Put offer on 1989 48 motor yacht

[Quicksilver55]

We put an offer on a 1989 Carver Californian 48-foot motor yacht today. There are 2 things I know going in. There is a soft spot in the deck under the sun cushion Snaps that tore loose new ones added old ones not sealed. A little soft but hard to tell in 7-degree weather. Boat's 32 years old, I would expect a couple of things wrong. plan on drilling, drying, and injecting some compound to firm up the core and re-gelcoat. area is 20 x 20 reinstall the snaps and cover with the sun pad. Also, some stress cracks on the angles gel coat under the windshield. I am going to assume the windshield needs to be re-sealed. In general, the caulking around the joints should redone IMO. Any insight would be helpful to know what I am in for.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. Q. In general, ALL deck, hull and house fittings should be re-bedded eventually. What is necessary depends on how good the factory installation and bedding was, how much stress and strain a particular fitting is exposed to (stanchions, cleats, snaps etc.) and any signs of failed bedding (rust seeping from underneath fitting).


Personally, I would stay far away from 3M 5200 or silicone's. I've recently taken to using butyl tape for bedding and am quite pleased with the results thus far. As for caulk, I usually use 3M 4000 for most applications. For clear caulk I use Lexel. https://www.sashco.com/products/lexel/

 

[Quicksilver55]

RT,
Thanks for the information, I am always open to ideas and products that will make the job easier.

 

[kthoennes]

You're exactly right on the effect of cold. Take it from me, when it's 20 below zero F (or 7F), almost any soft deck will stiffen up. Can't really judge deck condition very well when the boat's a solid popsicle. Tough conditions for a boat inspection. But sounds like you're well aware already. One very cold winter some years ago the windshield on our Carver spontaneously shattered, shooting tempered glass chunks everywhere. Some suggested that it maybe wasn't blocked well so the windshield was stressed or "racked" but I tend to think it was more likely a temperature differential -- bright sunshine warming up the space between the shrink wrap and windshield, but still below zero inside the cabin.

 

[Quicksilver55]

Thanks,
Yes the temperature differential can crack or shatter glass. It's our plans to be somewhere a little warmer than Chicago when next winter comes. If not then inside storage is possible.

 

[Comodave]

I love buytl to seal bolted down items. For general caulking I have gone away from 3M products and instead am using Sika products. I feel they work much better. We just caulked in our new swim platform extension yesterday with 391 Sika. I did use 3M 5200 to glue and seal the below the water brackets for the down rod supports for it. I only use 5200 where I need an adhesive caulk that will never need removal, because it is almost impossible to remove them after using 5200. Never use silicone.

 

[Quicksilver55]

Good News, survey came back above average condition with a few minor things. The soft deck issue is there but I knew about it before hand and I'm trying to get dry boat out to quote on the repair. I have to reseal the windshield and it should be good to go.

 

[Quicksilver55]

I have an additional question, I'm trying to find out where this boat was actually built. The HIN begins with CDRJA I can't seem to find out if it was still built in the Tustin plant or the North Carolina plant.

 

[Mako]

One very cold winter some years ago the windshield on our Carver spontaneously shattered, shooting tempered glass chunks everywhere... I tend to think it was more likely a temperature differential -- bright sunshine warming up the space between the shrink wrap and windshield, but still below zero inside the cabin.

Sounds about right. Years ago I darkly tinted all of my deckhouse windows, which was a huge help in the Southern California summer sun, without air conditioning.

One night was very cold out and early the next more I awoke to multiple gun shots going off and my windows being blown apart. Turns out the early morning sun heated the glass which captured the heat with the tinting, thus shattering it. Multiple windows.

 

[Ray.Yager]

My Carver Californian 4809 is a 1991 ( not a CPMY). Hull #513. She was built in NC in June of that year. Hope that helps. I’d wager yours was built in NC too.

 

[Capt. Jon]

Being a 1989 it is most likely built in NC. Most of the Tustin boats had a build plaque on the inside of one of the doors under the galley sink with the build location hull number and date. Another sure fire way to tell is the angle of the radar arch. If it is leaning back at an angle greater than the wing door sides of the cabin its a Tustin built boat. If the arch is at the same angle as the sides at the wing doors it was built in NC. Post a picture of the boats profile if you have one.

The tops of the sun decks were bad to rot. Water gets in through the arch base and weeps down into the core. I found it best to remove the arch and cut the top out. You can then replace the core, install a better mounting system for the arch and re-glass. IIRC when we had it done its was not ridicules in price. They had it done in a few days.

 

[Quicksilver55]

Profile of the boat

Capt. Jon,
Here's a profile of the boat from the listing on thre boat

 

[Capt. Jon]

Profile shot of arch. Notice angle of the arch is greater than the side. This is a Tustin built boat.

 

[Capt. Jon]

Capt. Jon,
Here's a profile of the boat from the listing on thre boat

Thats a NC built boat.

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

Nice. Looks similar to our ASD, a 1988 Camargue.

Good Luck! Good looking boat. Send more pics

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Just a comment on glass shattering. Tempered "safety" glass, by it's very nature, is under tremendous stress as it sits. IF the surface and edges of the piece of glass are chip/crack free that built in stress gives it it's strength and ability to resist impacts much better than non tempered glass.


Herein lies the complication. If the edges are not cushioned or protected from hard objects (frames, screws, brackets etc) OR there are surface or edge defects (scratches, chips) AND the glass undergoes a temperature change, explosive failure can and does occur. The temperature change alone will NOT cause the glass to self destruct. There has to be some defect that is the "weak" point.

 

[Quicksilver55]

More Pictures

Here's the pictures I have now. I have a question we sea trialed, and everything was pretty good the trans was a little high on iron, but the boat had been put up for the winter. and this was the first outing. No big deal I will be changing all the fluid except the engine a generator as they were all done in October and now have 1.5 hours on them. The Cat mechanic said he thought I should replace the starboard turbo (original) I looked at the boast reading and the boast was equal to or higher than the port engine until WOT. He said he thought the exhaust elbow was corroded and should just replace the whole unit. It was 4 lbs. less on the starboard side. I am going to clean and pressure test both aftercoolers, replace the trans oil, drain and flush the coolant on both sides, change the fuel filters, and hoses. Would you replace the turbo?

 

[KnotYet]

I would inspect both turbines and clean them first if there are heavy deposits.
Some mechanics would replace a turbo as preventative maintenance but you will
usually hear increased noise or notice increased oil consumption before a failure.
Obviously if there are damaged blades at either end then replacement is indicated.
Look for any evidence of the blades touching the housings (bad), for example.

 

[Quicksilver55]

Thanks Knot Yet I will take a look at them this week while it's hauled for bottom paint.

 

[KnotYet]

Thanks Knot Yet I will take a look at them this week while it's hauled for bottom paint.

Pyrometers - exhaust temperature gauges - are also useful to help see what's
going on with the engine. For example, if it boosted 4 psi lower @WOT was the
pyro reading differently too?

Naturally you would want to be sure you are getting correct info from your gauges.

 

[Quicksilver55]

I don't see any actual temperature readings from the Caterpillar report but it does show temps within range