Gulfstar trawler

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kpinnn

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2012
Messages
154
Location
USA
Vessel Name
Periwinkle
Vessel Make
Gulfstar 36
I am the captain of the Periwinkle. She is a 1975 36 ft gulfstar trawler. I like the old girl but want to know more about what she is made of and possible solutions to problems old vessels are plagued with. Is the an active or soon to be active gulfstar club and primarily trawlers.
Ken
 
Happily Its my understanding the old Gulf boats the were solid glass construction.

So you can ignore all the TT posts of replacing decks , PH, caused by Chinese Composite.

All machinery eventually wears out , so match your bilge pump, FW pump and carry the spares on board.

Eventually you may wish to replace water hoses , fuel lines (if rubber , not metal) and the rubbers inopening ports and hatches.

Enjoy a usually easy boat to maintain! You can go cruising instead of boat repairing.
 
Last edited:
Moved Thread from "General Discussion" to "Gulfstar"
 
I had a 73 Mk1 Gulfstar for about 3 years. The hull is solid glass, and almost bullet proof. The decks are balsa cored. Expect to find spongy spots anywhere hardware was installed, either screwed in or through bolted. The fittings will leak, and the balsa will turn to mush. If caught early enough, the repair is simple. We removed all our stanchions from the main deck. They were wobbly and you could see the deck compress. To remove the bad wood, I cut the head off a nail and bent an inch of the pointed end 90 degrees. Installed in a battery drill, you can undercut the mush around the fastener hole. Clean out and dry hole with a shop vac. Seal the hole from the bottom with duct tape, and fill with a slightly thickened epoxy mixture. After it has set up, remove tape, and re-drill holes for hardware. Re-install stanchions with a liberal application of caulking. A few of my spots were more extensive, so using a Rockwell oscillating cutter, I removed the deck back to solid wood. Clean up the hole and fit a plug of exterior plywood, 1/2 inch in this case. Locate the bolt holes on the plug and cut them oversize, about 1 inch. Seal the underside of the deck with duck tape, and install plug with thickened epoxy, filling the oversize holes. Clean up the deck piece, epoxy in place over plug, re-drill holes and install hardware with sealant of choice.
The fly bridges are notorious for being spongy as well. You can fix them in sections, or if really ambitious, remove the bridge and completely replace the deck. Note - that will require supporting the deck from the salon below. You can follow people on U-tube having done this to boats of other brands.

Hope this helps.


Mike
 
The wide keels of the Gulfstars are notoriously thin on the bottom. I've handled two insurance claims due the boats being placed on blocks narrower than the keel. In one case going right through the fuel tank. Just make sure when the boat is blocked that at least three blocks (preferably four) are used and that they are at least 6" wider than the keel.
 
I have 1972 and found only one soft spot from cracked glass. Fixing was easy. Old twin 80hp Lehman runs good. I did had to replace the copper line for steering. It is a good, solid boat.
 
New to the site and new to 1975 GS 36 trawler ownership. Jumped from sailing to trawler. We know we have some work ahead but love the layout and her character. Typical leaks around ports with worn out veneer. Looking at options for replacing the veneer with something other veneer. In captains quarters considering a cloth material. Will try to replace veneer in salon with wood and flooring is another years project. Engines are 1990 twin Westerbekes 100hp very good shape.
 
I know this is an old post but I was wondering if you still had your 36? We are going to replace our veneer around the leaky windows in the salon and was wondering what you went with...any pictures? Thank you.
 
Candyannwilliams, I am also interested! I have a ‘76 36’MK2 and love her. But all of the salon windows have leaked and I need to replace the veneer on the walls. Hope we get some response on this!
 
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