Monk 36 Queries

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WilliamR

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2017
Messages
44
Location
Canada
Hi folks,

Looking at a 2007 Monk 36 Trawler. I believe the later ones were made in Canada. My main reservation is all that wood outside and cap rails etc. There are covers for the railings but not the flybridge and I don't wan't to be varnishing, I want to go cruising! So I guess my option would be to epoxy coat and paint? Given the amount of wood, is that feasible - no idea of the cost involved? Otherwise, I'll keep looking for something with less wood, but is a really nice equipped and maintained boat

Also anyone know if these boats can do 10 knots (220Hp cummins) as would like something I can push to that on occasion if the weather is looking bad here in BC.

Any pointers gratefully received.

Many thanks
Bill
 
On our last boat there was a ton of teak. I was in the process of painting it when we sold the boat. I liked it painted. I used Brightside withe recommended primer. 2 coats of primer and 3 coats of paint. Sanded in between coats. Way better than varnished teak IMO. It was fairly easy to do.
 
Comodave said:
On our last boat there was a ton of teak. I was in the process of painting it when we sold the boat. I liked it painted. I used Brightside withe recommended primer. 2 coats of primer and 3 coats of paint. Sanded in between coats. Way better than varnished teak IMO. It was fairly easy to do.
Click to expand...
Thanks, I hear Brightside is being discontinued, but maybe epoxy and Awlgrip would work?
 
I have not heard that. We used it on our bathroom cabinets. We used a HVLP sprayer to paint them and they look awesome. Fortunately we have a good supply of Brightside so if I need to do any repairs I have plenty. Never thought that I might have to do any repairs but our Devil Dog Lab puppy may cause us to repair it…
 
Bill: You might query the Monk Owner's Association: Topics

Also, I've been under the impression the earlier Monks have more exterior teak, and later Canadian Monks have less exterior teak. fdw
 
That is true. The later monks (post 1991) were built in Nova Scotia, Canada and have less exterior teak.
 
Much less exterior teak is still too much…
 
Indeed. Thanks all for the tips. Reading around isn’t promising and seems either A) spend around $20-30k to get it done (stripped, encapsulated and painted) or B) strip and use Awlwood or similar for $15-20k and redo it every year or so with a few maintenance coats. It probably doesn’t make sense for us, and is why those brightwork finishes have lost popularity (except for varnish aficionados and the independently wealthy). A shame as we love the boat otherwise, but think we will have to keep looking for something more Nordic Tug like with no wood.
 
Interesting mention that teak was reduced. So I took a look and the newer ones have a modest amount of teak.


Above boat looks like a nice example of a trunk cabin trawler. However if I were the owner, don't think I'd be pleased with my brokers opening description :

She was recently under agreement but the Buyer rejected her :(

If a salesman like that were to open a sushi restaurant, guessing he'd advertise "raw dead fish for sale."

Peter
 
Comodave said:
Much less exterior teak is still too much…
Click to expand...
Yes, still has the lower and flybridge railings with teak caps, trim lines around the cabin, and the flybridge seating and floor trim all teak. Looks fantastic new, but A few hundred hours each year of maintenance.!
 
Painting wouldn't take too long - 40-50 hours and a few rolls of blue tape. If you otherwise like the boat, definitely worth it to paint out the teak on the newer models.

When I had Weebles painted a couple years ago, I had the captains encapsulated with a couple coats of fiberglass then Alexseal sprayed. Looks great and I no longer have exposed wood. Painting out would achieve 90% of that for 10% of the cost.

Peter
 

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mvweebles said:
Painting wouldn't take too long - 40-50 hours and a few rolls of blue tape. If you otherwise like the boat, definitely worth it to paint out the teak on the newer models.

When I had Weebles painted a couple years ago, I had the captains encapsulated with a couple coats of fiberglass then Alexseal sprayed. Looks great and I no longer have exposed wood. Painting out would achieve 90% of that for 10% of the cost.

Peter
Click to expand...
Thanks. Yes, had thought about that, but local yard advised that painting would likely crack at joints after a while, and epoxied bright work without a cloth skinning would also not likely last unless completely encapsulated (for similar reasons). AM in PNW so sun exposure is not a bad as Florda.
Bill
 
I painted a lot of the teak on our last boat. I used Brightside and the recommended primer. 2 coats primer and 3 coats Brightside. Looked wonderful and I didn’t notice any deterioration after 3 to 4 years but the boat was in Michigan. No cracking. I was going to paint all of the teak but sold the boat before I got it all done.
 
WilliamR said:
Looks fantastic new, but A few hundred hours each year of maintenance.!
Click to expand...
I think you overstate the effort. No need to ba a varnish aficionado or devote your life to it. Products like Cetol work well and require a few hours a year to maintain.
 
Jeff F said:
I think you overstate the effort. No need to ba a varnish aficionado or devote your life to it. Products like Cetol work well and require a few hours a year to maintain.
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Sorry but I don’t agree. It still takes quite a bit of time, not a few hours per year.
 
Comodave said:
I painted a lot of the teak on our last boat. I used Brightside and the recommended primer. 2 coats primer and 3 coats Brightside. Looked wonderful and I didn’t notice any deterioration after 3 to 4 years but the boat was in Michigan. No cracking. I was going to paint all of the teak but sold the boat before I got it all done.
Click to expand...
Thanks, was that over bare wood, epoxy or an existing finish?
Bill
 
Comodave said:
Sorry but I don’t agree. It still takes quite a bit of time, not a few hours per year.
Click to expand...
A few hundred? Anyone spending that amount of time maintaining woodwork on the boat mentioned is doing it out of choice, not necessity.
 
WilliamR said:
Thanks, was that over bare wood, epoxy or an existing finish?
Bill
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I sanded it to bare wood. Then did a brief sanding between coats, don’t remember exactly what grit I used but it was what Interlux recommended.
 
Jeff F said:
A few hundred? Anyone spending that amount of time maintaining woodwork on the boat mentioned is doing it out of choice, not necessity.
Click to expand...
Probably, but not that much of an exaggeration! A boater on our dock with a 42' told me he spends at least 3 weeks each year working on his Brightwork (varnish)! Looks fantastic, but just keeping up with routine maintenance to maintain an average gloss is still a lot of work with teak.
 
A lot of the expense of brightwork is the idle time between costs and such. Painting obviates that.

This thread was started asking about a Monk 36, a classic trunk cabin trawler. The later years have significantly less brightwork than their older, classic brethren. If that's still too much brightwork for you (OP), then a classic trunk cabin trawler is not for you. Monk or otherwise. Suggest looking at motor yacht or express cruisers instead and while you won't have brightwork, you'll have other issues such as exterior upholstery, bimini, etc. pick your poison

Peter
 
If you don't like the paintwork, why don't you leave it blank, so pure wood without paint.Wait a few years and it will fall off on its own, what remains in place you will sand bare.
Two-component paint system on solid wood goes wrong because the paint is too heart and cannot move sufficiently with the expansion and contraction of the wood.

Greeting,

Pascal.
 
WilliamR said:
Probably, but not that much of an exaggeration! A boater on our dock with a 42' told me he spends at least 3 weeks each year working on his Brightwork (varnish)! Looks fantastic, but just keeping up with routine maintenance to maintain an average gloss is still a lot of work with teak.
Click to expand...
Varnished teak is a nightmare I'd avoid. Your neighbor is in a trap of his own making IMO.

As exterior wood goes, you can't do better than teak from a maintenance point of view. I've known many sailors who maintained their teak with nothing more than an occasional scrubbing with a soft brush. It's a different aesthetic, but the wood doesn't rot away. Give up the gloss requirement and life can get as easy as you want it to be.

What's the existing finish on the prospective boat?
 
mvweebles said:
A lot of the expense of brightwork is the idle time between costs and such. Painting obviates that.

This thread was started asking about a Monk 36, a classic trunk cabin trawler. The later years have significantly less brightwork than their older, classic brethren. If that's still too much brightwork for you (OP), then a classic trunk cabin trawler is not for you. Monk or otherwise. Suggest looking at motor yacht or express cruisers instead and while you won't have brightwork, you'll have other issues such as exterior upholstery, bimini, etc. pick your poison

Peter
Click to expand...
I think you will find I asked about a 2007 Monk 36’ not their earlier brethren. An express cruiser or motor yacht is not a trawler style boat and I have no interest in a gin palace. Also there are plenty of Trawler style vessels that do not have the classic teak brightwork and most modern manufacturers have moved away from it. I just wanted to know of there was a good solution to existing teak maintenance on a 2007 Monk 36’ but see there is not a lot of consensus (apart from avoiding it if you don’t want the maintenance)! I think we will pass and look at Nordic or American Tugs or similar. Thanks all for the input though.
 
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Jeff F said:
Varnished teak is a nightmare I'd avoid. Your neighbor is in a trap of his own making IMO.

As exterior wood goes, you can't do better than teak from a maintenance point of view. I've known many sailors who maintained their teak with nothing more than an occasional scrubbing with a soft brush. It's a different aesthetic, but the wood doesn't rot away. Give up the gloss requirement and life can get as easy as you want it to be.

What's the existing finish on the prospective boat?
Click to expand...
Thanks. Yes think its varnish. Previous owner deceased and wife thinks so.
 
WilliamR said:
I think you will find I asked about a 2007 Monk 36’ not their earlier brethren. An express cruiser or motor yacht is not a trawler style boat and I have no interest in a gin palace. Also there are plenty of Trawler style vessels that do not have the classic teak brightwork and most modern manufacturers have moved away from it. I just wanted to know of there was a good solution to existing teak maintenance on a 2007 Monk 36’ but see there is not a lot of consensus (apart from avoiding it if you don’t want the maintenance)! I think we will pass and look at Nordic or American Tugs or similar. Thanks all for the input though.
Click to expand...

My comments were specific around a trunk cabin trawler - they all have exterior teak though the Monk 36 has less than any I can think of. I assumed you had a budget in the $150k range and wanted twin staterooms. An aft cabin motor yacht layout fits that requirement nicely and will definitely get you the 10-kt cruise you wanted. If you're willing to pay $300k and are ambivalent about a second head/stateroom and flybridge, a Nordic/American Tug are great boats and have no exterior teak. Just seems like an extreme answer to an easy solution of spending a couple weekends painting out the relatively modest amount of teak on a boat that you otherwise liked. I don't agree with the yard you asked that advised the paint will crack - it will oxidize and need touch-up every 5-years or so, but it's sturdy stuff as many in this thread have expressed.

Peter
 
Thanks Peter,

Fair point and still haven’t written it off, and could probably forgo the second cabin. The exchange is terrible here in Canada so $300k USD is about $415 CAD here. Hence we were looking at 36-42’ boats in the $250k USD range. We find most nice trawlers post 2006 are over that (and have seen lots of floating junk) so the Monk was a good find other than all the exterior wood - although I do wonder at the bizarre design decision of having the back radar mast stay running to the mid deck so you have to duck under it every time to access the flybridge. Anyhow, we are ex-sailors so can deal with that.

Overall, as I am getting on a bit in years, I would like to reduce DIY upkeep to mechanical and a bit of cosmetic polish on a vessel that is not high maintenance (if such a thing exists)! We did own an American Tug at one point which was great in that respect, but alas had ongoing engine issues doe to a previous owners poor maintenance. Will definitely book a revisit to the Monk and consider our options.

Cheers Bill
 
Our team was painted when we bought our Cheoy Lee 34 Pilothouse Trawler. We have had to address a few areas at joints with sanding, epoxy, fairing compound, primer and Bright sides (White now discontinued) now available in exact same color by Petit EZ Poxy. Simple maintenance every few years.
Definitely NOT a $20-30k job. Not unless you are paying some slow-poke $400 USD/hr. It is an easy DYI job or even supervise some illegals to do the grunt work (kidding).
 
WilliamR said:
Hi folks,

Looking at a 2007 Monk 36 Trawler. I believe the later ones were made in Canada. My main reservation is all that wood outside and cap rails etc. There are covers for the railings but not the flybridge and I don't wan't to be varnishing, I want to go cruising! So I guess my option would be to epoxy coat and paint? Given the amount of wood, is that feasible - no idea of the cost involved? Otherwise, I'll keep looking for something with less wood, but is a really nice equipped and maintained boat

Also anyone know if these boats can do 10 knots (220Hp cummins) as would like something I can push to that on occasion if the weather is looking bad here in BC.

Any pointers gratefully received.

Many thanks
Bill
Click to expand...
Hi Bill,
I have a 2002 Nova Scotia built Monk 36. The 220 HP Cummins is the ideal engine for the 36. We have the 330 HP version and when we sea trialed the boat we could hit 15 kts at max RPM. The boat was extremely light when we did this and you would never run at that RPM for any length of time. Once we added some weight as in full tanks and gen set and water maker etc we found that it really likes 8 kts. That being said we have run at 10 kts for extended periods on occasion to beat the weather or tides. As far as the rails, we used Cetal. Starting with bare wood we mixed 50/50 regular cetal and clear. Then two coats of clear . It looks like varnish. I recently added some new coats and made covers. I hope to get 3 to 4 years before I need additional coats. We have done an average of 6 months a year cruising from the Sea of Cortez to Alaska with a side trip up the Columbia and Snake to Idaho. They are a wonderful cruising boat. I think your concerns about the wood are overblown.
 
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