Smeggie

Took delivery of "Cool Change" today and put our old boat, Spindrift on the market. Kind of a bittersweet day. Decided to take a picture of them side-by-side....the first and last time. Hoping Spindrift sells quickly, she was a great boat!

Remember the reason. As Americans, we owe every last one our lost warriors our undying respect. I took this video clip while photographing a dear friends father's interment at Arlington National Cemetery. LTC Mike Clune, a decorated veteran. It was an amazing event to capture for the family. Respect. https://digitaledgephotography.zenfolio.com/ltc-james-michael-clune/e1005e675

Thanks Wayne, it's been a process. Something new to us. We take delivery on Saturday and then we get to start cleaning the inside!

Wet Dream Wet Spot Dripping Wet

Cool Change has been on the pad over the past week or so. They have gotten quite a lot done: 1). Reconditioned both props 2). Bottom Paint 3). Repaired gelcoat on swim platform 4). Replaced gaskets on starboard engine manifold / risers 5). Repaired remote oil filter housing leak 6). Resealed grill pedestal in swim platform 7). Resealed starboard deck hatch 8). They are halfway through complete 2 stage compound & wax. We have a whole list of things that will be done once its back in the water either Saturday or Tuesday. So far we are really happy with how its coming along. Next priority is to sell our old boat so we can pay for this one!

Took the words right outta my mouth @Sammy

I gotta remember some of these! Classics!

Thanks all! Currently in the Outer Banks of NC enjoying some amazing weather and relaxation. We had family photos done on Monday evening from a friend and fellow photographer. It's been a good week (so far) visiting with our son, grandson and our son's girlfriend. Peace and tranquility, see you all in server on Sunday!

Go woke, go broke. Never touch the crap anyway. But I do share his sentiments

Hey @Mule, yes the boat will be called "Cool Change" Some of the inspiration came from the song Cool Change by Little River Band. Mostly only us old folks that will remember it LOL

Well oil samples came back and were in pretty good shape. The transmissions still had the break in fluid in them at 470 hours. We will get all the fluids changed while on the hard getting the bottom paint done, the port prop recond and a few other things. We settle on Thursday so I guess we will own a new (to us) boat. We are getting close to the graphic to put on the back of the boat. Not sure which font we like best. Any suggestions as to which you like best?

Or Richard Head (a.k.a DICK HEAD)

Great suggestion, and one of my wife's favorites. Although I have not read the book my wife brought this up several times.

Thanks for all of the ideas. We have decided on the name "Cool Change" for the boat if the deal goes through. Inspired by the song "Cool Change" by the Little River Band...most of you young whipersnappers wouldn't have a clue....lol We have bounced many of your ideas off one another and I appreciate all your input. So now we wait....for the oil samples to come in.

Compression test has come back okay. All cylinders on both engines are within 90% of spec of 150psi ranging from 135psi to 150psi Just waiting in the oil analysis to come in.

Well I'll take my chances. It's currently called "Buzzed Gobbler" which is just plain stupid. But I am sure it had special meaning to the current owners LOL

Sellers have countered with a decent offer. We are still waiting on the compression check and oil sample results, but that may not be until next week. If they all look good, we'll likely sign the deal

No captains license required unless you are chartering for money and you are under certain tonnage. Some insurance companies will require captains sign-off, especially if you are jumping into a much larger vessel (which we are) or are first time boaters jumping into a large vessel. I have received three quotes from insurance companies and none are requiring captains training to move up, however, the captain that has been helping with our sea trials on the past two boats is a close friend and will gladly ride along and provide guidance if necessary. My wife and I have been boating since the early 1980's. We are well versed in navigating the river (and beyond), it will just help with some of the onboard systems and how they integrate with each other as much as anything.

@TBB if you're ever in the DC area we'll make that happen.

I shall. Ball is in the owners court. Hopefully we'll know in the next couple of days what direction this thing is headed.

That looks amazing @Shadow, well done!

Well we weren't aware of any water issues with the engine until after we had been underway on our sea trial. Virtually every nook and cranny (short of drilling holes) was explored on this vessel. Every stringer within the bilge and sumps were resonance checked and moisture tested. The thermal imaging camera was also used on the inside and outside of the hull to check for temperature inconsistencies which would have identified any voids in the hull core. This guys is SAMS@ AMS@ certified and a Certified Level III Thermographer. He knows his shit

@Mule did you get that new Larson out on the water yet?

NICE Stripers! I can't wait to hit the Chesapeake Bay and hunt for these! My wife gotta kick out of the name "Deez Knots" LOL

The surveyor does a resonance sound test on the entire hull, top to bottom. He also puts a moisture meter all over the hull to check for moisture in the core of the hull. Leakage around hatches is very common. They repair it by pulling the hatch out, drilling holes in the affected areas. They use heaters to dry out the fibreglass and inject resin into the core where the delamination has occurred. Once that is set and solid (and it is much stronger than the original wood core) they seal it all up, reset the hatch and call it a day. It will last the lifetime of the boat. The engines are 7.4L 454 cubic inch V-8 gasoline engines. Hence there are two exhaust manifolds per engine (one on each side). The surveyor uses a thermal imaging camera on the engine, manifolds, heat exchangers to ensure that things are properly cooling and there are no signs of cracks. The water leaks were found during a visual inspection. They connect OBD diags to the engines and check compression. Other than that no surveyor will go much further than that other than to take oil samples from the engines, transmissions and the generator. They will be sent out to labs for analysis to see what contaminants are in the oil (i.e. coolant, water, particulate, etc). These engines are direct drive shaft engines as opposed to V-drives, Z-drives or stern drives. None of this scares me. It's all fixable. Just not on my dime.