bertram31.com

Pete Fallon

Mark, I am going down to Big Pine Key this coming weekend to visit with some of my relatives. I don't know what you schedule is or if your going to down to Cudjoe Key or not. I will be there from Friday afternoon to Monday morning, it all depends how long I can take the relatives. Call me tomorrow, ...

Pete Fallon

Bill Fuller, When I did my 1961 cockpit over the first time it was marine plywood with glass on both sides, heavy as hell needed two men to pick it up. In the early 2000's I redid it again this time with High Density PVC Core by Michigan Composites 80 pound density. I used 2 layers of 1708 and 1 lay...

Pete Fallon

ljmauricio,
Have you checked the quality of the fuel possible water contamination or I hate to say it ethanol issue maybe?. Also check for bad ground connections at battery and at engine. Could it be a bad ignition switch or related wiring?
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Capt Frank The ABYC standards want a breaker no more than 72" from you power inlet. I have seen boats with a 30 amp breaker(30 amp inlet) next to the Marinco shore power inlet with cover. It was a clear booted covered breaker with on/off label under it. As long as your main panel is within the 72" m...

Pete Fallon

Ianupton,
Nice looking paint job, Lots of prep work will always pay off in the end. Don't forget some non skid on the forward deck, looks like an ice skating rink at this time. Great job, come on down to Florida and do my deck and house sides.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

PaulJ, I met Mr. Symmes over 15 years ago at Sail Fish Marina he had finished the restoration of his 31 and it was a beautiful job, he and his wife were cruising up from the Keys and he had stopped at Singer Island on his way back. If I remember correctly he had 3208's in her. He was true gentleman ...

Pete Fallon

JohnV8er, The gel coat that Bertram used was made by U.S. Composites, I think Cooks took them over in the 1980's, the Cooks Armor Coat Composites Gel Coat is the most expensive on the market, I think it was Oyster White or possibility Matterhorn White. I know that when I had my 1961 31 Express re-ge...

Pete Fallon

Tony, Have your friend hook up with the charter boat out of Crandon Park Marina on Key Biscayne name of the boat is L&H used to be run by John Dudas great fisherman I think Jimmy David is running the boat now another great fisherman. Those are the only guys I know down there now everyone else is ret...

Pete Fallon

Kevin,
It's amazing how a little Yankee ingenuity can get things looking great, actually it is better than what came for the factory. Looks great.
Looks like I might be coming to the Keys again either the first of next week or toward the end of that week, I'll let you know.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

JohnV8er, Before you start with the peel away see if anyone in your area does Soda Blasting or Walnut Shell blasting, the peel away is going to cost you much more than the other type of bottom stripping. please check into the alternative methods beside peel away. Soda or walnut gives you an almost s...

Pete Fallon

Bob, It's hard to keep a secret from the faithful they deserve to know the best. That secret has been around for over 30 years, it's like reversing the lower units on the big 300 hp outboards. Wer'e to old to keep secrets anyway. Ian they are not after market props they are standard Mercury items. P...

Pete Fallon

Faithful, I put up a post earlier about a fellow from Bermuda that contacted DuRite Boats in Stuart about shipping 2 25's to Stuart in containers. I don't have any info at this time Randy at DuRite talked to him and then Randy called me to see if there was any interest around this area for 25's that...

Pete Fallon

Spencer,
I have no idea I'll try and find out from Randy, I don't know if they are sedans, FBC or Bahia Mars
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Faithful,

Pete Fallon

John F,
See my post on non skid on engine boxes , it applies to decks as well.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Ianupton, When I was selling Mercury(Mariner) and Volvo parts in the early 90's along with my brokerage boats, we would use Mercury Mirage Duo prop stainless steel props from the Bravo 3 lower units instead of the stock Volvo props in our repowers, we always got good results, better top end speeds a...

Pete Fallon

Faithful, On the subject of engine boxes, my old 2 piece lids were always not skid surfaces, the new single piece boxes I got from Marlin Youker wee painted and had a very light sand finish on the flat surfaces. I re-sanded them down to smooth primed and then applied Imron Matterhorn White with a go...

Pete Fallon

Ianupton, Looking really good, it is amazing how much work is involved in redoing at Bertram whether it's a 20-25-28 or 31. If I remember correctly your putting in a Volvo Duoprop system, Good luck with the paint job, remember to wet the area around the boat down before you start painting keeps the ...

Pete Fallon

JohnV8er, Like Capt. Pat says I think there is an all wet problem with the yard info. Unless there are a lot of blisters that are full of water I wouldn't worry about holding the wet in???. All fiberglass boats absorb some water(unless they are epoxy barrier coated with not a break in the coating). ...

Pete Fallon

Harry & 1962 31 Mike Holmes spent a bunch of money redoing a pair of Dodge diesels he had them running pretty good until a hurricane came along and destroyed his boat in Texas back awhile ago, His boat was an express called the Black Sheep. I don't think it's worth screwing around trying to convert ...

Pete Fallon

Russ Pagels, The color is green and the wire size is #8 AWG tinned copper wire, use heat shrinked round captive lugs for all connection points, you might have to re-solder drops back onto the old flat copper bonding strip that is attached to the outside portion of the inboard stringers(along the out...

Pete Fallon

bbtiller, I am not a big fan of Kobelt Controls, when we were building the center console boats back in the late 90's early 2000's we started to use single lever Kobelts and helm pumps. We did the first 2 boats with them and we used their helm pump systems. The first boat had a problem with system c...

Pete Fallon

Mikey,
I would go with a epoxy barrier coat, it fills in the best plus you want the smoothest bottom so you will go faster. Cape Dory 23 is a nice sailing boat my neighbor in Mass had one for many years.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Kevin,
I will not be coming down to Marathon on Friday and Saturday, Mark has a change of plans. I'll let you know when I am coming back down. Hatch looks good in the pictures.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Bertramp,
My house is for sale in South Stuart takes me 1 hour to get to FT Lauderdale, time to move out of the crazy traffic of Ft Lauderdale. I will return in a few years if this implant works out, I can only deal with the winter weather for a few years.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Navatech,
There is a company in Pompano can't think of the name right off hand, Did I give you the brackets that fit into the chair back slots so you can put a bait prep station on the back of that chair. I f I didn't I'll get them to you.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Brewster, Sorry your not going to come down, you must need a break from all that crappy weather your getting up there. Kevin, I will bee back next Friday & Sat be a Marathon Boat Yard, I'll call you when I get down. Sorry I didn't look at your hatch project yesterday, I was sort of beat, I drove bac...

Pete Fallon

JohnV8er, I've got 3 large Lee's rod holders on each side of the cockpit. I used 3/4" marine ply glassed into the under side of the gunwales. I fished 130 Internationals with bent bunt for years with no problems, each backing plate has about a 6" overlap on each side of the actual rod holder and as ...

Pete Fallon

Ian,
Sorry it looks bigger in the pictures from above, anyway looking good. Thank's for the come back info on JIMBO .
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Brewster, I have to go down to Marathon on Friday& Saturday the 21st &22 of February to do a survey for Mark Steimer on his 35 Bertram at Marathon Boat Yard. Maybe we can get together after work on Friday and shoot the breeze and talk fishing and boats. Little Torch Key isn't that far from Marathon(...

Pete Fallon

Ian, Good to see your making progress on the 25, years ago I surveyed a 25 Bahia Mar in Fort Lauderdale for a friend of yours from the Thousand Islands-Thunder Bay area, the boat was a powder blue hull and it's name was JIMBO do your remember it? I was wondering what every became of that boat and if...

Pete Fallon

Jimmy G, I redid the teak trim in the cabin over head a few years ago, The straight sections aren't to bad to make, but those curved pieces are very time consuming and a pain in the ass to make. I'm lucky enough to have a small band saw and a good table saw and nice router with a table and fence, it...

Pete Fallon

Faithful, I am in and out of L&H at least 2 times a month. That is an old picture, right now Glen has an old express that was sitting at AJ Boatyard in Port Salerno for years, Steve Chaszar got it from some where in Va-Maryland area it's primed grey, no motors and needs a new cockpit, and interior, ...

Pete Fallon

Kevin, I have to come back down to Key Colony Beach on Thursday and possibly Friday to re-check some work that was done on the boat I surveyed on the 29th-30th of January. Could you e-mail me your telephone number or call me. I need a licensed captain to run the boat while I do the inspections. Do y...

Pete Fallon

Carl, I'm still trying to get the photos of my express from Photo Bucket to post on the board, if you send me your regular e-mail address I'll send them via a PDF file. I can't believe you have that much crap floating in the waters around the area where you do your boating. In 10 years I only hit on...

Pete Fallon

Bruce, Are you going to be around tomorrow afternoon, I've got a few questions about some oil samples from last weeks survey. also who would you recommend for buying and installing a 7'' bow thruster in a 34 Mainship?. The new wife is only 35 and he's 81?, I think his wad is larger than his wang. Pe...

Pete Fallon

Carl & Mikey,
Maybe this will work, 48 images of my boat.[url:http://s166photobucket.com/user/Bertram ... Express186]
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

1962 31, If I remember correctly adding additional Racor fuel filters will reduce the flow and possibly cause fuel starvation especially on multi-port fuel injected big blocks. I was thinking of doing the same thing to my 7.4L Merc throttle bodied fuel injected motors and I was advised against doing...

Pete Fallon

Mark, I e-mailed Tim Caruso the Cat guy in Stuart that I use for all my Cat work. He said that there was never a problem with the 3116 having soft blocks, the 3126's were the engines that had the problem. For some reason my first e-mail to him never got through. I am going to be talking to Tim later...

Pete Fallon

Carl & Mikey,
I loaded some pictures of my express into photo bucket, try this link, let me know if it worked. http://s129.photobucket.com/user/Peter_Fallon.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Guy's, Having lost one of my friends and first mate when I was chartering back in the 80's to heroin. He was one of the funniest guys you would ever want to meet, You'd never know he was hooked. It started when he was in high school and he had tried to kick it many times, he was in his early 30's wh...

Pete Fallon

Al, Thanks for the offer, I was on a Jet Blue Flight going to Boston for doctors appointment in early December, two rows behind me was Norm LeBlanc. Your at the old chemical condo dock just before Jubilee yacht club is that correct?. Hell I fished out of the old lobster docks next door when I was a ...

Pete Fallon

Al,
Thanks for the offer, I was on a Jet Blue Flight in early December two rows behind me was Norm LeBlanc. Do you keep the boat in Beverly or Salem?
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Dug,
Somewhere on the North Shore, I haven't rented a place yet, more than likely Salem, I do have a line on an apartment opening April 1. Trying to sell my house here in Stuart before I commit.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Bob, I went to the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan back in August 2010 because the hospital in Ft Lauderdale/Miami area could not take an MRI because I had too much metal in my knee. I was impressed with the staff and the doctors I met while I was there which was about 7 hours. If I lived ...

Pete Fallon

Faithful
After watching the NFL(National Felons League) all fall all I can say is the players are their own worst enemy, I 'll be glad when Baseball starts again, Another World Series for the RED SOX is in the works.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Bob,
I am going to Mass General in downtown Boston, some time around the end of March. I could have had it done last month but I didn't feel like sliding around on ice and snow especially while I'm on crutches 24/7.
Pete Fallon

Pete Fallon

Carl, I thought I would give you the first shot, I will hang on to those items, I've been using the bottoms of the hatch covers as tops for my work area in the garage, I cored the with PVC foam so they are a lot lighted than the old ones. maybe Ill leave them at L&H Glen is redoing his 31 express th...

Pete Fallon

Carl, Do you need any parts for your express? I have the four original hatch covers for the engine box they are painted Imron 508 white, in very good condition along with the hinges, I also have the original destroyer aluminum wheel.They are yours if you want them. I am moving back up North to have ...

Pete Fallon

Steve,
You might not have to climb steps in the Bahia Mar but the head is the V-berth, can you say EXPRESS.
Pete Fallon

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