing. Possibly a flybridge without bulkheads. But that interior must have been modified anyway.

Lars

Pics of more B31s from the Aqaba, Jordan fleet taken last week. Got confirmed that these used to belong to the late king Hussein like Tony informed. They look like they are still in reasonably good nick. Most other older boats in the area are pretty sad, but these look like they have received a bit ...

Lars

For inspiration, here’s a pic of the platform installation on my 25. You will need to position the brackets differently due to the outdrives, but I think the width and height of this one is pretty perfect. Too wide and it gets in the way when maneuvering; too narrow it gets silly. Too low and you wi...

Lars

Cam, Definitely a B25. This is a late model regular US-built Moppie with V-drives. The tanks and stringers are identical on my B25 Riva. Perhaps only the V-drive versions had the quirky forward tanks? I thought they all did, and that the large central void was storage - but HotSpots pic suggests oth...

Lars

Riva OEM replacement manifolds for 454's. To quote Rolls-Royce: "If you have to ask, you can't afford them"... (I had to ask..)

Lars

This is the OEM 2x40 gallon fiberglass tank setup for B25 (not mine - borrowed photo). As far as I have been able to establish, all V-drive varieties of the B25 used these tanks. https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7851/46027502974_37968c0fa8_z.jpg Question for Cam and those of you who have modified: I c...

Lars

Yes they are copper and some are made from cupronnickle. As to why...I cannot really say for sure. But I think they do outlast SS risers and copper is bit easier to work with as far as forming the contours goes, just some guesses. Cupronickle isn't so easy to work with, but about the best material ...

Lars

Yannis wrote:This one's for Carl !
https://imgur.com/a/7HqidVO

I was fearing alien probe pics - wondering if I dared open link...

Great pics Yannis! Looks awesome!

Lars

I did Tony. I am chairing "The Sahara Forest Project", and the king is a keen supporter of a major scale-up of our Jordan facilities. Cool stuff - check it out: www.saharaforestproject.com

Lars

Rawleigh wrote:What is the crazy paint job on the second one from the left!

Same pattern repeating all around the hull. Would never have thought of it, but actually pretty cool in real life.

Lars

I love how knowledgeable this group is on little snippets like this - keeps adding to the experience. I met with King Abdullah last week; it would have been a great conversation piece to know of his father's boats.

Lars

Good attitude! Consider the invitation reciprocated - and we’ll see who travels first!..

Lars

Yannis wrote:Come!

You know, the danger of extending an invitation is that it might be accepted!..

Lars

Looks awesome Yannis! My kind of vacation.

Lars

Aha - that explains it. Thanks for the trivia! Makes sense, as this marina is not far from the king’s villa.

Lars

Found a nice group of B31's in the harbour of Aqaba, Jordan a couple of days ago. Any others with pics of Bertrams in interesting places?

Lars

Hi John,
Divinycell is one of the very best materials for replacement of balsa sandwich core. You don’t have to buy huge quantities, and can get it from amongst others Jamestown Distributors. Good luck with your project!

Lars

Great engines - great story! Congrats

Lars

2. For those individuals who repowered with a single 300+ HP i/o, have you been able to get rid of the engine box (or small enough you can put a bench seat across the transom)? That is my only gripe about this boat. (the nice thing about the 80s SeaRay Amberjack 255 is that it has a 22 degree deadr...

Lars

Tommy wrote:(or are there)?

Not that I know of, but this one is close. Looks almost like a custom frame job in stainless, but don't know any details of it.

Lars

Carl wrote:Just waiting on the bass season to break, catch a few then I haul.

Skitt fiske !

(Norwegian expression: "crap fishing luck" - the non-jinxing fishing equivalent of "break a leg". Pronounced "shit fis-kuh")

Lars

Craig Mac wrote:do you know if the 25 Rivas were all v-drives

Yes, they were all inboard v-drives, with the exception of a couple initial boats. A few first-year models also used the Bertram interior and angular windows.

Lars

Thanks all! Steve/Tommy: This is an Italian-built Riva Bertram 25. Riva bought the rights to make 20 and 25 hulls between 1970 and 1973. The hull is all Bertram, but the cabin and bridge were given some Riva updates - including the stainless frames. There is an Australian version as well (by Caribbe...

Lars

Short and sweet season up here in the north. But there seems to be some nature law that the weather is brilliant on the last trip over to the yard for winter storage. So also this year. Got the boat ready for the long sleep this Sunday. Got a lot of projects done this year, with new engines and mech...

Lars

Hi Chris, Boat looks gorgeous! I am using a Raymarine autopilot EV200 with P70R control unit on my B25 with 2x 5.7 inboards. Works a charm and integrates beautifully with rest of my Raymarine electronics. It manages to hold a straight course on one engine (as long as the side wind/sea isn't too stro...

Lars

They are both pretty tender boats, rolling quite a bit in a beam sea, but the motion is gentle - no snap. Much better with a drift anchor.
Both hulls are brilliant under way - I would let the layout rather than hull guide your preference.

Lars

I have a 25 with 2x Crusader (GM) vortec 350; engines match the boat perfectly. Turns on a dime, tops out at 40 knots, sits well in the sea with weight where it belongs. Runs easily at 24-25 low cruise with decent fuel economy. Some replace with single outdrive for speed and economy; I would advise ...

Lars

I realise how much sweat & elbow grease went into that nicely flowing front coaming - turned out absolutely brilliant! Agree with Peter and John; wouldn't do anything about the area in front of the chock until you see that it is necessary. Not convinced a piece of stainless would look good. Perhaps ...

Lars

This is going to be such a beauty!!

Lars

Always some surprises to deal with at the home stretch, but first trials are now done - and they are promising! Being gentle with the throttles first couple of days, but still awesome hole shot and goes like stink to 3500 rpm. 1500 more to go, and feels like it will top out north of 40 knots with a ...

Lars

Yum. Good looking boat!

After a break-in in a previous boat, I no longer lock doors. I much prefer minor gizmos to be stolen over having the door/frame broken..

Lars

I believe the switch output should engage a relay/solenoid while pressed, paralleling the batteries in a situation where extra juice is needed for starting. Input to the switch comes from both batteries in order to ensure voltage to the relay if one battery is dead. However, if your boat has been re...

Lars

Great - Sounds fun! Proper Scandinavian-style boating. I will have to aim for telling you about 31 days in a 25 next year..

Lars

Yes, inline. Have tried to find data on them, but no luck. Four large round canisters that are integrated with the exhaust through-hulls. Original setup. Considering moving to newer Vetus mufflers, but that would entail new through-hulls and more work..

Lars

Craig Mac wrote:raw water cooled? Do you run in fresh water?

Yes, raw water cooled, like the original installation. I run in salt water, but the local salinity is lower, at a level where life expectancy for engine blocks is 15 years or so. I can live with that.

Lars

Bruce,
Agreed - they’re gone! Hose is now full size. I am still a bit concerned if the original mufflers will cause too much backpressure, so will measure during trials. Do you know the guidelines for max backpressure on 350’s?

Lars

Thanks guys! Will try to share a video. But first: get it wet!

Lars

.. and more Swedish..

Lars

I really wanted to keep the beautiful old Riva copper manifolds (you partly see them in the background), but they are almost 50 year old and didn't want to risk the new engines, so ended up getting Mercruiser manifolds and painting them Crusader blue. Less likely to see those lasting 50 years..

Lars

It's been a long summer without a boat (also happened to be the nicest summer in a long time..), but now I am seeing the end of it. After treating the Riva B25 to hull repairs, wood refinishing, new shafts, new external raw water strainers (bye bye buckets!) and various other little things, the new ...

Lars

In this pic you see the boot stripe tapering down toward the forward chine - I think it makes a really elegant impact. Some others have been redone with fixed offset boot stripe; they look flat by comparison. https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4331/36506725863_cdb4bf03d9_z.jpg For comparison. This one h...

Lars

Yeah baby! That looks awesome! What a transformation, and what a difference a layer of paint makes. Must be satisfying to see all those hours fairing paying off! Boot stripe: One of my favorite visual aspects of the Riva B25 is how the boot stripe tapers down going forward. Starts at the edge/crease...

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