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Hello Bertram fellows,

Long time reader, first time posting here from the VA coast. I am a new owner of a '69 Bahia Mar 20'. I got her for what I think is a steal. (I'm working on getting a pic posted here.) Supposedly she is from the great lakes area and spent 20 of her last 22 years in a barn. Hull seems and sounds solid. So do stringers when tapped with a mallet. I'm looking for advice on how to proceed with the renovation. I.E. - what to look at first, what to watch out for. Whether it is best to rebuild motor or replace. At a minimum I think the following are some areas I need to check and address:

Engine
Outdrive
Fuel Tank
Hardware
Fittings
Electrical
Hull finish

I see there are a few on here that have worked on Bahia Mar 20's. Any advice would be greatly appreciated and honored.

Congratulations, but without pictures it's hard to tell what it needs. I have heard that the foam in the 20's is normally wet, so that might be the first thing to check.

Thanks Cam. I have been looking online on how to test for water logged foam and it doesn't seem to be a simple process. Where on the hull and how should should I test the foam on a 20?

Welcome.

I believe the only to check for water in the foam is to open up an area. But you say she sat in a barn. Unused?

If she sat unused and not exposed to weather she might be dry.

Welcome aboard. Good luck with the re-do, looking forward to some pics.

I have done a pretty extensive refurb on a B20 Bahia Mar.

I have many pictures (can email if you would like).

Tank needs to be verified. If it was truly in a barn for 20 years, it might not have seen ethanol fuel, but you never know.

From an engine / outdrive side, the engine could always be rebuilt. The issue can become parts for the outdrive and just as importantly, the transom assembly. I suppose you could join the old (maybe rebuilt engine) with a newer Alpha 1 drive and transom assembly.

When I rebuilt mine, the transom was wet, foam was wet (water intrusion from the pedestal seats is common) stringers (1/2" plywood with fiberglass only on 1 side - foam on other) were rough.

Let me know if you want pictures, talk on the phone, etc.

Ian.

From this:




Sole pulled up clean from the wet plywood.


To this:

Phoebe Snow? I saw her final live performance......

Was that her boat?

Purchased from NY. Definitely not the owners I bought from.

One way to check for wet foam is to weigh the boat on a truck scale and compare it with the factory number. Boats with wet foam are very heavy. I don't have the factory weight in front of me, ut can get it next week when I'm back at the cottage, I an may have a good idea off the top of his head.

From an original Bertram brochure of the Bahia Mar 20:

Length: 20'3"
Beam: 7' 11.5"
Weight: 2800 lbs. (approx.)
Fuel: 50 U.S. gal.
Power: 160 HP Mercruiser

Thank you all for the replies. Just now getting to them. I was taking some time off.

Tommy thank for the the factory data.

Rocket that's good idea to weigh it.

Ian I would love to chat with you and see any and all pics you care to share. I will send you my email address. Seems the first problem I am having is identifying the actual year, engine serial# and stern drive serial #. None seem to be where they are supposed to be. As I said its supposed be 1969 but I don't have any papers on the boat. Any guesses out there? Haven't really looked at the tank yet. Hers some starter pics. I'll post more soon.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/7j9drgxtihma ... Tmyga?dl=0

Stan

Took some more pictures of the boat.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/7j9drgxtihma ... Tmyga?dl=0