bertram31.com

looking good dug

Nice. Keep the pics. coming.

Dug is that replacement front glass a one off or some ones production piece? The boat is looking good. LB

Looking good Dug, Reel good!

Les,

That's one of Holmesey's windshield kits... Bill Holmes, Jupiter, FL 561-746-3476

How's ya'll's project coming?

Dug, that is way cool! Can't wait to see the finished product; keep up the great work!

good luck with your refurb .it gave me some motivation to start working on my own today . good to have those pics for your boats history. keep um coming .tom

dug just think about one guy accomplishing that same job by himself in addition to the cockpit windows,teak covering boards,cockpit sole ,engine installation,wiring the entire boar,struct backing,F/G shaft log,electronics,and then interior most of it by yourself sometimes yard help would lift that windshield up on front deck for me and my son would help me if he had time.now you know how Bob H broke his ass building his masterpiece.quite a bit of dedication and a lot of F/G dust inhaled and oh did i mention paint the same area four or more times.------------ouch!

Dug looks awesome. You were not kidding when you told me she was getting some serious love.

These guys are the real deal, nothing like having a good yard do it right.

Quite a bit of dedication(from Dug's checkbook) and a lot of F/G dust inhaled (not by Dug)

Bobby, I do know. I lived that during my repower and my first rebuild phase. Remember I gutted the boat to the firewall and did all new subdecking, installed the teak deck, re-did the v-berth, etc. Not many screws on that boat I have not turned, I've bled, sworn, and loved every minute of it. I have HUGE respect for those who have done this already, themselves or otherwise. It takes knowledge, experience and a willingness to listen. I have listened to you, Bob, Jimmy G, and so many others (especially Captain Patrick!!!!) and soaked it up for 17years. I gave a lot of thought to doing this myself and decided that given my time constraints, inexperience with this level of work and what it required, and the risks I knew existed, I would be better off and safer to involve people who knew what they were doing. Also, I didn't really want to be boatless for a matter of years which would have been the true reality if I had taken this on myself. Could I have done it? Probably. Would it have been smart? No. And I already have a great deal of pride in what I have already done myself on my boat, and am damned proud of it. In addition I am doing a lot of the grunt work, like removing all the hardware, and a bunch of prep work. I am involved, just not 8 hours a day! I've got a great group of guys working on it who really care that they are doing awesome work and I could not be more excited to see the finished product. Its going to be awesome for sure. And I could not be more grateful for the group of people here who have supported, answered questions over the years, and offered advice. Its priceless!!!! And DJ, trust me, its the real deal on the check book. Crazy. LOL!

the truth is i had the upper structure improvements completed and remove the side panels in cockpit and decided to remove transom cleat and relocate to transom under coaming boards.a hot summer day so i neglected to "suit up" well five days of cutting old F/G support out and building a bulletproof titanium backed cleat with a ton of epoxy built up.i ingested a ton of F/G dust and suffer to this day with morning allergy systems until pills start working .truly a dumb move i will regret for the rest of my life!!!

Very nice Dug. She is going to be a show piece and go-to-go for another 30-40 years.

Thats my hope and what I keep telling myself! :)

Dug, That is some fine work...do what you do and make the big $$$...let them do what they do..and don't look back. Enjoy the build and keep posting the progress. BH

I love tinkering on boats when the weather keeps me at dock...I don't mind a project over the seasonal layups....


But other then that...working on a boat is work, and quite overrated in my book.

If I can pay somebody to do it and have it done well and in "my" budget. I say lets get the checkbook!

Having plenty of battlescars from the stripping of Tailhook of every last wire, nut, bolt, caulk, fitting, and anything else that could be removed with airtools, sawzalls, walnut shells, and evil chemicals--- I'm done leaving my DNA in the hull. The pursuit I bought 3 seasons ago has exactly the right amount of teak on it that I wanted to maintain, NONE, the boat was completely turnkey and other than updating to new simrad electronics -- it required nothing, because I dont' feel like EVER doing a boat over again.

More power to you Dug, I have no doubt you could have done the work....however, you are also redoing your new home, running a large business and have a small matter of your first child soon to be joining the world -- well done, right choice and keep up the good work. Money can be replaced, time can't.

Tom

PS, you really need Gert to make you one of those nifty minature Bertram tenders so you daughter will have even more reason to be the most well toyed kid in GLP!

i guess i am the odd guy in this discussion. i thoroughly enjoy building the interior wood parts like sliding door for head,mahogany cabin door,cabinets,drawers and teak and holly sole in cabin.i built them in basement during winter months instead of watching tv. i agree sanding or walnut blasting the bottom was terrible so i use phoenix workers under my supervision.building the cockpit sole was a challenge because i never worked with coosa board on a grand scale .i did everything on my house,boat,and corvettes myself unless it requires special machines like balancing a race motor but i am there along side my friend doing the work.my father did every project himself and my son does the same however he put radiant floor 21 zone heat in his house which is quite a accomplishment for a non plumbing person.some people can read a book and turn around and do it like a transmission and some people cannot and should not hang a picture frame. personally i would rather build a intricate teak cabinet for the boat with my favorite wine and oldies on stereo then sit around a Florida pool with a Ma-tai.so lets not put down doing your own thing on a 31 Bertram.

Bob, Speaking for myself, I am not putting it down. I am pretty involved in this project, ask Skip. I did a lot of stuff on Alchemy over the years. No point in listing it. There is a lot of pride involved. Yes indeed. That being said, you are fortunate to be semi-retired as you put it, and that is an awesome thing when it comes time to work on stuff. I am far from semi retired at this point, and as I have explained, it was a cost benefit question. I don't think I will enjoy it any less, and think the guys at Brewer street are doing awesome work! Thanks for the compliments guys. I was there yesterday and drew out some possibilities we are going to work on for aft windows, grabbed the glass templates for the side windows, talked about how we thought we should install the helm pod so it would look best and still function, and just marveled at the progress and what they were doing. Such an amazing attention to detail and knowledge of what to hit when. I couldn't even come close... Its really cool.

No one is chasing your goat Bob. Relax and enjoy, and let everyone enjoy in their own way. :)

That is going to be one sweet ride. Looks great!!!

dug i guess you set the pod in the bridge by now. afterwards you should actually bring plastic milkboxes with you (as temporary seat) and sit down with pod installed you need to see over the bow chock with hands resting on steering wheel and move rear support go seat to the very edge of actual bridge sole this will put your centerline of weight over bulkhead support below but MOST important cut down the risk of being launch thru polymer windshield ( or what ever other brand you are using) as you would in a stand up bridge.

this is the bridge seating arrangement as well as cockpit window proportions .

good photo of seating arrangement with 5 step shock absorbers under chairs.

good photo to show proportions of cockpit windows

the new enclosure on bridge is polymer for front one piece that lifts up and zippers to top.looks like your looking out living room window of your house!!!

i am always amazed to see the workmanship that it takes to bring these boats back, most times better than new .I have enough just trying to maintain what i have . you should all be proud of what you have done or had done . I sometimes think it would be great to start a rebuild or finish one thats needs completing .then i pinch myself and climb back on the ROOF where at least i know what I'm doing .

Bob-

If you have the desire, ability, money and time to tackle a project yourself...nothing much better then seeing a project from inception to completion with professional results, the work is a labor of love...

Missing one of those factors and what you have is a job in my opinion...takes the fun out of it. A boat is supposed to be fun and enjoyable. If you can stand back and enjoy the work done by others...and you have the funds to pay them without breaking the bank...that is the way to go in my book.

For me...the end result is getting out on the water in a safe boat and enjoying. If the boat is a work of art...all the better.

carl i think the most important factor driving me is the fact that i love projects that are NOT my trade or expertise like cabinet making or ships carpenter.the first mahogany door and sliding door i ever made was in my boat.i love the challenge and like i said this is strictly a winter job in garage or basement.just relaxing with good music no phone using internet to figure out the strongest possible joint i could possibly make in a mahogany door with labor or price no object.i would never think along these lines or be totally oblivious to cost in any Phoenix job i have ever done.like a common joke at the marina when a passerby goes to one of the six marine mechanics and says i was watching captain Bob and he was doing this or that " never watch him!!!!!" he took two days to install batteries in his boat!!!!!!that would be $2400.00 in labor alone if we did it. (4/0 size,silver coated ,braided aviation cable with 12 ton hydraulic crimped terminal , high voltage shrink tube ends.who would be so stupid to do something like this on a boat.wasted time and money----------perhaps but the batteries,sophisticated wiring and charging system are going into there 10th year of flawless operation. without mind boggling projects ,reinventing the wheel i would be a bored alcoholic,or ever more mentally unstable.

sliding door in head to prevent door in head and cabin door from hitting each other when opened at same time.stays in open position at all times unless head is being used because right side of vanity is the A/C, heating unit this along with porcelain head to counter balance generator on starboard side.

Guys, thanks for the support. I'm pretty excited for the results, and as I said, I am pretty involved in the project. Those of you who know me, know that I would not be able to do this any other way, and I am super glad to have found and hired a crew who lets me stay involved. We talk almost daily.

Bob, beautiful work. I hope you approve of whats being done on Alchemy. Though I will do some things differently. Its a different boat owned by a different guy. I just don't have time to be as involved as a project like this demands to do it myself. That being said, I love my boat, and have for 17 years.

Question is, do you like it the job thats being done if that matters? And don't end your next answer with "if you give a shit." :)

Of course I give a shit. But you never put the link in the post.

Desk top alert

of course i love your boat you ask permission to copy the phoenix at the rendenvous,


actually you were polite and said" would i mine". BTW bootstripe color was not my idea it goes to robbie at Raybo marine.

Hey Dug:

So I was bored last night while waiting for our outside auditors to come up with their latest challenge of our positions on reserves and I had a chance to look at the original theme of this thread -- which sure seems to have been hijacked beyond what the topic really is about. That's a great looking boat you are updating. I love when people show what craftsman can do with such a classic. Did Skip also do that very nice woman that came to Montauk years ago boat? I can't wait to see it in person, if you'd like, we can run out together and I can shoot some action shots so you can post up another thread once your boat is complete. Hopefully, that thread will be as it is intended and not hijacked as this was.

Tom

When is the next video installment due? Before the baby is I hope.

I'm not entirely sure. Randy at Brewer St put it together. I know the time lapse camera is still filming, though maybe they might want to move it. Side windows are due soon, and we are working on the helm and cockpit areas now.

Dug- She'll be read for a Spring launch? Definitely going to be a real head turner..

Carl: Based on the amount of snow Dug has....spring won't be until July - regardless of when the boat is ready. My boat is supposed to be in the slip on March 30. The last time I saw it (last thursday), it had 4 feet of snow around it.

Alchemy sure is coming out very pretty though!

Tom

Carl, I am honestly not entirely sure.

Worst case I am thinking early summer. This all works out fine however because of the baby on the way due in June. I am not sure I will be let out of the house other than for work, so.... ;)

Once the guys and I decide its time, she will be trucked to the metal shop for the tower fab and canvas. Then I drive her to CT for some electronics to be installed.

I don't really see a need to rush all that in the busy spring if I won't have time to enjoy the boat early summer. So I want it to be done when she is ready to be done.

Thats my story and I am sticking to it! Thanks for the compliment though! I am really excited. I've had her for a long time, and always dreamt of this being a project I could make happen. I sure am glad she's indoors this year!!!!

Tower and electronics too!! Nice...

Full or half marlin tower? I like' em short....mostly as I dislike heights and adds to the boats roll, but mostly a height thing...although over water is not so bad.

Early-mid or sometime is a good game plan.

A New boat with a new family member...its going to be hard for you to stop grinning on those howdy tours. My first joined us around the harbor in our 1st full family howdy tour at 6 weeks...Parents, grandparents all aboard as we made our rounds....it was a good day.

My best to you!

dug when we sat down with the captain and your F/G man at the Mystic Conn. rendezvous did we go over the cockpit windows ? captain patrick did a nice job on that yellow 31 Bertram years ago.i believe he uses a double layer bulkhead while i use Azak brand PVC. cut with router to quarter round they sell it outright as Azak PVC. molding now at a real lumber yard. The OEM bulkhead inside cabin the glass is flush while his method gives a small reveal.i am sure the captain will explain may also be in tip section or "fortuna" photos.

I'm not doing the windows in the aft bulkhead the same way. They will be similar but work for my situation. You are right, he doubles the bulkhead depth. We are not diving that deep at this point.

Big question for all today is tempered glass or laminated for the side windows. Seems to be strong and valid opinions on both sides of the debate. Patrick, I believe I will be calling you today. :)

Carl, Half. Right there with you on full tower. Not useful to me in our waters. Just my opinion.

dug i should have mention if you examine main bulkhead and it is not rotted i would work with what i have and if rotted then the captain`s two piece method is the best. two piece make for a easier finished product on cabin interior side while i had to build a frame on inside.i cannot think in terms of finish product why in Gods name any body would take laminate over limousine tint tempered except for price ,bare in mind thats a hell of a lot of labor to go cheap on material. chicken little is going to mention the word "shatter proof" that because he is a rookie .nobody and i mean nobody jump off huge waves like i did with my 31 the key is to listen to your new england friend Timmy yea thud! when he not shooting birds he a glass expert and will provide you with the rubber membrane that slides over edge of glass before installation making it shockproof as well as rounding the edge where side glass meets pillar. Incidentally i believe i have shown at least 30 brothers at rendezvous inside of cabin.It is almost as bright as outside with limo tint. Dug you get what you pay for. laminated is perfect for Bayliners cause nobody cares.

Dug wrote:Big question for all today is tempered glass or laminated for the side windows. Seems to be strong and valid opinions on both sides of the debate.

Tempered glass is 5 - 6 times the strength of ordinary glass. Tempered glass cannot be cut after it has been tempered. Laminated glass is very difficult to cut. Be sure to specify that the glass be cut EXACTLY to match the templates you supply. If you want the shatter proof ability of safety glass but the strength of tempered glass use 3M Safety Film on the inside...

Patrick,

there is a mild twist to the window frame in the boat. Its mild but it is there. Would you use 3/8" or 1/4" thick? Tim recommends 3/8" but we are hesitating because of that mild twist...

Dug

Dug,

Tempered glass is more flexible and you can overcome some twist with the thickness of the Sikaflex glazing. What are you calling a "mild twist"?

captain the receipt for my glass ;3M safety,gray light 14,tempered glass 1/4" . the glass people don`t use word limousine tint thats off the street talk.i notice between the 3M safety film and gray light 14 tempered glass was just about double the clear laminated however the amount of glass is only side windows,cockpit windows and cabin door glass so it is not a great amount of glass.

Almost there Dug !! starts to look nice !! ,

I used tempered glass on the Island Girl with a tinted film on the inside ( charcoal ).

All the best, Gert

When I redid Tailhook I used smoked plexiglass -- 3/8th. I had to do it twice though. We didn't remove the paper barrier until AFTER it was all installed as we didn't want the edges, etc. to chip up. So, why did I do it twice? Well, someone (ME), forgot to tell the glassman that I wanted to be able see through the "darkest plexiglass possible." Yep, it was a very dark and hot boat for 3 weeks.

Tom